Burns' Eye View

South African Test Cricketer, Norman Gordon, notched up a century yesterday and became the first living Test cricketer to do so.

Gordon is the only remaining survivor from the famous ‘Timeless Test’ played in 1939 between South Africa and England at Durban.

In the famous match, which had to be ‘abandoned’ as a draw because the England team needed to return to the UK, Gordon sent down a remarkable 92.2 eight-ball overs.

As his family celebrated with him in Johannesburg yesterday, at a special function at The Wanderers organised by Ali Bacher and SABC, another first century was being recorded simultaneously.

Corey Nelson, a young gifted all-round sportsman from Croydon, and a highly promising member of Harlequins Rugby Academy, made his first-ever century in Cricket, surpassing his previous best score of 72. Corey was playing for ‘Bedser’s Xl’ v ‘Morris’s Xl’ in the London County Colts Celebration game at Holmewood House Prep School in Tunbridge Wells.

The theme for the match is to celebrate the season where a collection of promising young cricketers (who want to play quality cricket on good grounds) can explore their talent and develop their love for the game by playing with and against others who have desire to excel at the game.

The environment is designed to be ‘formally informal’ in order to allow for more ‘playfulness’ so that every player can (hopefully) rid themselves of the fear factor which is often the impediment to an individual’s successful performance in County Age-Group representative matches. By playing with more ‘joy’ in one’s heart, (rather than fear), and by relaxing in the company of one’s teammates, top performance can follow.

Once accomplished, repeating the same mentality, whilst in other (stressful) environments becomes the individual’s challenge.

When the mind and the body has an impression of what it ‘feels like’ to accomplish a performance, it gets stored in the memory and can be re-created. Confidence is built on such experiences. No matter what positive ‘self-talk’ an individual undertakes, it is through the ‘doing’ and the creation of facts that an individual can build a solid foundation for future success.

Corey Nelson is a delightful young man with some special leadership qualities. He has a modest manner, a lovely nature, and a natural smile. Yesterday, the smile was suitably broad, as he destroyed the bowling of ‘Morris’s Xl’ to record a nine wicket win for ’Bedser’s Xl’, with nine overs to spare. Everybody present shared his joy.

IT IS A MOMENT HE WILL NEVER FORGET.

The more I thought about the best Tests I have watched, the more it got me thinking about all the other great names from previous generations, and games I have read, or heard about.

People often talk about sport in the manner of: ‘I was there’ when X did Y. How many people claim to have been at Wembley Stadium in 1966 when Bobby Moore lifted the World Cup for England?

There are so many great players and teams who have etched themsleves into the rich tapestry of my favorite sport, which has kept me beguiled and bewitched from an early age. I love it.

From a Cricket perspective, I sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have observed the game over the 134 years that Test Cricket has been alive.

I would love to have seen Sir Donald Bradman bat. Similarly, Sir Garry Sobers. I was too young to have appreciated Sobers’ true quality, even though I was fortunate to see him play.

How good was WG Grace? Statisitics suggest he was peerless as a cricketer. The fact that he was so far and above the standard of his playing contemporaries, marks him out as a remarkable achiever in the game.

I would loved to have seen George Headley bat too. And Denis Compton. I am reliably informed (by John Woodcock amongst others) that Denis was a genius at the crease. And Sir Len Hutton, who Geoffrey Boycott rates amongst the very best.

I would loved to have seen Frank Tyson bowl fast too. And Fred ‘The Demon’ Spofforth – he of the origin of the Ashes fame.

And teams…. How good were Bradman’s Invincibles in 1948? Hutton’s England? Worrell’s West Indians? I know how good Clive Lloyd’s West Indians were, and regard myself as fortunate to have played against Allan Border’s Australians and Viv Richards’ peerless West Indian team.

I would love to have been able to study Richie Benaud’s captaincy, and also witnessed Douglas Jardine’s Bodyline tactics which unsettled Sir Donald Bradman and his team-mates in Australia during the 1932-33 series.

In terms of specific matches and events, I wish Dr Who’s Tardis Machine could transport me through time to see the Tied Test in Brisbane 1960; Charles Bannerman make 165 in the first Test in 1877 and achieve the highest percentage of individual runs against a team total in the process; England score 903 for 7 and Len Hutton break the world record in the same game by scoring 364; Don Bradman score 254 at Lord’s in 1930 (an innings which a school-age Denis Compton told me he ‘snuck in’ to watch and was mesmerised by) which ‘The Don’ is said to have regarded as his finest; the Ashes test of 1953 when Denis Compton’s winning boundary secured the Ashes after Alec Bedser’s herculean bowling feats in the series.

I would love to go back in time and watch Sir Donald Bradman make 309 in a day at Headingley in the Ashes series of 1930 , and also see Arthur Morris play his remarkable innings of 182 at Headingley with Bradman (173 not out), to chase down 404 (for the loss of only 3 wickets) to win on the final day at Headingley in 1934.

