Lives in Cricket No 26 - HV Hesketh-Prichard

124 The Legacy It is worth noting, though, that especially in his early years a high proportion of his victims were clean bowled which, given his height, must have meant bowling a very full length. The other account dates from 15 June 1922, and from his cricketing obituary in the Manchester Guardian, by Neville Cardus, signing himself as ‘Cricketer’: In his day Hesketh Prichard was just one excellent fast bowler among many in first-class cricket: today, he would at his best be standing alone – the best reply in English cricket to Australia’s Gregory. Not as fast as Gregory, he was technically a better bowler. Gregory, with all his height, had to pitch short in order to bump the ball and, as a consequence, if the wicket was so good that the ball would not bump Gregory could be easily hit by fearless batsmen. Hesketh-Prichard had the ability to make the ball rear after pitching a good length. His action was not in the least a tearaway action: he seemed always to be bowling well within his strength, with his mind definitely directing every stage in his action. He was not a fast bowler that became a passenger on the advent of rain: he could adapt himself to a bowlers’ wicket, which he did by slackening pace and bringing into play a breakback spun from the fingers. As with most good fast bowlers, his pace came from a full rotary swing of the arm following a loose-limbed run to the wicket. There was little in his action of the abrupt energy in the hips and back which is the mark of the ‘slinging’ type of fast bowler, of whom Skelding, of Leicestershire, is a more than commonly good example. The reference to Alex Skelding (probably best remembered as an umpire) is perhaps of little help to us now, but we need to remember the context: England, following the devastation of the war, had recently been utterly outplayed by Australia home and away, and England’s opening bowlers in 1921 included Johnny Douglas, really a batting allrounder and nearly 40 years old; Bill Hitch, who was 35 and only an occasional at Test level; and Harry Howell and Jack Durston, even more occasional. In the Fourth Test Frank Woolley had opened the bowling. As it was to be after 1945, it took some time for fast bowlers to come through. Jack Hobbs remarked 64 that ‘the bowling wasn’t as good as it was before the War, it really wasn’t. Some of the counties were very little trouble … the best of the bowling was not so sharp.’ Hex’s batting, on the other hand, is something of an enigma. Both at Fettes and at Horsham we have quotes suggesting his batting was improving, but in neither case was this borne out by the scores. As we have seen, he could keep an end up – especially in the Gentlemen v Players match in 1904, but he also was employed quite often as a nightwatchman for Hampshire, and usually succeeded, though he rarely went on for long the next morning. It is odd that a man who as a sharp-shooter had exceptional hand-eye coordination, rarely contributed more than a few runs to team totals. Parker says that he was an exceptionally hard hitter (especially in country- 64 Quoted in John Arlott, Jack Hobbs: Profile of the Master, John Murray, 1981.