Arlott, Boycott a dream pairing (25 April 1999)

25 April 1999

Arlott, Boycott a dream pairing

Tony Lewis

I CAN hear Geoffrey Boycott's entry to the Talk Radio commentary box for his first day's work on the South African series next winter. "Now then, none of that public school-type waffle, you lads: jolly good fun and all that. Tell 'em about the cricket. It's the cricket they want to know. Chocolate cake is for kids. This is Test cricket: the real stuff."

It will be Boycott's first return to a British audience since his French court case. It is an outstanding opportunity for him to remind everybody what an expert summariser he is and how well he reads the cricket game. If I had the Desert Island choice it would be a half-hour radio tape of John Arlott commentating and Boycott inserting expert comments. Arlott loved cricketers because he saw them as craftsmen working at their techniques, overpowering the demons in the mind to produce a performance which sometimes soared to the golden level of art. Boycott believed by never-ending practice he could groove mind and body into a human machine which could not be removed from the crease and which lay in wait all day to punish tired bowlers.

Radio commentary needs different voices, varying intellects and interests. It is how they work together which makes the listenable whole, the fascinating orchestration which has made Test Match Special so loved. John Arlott had the wide intelligence and dark, distinctive lyrical voice to tell the story of the moment and set it in the listener's imagination. Boycott, by his concentration and certainty about cricket, would have made the perfect partner. It is a partnership built in fantasy. Because, as far as I know, it never happened and I am only led to consider it because of the news last week that Talk Radio, not the BBC, will be broadcasting ball-by-ball radio commentary from England's series in South Africa next winter.

It would not surprise me if Boycott were a prime mover in the seizure of BBC territory. He is happier when there is a commercial challenge and performs better when the world is against him. How many times have broadcasters in all commentary boxes repeated the truism that in games, you must do what the opposition want you to do least? Talk Radio did that; they hatched a predatory plan. BBC Sport now need a long-term strategy with a vision to get them back ahead of the game.

Talk's talkers are Boycott, Chris Cowdrey, John Emburey and maybe Phil Tufnell. Will they be able to hold the support of the listeners who usually cling to Test Match Special? Ball-by-ball cricket commentary is not about non-stop talking at a cricket match. It is a communication with the listener whom the broadcasters ought to be informing and entertaining. The moment the comments and the humour are forced and directed at fellow commentators within the box, the whole show collapses. That is not to say that the audience should be denied some banter, say between Jon Agnew and Vic Marks. Inviting the listener to eavesdrop can delight in small doses.

Talk Radio have yet to announce the identity of two key players - the experienced central commentator and the producer who is going to make it all work. The Agnew, Blofeld, Arlott or Johnston figure is crucial in order to get the best out of the former players around him. It is true that Australia have taken a different view and they encourage both commentator and summariser to pick up the story whenever they want. Perhaps Talk Radio can simply throw several ex-cricketers boldly at the microphone. It might be exciting or it may be a complete switch off.

I first played the commentator's role on Test Match Special in 1979. It was a sunny day in June and the West Indies were playing India at Edgbaston in the World Cup. I followed Arlott. I set off at high speed; words were flying out of my mouth faster than Andy Roberts was bowling and every so often a desperate producer, Peter Baxter, was shouting in my earphones from his base in London - "Would A R Lewis mind telling us the score occasionally?"

I had been used to the expert summariser job and was slow on the identification of players and my comments lagged an age behind every appeal. I was used to television, too, where there is no need to shout quickly about an appeal for an lbw because the viewer can plainly see it.

On radio, however, the split second the ball hits the pad you have to 'go up' for the appeal with the bowler. The all-round commentator is all right in theory but, in practice, the specialist works best. Team selection, therefore, will be important to Talk Radio. The chemistry of voices is important. To hold a listening audience for six hours a day you need varying accents and different personalities. The best broadcasters love the microphone. Arlott was as natural as any, appearing to adopt a cerebral approach to commentary, he was the same over dinner in the evening - rich in voice, uncompromising in accent and able to set cricket in a much wider culture. What magic it was to hear him followed by Brian Johnston, who had the unrivalled ability to take you, the listener, as his personal guest on a picnic day out at the cricket.

Talk Radio will have South African accents on call to mix with the Yorkshire and London overtones. It is a wonderful opportunity for them either to break the old mould or to polish the universally accepted much-loved one. Ball-by-ball cricket commentary never misses a single ball bowled but there is an ocean of time when conversation must drift wider, away from the 22 yards of playing surface. The audience has gathered so loyally around Test Match Special because of the quality of casual chat.

What is it like in Durban? Is Kingsmead near the sea? Does ice cream come in cones in South Africa? Who did you speak to at lunchtime? Is there chocolate cake for tea? Yes, there is room for cake too, as long as you have told us the score and the details of the game which we hope will brighten our winter.

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