CRICKET JARGONS : "E"

Economical
A bowler, who forfeits a few runs from his over, i.e. has a low market rate.
Economy rate
The standard number of runs scored for every over in the bowler's spell.
Edge (or snick or nick)
A slight variation of the ball off the edge of the bat. Top, bottom, inside and outside edges indicate the four edges of the bat. The hypothetical four edges are owing to the bat being each vertical (inside/outside edge), or horizontal (top/bottom edge).
Eleven
One more name for one cricket squad, which is through of eleven players.
End
A vicinity of the ground honestly at the back of the stumps, used to allocate what finish a bowler is bowling from (e.g. the Pavilion End). The bowlers take spins delivering sporadic overs from the two ends of the pitch.
Expensive
A bowler, who grants a large amount of runs from his over, i.e. has a high economy charge.
Extra (also sundry) (England, Australia)
A run not accredited to any batsman; there are five forms: byes, leg byes, penalties, wides and no-balls. The first three kinds are called 'fielding' extras (i.e. the fielders are concluded to be at fault for their being approved) and the final two are called 'bowling' extras (the bowler being well thought-out to be at fault for their being accepted) which are integrated in the runs conceded by the bowler. Must a bowler forfeit fielding extras when s/he bowls an over but no other runs they are still calculated as having bowled a maiden.

CRICKET JARGONS : "D"

