Famous Cricketers No 82 - H.E. 'Tom' Dollery

beaten for pace by Lindwall second ball. Dollery always acknowledged that Lindwall’s pace was too good for him at this time, there being no bowler remotely like his pace on the county circuit to get any practice against, (indeed the only bowler anywhere near Lindwall’s pace was playing for Warwickshire, the New Zealander Tom Pritchard). Australia piled on the runs in their second innings in good conditions and set England the impossible task of scoring nearly 600 to win. Just to make things harder the weather intervened and England had to bat on a wet pitch with constant rain stoppages and this time he came in at 65 for three. He then proceeded to play his one real innings at Test level that reflected his skill; showing typical guts and determination he added 41 with Denis Compton in the last half hour of play to at least give England the semblance of a chance of saving the game. Unfortunately Compton was out to the second ball next morning and with that England’s hopes flew out of the window. Dollery played what Wisden called “a very good innings” until after yet another rain break he ducked a Lindwall bouncer which skidded through on the wet surface, didn’t get up, struck him on the gloves and cannoned onto the top of the off stump. His 37 was equal top score in the innings and he saw 68 runs added while he was in. He was retained for the Third Test at Old Trafford where England put up their best performance of the series so far only to be thwarted by the weather after having much the best of the game. This time England batted first and thanks mainly to Compton, who scored a magnificent 145 not out after being hit on the head by Lindwall and having his forehead stitched up, they posted a respectable score. Dollery came in at number six to face the second new ball at yet another crisis while Compton was recovering, but was “yorked” by left arm fast-medium bowler Bill Johnston for only a single. He didn’t get to the wicket in the second innings before the declaration and so couldn’t redeem himself, and in the Gentlemen and Players game at Lord’s which immediately followed he couldn’t post a big enough score to impress the selectors and he was discarded once again. He missed out on selection for the winter tour to South Africa, and not just from a cricketing point of view; a long break in the sun away from the English winter and food rationing would have been a real tonic, but the selectors were now looking at younger men. In between the Test Matches he had kept his eye in with a two hour 93 in his old friend Eric Hollies’ Benefit Match against Kent and when he returned to Warwickshire with Maudsley now in charge he maintained his form at county level. He tormented the Derbyshire bowlers as usual with a three hour 90 in a rain ruined match at Edgbaston, before winning the Hampshire game at Southampton with a typical cavalier knock in a crisis. Warwickshire needed 147 in ninety-five minutes but he hit up four sixes and four fours in a not out 76 to see his side home with five minutes to spare. Lindwall got him out cheaply again when Warwickshire lost heavily to the all-conquering Australians in early August. Tom Dollery had thrived on the extra responsibility, he easily finished top of his county’s batting with an average of just under 50 and finished 16th in the first-class list; there was no evidence that the captaincy had adversely affected his batting. Warwickshire finished in 7th place in the Championship, a great advance on 15th of the previous season, (they had been in 3rd place when Dollery had handed over to Maudsley), but this did not reflect badly on the amateur who had proved a popular leader and worth his place on form. The Committee had a major decision to make for the coming season. Own Team O M R W Opp Ct St Total Total 195. Warwickshire v Nottinghamshire, Trent Bridge, May 8, 10, 11 (Nottinghamshire won by eight wickets) * b A.Jepson 40 235 435 1 c E.A.Meads b H.J.Butler 53 275 77-2 196. Warwickshire v Lancashire, Old Trafford, May 12, 13, 14 (Match drawn) * b W.B.Roberts 33 262 470 c and b J.T.Ikin 102 244-5 197. Warwickshire v Derbyshire, Derby, May 15, 17, 18 (Warwickshire won by seven wickets) * c G.O.Dawkes b W.H.Copson 167 398 177 2 not out 7 34-3 254 198. Warwickshire v Yorkshire, Edgbaston, May 19, 20, 21 (Warwickshire won by 54 runs) * lbw b E.P.Robinson 95 184 210 c H.Halliday b R.Aspinall 13 222 142 31