Innings

“ We're in the long field most of the time, and when we get an innings, Fate goes and bowls us a curly one. I've never had an innings in my life, and I've been fielding for fifteen years—since I was seventeen—and my poor old father played on in Mark Lane and lost his house the 'ashes.' That's my story, and I don't tell it to everyone. ”

“ We all know the look of such an innings, how the hopes and fears alternately rise and fall; how, when you really begin to feel happy, the side whose colours you are wearing look like getting the runs, when lo! one or two wickets fall, and your spirits go to zero, and the other side become proportionately exalted. It may be that the last man comes in when ten runs arc wanted: the excitement then cannot last long, but it is so intense or even painful, while it lasts, that men are positively afraid to face it. Many men retire into the bowels of the pavilion in order to avoid looking on. ”

“ The next three innings saw goose eggs in the squares of both teams, the only hitting that was done being foul tips.
"It's a pitchers' battle," began to be whispered from seat to seat, and so it seemed. ”

“ The object of the game is to get the greatest number of runs, and this is to be done by the strikers. Each side having been in once and out once, the first innings is concluded, and, we might say, a complete game has been played, but in most matches another innings is played. ”

“ The nuisance of the day is the long scoring; we wonder how many innings of 100 are played where you do not read the well-known remark, 'the batsman gave a chance at 24, another at 62, and a third just before he was out, but none the less he played a fine innings.' The following brief epigram is undoubtedly true—'Good fielding makes weak bowling strong and strong batsmen weak.' An eleven that is really A1 in fielding very rarely has to field out for 300 runs. ”

“ Some games have regular "innings," with alternate activity and rest for the players; or each player takes his turn at doing the hard work; or the players are constantly changing from one thing to another—for instance, throwing or striking the ball one minute ”

“ You're all playing what you think to be the game of life, and playing it willingly. But I play only under compulsion; if you call it playing, when one is hounded out to field in all weathers without ever having a chance of an innings. ”

“ Scene—The Cricket Field. The Bell has rung for the Second Innings. Mr. Land Bill is just going to the wickets, and pauses to exchange a word or two with Mr. Crimes Bill, who has had so long an innings in the earlier part of the match.
Crimes Bill (taking it easy on his bat) . Hello, L. B. my lad, you're going in?
L. B. (buttoning his gloves nervously) . Ye—e—s. Captain's orders!
C. B. Well, I hope you'll win.
L. B. I'll do my best; can Cricketer do more?
C. B. No. But, by Jove! you'll find it hard to score.
L. B. What? Bowling killing? ”

“ Again, the bowling is sure to be stronger and fuller of sting at the commencement of an innings; hence the more skilful batsman is the better qualified to withstand it at this stage. Further, the more that runs are made early in an innings, the more will be made towards the end. As a matter of fact, the order of merit is frequently constituted the order of going in, and with good results. ”

“ When the ground is hard, a captain has no alternative but to take first innings; for whether hard and true, rough, fiery, or crumbled, a dry wicket will almost certainly not improve, and is very nearly sure to deteriorate. ”

“ At the beginning of the match, and of each innings, the umpire at the bowler’s wicket shall call “Play”; from that time no trial ball shall be allowed to any bowler on the ground between the wickets, and when one of the batsmen is out, the use of the bat shall not be allowed to any person until the next batsman shall come in. ”

“ A bowler can without doubt be much surer of bowling a good ball, a fielder of catching a catch, than can a batsman of keeping a ball out of his wicket or scoring a run off it. Now the disproportionate value of a run in hand and a run to be made is greater in the fourth innings than in any other, for the simple reason that batsmen on the one hand, and bowlers and fielders on the other, have a definite undertaking before them. ”

“ The professionals not only maintained their superiority with the ball, but challenged the supremacy of the amateurs with the bat. For twenty completed innings in first-class matches, thirteen professionals had an average of over twenty-three runs per innings ”