If only one could have been present to see Jim Laker’s 19 for 90 in 1956 at Old Trafford – it must surely be the greatest sporting feat?

Whatever the merits of comparing eras, it is such a shame that there is so little footage of the first 1000 Tests. In years to come, young cricketers will be able to watch Viv Richards bat, Michael Holding and Malcolm Marshall bowl fast; Wasim and Waqar swing the ball with devastating effect; Murali, Kumble and Warne spin to win, and Tendulkar, Dravid, Lara, Kallis and Ponting dominate the game with bats as wide as a front door.

The game of Cricket offers us all a wonderful opportunity for narrative. We can author our own stories as we journey through the game, or we can observe others as they author theirs. Young minds will always be influenced by the game’s heroes and as time passess, new heroes always emerge. Who will be threading their names into the game’s history over the next decades?

I hope that the next generation are able to inherit a healthy game and pass on the legacy in even better health in time to come.

Irrepsective of which Cricket statisticians one believes, 2,000 Test matches have now been completed.

The late Bill Frindall, a consummate professional and stickler for detail, was of the belief that the World XI v Australia ‘Supertest’ in Sydney 2005, should not be accorded ‘Test’ status, and his view was shared by several other influential people in the game, meaning the Lord’s Test of 2011 was the 1,999th, despite ICC recording it as the 2,000th.

However, 2,000 Tests have now been completed at Trent Bridge, and what splendid Cricket has been played by England at Lord’s and Trent Bridge to celebrate the milestone.

English Cricket, and Test Cricket in England, is looking very healthy as Test Cricket celebrates another iconic moment. The National side is playing excellent Test Cricket, and are ICC T20 World Champions. England Women’s Team continue to dominate the world game. Participation amongst the younger generation continues to grow apace, especially with girls. Excellent Inter-County Junior Festivals are being played all over the country now the school term has finished, and the 2011 Bunbury ESCA Under 15 Festival has been played at Monmouth School to further acclaim with regard to the quality of the participating young cricketers.

Quite what the Cricket landscape will be when the current crop of 15 year-olds mature fully, and gain International recognition, who knows?

The world is in thrall to Twenty20, but Test Cricket remains the place where ‘serious’ cricketers make or break their professional reputation. It is where the most forensic examination of a player’s technique, temperament, stamina and courage get tested. A series of matches (ideally 5 in number, but rarely in modern schedules) can destroy a cricketer’s career as specific individuals target weaknesses until  one opponent collapses under the weight of the examination, sometimes never to return to the fold again. Only the best come again, hardened by their exposure and with greater mental resolve and tighter technique to face future battles.

Graham Gooch is a great example of such. He was rejected after two Tests in 1975, returned in 1978 a better player, and was one of few to have ’handled’ the great West Indian battery of fast bowlers in the ’80s. He dominated Indian spin, neutered Pakistan swing, but was destroyed by Terry Alderman’s swing and seam in 1989. However, he returned to the England team after a period on the sidelines to be one of the world’s best players until retirement.

Others have been more resilient in the face of persoanl battles. Allan Border played a remarkable 153 successive Tests, 93 of them as Captain! Sunil Gavaskar and Mark Waugh also made over 100 consecutive Test Match appearances – a triumph of skill and durability.

The 2,000th Test milestone got me thinking about some of the Test Cricket I have been priviliged to observe since I became fascinated by the game as a young boy growing up in Chelmsford.

My brother Ian (who is 2 years older) and ,I would sit as schoolboys and ‘score’ some of the Tests once Peter West had conducted his pre-match introductions immediately after the famous BBC signature tune had announced the start of the TV programme. Prior to this, we had been engaged in our own ‘Test Match’ in the park behind our house with five other neighbours of similar age. The standard of play and competitiveness was inspired by the desire to mimick the greats we were watching on ‘the magic rectangle’ in the living rooms of our homes.

We played morning, noon and night, with breaks only for Peter West, Richie Benaud, Jim Laker, Denis Compton, Tom Graveney and co, who would describe the action unfolding in front of our very eyes. Unsurprisingly, our hours of devotion to activity and increasing love for the game, enabled us all to become ‘good’ young cricketers. Out of the 7 of us, five played for Essex at junior level, and four represented Essex 2nd XI. Not bad for one small cul-de-sac of 28 homes in Chelmsford, though not as impressive as Matthew Syed (Times Sports Writer, and author of ‘Bounce’) similar Table Tennis story about his childhood road in Reading, which spawned European and world ranked players!

The Australians had Chappell brothers, Rod Marsh, Dennis Lillee, Jeff Thomson, Doug Walters, Max Walker etc. while West Indies’ big name players Garry Sobers, Rohan Kanhai, Clive Lloyd,  Andy Roberts, Viv Richards, Michael Holding, Derryck Murray and Essex’s Keith Boyce. All  were our heroes of the day. The West Indies teams under Clive Lloyd (in 1976 and 1980) captivated us, and helped inspire me to become a cricketer.

