HAMMOND MAY HAVE MADE A MISTAKE

Chronicle (Levin), 19 December 1946, Page 7

HAMMOND MAY HAVE MADE A MISTAKE

QUESTIONABLE HANDLING OF BOWLING

Received Thursday. 9.30 a.m. SYDNEY, Dec. 18, The tragedy of the match was the way the enchanting innings of Hutton came to an end. It is not reckless to assume that rt century of some grandeur was nipped in the bud, a rare page blotted in the book of cricket's history. Edrich batted a staunch innings and after a nebulous prelude, Compton's lissome play massaged the lined fnce of

England's innings. So the hour of victory and defeat was . postponed, but more than optimisiri is needed bO supposeht will not come when.it will come. Bradman prolonged Australia-s innings this morning, not only to increase the total, but also to allow che roller to do its hdaviest and best upon the dry surface, of the wicket. m iifty minutes he was free to aeclare, with no fewer than 80 added because of tne questionable nandling of the bowling. Hammond's aim was, or shoula nave been, to put a break on the Australian rate of scoring, and to waste as a consequence as much as possible of the tnne left to their oowlers. He threw runs into Bradman 's lap by allowing Wright and ^mith to slave away, neither oi .hem by method meant for closing ap a game. Moreover, the very facc of their spin aided and abetted Australia, because it tendered to powder the pitch and render it the more responsive to the Australian .pinners. It is usually invidious to find fault with cricket captaincy from any position not on and in the field of play, but surely this was an oecajion for accuracy and a canny .ength by Edrich and Bedser, jspecially against ir'fesponsible taiijnders. It was almost pitiful to see che labouring of Wright, who walked from deep third man for .he bowling of his endless overs; his morning he might have been permitted to snatch scme oppormnity for relaxation. England's innings began with i radiance of stroke play by Hutton, which elevated a match mainly jf mass production and utili-y to ne fine realms oi art. He sur/ived an appeal for leg before with .he first ball. Then, in a swift and .nost easeful sequence, he rippled ,he sunlit field by stylish drives. The curve of his body over and into the hits was lovely. Then Miller oumped short stuif at him, and 3n,ce he narrowly escaped being :aught at the wicket while duck- ! ng. A forcing hit from the back Joot off a good length by Miller ! jent the ball to the fence with the j ,peed of thought. In less than half j an hour Hutton achieved six i aoundaries, each an adornment and : n honour to cricket. In less than half an hour Eng.and's score sped to 49. Upon the aeavy and careworn face of modern Jest cricket, this glorious batsmanhip came- as a visitation and flusli af the rarifiea spirit of those who die young, because the gods love chem. In the last over before lunch Lhe cruellest bolt ' of mischief orought Hutton doa^n to the prosaic sarth; he attempted another forcing backstroke off Miller, and, after nicting the ball, lost the grip of his oat with one hand, and the unconA'olled swing of it brcke his own wicket. This was a crying shame, ahallenging justice ,and philosophy. 3ut art, so we trieduto console our.elves, is not a matter of numbers ar duration; this innings of Hui/on's will be remembered, With reason to feel that luck was in accomplice, the Australians ifter lunch went into action, the low bowlers avid 'for spin. The aall turned considerably, but not so luickly as to compel reflex action-. Hdrich and Washbrook played :oolly, and the licking of the lips ff the crowd seemed premature. A oose length was at once punished, ospecially by Edriqh, who relishecl in occasional short pitched spin li'om Tribe, which came into the jat favourably for^pulling. Tribe's .eft-handed spin ,.now and then ooks like Peter Smith's bowled leftlanded. Johnson, at the otlier end oersisted with his nicely-flighted ilow to medium off breaks, with 3arnes almost in the line of tran;it at silly point and McCool at /ery forward' short leg, both oi hem on their haunches. Once again, just as England seemed about to enter some temporary haven from the continuous ffrain, an offback from Johnson. quicker than usual and rising sharply, persuaded Washbrook into i half cock stroke he would have preferred not to make; McCool •aught the ball full stretch, onc almost out of his reach. So Sisyjhus had to begin again to roll up ;he stone. Edrich reached another 50, always combining opportunity vVith instinct and sturdy strengthhe stiniulated confidence that ai iny rate this was no occasion for m English collapse. But Comptor could not trust himself with McCool's leg break, and was obviously

out of sorts against the other oowlers, who none the less seemed is conscious as England's batsmen that a long way had yet to bc ^ravelled to the end of the match. At tea the score was 153 for two wickets, one of which had fallen by flat larceny. The iYustralian attack had not so far assumed more than the aspect of expectant diligence. It was only reasonable to suppose that sooner or later, if not in this match then in another, the English batsmen would enjoy some ease of mind and opulence. • After tea Compton was nearly caught at first slip from a leg break by McCool, whose bowling he would not move too decisivcly. When resort was made to Barnes, another leg-spinner of perfect length thoroughly baffled both Edrich and Tallon, missing the off stimp and going for four byes. O'Reilly on this wicket would have been wild witn frustration not to bowl at both ends consecutively. All things considered then, England was making an honourable fight when 200 was passed and still none except Hutton and Washbrook were out. As soon as the new ball was used and the spin bowlers • went into necessary retirement for a rest, Compton's innings gained some sh-»peliness and poise, but once again disaster fell on England at the pinch; Compton flashed 'at an offside ball fatally, and was quite ghoulishly caught only twenty minutiY' from the long day's uiid.