Daisy cutter
Once a ball rolls the length of the pitch or springs up more than 2 times.
Dead ball
The condition of play in flanked by deliveries, in which batsmen may not score runs or be given out. Termed when the ball becomes wedged in the batsman's clothing or equipment. Termed when the ball is (or is about to be) bowled as the batsman is not yet ready. Described when a bowler terminates his run up devoid of making a delivery. Entitled when the batsmen try to run leg-byes after the ball has struck the batsman's body, but is considered to have not opened a shot.
Dead bat
The bat when apprehended with a light grab such that it gives when the ball strikes it and the ball loses force and falls to the position.
Death overs
The last 10 overs in a one-day match, in which most bowlers are, frequently, hit for lots of runs. Also notorious as Slog Overs. Bowlers who bowl through the death overs are said to "bowl at the death"
Declaration
The work of a captain willingly bringing his side's innings to a close, in the principle that their score is now large enough to avert defeat. Happens almost absolutely in timed forms of cricket where a draw is a feasible result (such as first class cricket), in classify that the side stating have sufficient time to bowl the opponent out and so win.
Declaration bowling
A turn of phrase used to explain intentionally poor bowling (Full tosses and Long hops) from the fielding side to allow the batsman to score runs rapidly and give confidence the opposing captain to affirm.
Defensive field
A fielding pattern in which fielders are spread roughly the field so as to more readily stop hit balls and reduce the amount of runs (particularly boundaries) being scored by batsmen, at the cost of fewer prospects to take catches and dismiss batsmen.
Delivery
The work of bowling the ball.
Devil's number (also Dreaded number)
A score of 87, observed as doomed in Australian cricket. According to Australian false notion, batsmen have an affinity to be dismissed for 87. The false notion is thought to initiate from the fact that 87 is 13 runs short of a century. The English comparable is Nelson.
Diamond duck
Regional custom varies, but each dismissal (typically run out) devoid of facing a delivery or a discharge (for zero) off the initial ball of a team's innings (the fewer common term platinum duck is second-hand interchangeably).
Dibbly Dobbly
A bowler of restricted skill. A relief that is easy to hit.
Dilscoop
A hit where a batsman goes on one knee and hits a good extent or a little short of length ball immediately over the wicket keeper's head frequently to the boundary or over it. Demonstrated at the world stage by Sri Lankan batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan through the ICC World Twenty20 in June 2009 and called after him. In addition a speciality of New Zealand Blackcaps wicket keeper batsman Brendon McCullum.
Dink
A tender shot.
Dipper
An escape bowled which curves into or not here from the batsman before pitching.
Dismiss
To obtain one of the batsmen out so as to he must cease batting.
Direct hit
A throw from a fieldsman that directly strikes and puts down a wicket (without first being caught by a fieldsman standing at the stumps). Occurs when attempting a run out.
Dolly
A very easy catch.
Donkey Drop
A ball with a very elevated trajectory former to bouncy
Doosra
A comparatively new off spin release urbanized by Saqlain Mushtaq; the finger spin counterpart of the googly, in that it spins the "wrong way". From the Hindi or Urdu for second or other. Muttiah Muralitharan is a proficient bowler of doosra. First created by Pakistani wicket keeper Moin Khan.
Dot ball
A delivery bowled not including any runs scored off it, so called because it is witnessed in the score order with a single dot.
Double
In general the scoring of a 1000 runs and the taking of 100 wickets in the same period.
Double Hat-trick
Captivating four wickets in four successive balls .Former Hampshire team member kevin James is the only player in first class cricket's record to take a double hat-trick and score a century in the same game, attained in opposition to India at Southampton in 1996. Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga is the single international player to have taken a double hat-trick, in opposition to South Africa in the 2007 world cup.
Down the Pitch (also Down the Wicket)
Describing the motion of a batsman towards the bowler prior to or for the period of the delivery, made in the wish of turning a good length ball into a half-volley.
Draw
A result in timed matches where the team batting last is not all out, but fails to surpass their opponent's total. Not to be perplexed with a tie, in which the side batting last is all out or run out of overs with the scores rank. An outdated stroke that has fall into abandonment, it was formerly a purposeful shot that look like the Chinese cut – the ball being played among one's own legs.
Draw stumps
Announce the game over; an allusion to drawing the stumps from the group by the umpire.
Drift
The slight cross curved-path faction that a spinner pulls out even as the ball is in flight. Well thought-out to be a very good bowling.
Drinks
A tiny break in play, commonly taken in the middle of a session, when food and drink are brought out to the players and umpires by the twelfth men of all side. Drinks breaks do not at all times take place, but they are common in test matches, principally in hot countries.
Drinks waiter
A playful term for the twelfth man, referring to his job of fetching out drinks.
Drive
A great shot usually hit along the ground or at times in the air in a direction amid cover point on the off side and mid-wicket on the leg side or in an arc stuck between roughly thirty degrees each side of the direction along the pitch.
Drop
The inadvertent "dropping" of a ball that was primarily caught by a fielder, as a result denying the dismissal of the batsman; when such an occasion occurs, the batsman is said to have been "dropped". The amount of dismissals which happen in a squad’s innings before a given batsman goes in to bat; a batsman batting at 'first drop' is batting at number three in the batting order, going in after one wicket has fallen.
Drop in Pitch
A short-term pitch that is sophisticated off-site from the ground which also permits other sports to distribute the use of the field with less option of injury to the players.
DRS
Common acronym for the Umpire Decision Review scheme.
Duck
A batsman's score of nil (zero) sacked, as in "he was out for a duck." It can pass on to a score of nil not out at some point in an innings, as in "she hasn't got off her duck yet", but in no way refers to a finished innings score of nil not out. Initially called a "duck's egg" for the reason that of the "0" shape in the scorebook.
Duck under delivery
A short pitched release that emerges to be a bouncer, building the striker duck to evade from being hit; but as a replacement for of bouncing high, it has a low bounce which sources the batsman to be dismissed LBW, or sporadically bowled.
Duck worth Lewis Method
An accurately based law that derives a target gain for the side batting second in a rain-affected one-day match.

