Great Cricket Feats

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 855, 26 December 1929, Page 6

Great Cricket Feats

BY WENSLEY AND MILLS

Otago Shield Game Reviewed

TWO great cricket feats by the Auckland professional player-coach, A. F. Wensley (Sussex), in capturing

nine wickets for 36 runs in the visitors’ first innings, and by the New Zealand representative, J. E. Mills (Auckland), who was undefeated for 131 when stumps were drawn yesterday-, were the outstanding incidents in the first two days’ play of

the Otago-Auckland Plunket Shield game at present in progress at Eden Park.

Wensley’s performance, whicli must bo unique in the recent history of the

Shield series at least, was responsible for the remarkable Otago landslide, which saw the visitors all out for 67 in slightly over two hours’ play, after they had been sent in by Rule Garrard to have first use of a wet wicket. Otago’s opening batsmen, Vorrath and Knight, began cautiously, and their play gave little indication of the debacle which was to follow. Wensley was *rising awkwardly at times on the sodden wicket, and the outfield was dead slow. With 16 on for none, Otago had made a tolerable start on a bowler’s wicket, but the procession, when it began, set in in earnest. Four wickets fell, and left the total at 24. Captain Alloo then joined the veteran McMullan, and the pair lost no time in stopping the rot. McMullan became daringly aggressive, and banged the professional clean over the pickets for the first six of the game.

After a most promising of innings, McMullan was out to a simple catch, and the procession began all over again. The only difference this time was that there was no stopping it. The real sensation came with the total at 62. Wensley had Elmes caught in the slips, and Anthony took an easy catch from Galland off the first ball the Otago man received. Seven were down for 62, and the next two wickets fell with the total unaltered, when Dunning was caught by Matheson, and Maloney given out lbw—a decision which the batsman himself appeared to think unfair, but which was undoubtedly a just one. WHY WENSLEY SUCCEEDED Wensley now had eight wickets in his bag, and finished up a memorable performance shortly after by getting Allooo for 16. McMullan and Alloo were the only batsmen to reach double figures. Wensley succeeded because the wicket was a medium-pace bowler’s paradise. This was proved when Galland routed Auckland’s early batsmen later in the day. • On the wicket on Tuesday, the foothold was too insecure for effective fast bowling", and it was too slow for slow bowlers to be successful. Medium-paced bowlers, where they could get a grip, nipped up off the wicket disconcertingly. Mills and Whitleaw had frequent narrow escapes when Auckland’s innings began, but eventually settled down, and looked like seeing stumps drawn. Galland. however, shattered any such expectations when he had hitelaw, Anthony, and W ensley dismissed in the most curt fashion. When the game was resumed yesterday afternoon, after being delayed while the wicket was allowed to dry out. Mills and Gillespie saw Otago’s total passed, and went on to take the score to 84. Gillespie had several chances, one in the form of an unaccepted catch to Dunning in the slips. Meanwhile, however. Jack Mills was doing the lion’s share of the scoring. Weir was not very long with him,

the Eden man being out to a brilliant catch, very low down, by the Rhodes scholar—a catch -which did much to make amends for Dunning's previous missed chance. ARTISTRY OF MILLS Mills was then 60, and was joined by his captain, D. R. Garrard. The left-liande.r monopolised the bowling, scoring quickly and surely with all the skill and artistry which is ever associated with him at the wicket. Late cuts, leg glances, straight drives, cover drives, off drives, on drives, hooks, pulls, and even, square cuts came as one to Mills. The runs flowed from his bat and on a very slow outfield carpet boundary shots were frequent.

He was the only Aucklander who played all the Otago bowlers with equanimity. Galland, who troubled some, and Dunning, who caused others no end of worry, were both -treated on their merits by the left-hander. Meanwhile, Garrard was playing with the easy confidence of the experienced batsman. He lacked the rhythm of stroke and finesse of placement which made Mills’s innings such a profitable and pleasurable one, but this was compensated for to a certain extent by powerful batting and hitting tactics, which Mills did not adopt even after passing the century. Both men, of course, had chances. Mills, in fact, must have led a charmed life yesterday, for Galland dropped him twice, Clark let the ball through his fingers after holding it for a second on another occasion, and the batsman himself once played Elmes on, for the ball to roll and actually touch the stumps without dislodging the bails. But it was a great innings, and, as a famous old New Zealand international said when stumps were drawn, no man could have made a century on the wicket as 1 it was without having some chances. Badeley, the Hamilton colt, appeared to be just a little nervous when setting out to win bis interprovincial spurs, but after having one chance (thanks to the generosity of Dunning again), and making several wild attempts at big hits, he settled down with growing confidence, and was still in at stumps. SELECTOR PRESENT = S'-atirtics of the innings: Garrard and Mills put on 100 runs in exactly 100 minutes. Auckland’s first 100 took two and a-half hours. Auckland’s second century was hoisted after the haa been batting 4hrs 3mins. Mills took 3hrs oSmins to reach his fours 0 "’ MlUss flrst 100 included 13 An interested spectator at Eden Park yesterday afternoon was M.r. W. s Brice, Wellington sole selector, and the Capital City’s representative on the Zealand selection committee. Mr. A. C. Snedden, Auckland’s representative on the Nw Zealand selection committee, was present on Tuesday. Details of scores, and report of todays play, will be found on the news pages.