The Jubilee Book of Cricket

Front matter

THE JUBILEE BOOK

OF CRICKET

K. S. RANJITSINHJI HOOKING A SHORT-PITCHED BALL ON THE WICKET.

Chapter 1

THE

JUBILEE BOOK OF CRICKET.

CHAPTER I.

TRAINING AND OUTFIT.

TRAINING—ELEMENTARY AND OTHERWISE.

Cricket implies a certain amount of physical capacity, and cricket-matches are a pretty good test of physique. In order to make the body fit to undergo a severe season's work, men and boys alike must cultivate health and strength. With regard to boys, the discipline in vogue at all schools in England puts excess of almost every kind out of the question. A good night's rest and a perfect digestion are two of the chief foundations of success in cricket. In the words of the greatest of all cricketers: "Temperance in food and drink, regular sleep and exercise, I have laid down as a golden rule. From my earliest cricketing days I have carefully adhered to this rule, and to it I attribute in a great degree the measure of health and strength I still enjoy."

To play cricket at school, and afterwards to retain one's physical attributes at their best, it is necessary to keep in training all the year round. Luckily, cricket does not demand that severe course of training which is required by such athletic pursuits as football or running. The ordinary pleasures of life, partaken of moderately, will not interfere with cricket; but if a player does not live carefully, he cannot hope to be consistently successful, however exceptional his keenness of sight, his suppleness of limb, and his strength of wrist. Such natural gifts soon become neutralised by self-indulgence. A man must lead a regular life, especially in the matter of sleep, in order to play cricket satisfactorily. After a late night he usually presents a poor picture in the morning. Half asleep, with a bad headache, he is much to be pitied, for he cannot do himself justice in any department of the game. In bowling he cannot find his proper pitch or length; in batting and fielding he often sees two or three balls, and invariably hits at or tries to catch the wrong one. Perhaps this is an exaggeration. An occasional departure from regular hours may not seriously interfere with your condition, but if you wish to play cricket really well, you must get into the habit of taking a due amount of rest, and be temperate in all things during the whole year.

It is very important for a man who wishes to have a good season to take regular exercise during the winter months. Boys at school and men at the university play football, racquets, fives, and other games, in that part of the year. But there are many people who play first-class cricket during the summer, but during the winter take no exercise at all worthy of the name. This is a great mistake, and leads to much bad form in the earlier part of the cricket season. Obedience to the laws of health is necessary for all athletic undertakings. Certainly no cricketer can afford to disregard them. Even in my short career I have seen many instances of decline of form simply due to careless living. I do not, of course, mean to say that cricket is the chief motive for keeping fit—to do so is a duty which every man owes to himself. But those who wish to do great things in batting or bowling must train on special lines. No one expects to run well without practising running, or to jump well without practising jumping. How then can a cricketer expect to be able to make a lot of runs, or take many wickets, without careful training in batting and bowling? The fact is, that, before the season begins, a man ought to practise regularly at batting or bowling for several weeks; for both batting and bowling call into play particular muscles which they alone can exercise. It is impossible to train for long scores in a few days. It may be years before a man can combine enough proficiency with enough strength to play a really long innings. When the season is in full swing, he probably gets sufficient exercise in actual matches. It is the few weeks before the season begins that people neglect. It is then that careful and regular practice is so important, for one of the fundamental requirements for good cricket is, that the movements and actions used in the game should by assiduous practice have become habits.

Most matches imply a certain amount of travel. It may be well, therefore, to say a few words as to its influence on play. A fatiguing and wearisome journey exercises a certain strain on the eye, which to some extent injures one's play. Hence, in case of a match away from the home ground, go, if possible, to the spot the night previous, or in good time before the game begins, and get a couple of hours' rest. Another advantage to be derived from this rest is, that it will enable you to arrive on the ground in good time and have a few minutes' practice at the nets. Your eyes will thus become familiar with the light, and your judgment with the pace of the ground. The neglect of this few minutes' practice often leads to disaster. Different grounds have different paces and different kinds of light, and without practice you cannot be at home on the new venue for the first few minutes.

Then as to eating on the ground. Cricket-lunches at school are, as a rule, plain and wholesome; but I have known places where a regular feast has been put on the table. Nothing is so apt to deaden activity and create sluggishness in the middle of the day. With regard to drinks, boys generally drink ginger-beer, lemonade, and, where they are allowed it, beer. I assert, although I fear there will be a great preponderance of opinion against my theory, that water is far and away the best: failing that, I advise non-alcoholic drinks. Many players make a habit of taking a drink in the middle of a long innings. I do not advise them to take anything more than a little water, just to wet the throat and rinse the mouth. This is all that is necessary; it will quench the thirst effectively.

