A good innings disdains a sleeping partner. Be alive and moving; and—instead of saying, “Well played!” “Famous hit!” &c.; or, as we sometimes hear in the way of encouragement, “How near!” “What a close shave!” “Pray, take care, Smith!”—think of the runs, and say “run” or “stop” as the case may be. Thus, you may avoid the ludicrous scene of two big men rushing from their wickets, pausing, turning back, starting again, and having a small talk together at the eleventh yard, and finding, one or the other, a prostrate wicket, while apologies and recrimination are the only solace.
Old players need keep up a habit of throwing and of active movements. For, the redundant spirit and buoyancy of youthful activity soon evaporates. Many a zealous cricketer loses his once-famed quickness from mere disuse—Sic omnia fatis, in pejus ruere. Instead of always batting, and practising poor Hillyer and Wisden till their dodges are dodges no more, and it is little credit to score from them, go to your neighbour’s wicket and practise fielding for an hour, or else, next match, you may find your throwing at fault.
Fielding, I fear, is retrograding: a good general player, famed for that quick return which runs the adversary out, one who is, at the same time, a useful change in bowling, a safe judge of a run, and respectable at every point of the game—this is becoming a scarce character, and Batting is a word supposed coextensive with Cricket,—a sad mistake.
Spare the bowler.—One reason for returning the ball not to bowler, but to wicket-keeper, who should advance quietly, like Box, and return a catch. A swift throw, or any exertion in the field which hurts the bowler’s hand, or sets it shaking, may lose a game. If a bowler has half-volleys returned to him, by stretching and stooping after them, he gets out of his swing. Now, this same swing is a great point with a bowler. Watch him after he has got his footsteps firm for his feet, and when in his regular stride, and see the increased precision of his performance. Then comes the time when your great gun tumbles down his men: and that is the time that some sure, judicious batsman, whose eminence is little seen amidst the loose hitting of a scratch match, comes calmly and composedly to the wicket and makes a stand; and, as he disposes of maiden Overs, and steals ones and twos, he breaks the spell that bound his men, and makes the dead-straight bowling good for Cuts and leg-hits. In no game or sport do I ever witness half the satisfaction of the bowler who can thus bowl maiden Overs and defy a score; or of the batsman who takes the edge off the same, runs up the telegraph to even betting, and gives easier work and greater confidence to those who follow. A wicket-keeper, too, may dart off and save a bowler from fielding a three or four; and, whenever he leaves his wicket, slip must take wicket-keeper’s place. “How stale,” “true; but,—instantly’s the word,”—from neglect of which, we have seen dreadful mistakes made even in good matches.
Ay, and what beautiful things are done by quick return and a low shy; no time wasted in parabolic curves: ball just skimming the ground when it comes in a long hop, but quickest of all returns is a throw to the top of the bails into wicket-keeper’s hands.
Point.—Your great strength lies in anticipation: witness Ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν. To that gentleman every ball seems hit, because he always gets thereabouts; yet is he near-sighted withal! ’Tis the mind that sees, eyes are its glasses, and he is too good a workman to want excuse for his tools. With slow bowling and a bad batsman, Point can anticipate easily enough. Still, with all bowling, fast and slow, the common fault of Point is, that he stands, if near, too near; and if far off, yet not far off enough. Stand where you yourself can catch and stop. If slow in hand and eye stand off for longer catches, else, by standing where a quick man would catch sharp catches, you miss everything. With fast bowling, few balls which could be caught at seven yards ground short of twelve. Though, if the ground is very rough, or the bowling slow, the ball may be popped up near the bat, even by good players. Whenever a ball is hit Off, Point must cross instanter, or he’ll be too late to back up, especially the bowler’s wicket.
Point is sometimes Point proper, like a Wicket-keeper or Short-slip, to cramp the batsman, and take advantage of his mistakes; but with fast bowling and good batsmen, Point may advantageously stand off like any other fieldsman. For then, he will save many more runs, and may make quite as many catches. If Mr. King stood as Point, and Chatterton as Cover in the same line, with Pilch batting and Wisden bowling, they would not (as I presume they are well aware) work to the best advantage. When Clarke is bowling he generally wants a veritable Point for the catch. But, to stand near, as a Scientific Point, with wild bowling is absurd.
Short-leg is often a very hardly used personage, expected to save runs that seem easy, but are actual impossibilities. A good ball, perhaps, is pushed forward to middle wicket On, Short-leg being square, and the bowler looks black at him. Then a Draw is made, when Short-leg is standing rather forward, and no man is ubiquitous. If the batsman often does not know where the rise or bias may reflect the ball, how should the fieldsman know?
Cover-point and Long-slip are both difficult places; the ball comes so fast and curling, that it puzzles even the best man. No place in the field but long-stop has the work of long-slip. This used to be Pilch’s place.
The chief point in these places is to stand either to save one or to save two. This depends on the quickness of the fieldsman and the judgment of the runners. With such judges of a run as Hon. F. Ponsonby, Parr, Wisden, and J. Lillywhite, you must stand rather near to save one; but quick return is every thing. Here Caldecourt was, years since, first-rate. I have seen him, at Cover, when past his best, judge well, start quick, run low, up and in like a shot to wicket-keeper’s hands; and what more would you have in fielding? When E. H. Budd played and won a second match for 100l. with Mr. Brand—two fieldsmen given,—so much was thought of Mr. Brand’s having engaged Caldecourt, that it was agreed he should field on both sides. He did so, and shied Mr. Budd out at a single stump. To save two, a good man may stand a very long way off on hard ground, and reduce the hardest cuts to singles. But a common fault is, “standing nowhere,” neither to save one nor to save two. Remember not to stand as sharp when fast bowling is replaced by slow. Cover is the place for brilliant fielding. Watch well the batsman, and start in time. Half a spring in anticipation puts you already under weigh, and makes yards in the ground you can cover. The following is curious;—