18th January 1998

Contents

• Reception for the England 'A' team
• Joe Louis loved sleep more than anything else
• Who will be 2001 champions ?
• Bardsley first to hit a ton in each innings in one Test
• Performance, makes a good opener - Roy Fredericks

Reception for the England 'A' team

Nick Knight (left) in a sing-along at the Westminister House, Wijerama Mawatha at a reception hosted for the England 'A' cricket team by the British High Commission. Top Left: Nick Knight, Leo Wijesinghe, Mike Gatting and Graham Gooch. Top Right: Aravinda de Silva's father Sam de Silva, Upali Dharmadasa, Nick Pyle of the British High Commission and Ranil Abeynaike. Right: British High Commissioner Mr. Tatham in conversation with Nick Knight with other cricketers lending an ear. Pictures by Dunstan Wickremaratne.

Former World Heavyweight Boxing Champ . . .

Joe Louis loved sleep more than anything else

By Trevor Wignall

When Joe Louis, heavy-weight champion of the world for 10 years, was a boy of 11, he was such an indifferent pupil at his Detroit school that his mother was asked to take him away. The distracted parent, with several other young mouths to feed, thereupon sought admission for the husky picaninny to what was called a trade school, where he was to be taught cabinet making.

Her distress was acute when it was shortly ascertained that the fifth of her children was no quicker on the uptake at carpentry than he had been in a more scholastic sphere, so again by request, she removed him, and this time found him a job as a deliverer of ice from a large truck.

It was the custom, however, for those who controlled schools in America to provide final report cards at leaving time. This was what Frank Cody, the instructor, who must now be regarded as one of the greater prophets of his time, wrote: "This boy should yet be able to do something with his hands."

It was little more than 12 years since Julian Black, co-manager with John Roxborough, of the Alabama cotton-picker who grew to be known as the Brown Bomber, told me this quaint tale. It came at the close of one of the most embarrassing afternoons I ever spent.

Happening to be in Chicago, I was invited to attend a party, the main purpose of which was to present Louis to a number of New York newspapermen. I still clearly remember Joe as I first saw him. He was half asleep in a rocking chair, and in his lap was a local journal, opened at the comic-strip section. For 10 minutes or more I plied him with questions, but failing to get from him any more news than a very occasional "Yup" or "Nope", I eventually arose, defeated, and cast an eye over the company in search of someone with larger conversational acquirements. In doing so I had to pass another coloured man who had been standing near.

"Not one of the higher intellectuals is he?" I remarked a mite foolishly. "No," said the stranger, without heat, and in a cultured tone that somewhat surprised me. "Nor would you be if you had had his upbringing. I'm Julian Black. Please tell me what you want to know. Joe isn't much good at this sort of thing."

I learned plenty in the minutes that followed. I was told that at Lexington, Alabama, where he was born, Joe had led a poverty-stricken existence, that his father had died when Joe was five; that his mother had first wanted him to be a violinist so that he could join a band, that Joe had earned $25 a week as a labourer in the Ford motor plant; that he had developed his magnificent muscles and structure throwing ice about; that he preferred sleep even above the movies and comics and baseball; that his most tremendous ambition was to own a horse, and that gamblers had once got him arrested on the eve of an amateur tournament on the false charge (Joe would have been 15 at the time) of murdering his wife at South Bend, Indiana. I went back to Joe after that.

Honestly, I thought him the dumbest individual I had ever encountered. He had never heard of London, about which I talked, so far as I could tell; he could not even recall the name of the heavy-weight champion who had preceded Dempsey. I marked him off as a total loss from the point of view of a questioning journalist, and I did not see him again until June of the same year. That was at Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, where he had taken over a health farm to train for his fight with Primo Carnera. But it was not until the summer of 1939, when Louis, after being knocked headlong by a left hook swung from his heels by tubby Tony Galento, managed to retain his title by the narrow margin of a thumb-nails width (as the referee, Arthur Donovan, told me), that I felt I had penetrated most of the secrets and puzzles.

What mystified me was that a man of such limited opportunities and education as Louis - and a negro to boot - should so have established himself as to be everywhere regarded as a super fighter. I had spent another full day at Pompton Lakes observing Joe, and it seemed to me he had scarcely changed in the four years of our acquaintance.

He was just as icy and steel like, as bereft of words as ever, as punctilious in addressing everybody, including his managers, as "Mister" or "Sir", as he had been as a scared newcomer to pugilism, as fond of nailing questioners with a steady cold eye as he had been at our first meeting.