Train yourself never to deal carelessly with any ball or bowler. Bad balls, particularly when straight, ought not to be treated with contempt. So also in the case of a bowler when a change is put on; he should be played carefully, and no liberties taken until his action, pace, and other peculiarities have become familiar. One thing that has often proved fatal to a batsman, through lack of this caution, is the inability to resist the temptation of hitting a boundary after two or three have already been hit in the same over.

A few hints to "coaches" on the training of boys may not be out of place here. All boys require coaching in cricket at a very early date. Hardly any cricketer has reached a very high standard who has not had some early coaching. A coach should first impress upon his pupil the rudimentary elements of the game—how to stand at the wickets, how to watch the ball coming from the bowler, and how to make particular strokes off particular balls. If a boy shows a tendency to play a stroke in an effective way but unlike others, he ought to be encouraged to do that stroke and not have his natural style cramped. Nothing is more detrimental than to check the natural strokes of a boy. Nor should a coach try to make a pupil too steady a bat if he shows an inclination to hit out. Let him make the best of his material, and not try to change the boy's natural style, attributes, or gifts by forcing them into a fixed groove. Far better results will thus be accomplished than if the coach impressed upon each boy a stereotyped style, however sound. This does not mean, however, that he will neglect to tell each student certain elementary things, such as to keep the ball down, not to move the right foot, and so on. One important part of his duty is to teach his pupil to gain confidence in himself: in doing this he will have to be careful that the pupil does not become afraid of the ball by batting to very fast bowling or joining full-grown men in their games. He should see also that the boys practise on good wickets—that is to say, on wickets that are neither fiery nor bumpy, nor such as are likely to injure their nerves or damage their bodies. Of course a boy's success will ultimately depend on his own natural abilities, his keenness and perseverance, and his temperament. Too much coaching is bad. Half an hour a-day once or twice a-week is quite sufficient, added to the practice which he gets at the nets by himself and in games. Some one should be on the look-out to see that he is not practising so long as to become fatigued and careless. Many bad habits may be traced to such overwork.

A coach should give his pupils a few pieces of general advice which apply to all. First, as to the batsman. After going to the wicket, he should watch the ball all the time, and not premeditate a stroke before the ball is delivered, a very common fault among boys. He should put himself into the right position to meet the various kinds of balls, either forward or back, as the case may be. Then as to the bowler. The coach must tell him to bowl straight, to vary his pace, to put on a spin, and try to find out the weak points of the batsman. Of course these gifts will only come one by one, but the great thing is to make him think what he intends doing. In the case of fieldsmen, he must show them how to pick up balls, both when they are coming straight and when they have to be run after; how to catch the ball; how to pick it up; the duty of running at top speed and returning it as quickly as possible; and other things which help to make a man perfect in fielding.

OUTFIT—ELEMENTARY.

The subject of outfit in connection with school cricket must not be omitted. It will do much towards success. All distinguished cricketers have been careful as to their costume and cricketing material. Every one will agree that we must suit our dress to the demands of ease, convenience, and comfort, as well as of health and cleanliness. The shirt ought to be of canvas, wool, or flannel. Flannel is always preferable if the wearer can put up with the irritation. In this respect the schools are well looked after by the masters. Both trousers and shirts must be made so as to fit loosely, but not flappingly. Boys are in the habit of putting on belts. This is a mistake, since the noise the belt makes may at times be mistaken for a catch at the wicket. I advise instead scarves or sashes, which also have a smarter appearance. For the sake of discipline, too, boys will do well to wear their school uniform or colours in turning out for cricket games: it shows keenness and pride in the school. It is not necessary to speak of head-gear, as caps are in general use at schools. It would be better for boys when in the field or at the wickets always to keep them on, as it will render them less liable to sunstroke. I strongly condemn the practice of playing cricket in straw hats; they are both cumbersome and uncomfortable. When the sun is too powerful for caps, felt or sun hats are the best. For cold days every one should be furnished with a jersey or sweater; but it is not advisable to use the sweater while batting, as it tends to cramp the movements. Blazers also are very necessary when one is not actively pursuing the game—e.g., during the luncheon interval or while awaiting your turn to bat. Boots, not shoes, should be worn, as they give better support to the feet and ankles. They are generally white in colour, and ought always to be kept clean by the use of whitening or pipeclay. Nothing is more disagreeable than to see a member of a team wearing a dirty pair of boots. It is not necessary for a batsman to have many nails in his boots, but for a bowler it is essential on all sorts of wickets. All boys should keep a few nails of various sorts in case of an emergency, suited to the different kinds of wickets they are likely to meet. Always have a good-fitting pair of pads and gloves, to save the limbs pain or injury. They impart confidence in standing up to bowling, and will render your play stronger. Care of course must be taken in selecting these articles that they are of just the right size. Every one should have a bat of his own to suit his own particular style and taste, and it must always be kept in good condition. Further, a young player should reserve to himself, as much as possible, the right of using it. Nearly all schools provide the boys with lockers for their materials, but I should further advise boys to have a comfortable bag in which to carry their materials for out-matches. Another useful hint to them is the duty of choosing all these articles for themselves, in order that they may gain experience in their selection. Nothing is more important than this knowledge, particularly in the selection of bats. Most cricketers use handles of either rubber or chamois-leather, but in this boys should consult their own tastes. My last piece of advice in regard to outfit is, Do not think it necessary to give large prices, but choose well-fitting, suitable, and durable articles.

