James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Annual 1876

4 the second innings of the Marylebone Club lie bowled 162 balls (36 maidens) for 7 runs and 7 wickets, and the brilliance of the achieve­ ment was heightened by the fact that in these 7 wickets were six such batsmen as Messrs. W. G. Grace, Ridley, Fuller, Herbert, Lord lia r ris, and Clayton, all clean bowled. For Nottinghamshire against Surrey at Nottingham he was also irresistible, though in this case he had considerable advantage o f ground. In the first innings he deli­ vered 8d balls for 8 runs and 6 wickets, and in the second 34 overs for 14 runs and 4 wickets, making in all 10 wickets at a cost of 22 runs. Other instances innumerable could be <.iven o f his exploits, but these must serve for the present requirements, as space is limited. Is Alfred Shaw the best howler of the day? 1 fancy this will be the question raised by some. Opinions may differ, and no doubt there will he hundreds to assert that Soutlierton is quite as good, but to my mind on a good wicket, and with nothing in the shape of extraneous help to aid the delivery of the ball, Alfred Shaw lias no equal. And if so, to wlmt is due his marked superiority of late years ? In tlie first place, his accuracy of pitch is surprising, even when one recalls the wonderful certainty o f pitch possessed by many of liis rivals. Secondly, he possesses to perfection the art of delivering the dropping ball, by which, of course, I mean a ball tossed higher in the air, and eminently deceptive to the batsman ; in the case of the majority of bowlers a most dangerous ball to give to a player quick on liis legs, though generally a successful manoeuvre when Alfred Shaw is the ope­ rator. Thirdly, and what contributes most to his success, is the extraordinary facility with which he adapts his bowling to every new batsman bo has to meet, discovering almost intuitively the weak point in liis defence. In addition he has, of course, great break and continual variety o f pace, but these are arts common to all good bowlers, though not possessed by others in such a marked degree. His readiness in accommodating his bowling to every kind o f bat will be acknowledged by every one who has had practical expe­ rience in the matter. Every batsman has at least “ one spot of ground,” to use Felix’s expression, “ upon which, if the ball should alight, produces an indescribable sensation,” and Shaw is never long in dis- covering it. It is in this that you can realise the touch of the true artist, and it is interesting to watch him as he keeps pegging away with all the imperturbability of conscious success. I have heard many declare that they have found it easy to go out and drive Soutlierton, but that with Shaw it is quite a different thing. He seems to put the drag or brake on in the air, and going out to meet it, as you fancy, on the half volley, you suddenly find that you are quite a foot off the pitch. It seems easy enough to play him, and on the occasion of any great match you can hear the same question from old cricketers:— “ Why on earth don’t you go out to hit h i m? ” “ Aye, there’s the n i b ! ’ We can all of us preach if we cannot practice. I know thou- koim I b who can talk cricket from the pavilion if they never attempt to ]»lay it at the wicket. To criticise a bowler like Alfred Shaw demands a