Never once had I seen him smile. But this day in 1939 I saw him shiver all over. That was when the late Jack Blackburn, who was rubbing him down, asked me if there was going to be a war, and then asked Chappie, as he invariably called him, if he would like to be in it.

Joe quickly made a reply that was, for him, practically a Churchillian oration. In all, there were about twenty-five words. Reduced to their most succinct meaning, they stated that he did not want any part of Europe; that he did not wish to cross the seas; that he had no desire to wear a uniform, and that the only gun he wished to see was one equipped to shoot rabbits. And he shivered all over, literally.

That night I dined with the late Damon Runyon on Broadway. I related what had occurred and spoke of my bewilderment. It was Runyon who really put me on the track. I found then, after more delving, that every step Louis had taken since he turned professional in 1934, had been contrived, controlled and personally directed by the four men who were entirely responsible for his phenomenal climb - Black, Roxborough, Blackburn and Mike Jacobs.

The cultivated politeness, for example, Joe exhibited to every caller. The iciness of demeanour in the glow of victory or the darkness of defeat. The steadfast determination not to permit even the ghost of an expression to flit across his mask-like poker face at any time or in any place. The refusal to sign advertisements for things he did not like, smoke, or drink or wear, or buy. The positive refusal to permit the deep religious feeling that had been bred in him by his mother, and by the Baptist chapel in Detroit where he joined his first boxing club, to be exploited by being photographed with a Bible in his hands.

Julian Black, when I pressed him, confirmed these matters, and more. "We were up against age-old prejudices when we started," he said. "The fact is, we were told repeatedly that a black boy had no chance at all of reaching the top. Day in and day out we counselled Joe to fight well and honestly and fairly, and to keep always in his mind that he was an ambassador of his race. He never forgot.

Joe Louis' defects? There are not many. There is a weakness in his right jaw and another in his temples, as Braddock and Galento and one or two others proved. But these count for nothing compared with his assets, which include the gift for using his hands which must have been born in him. He does not diet, but a close watch has to be kept when ice-cream and sweet cakes are on the menu. He is good on a horse these days, and is still a terror for the pictures and baseball. He likes music, too, of a kind, but his reading remains confined to the funnies and the baseball scores.

He married his present and only wife twice; the first time with her clergy-man brother officiating, two hours before he flattened Max Baer. No attention should be paid to the tales that he lacks money. Joe is rich, with a trust fund and property in many parts of the US. But he is as easy for a "touch" as Dempsey, which accounts for the fact that he is still ladled out with the day's spending cash. In short, a simple man of limited outlooks and achievements (bar one) with simple tastes and a constant desire to get in some more sleep.

And this, too, I simply must declare. Joe has fought all his fights with the maximum of fairness, sportsmanship, and honesty of purpose. He has never dived, never engaged in a fix, never disfigured himself with an action that called for reproof.

Because I have seen so many surprises in boxing I was less astonished than most people over what happened in the fight between Louis and Walcott. What did astound me was to note that Louis looked bloated and quite out of condition.

There is now this to be remembered; if Louis decides to fight again, his opponent must be Walcott. Even now, I would not change places with Walcott, and he must recall what Louis did to every opponent he met twice. There may be a different Joe Louis next time, as there was when he had a second bout with Max Schmeling.

- Extract from Sport & Pastime, 14-2-48

A grand plan to find future champs . . .

Who will be 2001 champions ?

JOHANNESBURG, The International Cricket Council (ICC) has almost finalised plans to organise an event that will determine the champion Test team in the world. It is likely to be held in 2001 and the event will be spread over three months.

The ICC President Mr.Jagmohan Dalmiya, who is here to attend the inaugural match of the MTN Under-19 World Cup said: "Let's see, but only Tests and not one day internationals will be played during that three month time," to a question if the world championship for Test teams will be held in 2001.

The Chairman of the Development Committee of the ICC, Mr. Ali Bacher, short of confirming the year, said, "There are possibilites".

But more significantly, Mr. Dalmiya would strive to completly re-schedule the Tests and one day commitments programme of the nine Test playing nations in June 1998, "If they can change their schedule for playing the one off ICC knock out event in Dhaka, why not change their programme which has already been scheduled".

Obviously, Mr.Dalmiya wants to make sure that every Test playing nation get their due. "There should not be a situation where there is a long gap between tours between two countries. Our development programme is not restricted to spreading the game to all parts of the world and developing infrastructure. Cricket should not stagnate in Test playing nations. I am very hopeful that the Test playing countries will agree to change its programme at the ICC meeting in June. For the ICC, the priority on the agenda is the execution of plans for a world championship for Tests, establishing a Cricket Week from this year and regular exchange of tours between Test playing nations."