 

 

SDCA LEAGUE SCORES : 27.10.2013

Ground : Neelambal Subramaniam HSS – Division : I “B”

Tigers XI 132 allout in 45 Overs (M.Prasanna 56, J.Gajendran 30, D.S.Santhosh Kumar 3 for 10, S.Jagathrinath Anandh 3 for 19)

Lost to

Gopalan Memorial CC 133 for 6 in 28.3 Overs (S.Ilayaraja 35, R.Thangaraj 3 for 15)

Ground : Salem Steel Plant – Division : I “B”

R.T.Parthasarathy Memorial CC 170 allout in 45 Overs (R.Gopal 31, S.T.Ramachandran 36 notout)

Beat

Steels RC 156 for 9 in 45 Overs (D.Kannan 61 notout , V.Dhayanithi 41)

Ground : Periyar University “A” – Division : I “A”

Davaram SC 49 allout in 45 Overs (S.Chandrasekar 4 for 15)

Lost to

Rangers CC 53 for 4 in 9.4 Overs (S.Sakthivel 3 for 9)

Ground : Periyar University “B” – Division : II “A”

Bluestar CC 148 allout in 45 Overs (Nagarathinam 49, Prabhakaran 3 for 20, Ashok 3 for 11)

Beat

Rock CC 104 allout in 45 Overs (Nagarathinam 3 for 20, Maniraj 3 for 16)

Ground : Monforts School – Division : III

S.K.Murugan CC 124 for 7 in 25 Overs

Lost to

Monforts School 125 for 8 in 22 Overs

CRICKET JARGONS : "C"

