CRICKET

Otago Witness, Issue 4029, 2 June 1931, Page 29

CRICKET

THE NEW ZEALAND TEAM. MATCH AGAINST GLAMORGAN. NEW ZEALAND DECLARES. LONDON, May 25. The New Zealand cricketers continued their match against Glamorgan in fine weather. The wicket, although covered over the week-end, was inclined to be tricky. The attendance was 4000. Another century by Dempster was a feature of the day’s play. Page declared at the tea adjournment, and at stumps Glamorgan had lost four wickets for 118. Weir batted slowly. He has not yet Struck form. Kerr, Vivian, Talbot, and Page were all dismissed in attempting to force the pace. Blunt was not impressive and gave two chances.

Meanwhile Dempster was defending resolutely with the wicket playing trickily. He was content to wait for loose balls for scoring shots. His batting was less certain than usual. He reached his century in 275 minutes. The scoring brightened when Cromb assisted him to punish the tiring attack, the pair adding 91 runs in an hour. Cromb scored 52 in attractive style. Jones, a left-hander, who is only 20 years of age, captured all the New'Zealand wickets and bowled particularly Dyson batted excellently for Glamorgan, and was dismissed with the last Ball before stumps were drawn. The New Zealanders maintained their high standard of fielding. COUNTY MAKES 200. CARDIFF, May 26. The match was resumed in fine weather. The wicket was easy. Turnbull and Duckfield were dismissed early. Only a hard-hitting partnership betw'een Every and Lavis saved the county from disaster. New Zealand secured a first innings lead of 88. MATCH DRAWN. CARDIFF, May 26. The Glamorgan match ended in a draw. New Zealand declared in its second innings with four wickets down for 190. Dempster played one on early, and Kerr was dismissed quickly. After lunch a fine partnership between Weir and James added 106 runs for the fourth wicket. It was particularly pleasing to see Weir strike his New Zealand form for the first time of the tour. He scored a century in tw’o hours, which was in marked contrast with his first innings display.

James also attacked the bowling. Vivian kept his wicket intact to allow Weir to reach his century. Glamorgan to win required to make 279 runs in 110 minutes, but steady bowling and keen fielding saw five down for 54. Duckfield and Bell then became . associated in an unbroken partnership, saving the county from defeat. Dempster strained a leg muscle ■while fielding and left the field. The attendance was 3000 this after- . noon. Scores:— ; NEW ZEALAND. First Innings. Dempster, not out 129 : Weir, b Jones 38 Kerr, e Davies, b Jones .. 3 Vivian, c Turnbull, b Jones .... 13 Blunt, b Jones 20 Talbot, c and b Jones 16 • Page, c Mercer, b Jones 1 Cromb, not out 52 Extras 16 Total for six wickets (declared) 288