England’s big names were Geoff Boycott, John Edrich, Alan Knott, John Snow, Bob Willis, Derek Underwood, Essex Captain Keith Fletcher, Ray Illingworth and the charismatic Captain Tony Greig.

I loved the way Garry Sobers dressed, walked, ran, fielded, batted and bowled. I even used to do impersonations of him in my bedroom at night in preparation for our mini ‘Tests’ on Chelmer Park the next morning!

After realising I was average with the ball, and wanting to be in the game all the time, I decided to ‘keep wicket after seeing Alan Knott’s acrobatic catching, eccentric stretching routines, and bright red Slazenger gloves on the big stage. He seemed to personify a love for the game, and was always in the thick of the action. Consequently, Rod Marsh soon became a favorite too. His brilliance in partnership with the great fast bowler Dennis Lillee became England’s nemesis in the period. It seemed like every batsman of the day was dismissed c Marsh b Lillee!

Other prominent ‘names’ from my childhood were India’s Sunil Gavaskar, Farokh Engineer, Bishen Bedi, and Pakistan’s Majid Khan, Sarfraz Nawaz, Sadiq and Mushtaq Mohammed plus Imran Khan. New Zealand were less glamourous, but I do recall Bev Congdon, Glenn Turner, and Ken Wadsworth as key names. In later years Richard Hadlee, Lance Cairns, John Wright, Geoff Howarth, and Martin Crowe, became more prominent in my consciousness.

The first Test match I went to see was at Lord’s in 1973 for England v Pakistan, and then in 1975 I saw David Steele get lost on his way out to the middle to face Lillee and Thomson. Graham Gooch, a childhood hero of mine, made his first Test runs in this match, having completed ‘a pair’ in the previous Test at Edgbaston on debut.

I watched Viv Richards make his career-best 291 at The Oval in 1976, and was able to watch Bob Willis’s amazing 8 for 43 against Australia at Headingley in 1981 live on TV, as I had been playing for Essex Schools against London Schoools the day before, was unwell, and fortune meant that rather than going to school the next day, I was able to witness some of the most remarkable Cricket ever seen as Bob Willis defied his critics and cricketing logic to bowl England to arguably the greatest Test victory ever.

As a family, we went to the Centenary Test at Lord’s in 1980. On the Saturday, we witnessed MCC members ‘jostle’ the umpires David Constant and Dickie Bird during one of the many inspections of the damp ground which took place in blazing sunshie. Eventually play began and we saw Kim Hughes unfurl some glorious strokes.

I have been fortunate to have witnessed live, Kevin Pietersen’s incredible last day 158 at The Oval to secure the Ashes in 2005; Sachin Tendulkar’s 241 in Steve Waugh’s final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 2003; Freddie Flintoff’s match-winning spell from the Pavilion End at Lord’s in 2009; all four days of the pulsating Trent Bridge Ashes Test in 2005; and all four innings in one day at Lord’s in 2000 as England beat West Indies.

I have seen Test Cricket overseas at The Wanderers, and Newlands Cricket Ground in South Africa; the WACA, SCG, MCG, and Adelaide Oval in Australia. I watched the 2009 Ashes Test in Cardiff at the 100th Test Match venue and have seen plenty of Test Cricket at Lord’s down the years including every ball of all five days live of one match – a feat I always wanted to accomplish.

If I had to pick one Test from a lifetime watching the game on TV and live, it would be a close call between the Sydney Test between Australia and South Africa  beat Allan Border’s Australians in 1994; the same teams doing battle in Port Elizabeth in 1997 when Australia came out on top; England winning the 2nd Ashes Test at Edgbaston in 2005 after being blown away in the 1st Test at Lord’s; and India’s win at Calcutta in 2001 after following on against Australia.

However, the remarkable turnaround at Headingley in 1981 still confounds me, and is one of the main reasons why I think I fell in love with Test Cricket. The drama was remarkable. The outrageous ‘blacksmith’ batting of Ian Botham, the cerebral captaincy of Mike Brearley, the skilful swing bowling of Ian Botham, and the devaststing fast bowling of Bob Willis made for a heady cocktail, and a win against the odds (of 500-1 for an England victory) at one stage.

Australia’s Captain Kim Hughes never recovered, and Ian Botham’s legacy knew no bounds from this match onwards. The match had it all: legendary players going for each other’s proverbial throats with the most famous sporting rivalry at stake.

The only issue I have with the recording of the 2,000th Test is that the history of the game has refused to acknowledge the Supertests played in Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket. It may be impossible to do so, but having spoken to many of the participants, they all said that it was the sternest examination of their careers. It seems odd that such comments can be made, yet the matches be regarded as ‘unofficial’.

Test Cricket has a narrative of its own. The twists, turns, drama, and different rhythms of the game, make it addictive for those of us who are in love with it.