Call
The work of a fieldsman in proclaiming to additional fieldsmen that he is in a location to take a catch, generally by shouting the word "mine". This is well thought-out good practice, as it averts two fieldsmen crashing with one further in an attempt to take the same catch. The work of a batsman in declaring to his batting partner whether or not to receive a run. According to received practice, the call is in use by the batting partner who has the recovered view of the ball: if the hit is forward of the crease, the call should be prepared by the batsman at the striker's end, if it is toward the back of the crease, the call should be made by the batsman at the non-striker's end. (Occasionally, on the other hand, it is decided that the more qualified batsman will all the time have the call.) The common and preferable calls are only three in number: yes (we will get a run), no (we will not obtain a run), or wait (we must not take a run in anticipation we see if the ball is interrupted by a fieldsman). To evade any perplexity as to which batsman has the call, one or other of them may say your call. Thorough obedience to these practices is fundamental to avoid a run out.
Called Happen when an umpire "calls" no-ball against a bowler
Cameo
A concise but quick-scoring innings .e.g. "He played a modest cameo of an innings".
Cap
Granted by countries for each exterior at Test level. At county stage, just one is known and is rewarded not on a player's first form, but at a later on period when it is felt he has "proved himself" as a part of the team; a few players never receive one. Worceshtshire have now eradicated this scheme and award "colours" to each player on his debut.
Captain's Innings/Captain's Knock
A high-scoring character innings by the captain of the batting team well thought-out to have altered the track of a match.
Carrom-Ball
A style of bowling deliverance used in cricket, named for the reason that the ball is unconfined by flicking the ball among the thumb and a bent middle finger in order to instruct spin.
Carry
If a hit ball is caught by a fielder on the fly, it is said to have carried. If it bounces just short of the fielder, it is said not to have carried. The broadcast of a relief to the wicket keeper is also distinguished as a measure of the quality of the pitch.
Carry the bat
A starter who is not out at the end of an accomplished innings is said to have carried his bat.
cart-wheeling stump
While a ball hits a stump with adequate force to reason it to make vertical revolutions ahead of landing.
Castled
Out bowled frequently by a full extent ball or a Yorker.
Catch
To discharge a batsman by a fielder catching the ball following the batsman has hit it with his bat but facing it hits the ground.
Caught behind
Submits to a catch by the wicket-keeper.
Century
An entity score of at least 100 runs, a considerable landmark for a batsman. At times used satirically to express a bowler conceding over 100 runs in an innings.
Charge
When the batsman utilizes his feet and comes out of his batting crease towards the bowler, trying to hit the ball. Also recognized as giving the bowler the charge, or stepping down the wicket.
Cherry
The (red) cricket ball, predominantly the new ball. Moreover the red marks left on a cricket bat by the ball.
Chest on (also front on)
A chest on bowler has chest and hips associated towards the batsman at the moment of back foot contact A batsman is supposed to be chest on if his hips and shoulders face the bowler
Chin music
The use of a succession of bouncers from pace bowlers to daunt a batsman. In olden times, it has been used as a method particularly alongside sub-continental teams because of their rawness of bouncers. Term in use from baseball.
Chinaman
A left-handed bowler bowling wrist twirl (left arm eccentric). For a right-handed batsman, the ball will travel from the off side to the leg side (left to right on the TV screen). Known after Ellis “Puss” Achong a West Indian left-arm wrist-spin bowler of Chinese descent.
Chinese cut
(also French cut, Harrow Drive, Staffordshire cut or Surrey cut) An inside edge which neglects hitting the bases by a few centimeters.
chunk
To throw the ball in its place of bowling it (i.e. by unbending the elbow in the delivery); also chucker: a bowler who chucks; and chucking: such an unlawful bowling action. All are well thought-out offensive terms as they imply deceitful.
(The) Circle
A decorated circle (or ellipse), centered in the center of the pitch, of radius 30 yard (27 m) marked on the field. The circle breaks up the infield from the outfield, used in policing the fielding rules in assured one-day versions of the game. The accurate characters of the boundaries vary depending on the type of game.
Clean bowled
Bowled, devoid of the ball first hitting the bat or pad.
Close infield
The region together with this by a painted dotted circle of 15 yard (13.7 m) radius calculated from the wicket on every end of the pitch. Used only in ODI matches.
Coil
Substitute term for back foot contact
Collapse
The failure of numerous wickets in a short space of time.
Come to the crease
A slogan used to indicate a batsman walking onto the playing ground and arriving at the cricket pitch in the center of the ground to begin batting.
Cordon (or slips cordon)
All players fielding in the slides at any time are collectively referred to the slips cordon.
Corrridor of uncertainity
A good line. The corridor of ambiguity is a notional constricted area on and just outside a batsman's off stump. If a relief is in the corridor, it is complex for a batsman to choose whether to leave the ball, play defensively or play an offensive shot. The term was popularized by ex- England batsman, now commentator, Geoffrey Boycott
County cricket
The maximum level of domestic cricket in England and Wales.
Covers
A ground position between point and mid-off. The tools used to shield the pitch from rail.
Cow corner
The spot of the field (roughly) among deep mid-wicket and wide long-on. So called because few 'legitimate' shots are intended to this branch of the field, so fielders are infrequently placed there – leading to the perception that cows could cheerfully graze in that area.
cow shot
A hard shot, habitually in the air, transversely the line of a full-pitched ball, aspiring to hit the ball over the margin at cow corner, with very little view to proper procedure. Very authoritative and a good way of striking boundary sixes, but must be timed flawlessly to evade being bowled, or each skying the ball or getting a principal edge and so being caught. A type of slog.
Crease
One of numerous lines on the pitch near the stumps (the "popping crease", the "return crease" and the "bowling crease") most repeatedly referring to the cracking crease.
Cricket ball
A hard, solid ball of cork abrasion string and polished leather with a wide raised equatorial vein.
Cricketer
An individual who plays cricket
Cross - bat shot
A shot played with the bat corresponding with the ground, such as a cut or a pull. Also acknowledged as a horizontal-bat shot.
Crowd catch
A fielder's stop which escorts to a call from the multitude because at first intuition it is a dismissal, but which spin out to be not out (since of a no ball or a bump ball).
Cut
A shot played square on the off side to a short-pitched rescued wide of off stump. So called as the batsman makes a "cutting" activity as he plays the shot.
Cutter
A break delivery bowled by a speedy or medium-pace bowler with parallel action to a spin bowler, but at a faster pace. It is generally used in an effort to astonish the batsman, even though some medium-pace bowlers use the cutter as their store (main) deliverance.

