Lives in Cricket No 46 - George Raikes

83 Raikes’ Metamorphosis As A Bowler Strange Doings Raikes’ bowling was occasionally linked with some eccentricities on both sides. In a match against Oxfordshire in 1905, tailender Alfred Rogers was struggling against the leg breaks and resorted to turning round and playing Raikes left-handed; the crowd laughed but two boundaries were hit. Perhaps these two ‘fours’ were early examples of successful ‘reverse sweeps’? Earlier in the same innings the Eastern Daily Press related how “An over of high tossed full pitches from Raikes endangered the life of the wicket keeper, but except for one boundary hit … [W.H.] Follett failed to hit them.” Again, while bowling against Bedfordshire in 1911 “Raikes bowled an over of high full tosses to Squire without meeting with success.” Raikes was not the only exponent of the high full toss; E.H.D.Sewell wrote “If a … stodgy batsman is in and apparently not removable it is perfectly legitimate to bowl slow, or fast, full tosses in the direction of his head. If he gets hurt the fault is his.” Again, M.A.Noble proposed that a “full-toss, straight and fast, bail high is often effective, for it is not the simple ball it looks and is often the means of breaking up a dangerous partnership.” Noble appeared to part company with Raikes and Sewell in that his ball was a surprise delivery whereas they advocated bowling several in a row. In modern times the ‘beamer’ is banned and Raikes’ deliveries would get short shrift but, in his time, they are evidence of an adventurous captain prepared to gamble in search of wickets. With the benefit of hindsight, one wonders whether the facts that his bowling at Shrewsbury School was described as ‘difficult to see’ and that he could bowl a ‘peculiar delivery’ whilst up at Oxford in 1894 might have been early attempts at developing a ‘mystery ball’? note 1: During his career for Hampshire he was thrice the beneficiary of stumpings taken by Charles Robson. This might suggest that he had been bowling ‘slows’ but, in those days, ‘keepers often stood up to fast medium trundlers. Robson also entrusted him with the new ball on several occasions so that it is difficult to be certain exactly what method, or methods, of attack that Raikes employed when bowling for Hampshire. note 2: As described in chapter six, Raikes played for Hampshire alongside Charlie Llewellyn, who may have been the pioneer of left-arm wrist-spin. However, Llewellyn’s biographer, Neil Jenkinson, makes a good case that he learnt the basics from fellow South African, Reggie Schwarz, as late as 1904 and did not master them immediately. He is therefore unlikely to have had any influence on Raikes’ development as a leg-spinner – although the possibility is intriguing. note 3: In his book The Strange Death Of English Leg Spin , Justin Parkinson stated that the quicker ball was used as a variant by most leg-spinners prior to the Great War. Primary sources such as Ranjitsinhji and Ian Peebles confirm this view, with the latter lauding the quicker deliveries of Aubrey Faulkner and, after the War, ‘Robbie’ Robins. note 4: The ‘flipper’ was not brought to maturity until the 1950s when Bruce Dooland and Richie Benaud used it most effectively. note 5: Although, when writing an article in Wisden for 1926, Bosanquet makes clear, that he could bowl a leg-break with a confusing action more-or-less to demand.