Cricket in America

And perhaps for the first time cricket will be introduced in a shortened form in America. "A game could be of two or three hours duration. I saw the last year's World Series baseball finals which was played over three hours. The next day the newspapers reported that it was the longest in the history of the sports in America. We could have 25 overs a side or still a shorter game in America," explained Mr. Bacher.

"We are in the process of making cricket a global sport. For me quantity is not important. Teams should be competent to play in any tournament. I saw a match between Japan and Brunei. A Japanese bowler dismissed a Brunei batsman, bowling with his right hand. He bowled the next ball with his left hand and bowled the batsman. Well, there is interest and talent which has to be nurtured in these parts of the world. When you plan such a huge venture of globalising the sport, there cannot be a time frame. Our next aim is to make sure that the under-19 World Cup is held every two years," said Mr.Dalmiya.

"Cricket can be sold as different products according to the receptiveness of the game in different countries. On Tuesday, the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) is to decide on how it will promote the game in China and Japan. New Zealand has decided to develop the game in Fiji and the South Pacific. England has already taken interest in promoting the sport in Europe and the West Indies will introduce the game in the Americas. And most importantly the ICC will have a major event every two years," said Mr.Bacher.

Mr.Bacher who is the Managing Director of the UCBSA, said that MTN, which is a new sponsor to cricket, has given three million dollars for the World Cup. "It is an investment on future stars. We have scheduled matches at places which has not seen big cricket."

Bardsley first to hit a ton in each innings in one Test

By Bruce Maurice

Warren Bardsley was one of Australia's greatest Left handed batsman. His first tour to England was in 1909, and he played his first Test at Birmingham, Opening with Cotter he made only 2 and 6. However, in the final Test at the Oval he made 136 and 130 and became the first batsman in Test history to make twin centuries in a Test. His highest score in Test cricket was 193 not out at Lords in the second Test in 1926. Batting on a wicket that was dry at one end and wet at the other as one of the ground staff had accidentally kept a hose running the previous night. A wicket that needed two different batting techniques. This was his greatest innings in Test cricket and when last man Arthur Mailey fell L. B. W. to Kilner, Australia were all out for 383, and half those runs were off Bardsley's bat. In all he played in 47 Tests and scored 2469 runs at an average of 40.47 with 6 centuries. He was Vice Captain to Herbie Collins on his last tour to England in 1926 and captained Australia in the 3rd Test at Headingly - in which Macartney thrashed the daylights out of the left arm paceman C.G. Macaulay - and then in the 4th Test at Old Trafford when Collins was injured.

Bardsley was slightly deaf. This happened when Ted McDonald, a one-time Test mate of his, playing county cricket in England, hit him on the head one day at Liverpool. Because of this slight deafness Bardsley was apt to raise his voice when talking. Normally, when Bardsley was around nobody was able to get a word in. He was an inveterate chatterbox and in one instance his verbosity almost got him thrown out of Parliament. He was holding forth in the Visitor's Gallery and the Speaker Archi Cameron was casting hard looks in his direction until he shut his mouth like a clam.

His idol was Victor Trumper, and all the youngsters of that time wanted to be Victor Trumper. But Bardsley knew that he, or, anybody else could never be a Trumper. Bardsley was just starting to nibble at a first class career, when Trumper had already joined the cluster of the Southern Cross.

As a youngster Bardsley knew there were no short cuts to the top. His policy was hard work and concentration. He once said, "always have my eyesight and footwork in perfect working order by the time I go to the middle. If you have to find these things only after going into bat, you have no right to be there". He was such a fitness fanatic that he even took upto boxing and ju-jitsu to keep fit.

Tibby" Cotter and he were schoolmates in Sydney. An they used to play on an asphalt pitch during the interval. Other than Bardsley all the other boys wanted to avoid batting when Cotter was bowling. Bardsley always remembered Cotter knocking the middle stumps of Hobbs and Fry out of the ground in the 1909 Headingly Test. And when he saw Cotter breaking stumps, ribs and fingers he said, "I was thankful I was on his side". During his career with New South Wales, his team mates were Collins, Macartney, Kippax, Andrews, Taylor, Kelleway, Gregory, Hendry, Oldfield and Mailey.

