Lives in Cricket No 5 - Rockley Wilson

West Indies’ innings. The latter was to prove the best bowling figures that Rockley produced in first-class cricket. 28 Wisden commented on the “peculiarities of the wickets” but even taking account of the assistance they might have provided, Wilson could justifiably feel that his reputation as a bowler had been enhanced by his three months’ sojourn in the Caribbean. School and University 35 28 This was an unusual match in several respects. The acting captain of Bennett’s side, A.D.Whatman, won the toss and put the West Indies in to bat on a wet pitch, dismissing them for 92, with Wilson taking 7 for 46. Bennett’s XI then scored 455, giving them a first innings lead of 363. In their second innings, West Indies were 13-0 at the end of the second day’s play, on Saturday. When play resumed on Monday after overnight rain, Wilson and his Trinity College colleague, E.M.Dowson, bowling to a much changed batting order, took all ten wickets for only 20 runs in about twenty overs. Bennett’s side thus won by an innings and 330 runs, still the largest innings win margin ever achieved in first-class cricket in the West Indies. Immediately after that match was over, Bennett’s XI started a new first-class match at 3.15pm, this time against British Guiana. Whatman lost the toss this time and with the pitch still wet, Bennett’s XI were sent in to bat and dismissed in just over two hours for 90, before play ended for the day.