CRICKET JARGONS : "B"

Back foot
In a batsman's posture the back foot is the foot that is closest to the stumps. A bowler's front foot is the last foot to make contact with the ground before the ball is released. The further foot is the back foot. Except the bowler is bowling off the wrong foot the bowling foot is the back foot.
Back foot contact
It is the situation of the bowler at the split second when his back foot lands on the view just prior to delivering the ball.
Back foot shot
A shot played with the batsman's load on his back foot (i.e. the foot furthest away from the bowler)
Back spin
(Also under-spin) a delivery which has a revolution backwards so that after pitching it immediately slows down, or bounces lower and skids on to the batsman.
Backing up
The non-striking batsman send-off his crease for the period of the delivery in order to shorten the space to complete one run. A batsman "backing up" as well far runs the risk of being run out moreover by a fielder in a conventional run out, or – in a "Mankad”– by the bowler themselves. After a fielder chases the ball, one more fielder positioned at an advance distance also moves into position so that if the fielder mis-fields the ball, the smash up done is minimal. In accumulation done to support a fielder getting a throw from the outfield in case the throw is errant or not caught.
Backlift
The invigorating of the bat in preparation to hit the ball.
Bail
One of the two miniature pieces of wood that lie on top of the stumps to form the wicket. Example: "Play was belated because the bowler's approaches were slippery"
Ball
The encircling object which the batsman attempts to strike with the bat. Also a delivery.
Bang (It) In
To bowl a delivery on a shorter length with further speed and force. The bowler is said to be "bending his back" when bashing it in.
Bat
The wooden execute with which the batsman endeavor to strike the ball.
Bat - Pad
A fielder who is in point close to the batsman to catch the ball if it hits the bat, then the pad, and ascends to a catchable height. Also a defence in opposition to being given out lbw, that the ball may have hit the bat first, conversely imperceptible.
Batsman
A player on the batting side, or a player whose specialty is batting more specifically, batsman may pass on to one of the two members of the batting side who are at present at the crease: either the batsman who is on strike, or the batsman who is at the non-striker's end. The word batter was unfamiliar in men's cricket until the 1980s, when political correctness obliged the adoption of a gender neutral term.
Batting
The act and skill of shielding one's wicket and scoring runs.
Batting Average
The common number of runs scored per innings by a batsman, premeditated by dividing the batsman's total runs scored through those innings in question by the amount of times the batsman was out.
Batting collapse
Is used to illustrate the situation where an amount of batsmen are dismissed in rapid series for very few runs. A middle order batting crumple can be mainly ruinous as it leaves only the bowlers to bat.
Batting end
The end of the pitch at which the striker locates
Batting order
The sort in whom the batsmen bat, from the openers, in the course of the top order and middle order to the lower order.
BBI or Best
An acronym for the best bowling figures in an innings the whole time the entire career of the bowler. It is clear as, firstly, the supreme number of wickets taken, and secondly the smallest runs accepted for that number of wickets. (Thus, a performance of 7 for 102 is considered better than one of 6 for 19.)
BBM
An acronym for the best bowling figures in a match during the entire career of the bowler. It is defined as, firstly, the greatest number of wickets taken, and secondly the fewest runs conceded for that number of wickets in a complete match, as disparate to BBI which is the same statistic for an innings.
Beach Cricket
An informal form of the game, perceptibly cricket played on beaches, particularly in Australia, Sri Lanka and cricket-playing Caribbean countries.
Beamer
A delivery that reaches the batsman at something like head height with no bouncing. Owed to the risk of injury to the batsman, a beamer is an illicit delivery, liable to be punished by a no ball being called. If a creature bowler bowls more than two beamers in an innings, they can be excluded from bowling for the remainder of that innings.
