OT: What book are you reading at the moment?

Yeah, it does get better. TBH, I think these ones honed his skills for the Saxon series.

MC Scott is good for it if you're into historical intrigue/detective stuff. Roman Britain from the perspective (mostly) of the Britons. Though the latest lot are more about Rome.

Bradman wrote:MC Scott is good for it if you're into historical intrigue/detective stuff.  Roman Britain from the perspective (mostly) of the Britons.  Though the latest lot are more about Rome.

Sounds interesting, I'll most likely give him a shot after I've finished this weird book I'm on now.

Which one is that?

that was interesting
just finished richard flanagans narrow road to the deep north. and now for something completely different - the cleese memoir

Brass Monkey wrote:Jeez, ploughing through. What you thinking so far?

Done and dusted.

Decent ending I thought

Hey, I thought so. Good series all in all, and a good spin on the legend.

Yeah, as I say, he probably honed his skills with those ones. The series that the BBC picked up is better.

Will give them a bash sometime.

Was reading this last night. Amazing.The bit I've bolded, especially.

(Just as well for England that Cook won the toss.)


“For many years now, since long William Gunn and his fragile partner, Arthur Shrewsbury, strolled down the day for their flawless centuries, Trent Bridge has been regarded as something of a batsman’s paradise.

Of late seasons, however, it has developed a characteristic of ‘greenness’ on the first morning. On this green-topped wicket, fast-medium bowling comes off at strange and unexpected angles, often even swinging one way and biting back the other.

Indeed, it has been by no means unusual of recent times – the Trent Bridge Test of last year was an example – for the first half of a team to be whistled out by the pacers before lunch on the first day, only for the tail-enders to come along when the wicket has dried out, and help themselves to far more runs than the recognized batsmen had made.

Thus, the captain who wins the toss in the first Test of this series may well think very seriously before he takes the first innings, for each of the two sides has bowlers of pace and accuracy to exploit a ‘green top’ impressively.

Once lunch has passed on the first day, the wicket – unless the weather annoys it – plays placidly enough, and there will be centuries to be had there again – barring rain.”

John Arlott, 1951 (The Essential Atlott on Cricket, pp158-159)

Nay lad. They prepared this pitch especially to counteract the Australians. I read it on Flamingbails. Courtesy of Red

Peter: that's exactly as it looked from the very top level of the Radcliffe stand. A green stripe visible down the centre of the wicket, it faded quickly from about an hour into the game when the clouds burnt off and was gone after lunch.

Very poor batting in the first hour nevertheless.

I suppose you could argue if that has indeed been a TB tendency for 65 years or so, it might have been wise to knuckle down and learn and play accordingly!

Mind you, only Root of the England top order has played consistently ALL SERIES! Hardly a blip. (One?)

Gideon Haighs 'Certain Admissions'.

Michael Clarke - "Teardrops Keep Welling Up My Eyes"

Steve Smith - "Wish I'd Kept My Mouth Shut"

Two very good narratives with contrasting objectives.

"Lord of the Flies" - William Golding



Seriously though, here are a couple of passages from the sort of books that repay re-reading.

"If you were taking a young lady, free from the slightest acquaintance with cricket, to watch her affianced, a non-bowler, in the field, you would probably hope to find, and so be able to describe, him shining at cover-point. A cynic might add, that, if it were her husband, mid-on would be good enough [...]

[The secret] is that each place in the filed has a character, almost an identity, of its own.

For cover-point is a vain fellow, who loves applause and the spotlight, who prefers speculation to a solid investment. Wicketkeeper is tough, and speaks to convince, not to amuse. Short-leg is an acrobat or a pantaloon. Slip is a man of the world, glib and sharp. Long-stop is an occasional waiter, once a young and ambrosial butler. Third-man is a hermit.

But mid-on is best. He is a genial club gentleman, seasoned with the right stuff; and he knows that the ball which the hand misses will yet bounce off the boots."