Bardsley made his first tour to England in 1909 at the age of 24, and scored 63, 76 and 63 not out in his first three innings. But these were not enough. Bardsley wanted a century and he finally got it against Essex. He opened with Hartigan and Australia lost 2 wickets for 8 runs, when Ransford another young left-hander also on his first tour to England joined him. For the next three hours and twenty minutes these two thrashed the daylights out of the Essex bowlers putting on 355 runs before Ransford was out for 174. Bardsley was now almost 200 and with three hours to go for stumps, was anticipating a score of 350 or more by the close.

The next batsman was none other than his boyhood idol - Victor Trumper. At 217 Bardsley pushed a ball to cover, called Trumper and ran. But when he got to the other end, he saw to his horror that Trumper had not stirred a limb and he was run out by a mile. And that was the end of Bardsley's vision of making 350 by stumps. Bardsley was fuming. He was still fuming a hour later when Trumper returned after making a gem of a 74 in just 60 minutes. Hardly had Trumper entered the pavilion when Bardsley went for him. "Why did you do that Victor"? "There was an easy run in it". "It was my call, why did you do it"? Trumper just allowed him to carry on. Then, when Trumper thought it was enough, he turned and looked hard at Bardsley and the others knew that Bardsley had asked for it. Nobody spoke. Trumper gave it to Bardsley bellyful. "Now look here Warren, you had already made 200". "How much more did you want"? There are 5 Test matches coming up and there are others who also need to have an innings".

"Not only you? thundered Trumper in almost pin-drop silence. And immediately Bardsley came down to earth. He swore that very moment that never again will he adopt such a niggardly attitude

.Bardsley said that Trumper taught him a very good lesson and after that he never had time for a batsman who went on and on just for the sake of personal glory. That was not all the trouble for Bardsley on that tour. In Glasgow, Noble turned the batting order upside down. Bardsley went in at number 10 and Armstrong at number 11. As soon as Bardsley reached his century. Noble sent him a note. It just said, "Get Out." He hit a skier off the very next ball and walked off. Armstrong exploded, "what the hell did you do that for"? Bardsley just showed him the note. As soon as he came in Noble let him have it. "When I send you a bloody note Warren, it is meant only for you and not to be made bloody public property." There were times when Bardsley thought there was more trouble for him in the pavilion than out in the middle. In another match, he was batting with Noble, when he reached his century with a boundary. As he walked past Noble, he thought Noble would congratulate him. Instead Noble just looked at him and asked, "for how long more do you intend staying"? And Bardsley threw his wicket away to the very next ball.

His greatest knock was in the Lords Test in 1926 when he opened batting and was not out 193 when the last man Mailey fell LBW to Kilner. When he returned he was congratulated by a young barrister H V Evatt and Bardsley told him, "I will swop it for one of your degrees at anytime". "And Evatt replied, "Sure, give me the 93 you keep the hundred and you can have all my degrees."

In 1911-12 he had a miserable series against England, scoring only one fifty in the 3rd Test at Alelaide. F R Foster the left-arm pace bowler clean bowled him 4 times with ball that swung late across his body, and he was dropped for the 5th Test at Sydney.

In one Test match Hirst bowled him for a "duck". When he went out to bat in the second innings again it was Hirst he had to take strike to. The very first ball was a full toss and Bardsley got off the pair with 3 runs. Thinking that Hirst had given him a fulltoss to get off the mark, he thanked Hirst. Hirst glared at him and said "bloody ball slipped". And that was all Bardsley scored. The very next ball from Hirst sent his stumps flying.

In 1921 in England, Australia won the series 3-0 and according to Bardsley they never played G M Louden of Essex, who was by far the best bowler in England. In that series 29 men played for England. When they played Essex and he and Collins were batting, plenty of duck- shoving went on. Bardsley trying desperately to keep out of Louden's way and Collins trying as desperately to keep out of Louden's way himself. When Bardsley was asked in that case why was Louden not picked for any of the Tests he said. "All we did was tell the truth. We told everybody that Louden was the best bowler. But they thought we were leg-pulling and did not pick the fellow."

Performance, makes a good opener - Roy Fredericks

Roy Fredericks was an explosive opener. He would hook the first ball of the match or pull it rising on his toes. He was a typical West Indian batsman who did not lose time in trying to dominate the bowlers.

The left-hander was part of the West Indian team that thrilled the spectators in the '70s. Fredericks could hit the ball very hard, and he was very adept at finding the gaps. He retired after playing 59 Test matches and aggregating 4334 runs at an average of 42.49, including eight centuries and 26 fifties.

