Lives in Cricket No 47 - Brian Sellers

64 Batsman, fielder, bowler – and England captain? have to seek quick runs after the first batters had done most of the work, or they had to try to repair a broken innings. In either case, Sellers was likely to be soon out, which would lower his average. Even a few runs might do for the team, as at Chesterfield in July 1938. Sellers had been second top scorer in Yorkshire’s first innings, and went in at eight on the third day, wanting to declare. Sellers’ rapid 13 included what the Derby Telegraph called ‘a delightful sweep to leg’ off Mitchell, before Denis Smith at slip caught Sellers off a slash that glanced off wicket-keeper Harry Elliott’s pad. In the scorebook it looked a failure; except Yorkshire won. To compensate, Sellers and others could make easier runs off tired bowlers, and according to many match reports when Yorkshire batted first, their ‘brightest’ batting came late in the day. Some bowling was too good for most. Sellers was ‘completely at sea’ against Maurice Tate at Hove in August 1932, and ‘it was no surprise’ to the Sussex Daily News that Sellers played inside an off break and was bowled for eight – the same score and dismissal as Sutcliffe’s that morning. It was no coincidence that Sellers made his career highest score in May 1936 not against a county but the weaker Cambridge University. Norman Yardley, then a student playing for Cambridge, noted in his memoir that ‘several of our best men were absent’ for exams, including the opening bowler Wilf Wooller. Sellers promoted himself to three; Sutcliffe went in at four and made 49, and the two made 177 in two and a quarter hours, which Brian Sellers batting in the nets.