R.C. Robertson-Glasgow, "Mid-On & Third-Man" (in: Cricket Prints)

Evn in 1942 or 1943, the style is deliberately archaic, arch, almost mock-Victorian (note the long-stop). And of course the ideas are not meant to be taken 100% seriously. Humoristic writing. Very jolly. And certain grains of truth.

Just read the new Robert Galbraith. The week before it was the new Bryson.

The new Rebus comes out next week.

"More often than not, however, in these days of beautifully prepared wickets, the conditions are not in the bowler's favour. He is called upon to bowl on a pitch unsuited to his special requirements - a lifeless dead stretch of pitch for the fast bowler, or a dull and slow pitch, but so hard as to make spin difficult, for the slow bowler; and then the players who are supposed to get the other batsmen out, must plug away, never giving up hope, never showing to the opposition that they are tired, disheartened or dismayed.

I am certain the majority of spectators and most players who are not bowlers do not realize the mental, as well as sheer physical, strin undergone by the bowler.

He has to combine deep thinking with a physical effort which, in the case of the fast bowler, is very considerable. He must rack his brains all the time; he must scheme not only to deceive the batsman with flight, body-break, pace and finger-spin, but must keep a constant watch upon the fieldsmen to see whether they are in the correct position, or whether they might be moved slightly to conform with some plan of attack in his mind.

It might be argued that the moving of the field is the duty of the captain of the team, and to an extent that is true, but the wise skipper leaves to his bowler any slight alteration of the field, for the whole object of the change is to surprise the batsman. If the bowler has always to go to the captain and ostentatiously tell him what he needs, the batsman is forewarned and of course forearmed."

M.S. Nichols, Bowling (from the "Introductory")


Subtexts and backstories here.

This one is not humorous, clearly. It shows the gritted-teeth "long-suffering humour" of a seasoned fast bowler. "The stiff upper lip" attitude is amusing, reading it 80 years later. As is the rather formal, old-fashioned style (but then it is from a practical manual for boys and beginners, so the didacticism is not so very out of place.)

Stan (aka Morris - his two first names used interchangeably during his career!) Nichols writes especially of setting the field with the slightly tortured, sceptical eye of one who has suffered from not having such power (one would think).

Most famously of all, being part of this high-profile hammering: http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/current/match/145625.html

which may well have put him out of the running for a spot on the "Bodyline" tour (most obviously ahead of added 17th man Bill Bowes - though that was a politically rich selection, it has to be said).

Nichols had sparkling credentials, being a dangerous fast bowler and also an effective batsman, see record/stats: http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/18021.html.
(Even in that Leyton debacle of 1932, look who top-scored in both (exhausted) replying innings of the home team!)

The book is from 1937. You can see at the start of the bit I've quoted signals of how hard life was for fast bowlers in England after the Bodyline tour and its fallout. Not only pitches curated to favour the poor ickle batsmen, as he implies: but with taboos and curses on intimidatory bowling of any description, in the wake of the Bodyline war (which Fingleton in his "Cricket Crisis" thoroughly lamented). Hard work for a toiling quick in England all right. Stan was definitely one of the best - in the world.

The book contains 4 "movies" in "flick-book" form - demonstrating the ambidextrous Nichols bowling RF, OB, LBG, & SLA. Cute.

The first paragraph quoted above reminded me also of the UAE in recent years ....

Rebus is worth looking out for.

Wise move by Rankin to resuscitate him.

Any man with Rebus' capacity for cigarettes and alcohol deserves to be immortal.

Though not the other.

furriner wrote:Any man with Rebus' capacity for cigarettes and alcohol deserves to be immortal.

I vote for that...no interest like self interest

horace wrote:

furriner wrote:Any man with Rebus' capacity for cigarettes and alcohol deserves to be immortal.

I vote for that...no interest like self interest

Yeah some of us are counting on it.