WARREN BARDSLEY

Hokitika Guardian, 28 July 1921, Page 3

WARREN BARDSLEY

WORLD’S MOS’l CONSISTENT j BATSMAN. J (By “Bail” in Melbourne “Herald.”) | ()ae of the features of the tour ol the I Australian Eleven in England has lieen tho remarkably consistent hatting of Warren Bardsley, the New South Wales left-hander. Five centuries already stand to his credit, and in the lest match concluded at Lord’s this week he registered an excellent double with M and 03 not out. In tire previous Test he scored* 66 and eight not out, so that in the two great matches of the tour he has made 225 runs at an average of 112.5. q'hi.s is Bardsle.v’s third trip to England, and on each occasion he lias had a remarkable record. In 1909 he scored 2180 runs at an average of. 46, and in 1912, 2441 at-an average of 51’. Strangely enough he has not been as successful as one would have expected in 'Pest matches against England. Prior to last season, despite his double century —136 and 130-nt the Oval in 1909, he had scored only 576 runs at an average of 27. Against Douglas’s Eleven he was consistent, without getting any big scores, and aggregated 311 mils at an average of 38. He has now scored 1112 runs in Test matches at an average of 35, so that he has considerably improved his record in the last six months. DISSUADED FROM RETIRING.

Bardsley’s success is all the more gratifying from the fact that at the beginning of the last Australian season there were some who considered that he was not good enough even for the New South Wales team, let alone the Australian Eleven, He is said to have felt the .criticism keenly, and to have expressed a desire, as a result of it, to drop out of first-class cricket. From this lie was dissuaded with fortunate results for Australia, for he soon showed that his loss of- form was only temporary. Twice he made a score of 235 against South Australia, and for -the whole season in first-class matches he had an aggregate of nearly 1000 runs in first-class cricket, and his average for the whole of his career exceeds 50 runs an innings.

Beginning his representative career in 1903-4 against Queensland, BandsJey did nothing out of the ordinary un~ tii the 1907-8 season, when he came out. with a fine innings for 108 against A. 0. Jones’s English team. From that time he has been a heavy scorer almost everv season.

In 1908-9 he was in magnificent form, scoring 119 against South Australia, 192 against’ Victoria and' 264 for Australia agairist the Rest of Australia. Since then hardly a season has passed without one or more centuries coming from his hat. Against South Australia he has made seven three-fig-ure score?, and against Vjcforln six,

while in all Sheffield Shield matches he has a record of 3450 runs at the remarkable average of 66. Against South Australia his average is 76 and against Victoria 60. SOME MODERATE RECORDS.

AgahlsL the minor States he lms generally been more moderate in his scoring, his average against Queensland for twelve innings being 24, and against Western Australia 37 for four innings. He has never played against Tasmania, i Except for his century score in. 19078 he had never prior to last season proved a difficult problem tor English bowlers in Australia, thirteen innings bringing him an average of only 21. And it was only in the test matches last season that he was successful against them, as lie failed badly in each of the New South Walcw games. Tho South Africans, however, have reason to remember him, for in the 1910-11 season he compiled 770 runs against them at an average of nearly 60, while in test matches against them in Australia and England he has a record of 914 runs at an, average of 76. LONG CENTURY IJST. Thirty-Seven centuries have eomo from his bat in first-class cricket in Australia and England, six of them exceeding 200. The highest is his 264 fi>/' Australia against the Rest in 1908-9, twice last season he made 235 against Smith Australia ; in England in 1909 he miiiie 219 against Essex anil 211 i against Gloucestershire, tired this week he compiled 209 against Hampshire, Other scores approaching the second century are 192 against Victoria, 191 not out and 177 against South Australia, 164 against South Africa, 184 not out against Essex and 176 not out against Worcestershire. In the 1909 tour in England he made seven centuries, afid in 1912 eight went down to hfe credit. Should Bardsley succeed in reaching an aggregate of 2000 runs for the pi resent tour he will have accomplished a, feat, unique in the history of Australian cricket. No Australian! has scored 2000 runs in each of three English seasons—none except himself, ill fact has done it more than once. His per-

formances to date entitle him to he regarded ns probably the most consistent batsman in the world to-day.