Chapter 2

CHAPTER II.

FIELDING.

Fielding is a department of the game much neglected at the Public Schools, more at the Universities, and more still in county cricket. As for ordinary club matches, fielding is regarded as a necessary evil which must be tolerated, because without it batting and bowling are impossible. And yet for winning matches, fielding is not a jot less important than batting and bowling. Curiously enough, few cricketers guide their conduct by this fact, though no one with even an elementary knowledge of the game would think of disputing it. Times without number during the cricket season one hears it remarked that such-and-such a match was lost owing to bad ground-fielding or uncertain catching, or slovenly fielding in general, or because in the selection of the eleven insufficient attention was paid to the fielding ability of the candidates for places. And it is as a mild protest against the common and mistaken policy of giving undue prominence to the two more showy branches of the game that fielding holds the place of honour in this volume. Not that it is of much use protesting. Cricketers, being human, are not over-ready to do what is irksome or distasteful, even where they recognise that it is for their own good and that of others. Perhaps one of the reasons why fielding is neglected is, that its results are all but disregarded on the score-sheet and in other records of matches. It is different with bowlers and batsmen. They see their successes fully notified. A glance at the score is enough to discover who made runs and who got wickets. The figures speak for themselves, and eloquently. But there is nothing to indicate how many runs were saved by fine ground-fielding, or how many catches were badly muffed. A yet more cogent reason is, that the scope for personal gratification is so much smaller in fielding. A man bats and bowls for his side, it is true; but if he makes a large score or takes a number of wickets, he not only does his side a signal service, but he affords himself an immense amount of satisfaction. There is nothing wrong in this. Cricket is a game, and should be played for pleasure. But there is this to be noted: success in batting or bowling cannot fail to combine the advantage of the whole eleven with the pleasure of the individual. A batsman or a bowler feels he is doing something by his own efforts and to his own credit. A fieldsman, on the contrary, has in a certain sense no individual existence; he is a subordinate part of a whole. He is point or slip or mid-off, not Smith or Jones or Robinson. The conditions of the game practically make selfish fielding an impossibility. A man cannot field "on his own" as he can bat or bowl. The result is that there are many, far too many, cricketers who, being ambitious to succeed in the game, give any amount of time and trouble to batting or bowling, as the case may be, in order to excel in one or in both, but only pay just enough attention to fielding to ensure a comfortable mediocrity. They know that, unless they acquire a certain degree of skill, their deficiency will be noticeable and regarded as so much against their claims to be chosen as bats or bowlers. Further than that they do not go. Nearly every one can without much trouble become a moderately good fielder, because fielding is far easier than batting or bowling. In the same way, real excellence in fielding is within the reach of a great many more cricketers than is real excellence in batting and bowling. But whereas many are eager to excel as bats or bowlers, few care to aim at more than average excellence as fielders. In fact, few cricketers do their very best in the field. They satisfy certain requirements, but do not give their whole soul to this branch of the game.

When I say that bad fielding is the rule rather than the exception, I refer rather to what might be than to what is. Taking into consideration the amount of time devoted to cricket, and the respective difficulties of acquiring a high degree of skill in batting, bowling, and fielding, one cannot but recognise that the average results attained are not satisfactory in the case of the first two. And this is true, though the actual number of really fine fielders is larger than that of tiptop batsmen or bowlers. Take a dozen village cricket-teams: there is probably no bat or bowler among them all of more than fifth- or sixth-class merit, but almost certainly there are at least twelve fielders who would not disgrace the champion county of the year.