“ Although he bowled at the wickets he hit the players first. Nor was this, so far as appearances went, in any way his fault; they seemed to have a singular knack of getting just in the way of the ball. The order of the innings was this: the ball hit each man five times, and the wickets once. ”

“ If he do so before it reaches the ground, or hops more than once, or if the striker miss the ball when he aims at it, or hits the trigger more than once without striking the ball, he loses his innings, and the next in order, which must previously be agreed on, takes his place. ”

“ I have tried many of these new inventions, and have no doubt some of them will answer very well when the makers have succeeded in producing handles with the proper amount of spring and yet strong enough to withstand the strain put upon them. It is very annoying to have the handle of your bat breaking in the middle of along innings, for you do not feel at home with a new one for an over or two. ”

“ If a side declare its innings closed in the morning before play commences, it must do so in sufficient time to enable the other side to choose the roller it prefers, otherwise an extra ten minutes will be allowed for rolling. ”

“ For some unexplained reason—possibly a vague sense of fair play which in time may lead to the beginnings of gallantry—there is one occasion, an initiation ceremonial, at which women are allowed to have their innings while the men are dancing. ”

“ There are some batsmen whom, on these sodden wickets, it is almost impossible to get rid of. They remain for hours, perfectly contented if a whole day is taken up with their innings and forty runs added to the total, the chances of a draw being thereby greatly augmented. ”

“ They turn up after the order of going in has been made out, and request a change to be made that upsets the entire arrangement. Sometimes it is the particular period of the day that causes them qualms of confidence; and the frequency with which their innings coincide with an unfavourable hour is extraordinary. ”

“ If hand-in wins a stroke, his side scores a point; if he misses a stroke he loses his innings and his partner becomes server, unless he has already served in this round, in which case the opponents become hand-in. ”

“ Any time that is lost between the receipt of the ball and the return of it to the wicket is so much in favour of the batsman. The amount of runs that can be saved or given away during two long inningses by a fieldsman in the country, or indeed anywhere, is astonishing. Every one agrees on this point, though few act upon it. ”

“ Endeavour by every means in your power—such as by changing the bowling, by little alterations in the field, or by any excuse you can invent—to delay the time, that the strikers may become cold and inactive. And when you get a turn in your favour, you may push on the game a little faster; but even then be not too flushed with success, but let your play be still cool, cautious, and steady.
If your party go in the last innings for a certain number of runs, always keep back two or three of your safest batsmen for the last wickets. ”

“ Scores, how to make good, 300; diet, sleep, and exercise, 300; early training, 301; practice on ground previous to match, 301; testing pads, gloves, and shoes, 302; punctuality at wicket, 303; taking guard, 303; observation of position of field, 303; beginning of innings, 304; avoidance of sharp runs, 304; running out big hits, 305; playing balls too quickly, 305; dealing with thirst, 305; modesty in the hour of victory, 306; differing orders of wickets, 306; a fast, dry, and true wicket, 306; a fast, good, wet wicket, 308; a slow, good, dry wicket, 308; a bumpy wicket, 309 ”

“ We do not believe, though with bated breath let it be said, that the fine rider on a fine horse in a good position and over a grass country with a burning scent can feel so supremely content with the world and its glorious surroundings while galloping and jumping close to hounds, as does a batsman who feels himself master of the bowling on a good wicket in a first-class match, with a fine day and a large crowd keenly anxious for his well-doing. ”

“ Having now given the example of the above eminent men, some playing one way and some another, I shall venture to ofter to the young batsman my own opinion. I have frequently played in both styles, and I consider the holding of the bat upright the safer, and horizontally the more brilliant playing. At the same time, whichever way it be played, I still recommend the movement of the left foot across the wicket. The power that this action gives the striker over the ball, must always be felt and acknowledged. ”