Bowling Analysis.—Mercer, none for 5,3; Davis, none for 16; E. Davies, none for 37; D. Davies, none for 37; Bates, none for 36; Jones, six for 93. Second Innings. Dempster, b Mercer .. ’ 5 Cromb, c Turnbull, b Jones .. .. 29 Weir, not out 100 Kerr, b Jones 0 James, b Jones 42 Vivian, not out 13 Extras i Total for four wickets (declared) 190 Bowling Analysis.—Mercer, 1 for 37; Lavis, 0 for 36; Jones, 3 for 52; D. Davies, 0 for 29; Bates, 0 for 18; E. Davies, 0 for 17. GLAMORGAN. First Innings. Bates, c Page, b Merritt 12 Dyson, c and b Allcott 54 D. Davies, b Merritt 6 Bell, b Merritt 4 Turnbull, b Allcott ’’ 44 Duckfield, b Blunt 13 E. Davies, b Blunt 0 Every, c Vivian, b Merritt .... 36 Lavis, not out 30 Jones, lbw, b Merritt 0 Mercer, c Page, b Merritt 2 Extras 9 Total 200 (The scores as cabled total 210, but the bowling figures indicate that the correct score is 200.) Bowling Analysis,—Cromb 0 for 19, Merritt 6 for 91, Blunt 2 for 39, Allcott 2 for 23, Talbot 0 for 4, Vivian 0 for 15. Second Innings. Dyson, c Page, b Cromb 4 Bates, c Vivian, b Merritt 24 Lavis, c Weir, b Merritt 19 Duckfield, not out 26 Jones, b Blunt -2 D. Davies, lbw, b Blunt ........ 1 Bell, not out 24 Extras 3 Total for five wickets .. 103 Bowling Analysis.—Blunt, 2 for 19; Merritt, 2 for 30; Cromb, 1 for 20; Vivian, 0 for 12; Talbot, 0 for 17; Allcott, 0 for 2. MATCH AGAINST OXFORD. NEW ZEALAND’S BIG SCORE. LONDON, May 27. The New Zealand cricketers gave a brilliant batting exhibition against Oxford University, scoring 488 in 205 minutes. Dempster, Kerr, and Matheson are standing down. - The Oxford team is Moore, Hone, Nawab of Pataudi, Chalk, Owen-Smith, Oswald, Scott, Wellings, Williams, Old field, Nevinson. The weather was fine and the wicket good. Lowry again won the toss, and Mills and Weir took the score to 83 before Weir was bowled off his pads.

Blunt was caught first ball. Mills was unlucky to miss his century. He batted in his best form. A brilliant partnership followed, Vivian and Page adding 219 runs in 94 minutes. Vivian played a .dazzling innings of 125 minutes, hitting 13 4’s and two 6’s. Page also gave a fine display of free hitting during his 119 minutes at the wicket. He scored 13 4’s. The remaining batsmen practically sacrificed their wickets. Merritt made 31 in 10 minutes, including one 6 and five 4’s. Although the scoring was remarkably fast, it was checked slightly by brilliant fielding. Oxford batted for half an hour without the loss of a wicket. Dempster’s leg injury is not serious, but it has robbed him of his chance of scoring 1000 runs in May.

PLAY ABANDONED FOR DAY. LONDON, May 28. A sodden pitch prevented play in the Oxford University match to-day. The wicket was inspected in the afternoon, and play was abandoned for the day. Vivian’s success on Wednesday was highly pleasing to the New Zealanders. The visitors’ task was made easier by the perfect state of the wicket and the weakness of the Oxford attack. Mr Howard Marshall, in the Daily Telegraph, referring to the New Zealand batting, says: “Vivian was not afraid to hit the ball from the start. His footwork was particularly good, and he showed that he has all the strokes of a batsman. Page batted in a thoroughly workmanlike fashion, and played extremely good cricket.”