As to the importance of good fielding, it is easy to prove it. Each catch that is missed simply adds another batsman to the opposing side. If five catches are dropped, the side that drops them has to all intents and purposes fifteen men to dispose of instead of ten; and each man who thus receives a second innings starts with the advantage of having more or less got used to the light and the state of the wicket. Again, let us suppose that each man on a side gives away in each innings 3 runs which he might have saved by a little more dash and alertness. Not only has the opposite side 33 more runs added to its score without the trouble of making them by its own efforts, but the side which gave the runs away has 33 more runs to get than it need have had, and consequently has given itself so much the greater chance of meeting with bad luck. A run saved is more than a run gained; it is a run that need not be got. Runs vary in value. It is far more than three times harder for a side to get 150 runs than it is to get 50. It is far easier for an individual to save 20 runs by good fielding than to make 20 by good batting. In a particular match the best batsman in the world may twice fail to score. Suppose he is a bad fielder, and gives away, as he may well do if fielding in the country, 25 runs each innings. Not only has he made no runs himself, but he has burdened the rest of his side with the necessity of making 50 runs more than they would otherwise have required. He has practically deducted 50 runs from the score of his side. Let us imagine that, but for his bad fielding, there would have been only 100 runs to get to win. As it is, there are 150. Clearly, as far as concerns him, 50 runs must be scored before one is counted. In a true sense, the strength of a fielding side must be measured by its weakest member, as that of a chain is measured by its weakest link. Then, again, when there is a really bad fielder on a side, more balls seem to go to him than to any one else. Put him where you will, he seems to attract the ball. If there is a catch to be caught that would win the match, it seems always to seek the hands of the weaker brother. If he misses it, the efforts of his side are all rendered futile. Mistakes cannot always be avoided, but with proper measures taken their frequency may be astonishingly diminished.

Good fielding is as helpful as bad fielding is noxious. To a certain extent it turns bad bowling into good, and makes good bowling better. Backed by strong ground-fielding and sure catch , quite moderate bowling can, as a rule, be relied upon to dispose of any side for a not unreasonably large score. Besides, bowlers who can trust their fielders to hold catches bowl with far more confidence and keenness. Nothing demoralises a bowler more than to see run after run scored off him when it might have been saved. As for missed catches, it is weary work for a bowler to lie in wait for a batsman's weak stroke for half an hour, to succeed in getting him into a carefully planned trap, and then to see the catch—such a baby one—muffed ridiculously, and have all his trouble over again. Besides, once bitten, twice shy. The bowler has shown his hand, and the batsman is now on the look-out. Many a bowler has tempted Bobby Abel to try, before he is well set, his placing stroke through the slips; has seen slip fail to hold an easy catch, and has had to bowl and field for the Surrey giant's benefit a whole day or perhaps two. It is too much, no doubt, to expect every catchto be caught; but if more trouble were taken over fielding, far fewer catches would be missed.

Even from the spectator's point of view, it is a pity that skill in fielding is not developed to the highest degree of which it is capable. There is no finer sight in cricket than that of a really good fielding side trying its level best to win or save a match. It is marvellous what can be done, and is done, in such circumstances. Even the uninitiated can appreciate a magnificent catch or a hairbreadth save just on the boundary. And the impression given by the splendid unity of the eleven men, by their individual and collective energy, all concentrated on one end, can arouse as intense enthusiasm in a crowd of onlookers as the best batting imaginable. The finest exhibition of fielding it has been my good fortune to see was that given at Lord's by the Oxford University Eleven of 1892. They won a sensational victory partly by good batting and good bowling, but principally by their extraordinary dash, brilliancy, and accuracy in the field. Their fielding was superb. Had it been merely good, they would have had very nearly double the number of runs to make in the fourth innings of the match. There was no particular reason that this eleven should have been superior to other 'Varsity elevens. Mr M. R. Jardine was perhaps the best of the lot. He was perfect. The standard of excellence they reached, high as it was compared with what one usually sees, is not beyond the capacity of any eleven composed of men who have not lost speed of foot and elasticity of limb. With one or two brilliant exceptions, the county elevens do not field

W MARLOW THROWING IN THE BALL—Action I

From photo by E. Hawkins & Co., Brighton. nearly so well as they ought. There are some individual fine fielders in most of them, but it is fine fielding all through a team that is so desirable, so possible of attainment, and yet so rare. Perhaps Yorkshire of late years has shown the best fielding in county fixtures. On the whole, the northern counties field better than the southern—probably because the spectators in the northern towns are such remorseless critics of anything like slovenliness in the field. They come not only to cheer but to jeer, and they do both with a will.

