Lives in Cricket No 30 - MJK Smith

54 defensive shots, but later on he found himself moving sideways. ‘It would be a lot more hairy now,’ he reflects: ‘Think of fielding there to Chris Gayle!’ Mike expands on the problems of fielding close on the leg side: Although helmets make the game a lot safer, the real problem is that no bowler can protect you. If the batsman chooses to belt it your way, he does so. The danger ball is the middle-and- leg half-volley. The batsman can pick this up and hit it with real power, giving the fielder next to no time to react and defend himself. If the batsman goes to hook or sweep, the fielder has that fraction of a second longer to take defensive action. Mike was playing in the match at Cardiff when Roger Davis was hit by Neal Abberley: It was the worst injury I ever saw. Roger was at short leg. Malcolm Nash, left-arm over, was the bowler. Neal picked up a half-volley on leg stump, Roger involuntarily turned his head and was hit just above the ear. It was very frightening, but amazingly Roger was out of hospital in a few days and recovered fully. A golden summer