Beat the bat
When a batsman intently evades touching the ball with the edge of his bat, in the course of good fortune fairly than skill. Measured a moral victory for the bowler. The batsman is believed to have been beaten. In some instances, this may be prolonged to "beaten all ends up".
Beehive
An illustration showing where a number of balls, typically from a particular bowler, have passed the batsman.
Bend the back
Of a speed bowlers, to set in extra effort to mine extra speed or bounce
Belter
A belter of a pitch is a pitch donating advantage to the batsman
Bite
The twirl a spin bowler is able to fabricate on a pitch
Block
A protective shot; To play a protective shot. The region of the field restrain the pitch and any extra pitches (being equipped for other games)
Block hole
The area among where the batsman rests his bat to obtain a delivery and his toes. It is the intention area for a Yorker.
Bodyline
A tactic (now concealed by law changes confining fielders on the leg side) connecting bowling directly at the batsman's body, predominantly with close fielders packed on the leg side. The term "Bodyline" is regularly used to depict the contentious 1932–33 Ashes Tour. The tactic is often called "fast leg theory” in other contexts
Bottom hand
The hand of the batsman that is nearby to the blade of the bat. Shots played with the bottom hand frequently are hit in the air and illustrated as having a lot of bottom hand.
Bouncer
A rapid short inclined delivery that rises up near the batsman's head.
Boundary
The border of the ground Four runs. In addition used to point out a four and a six cooperatively; the rope that isolates the perimeter of the ground.
Bowled
A method of a batsman's dismissal. Arises when a delivery hits the stumps and eliminates the bails.
Bowled out
Of the batting side, to have gone ten out of its eleven batsmen (thus having no more authorized batting partnerships and being all out). (In this case it has naught to do with the picky dismissal bowled.)
Bowler
The player on the fielding side who bowls to the batsman
Bowling
The act of delivering the cricket ball to the batsman.
Bowling action
The set of movements that result in the bowler releasing the ball in the general direction of the wicket
Bowl - Out
A method of deceiving the result in a Twenty 20 International game that has been tied. Five players from each team bowl at a full set of stumps, and the team with the most hits wins. If the number of hits is equal after both team's turns, further sudden death turns are taken. The concept is analogous to the penalty shootout used in other sports.
Bowling Analysis
A shorthand algebraic notation summarising a bowler's performance
Bowling Average
The average number of runs scored off a bowler for each wicket he has taken. I.e. total runs conceded divided by number of wickets taken.
Bowling end
The conclusion of the pitch from where the bowler bowls
Bowling foot
The foot on the identical side of the body that a bowler holds the ball. For a right handed bowler the bowling foot is the right foot.
Box
A defensive item shaped like a half-shell and slotted in into the front pouch of a jockstrap worn underside a player's (particularly a batsman's) trousers to protect his or her genitalia from the hard cricket ball. Also identified as an 'abdominal protector', 'Hector protector', 'ball box', 'protector' or 'cup'.
Brace
Two wickets taken off two successive deliveries.
Break
A suffix used to portray the ball changing path after pitching caused by the bowler’s spin or cut. For illustration, a leg spinner will deliver leg breaks (moving from leg to off).
Breaking the wicket
The act of dislocate the bails from the stumps
Buffet Bowling
Bowling of a very pitiable quality, such that the batsman is capable to "come and help himself" to runs, also Cafeteria Bowling.
Bump ball
A delivery that springs very close to the batsman's foot, after he has played a shot, such that it comes out to have come directly from the bat with no ground contact. The result is often a crowd catch.
Bumper
Old-fashioned name for a bouncer.
Bunsen
A pitch on which spin bowlers can twist the ball prodigiously. From the rhyming slang: Bunsen burner meaning 'Turner.

