Lives in Cricket No 52 - Schooled in Cricket (2nd edition)

16 medium pace, says Jack Birkenshaw, but “by the time I first faced him in the nets [1951] it was a gentle medium pace”. Though such slow bowling can be light relief to teammates and spectators – it can be totally bewildering and exasperating to opposing batsmen when their aspirations come crashing down upon their heads. As David Foot puts it: “He tossed his leg breaks into the clouds causing merriment and consternation. He chatted as he bowled, warning the batsman that the googly was coming. But opponents and teammates knew what a practical joker he was” [from: Somerset cricket: a post-war Who’s Who] As Alan Gibson says, he was “one of the slowest bowlers I have ever seen. There were times when he would deliberately bowl slower and slower, until he almost An exceedingly slow bowler Whatever his age ...