Owen-Smith, the South African, and Oxford’s most successful bowler, turns appreciably from the leg, but his figures were distinctly flattering. The later batsmen almost presented him with their wickets. The other bowlers were mainly medium pace. Wellings was the steadiest. Oxford’s fielding was the finest the New Zealanders have ecountcrcd so far, and probably saved 150 runs. OXFORD MATCH DRAWN. LONDON, May 29. Rain during the luncheon adjournment caused- the match between New Zealand and Oxford University to be abandoned. The Nawab of Pataudi was caught at mid-off before lunch after giving an admirable display under the conditions. Owen-Smith was rather lucky. He was dropped by Blunt in the slips, and was uncomfortable facing Talbot, who bowled excellently. Allcott also bowled steadily. Rain has fallen in every match except in the game against Leicestershire. The New Zealanders are hoping for fine weather in the match against Middlesex at Lord’s to-morrow, when a good gate is anticipated. Following are the scores:— NEW ZEALAND. First Innings. Mills, b Owen-Smith 92 Weir, b Scott 34 Blunt, c Scott, b Owen-Smith .. 9 Vivian, c Owen-Smith, b Wellings .. 135 Page, c Nevison, b Owen-Smith .. 113 Talbot, st Oldfield, b Owen-Smith .. 19 Lowry, st Oldfield, b Owen-Smith .. 20 Cromb, c Oldfield, b Williams .. . • 17 Allcott, c Moore, b Owen-Smith .. 2 James, b Owen-Smith 10 Merritt, not out .. .. 31 Extras 15 Total 488 Bowling Analysis.—Nevison, none for 81; Wellings, one for 101; Scott, one for 72; Owen-Smith, seven for 153; Williams, one for 66. OXFORD. First Innings. Moore, b Talbot 19 Hone, lbw, b Allcott 8 Nawab of Pataudi, c Weir, b Talbot 42 Chalk, c Cromb, b Allcott .. .. 3 Owen-Smith, not out 48 Oswald, not out 5 Extras .. .. 4 Total for four wickets .. 129 Bowling Analysis.—Cromb, none for 29; Merritt, none for 21; Blunt, none for 28; Talbot, two for 17; Allcott, two for 17; Vivian, none for 10; Page, none for 12. MATCH AGAINST MIDDLESEX HOME SIDE MAKES 241. LONDON, May 30. Fine bowling by Cromb allowed the New Zealand cricketers to dismiss Mid dlesex comparatively cheaply at Lord’s. Dempster, Matheson and Allcott were omitted from the New Zealand team. Lowry lost the toss, and Enthoven and Hearne started confidently on an easy wicket for Middlesex. The bowling during the morning was somewhat unsteady, but Lowry’s policy of frequent changes checked the scoring. Hearne was the first out, being caugh’ in the slips off a ball from Cromb which was swinging away. Canning was dismissed by a brilliant diving catch by Talbot at short leg. Another fine catch taken by Page at first slip ended Enthoven’s innings. Hendren and Allen added 100 in a timely fourth wicket partnership. They attacked all the bowling. After lunch Cromb struck form comparable with that he showed on his previous appearance at Lord’s. He took a fine catch off his own bowling to dismiss Allen, and then only Hendren looked like staying. He gave two chances before he was caught behind the wickets, but Inplayed a delightful innings characterised by faultless footwork. He hit nine fours. Allen hit a five and a six off Merrit* and seven fours. Cromb received no assistance from the wicket, but swung away late and varied his attack with an occasional in-swinger He bowled 31 overs, 12 of which were maidens. Blunt and Talbot bowled steadily, but Merritt was below form. Rain caused an adjournment after 105 minutes of play. New Zealand batted for an hour before stumps were drawn and two valuable wickets fell to the test bowlers, Allen and Peebles. Mills batted confidently. The attendance was 12,000. Following are the scores: — MIDDLESEX. First Innings. Enthoven, c Page, b Blunt .. .. 34 Hearne, c Blunt, b Cromb .. .. 22 Canning, c Talbot, b Cromb .. .. 13 Hendren, c James, b Cromb .. .. 74 Allen, c and b Cromb 58 Newman, c Page, b Cromb .. .. 0 Haig, b Cromb .. 7 Hulme, c Page, b Cromb .... .. 17 Durston, lbw, b Cromb .. .. .. 0 Peebles, lbw, b Blunt 1 Prime, not out .. 4 Extras .. .. 11 Total 241

Bowling Analysis.—Cromb, eight for 70; Merritt, none for 57; Weir, non? for 8; Blunt, two for 52; Talbot, none for 30; Vivian, none for 13. NEW ZEALAND. First Innings. Mills, not out 21 Weir, b Allen 3 Kerr, lbw, b Peebles .. .. .. .. 7 Extras .. .. 2 Total for two wickets .. 33 TEST MATCH CAPTAIN. LYON A STRONG CANDIDATE. LONDON, May 26. The Star’s cricketing expert expresses the opinion that Lyon will lie selected as captain of the test team, though there are signs of the authorities inclining towards Chapman, despite his decline in batting.