CRICKET JARGONS : "A"

Across the Line
A batsman plays from corner to corner the line when he moves his bat in a track lateral to the direction of the incoming ball.
Agricultural Shot
This is a swing crosswise the line of the ball (resembling a slice motion) played devoid of much technique. Regularly one that results in a chunk of the pitch being dug up by the bat. A form of a slog.
All out
When an innings is wrecked due to ten of the eleven batsmen on the batting side being either dismissed or incapable to bat because of injury or illness.
All rounder
A player adroit at both batting and bowling in the modern era, this term can moreover refer to a wicket keeper adept at batting.
Anchor
A top-order batsman proficient of batting for a long duration all the way through the innings. Frequently batsmen playing at numbers 3 or 4 play such a role, particularly if there is a batting collapse. An anchor plays defensively, and is repeatedly the top scorer in the innings.
Appeal
The act of a bowler or fielder shouting at the umpire to ask if his last ball took the batsman's wicket. Generally phrased in the form of howzat (how-is-that?). Frequent variations include 'How zee?' (How is he?), or merely turning to the umpire and shouting. The batsman will not be given out exclusive of an appeal, still if the criteria for a dismissal have otherwise been met.
Approach
The movement of the bowler prior to bowling the ball. It is also well-known as the run-up. In addition the ground a bowler runs on for the period of his run up. Example: "Play was belated because the bowler's approaches were slippery"
Arm Ball
An unreliable delivery bowled by an off spin bowler that is not spun, so, disparate the off break, it travels straight on (with the bowler's arm). A mainly good bowler's arm ball may also swing away from the batsman in the air (or in to him when delivered by a left-armer).
Around the wicket or round the wicket
A right-handed bowler short-lived to the right of the stumps all through his bowling action, and vice-versa for left-handed bowlers.
Ashes
The everlasting prize in England v Australia Test matches series. The small wooden urn encloses ashes collected after blazing the bails used when Australia first beat England in England; at The Oval in 1882 (the first Test match among the two nations was in Melbourne in 1877).
Asking rate
The run rate at which the team batting 2nd needs to attain to catch the opponents score in a narrow overs game.
Attacking Field
A fielding pattern in which more fielders are close in to the pitch so as to take catches and dismiss batsmen more enthusiastically, at the risk of letting more runs get scored ought to the ball get past them.
Attacking Shot
A shot of assault or strength designed to score runs
Average
A bowler's bowling average is distinct as the total number of runs approved by the bowler (including wides and no-balls) divided by the amount of wickets taken by the bowler. A batsman's batting standard is distinct as the total number of runs scored by the batsman alienated by the number of times he has been dismissed.

BOWLING : 4 Ways to copy the great English fast bowlers

While it's impossible to go back to the old days, there are some things us modern players can take from the pre-Nintendo era to help us be a little more like Larwood, Cartwright or Trueman.

• Get down the mine. The modern world has less physical jobs so we have less chance to be strong and flexible in our working life. That meansgyms have become the modern 'mine' in getting fast bowler's strong and flexible. It's especially important in the off-season when many bowlers of yesteryear went back to manual jobs, got strong and reported back for county duty in April.
• Get moving. Modern life means sitting down; cars, computers and TV all put us in positions that are bad for our posture. In the old days those options just didn't exist. Aim to cut back on how much you sit down by walking more (park a further distance away if you have to), getting up from your computer every so often, playing other sports or active recreations (biking for example) and keeping the Nintendo time down.
• Eat 'grandma' food. Modern food is different too. We eat much more processed food and much less 'real' food. By that I mean stuff your grandmother would recognise as food: Meat, fish, vegetables and dairy. In those days she wasn't afraid of fat, or carbs, or anything. She just cooked from scratch and ate healthy meals. Make sure you are getting plenty of food from these sources to fuel your newer more active lifestyle.
• Keep bowling. With a stronger more flexible body you will be able to bowl more, and you should. The great bowlers in the past had no fears of how much they bowled. Once you are fit, get as many overs under your belt as you can. It will help your pace, accuracy and cricketing nous more than anything else.

And it's really as simple as that. We will never go back to those days, but why not cherry pick the best bits to help you become a better bowler?

Just don’t smoke a cigar and down three pints of mild every night. That's best left in the past.

 

 

WG GRACE AND THE GOLDEN AGE OF CRICKET

Dr. William Gilbert Grace transformed the game of cricket during his lifetime and much of his career was spent playing for Gloucestershire. He was born in Bristol and has played on many of the grounds in the area. He started playing when he was just 16 in 1864 and played his final first class match in 1908.