It is surprising that the famous nurseries of amateur cricketers, the great English Public Schools, with all their advantages, so rarely produce fielders of more than average ability. In order to show that boys can be taught to take a zealous interest in this department of the game, and be brought to a high state of proficiency without professional aid or good coaching, I may refer to the school at which I myself was educated. It is difficult to see why our fielding at the Raj Kumar College should have been so far superior to the batting and bowling, unless it was due to the prevailing idea there that fielding was just as important as batting or bowling, and to the fact that a high degree of skill is most easily attained in fielding. I am quite sure that the fielding of this school from the years 1882 to 1888 was superior to that of an average English public school eleven. Yet there was no one to teach us much, and no fine fielders to excite in us a desire to excel. Perhaps one reason was that we had no net practice. Whenever we played, it was in a game. Very often there were fifteen boys on each side; so if the fielding side wanted an innings the same day, they had to hold every catch and save all the runs they could. Still it seems to me that we had a higher ideal of fielding than most English schools. Anyhow, fielding in school, university, and county matches could be improved enormously by the expenditure of a little more trouble. And the trouble would be amply repaid. Even from the point of view of personal pleasure, it is worth while to cultivate an interest in fielding, and to take pains to become good at it. What a man can do well, he likes doing. Batting and bowling occasionally cause a cricketer some disappointment. Fielding is a certainty. Once make yourself a good field, once learn to take a pleasure in fielding for its own sake, and every match must provide you with plenty of enjoyment, whether or not you get runs or wickets. If people would only recognise the importance of fielding, the standard would soon be raised all round. The truth is, that fielding can be scamped to a certain point without retribution falling upon the sinner. From every point of view it is a pity that a higher standard is not somehow established and exacted.

Before taking the various parts of fielding in detail, it may be well to say just a few words about the system of cricket management in English schools. At nearly all the larger schools it is nominally in the hands of the boys. The head-master, of course, reserves to himself the right of interfering in any way he may think proper. In most cases, however, the moving force in the school cricket is either one of the assistant masters or an old boy who takes interest in his former school, or the professional engaged as bowler and coach. The authority and influence of the adviser, whether amateur or professional, depend almost entirely upon his achievements, his reputation, or his personality in general. That boys require an adviser is obvious, for no schoolboy can in the nature of things be a really good judge of cricket or know much about the game. And usually those boys who know most understand best that without an experience more extensive than their own it is impossible to be a good judge of cricket. Perhaps a combination of amateur and professional coaching is the best. Most of the best coaches have been amateurs, for the simple reason that amateurs are usually better educated than professionals. The teaching of cricket requires an educated mind. In cricket, as in other things, it is necessary to observe and reflect upon one's observations. There are many good bats, bowlers, and fielders, but very few of them can explain how they bat, bowl, or field, and fewer still can teach another what they can do themselves. The essential qualification of a good coach is a sound knowledge of the game, and there is no reason why a very moderate player should not make a very competent coach, except that a poor player is unlikely to have had much experience of cricket—real cricket as it should be played. But it is impossible for an amateur coach to be always on the ground, if indeed he is available in the first instance. So the professional can by no means be dispensed with. The professional is always on the spot, and should be able to give necessary instructions in the various branches of the game. The superintendence of the amateur gives the boys an incentive to work with zeal and ardour, and prevents humbug or loafing. Some people are afraid to give the professional too much power, no matter how good a coach he may be. They mistrust his influence from an educational and social point of view. Such ideas, however, are not in accordance with facts. The leading professionals nowadays are for the most part excellent fellows. On the whole, boys benefit by having absolute faith in the teaching of a good coach. For nothing tends to improve a budding cricketer more than a belief in the infallibility of some one or other. Hero-worship is good in cricket. This does not mean that boys should not think for themselves, and try to see the why and wherefore of what their coach tells them. Perhaps they may differ from him in their opinions on some point. If they do, they should tell him what they think, and ask him to show them why he thinks otherwise. If he is a good coach, he will be able to give the reason at once. There are reasons for everything in cricket, and the longer a man plays the more chance he has of perceiving them.