COUNTY MATCHES HOBBS’S DESIRE TO RETIRE. LONDON, May 26. Rain again curtailed all 'county matches. Sussex: First innings 285 (A. Gilligan not out 75); second innings, 112. Middlesex: First innings, six for 324 declared (Hendren 125, Allen not out 75) ; second innings, two for 75. Middlesex won by eight wickets. Essex: First innings, 156 (Root five for 49) ; second innings, seven for 249 declared (Cutmore 73; Root five for 83). Worcester: First innings, 182 (Gibbons not out 87) ; second innings, 69 (Nichols five for 13). Essex won by 154 runs. Yorkshire: First innings, 231 (Sutcliffe 75) ; second innings, two for 76. Lancashire: First innings, ■ 128 (Robinson four for 29, Verity five for 54). Yorkshire won on the first innings. Somerset: First innings, 166 (Wyatt four for 44, Freeman four for 63) ; second innings, 121 (Freeman six for 52). Kent: First innings, 146 (Wellard six for 39) ; second innings, three for 144. Kent won by seven wickets. Nottingham: First innings, 130 (Gregory five for 28) ; second innings, 155 (Fender five for 51). Surrey: First innings, 161 (Larwood six for 43); second innings, one for 22. Surrey won on the first innings. Warwick: First innings, eight for 258 declared (Croom 103); second innings, seven for 142. Derby: First innings, 127 (Townsend not out 77; Paine six for 80). Warwick won on the first innings. Hampshire: First innings, 267 (Arnold 111; Hammond four for 37); second innings, nine for 116 declared (Parker six for 49). Gloucester: First innings, 195 (Creese five for 62); second innings 122 (Kennedy five for 50). Hampshire won by 66 runs. Leicester: First innings, 221, and second three for 147. Northants: First innings, 159. Leicester won on the first innings. Hendren’s century, which is the 120th of his career, was appropriately made in his benefit match. Hobbs has requested the Surrey Club to allow him to retire from active participation in the game at the end of the year. His contract expires in 1932. Hobbs has already scored more runs than any first class batsman this season, but says he cannot see as well as formerly and gets tired too quickly. FREEMAN’S BOWLING RECORD. LONDON, May 29. Rain again curtailed the county matches. Essex: First innings 135 (Peebles six for 60) ; second innings 151 (Peebles five for 64). Middlesex: First innings 139 (Palmer four for 13); second innings, one for 148. Middlesex won by nine wickets. Lancashire: First innings 184 (E. Tyldesley 70; Freeman ten for 19); second innings, none for 84. Kent: First innings, nine for 285 declared (Woolley 108; Hop wood six for 55). Kent won on the first innings. Gloucester. First innings 214 (Dacre 64). Somerset: First innings 31 (Hammond four for 10, Parker five for 11). Somerset followed on and lost two for 36. Gloucester won on the first innings. Glamorgan: First innings, seven for 165 (declared). Hampshire: First innings, two for 37. The match was drawn Northants: First innings 331 (Cox 98, Timms 90; J. Langridge five for 58). Sussex: First innings, five for 332 (Duleepsinhji 112, Cook 85). Sussex won .on the first innings. Leicester: First innings 237. Surrey: First innings 86 (Snary four for 23). Surrey followed on and lost three for 93. Leicester won on the first innings. Yorkshire: First innings, eight for 468 declared (Holmes 260, Sutcliffe 129). Warwick: First innings, six for 64. The match was drawn. Derby: First innings 175 (Root four for 30). Worcester: First innings, two for 160 (Nichol not out 80). The match was drawn. Nottingham: First innings 196 (Hazelrugg six for 27); second innings, eight for 306 declared. Cambridge University: First innings 152, and second seven for 160. The match was drawn. This is the third successive season in which Freeman has taken all the wickets in a match, and his performance constitutes a record. In 1930 he dismissed the Essex side, and in 1929 Lancashire.