England: No calypso with these capers (28 April 1998)

28 April 1998

No calypso with these capers

By Donald Trelford

IT is the traditional time of year, as the handful of huddled spectators at our county grounds are lashed by wind and rain, to reflect on the state of English cricket. So many voices are being raised in this debate, however, that I decided to give it a rest.

Instead, I shall observe the injunction of American novelist Scott Fitzgerald, a man rarely quoted in the context of English cricket: "Reserving judgments is a matter of infinite hope."

My last venture into this contentious arena, a couple of weeks ago, brought a sharp rap over the knuckles from the England coach, who accused me of using "unreliable sources". I can't name the source, without betraying a confidence, for my story about Mike Atherton's problem with some of his batsmen in the West Indies, but I can say that, true or false, I heard it out there from someone as close as David Lloyd to the England dressing room.

By the end of this week the country's success-starved supporters will have new grounds for hope with the naming of Atherton's successor as England captain. This optimism, which always follows news of any significant change in the game, cannot possibly be quenched for at least another month.

One of those supporters, David Herdson, from Radcliffe in Lancashire, writes in terms that Lloyd and others in the national game would do well to ponder.

"The Caribbean tour was a cock-up from start to finish," he writes. "After three months without cricket, not enough time was allowed for acclimatisation or for getting some sort of form. The pitches would have shamed league clubs. The itinerary was unrealistic.

"It isn't just England who suffer from this. Why did the West Indies lose 3-0 in Pakistan? Why have Australia lost 2-1 in India? Why have Sri Lanka struggled in South Africa?

"There are too many tours and the game is in danger of becoming over-exposed. With South Africa due to play in the first Texaco Trophy match on May 21, they have only just finished a triangular tournament at home."

A twin danger, of course, is under-exposure, which could well follow the Govermount's announcement, also due in the coming week, about the future of sport's "crown jewels" on television. If live coverage of home Test matches is allowed to go to Sky, as recommended by a ministerial working party, the inevitable result will be that only 10 per cent of the BBC audience will see them.

The long-term effects of that collapse in viewing figures, even if highlights are retained by the BBC, could be serious for the future of the game. Television is cricket's best recruiting ground and its most effective coach.

WHO led England's first overseas touring team to Australia? The answer is H H Stephenson, who arrived in Melbourne by paddle steamer in 1861 and led out his team in sun helmets and coloured sashes, a get-up that even Kerry Packer could not rival.

The omnicompetent Surrey captain was also the first fast break-back bowler, the first English Test match umpire and one of the first great coaches.

He was coach at Uppingham, and I have just read a long letter, recently unearthed by a reader, Mr J Barnet from Hertfordshire, that he sent to the school magazine more than a century ago. Written in his own fine hand, it sets out the basics of cricket coaching, including some sharp hints on gamesmanship, in a manner no modern manual could improve.

Two of his many wise comments struck a chord with me. One was about going for catches that might seem impossible at first sight: "I have myself started at a catch without the slightest thought of ever getting to it when, to my great surprise, through the wind or something else, it has turned in my favour."

The other was about the importance of eyeballing the batsman: "Keep the batsman staring at you as long as you can until he sees two or three bowlers and perhaps two or three balls and it may be that when the so-seen balls reach him he will hit the wrong one and get out."

Useful advice for the England coach to consider - and this time "Bumble" can hardly impugn my source.

Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)