The doctor from Downend scored 54,896 runs at an average of 39.55. He is still the 5th highest scoring player of all time. He wasn't just a batsman thought. He took 2876 wickets at an average of 17.92 - the 6th highest wicket taker of all time. On two occasions (1873, 1876) he scored 2000 runs and took 100 wickets in one season. He also make 887 catches which is still the second highest number of catches taken by anyone in their career. All of this was done in 43 years between 1865 and 1908 when he eventually retired aged 59.

At the Oval in 1878 he once threw a cricket ball over 116 yards (106m) three times with the wind and over 100 yards back in the other direction.

 

THE PERSON

W.G.Grace was a legend in England in his lifetime. The nation admired him. He perhaps could have been an even better player if is wasn't for food. In his later years he became a bearded 'giant'. He enjoyed his lunch at matches too. A number of times he got out shortly after a big meal. A whisky often accompanied his food. He was one compared to Henry XIII.

As a player he had huge stamina. Despite his weight he had a remarkably high front elbow and so drove, pulled and cut well. He didn't just use his weight to wallop the ball. He had a shot for every ball. WG appeared to be a frightening character but it is said that his bark was worse than his bite. He had a twinkle in his eye and spoke in a rather squeaky voice. 

He would stand no nonsense from his team. If they arrived late he would put them in at number 11. He was, at times, a fiery character. When large crowds came to see him play and a bad decision went against him he got very angry. Occasionally he threatened to leave the ground but was calmed down by a whisky.

'The Old Man' was a strange looking person. He had a huge waist and a long beard. He wore dark shoes, had grubby pads and used a well worn bat. His skills though won him many friends especially wicketkeepers as he rarely missed a ball whilst batting!

Grace did not turn the ball much as a bowler. He relied on flight and length. This, though, was enough to take many wickets on dodgy wickets.

W.G.Grace was not just a cricketer. He played bowls and was a keen golfer. He was a superb athlete when he was young and was a qualified medical practitioner.

 

THE GAME OF CRICKET

The game of cricket evolved a lot during the time of Grace. At the beginning of his career the bowlers had to apologise if they did not pitch it up on the off stump. There was little competition and bowlers were not respected. WG Grace was less fussy. He brought competition to the game and swing bowling and the googly arrived on the scene. Grace brought cricket to the attention of many and promoted the game. People respected him. The game was changed. Shots were played of the back foot and the old style players were lost. Grace drove the most feared bowlers and almost make them try to bowl wide so he couldn't hit it.

 

WG'S GLOUCESTERSHIRE CAREER

W.G.Grace played for Gloucestershire for many years. The county were champions three times and joint champions once between 1873 and 1877. In 1894 Gloucestershire and Grace had a disappointing season. At aged 46 he averaged 18 and it was thought to be the end of an era. The next year, though, he burst back into form. 1895 saw him make his hundredth hundred and he went past 1000 runs in May. That season he averaged 51 - no one could stop him. He made a total of 121 first-class hundreds. He played with the great Gilbert Jessop for Gloucestershire. Jessop scored runs fast in an unorthodox fashion.

In 1889 Dr. Grace gave specifications for the laying of the County Ground in Bristol. The pavilion remains and it is still much the same today. 

W.G.Grace left Gloucestershire and went to live in the south-east. He played for London's county team.

Towards the end of his career he became a handicap in the field but was still a commanding batsman. He gave up first-class cricket in 1908 but continued to play in many other games. His beard turned to white and he played his last game on 25 July 1914. In typical style he scored 69 not out. In October the next year, 1915, he died aged 67. His death shook the nation.

 

TEST CAREER

W.G. Grace played test cricket for England between 1880 and 1899. He only played in 22 tests because the series' generally only lasted 2 or 3 tests in those days. Grace captained England in 5 Ashes series', one of which was in Australia. Australia was the only other test-playing country and Grace may not have gone on every tour of the country. He was an amateur and could not afford the time. Had he been around today he could have played well over 200. On his test debut in 1880 he made 152 runs at the Oval. 

When he retired from test cricket in 1899 a huge gap was left in the side.