“ From behind the wicket and elsewhere, observe the commonest hits off the commonest balls with this or that break, especially when the batsman shapes thus or thus. Observe how the poking potterer is dismissed by the high full-pitch or by the ball to entice a catch in the slips—for him you will note in your mind, “Two short slips and perhaps two square legs.” Watch the fingers of the nervous batsman grip the bat tight; watch the feet and body shuffle in anxiety; watch the feeble strokes that result; watch the balls that worry him most before he gets confidence. ”

“ The natural spin on every ball which is bowled is from left to right—i.e. the off break. Even when a fielder throws in a ball from a distance it almost invariably has this spin on it. If you watch the smallest boy in the street throwing a stone, you will find, nine times out of ten, the stone has acquired this spin. It is then no wonder that almost every right-handed bowler relies upon this twist as his principal artifice. ”

“ To joust with the spear at the tournament, to fight with axes at the barriers, to lead the chase, and bring down his stag, all the ladies and the courtiers looking on in real or affected wonder; to figure in the dance or the mummery, to sing and play on musical instruments, to win at tennis or at chess, were so many modes in which his vanity indulged itself. ”

“ Note.—Players may agree not to play advantage sets, but to decide the set by one game after arriving at the score of games all.
23. The players shall change sides at the end of every set; but the umpire, on appeal from either party before the toss for choice, may direct the players to change sides at the end of every game if in his opinion either side have a distinct advantage, owing to the sun, wind, or any other accidental cause ”

“ Should a striker stand at the bat without striking at good balls repeatedly pitched to him, for the apparent purpose of delaying the game, or of giving advantage to a player, the umpire, after warning him, shall call one strike, and if he persists in such action, two and three strikes. ”

“ All that Doe did then was to direct the ball with perfect ease between Point and Short Slip and to glance quickly towards the pavilion to see if the stroke had been noticed. The sight of him batting there made me feel another squirmy sensation at the thought that he was my especial friend. He had given, I recall, his grey hat to the umpire to hold, and the wind was playing with his hair. His shirt-sleeves were rolled up, showing arms smooth and round like a woman's. ”

“ The work, without doubt, is hard, the labour of the day strenuous, but the pleasure of bowling a length with the wicket a bit in your favour, with a side that are trying to field, and not loafing as “little mounds of earth or waxen figures in a third-rate tailor’s shop,” is a goodly thing, a thing to dream of. And this craft of bowling is so sure, so certain. ”

“ If a bowler, who, we will say, usually bowls over the wicket, perceive that by bowling round the wicket he may make his bowling more difficult to see, and consequently more effective, on account of a tree, house, or hedge that is directly behind that side of the wicket, he should most certainly change and make the most of that advantage. ”

“ The new possessor of the ball now endeavours, before the rest can reach him, to go through the same required moves, and send the ball back in the direction from which he received it. A good deal of laughing, shouting, and wrestling accompanies this boisterous game, and sometimes heavy falls are given, in endeavouring to trip up the controller of the ball’s movements before he can effect his desired object of bearing it away and performing the requisite ceremonial. ”

“ A good umpire notes at the first glance if your leg is covering any part of it, registers it against you, and remembers it when called upon for a decision. If you stand clear of the wicket, he realises that you are taking every precaution, will not decide without thinking, and will give you the benefit of every doubt. ”

“ A clear case.
mere fact of a ball hitting the leg when it is pitched so nearly straight and would have so nearly hit the wicket as to justify an appeal to the umpire, shows that the batsman has seriously erred either in his judgment of the pitch of the ball or in his stroke. He has made a mistake— the ball hitting his leg is a proof that he has done so ”

“ But now the rope had to be hurled as quickly and as surely as a man sends a ball to first base when the batsman is running, except that the object at which the cowboy aims is moving at a gallop, and one of a galloping horse’s four feet is a most uncertain bull’s-eye. ”

“ An umpire, who bears in his hand a fan, stays in the ring with them, to see that there be fair play and strict observance of the rules. The spectators are accommodated in the boxes of what resembles a temporary theatre surrounding the arena ”