At the age of 40, when he was a Sports Minister, Fredericks came out of retirement to assist Guyana in the Shell Shield competition and enabled the team to win the title that year (1982-83) with scores of 103 and 217. He has fond memories of his playing days and here he shares them, with The Sportstar in an interview at Georgetown.

Question: What makes a good opener?

Answer: Performance. You have to prove the selectors right by taking the early responsibility in the innings. An opener has to guide the remaining batsmen and has to meet the bowlers when they are fresh. That requires immense skill and concentration and you have to be at your best right from the first ball. You just can't relax like the batsmen who follow. They get time to read the pitch by the manner in which you play.

Q: Will technique alone make a good player?

A: Technique is important but the first part is talent. But then it is you who have to tackle the challenge. It is all your mind and your dedication. Apart from technique and talent, | feel there must be somebody you would admire, idolise, would like to perform just as good as them. But technique alone can't make you a good player.

Q: What used to be your preparation?

A: There was a little arrogance in me. I always felt that I must dominate the bowlers. But there were times when the wicket was not conducive to dominating and that's the time I would use my technique to survive. I did it on quite a few occasions but I liked to take on the bowlers from the first ball. I just couldn't wait for them to bowl bad for me to score. I believed in taking the initiative and it often paid.

Q: How vividly do you remember that 71-ball hundred at Perth?

A: Well, I know people talk about that innings but I tell you they (Australian bowlers) were bowling short, and I like to hook. You could say that I was a compulsive hooker and if you are going to bowl me short I am going to hook. So basically it was bad bowling. That's how I remember it.

Q: You were so good at picking the gaps.

A: I looked for the gaps because I didn't like the ball in the air. I liked to keep the ball on the ground. I liked fielders chasing the ball. My theory was that the fielding side must be tired at the end of the day once I am batting.

Q: How would you rate the batting standards today?

A: I am not saying that the standards of Test cricket have improved. PeopIe might say that I am biased, but I don't think the standard of cricket is as good as it was in my time. I think we were more dedicated and the quality of cricket was certainly higher.

Q: Can you elaborate?

A: When you look at cricket these days, you look at money. We never looked at money. We looked at it differently. We felt proud to represent the country. When you look at the youngsters today, that (pride of playing for the country) doesn't mean anything to them. They look at the money.

Q: Are you not happy with the present day players' performance?

A: The cap, the tie and the blazer meant much more than the money. We never thought in the same terms as these fellows. The kind of money they are getting I feel glad for them. I think they should get more but at the same time I don't think their performance deserves that kind of money and pampering.

Q: Are they lacking in commitment?

A: Yes, it is missing. For instance, the West Indies has a policy where you find fellows encouraged even when they are not committed. Take the instance of Carl Hooper. He has been playing for so long, more than 50 Test matches but how many hundreds has he got? He still hasn't got past 3000 runs and he is still playing for the West Indies. In our time, you only had to fail twice to be shown the door. It has changed now. I think it is money more and not the commitment.

Q: How was it being part of the golden era of West Indian cricket in the 70s?

A: It was the best period. We were lucky in those days because fast bowlers kept appearing. Even though the batsmen in those days were good, one of us would get a hundred and leave the job to the bowlers. We were lucky that we always found the fast bowlers. We had about nine standbys. If one was injured, another would take his place.

Q: How much has it changed today?

A: We are struggling today not just for fast bowlers but for quality spinners too. Because the spinners are never encouraged and that is why we have reached this stage though we had reasonably good spinners then.

Q: How was your experience as the Sports Minister of Guyana?

A: I was never interested in politics. Being a sportsman I wanted to do something for sports in the country. But I must apologise I could do little in the six years I held office.

Q: Why was that?

A: In Guyana we don't have a stadium, which is sad. I was not a Sports Minister for just cricket. I tried to build a stadium which would attract footballers and athletes. I also wanted to have an indoor cricket 'nets'. But the country didn't have the money to do it and that was a disappointment. I couldn't do enough because the economy of the country couldn't allow that.

Q: How did you manage to hit a double century in the Shell Shield at the age of 40?

A: It was exciting. I couldn't walk for two weeks after that innings. Guyana was not doing well and we were finishing last every time. The Board asked me if I would play and see what I could do. We had Clive (Lloyd) as captain and I was asked if I could stabilise the team and support Clive. Which I did.

I got a hundred in my first match after seven years. In the next match in Jamaica, I got this double century but I couldn't walk for two weeks.

Q. Your best memories...

A: Lots of them. It would take a day to narrate them. But my one moment was making a 150 against England at Edgbaston. I batted nine and a half hours.

That would stick in my mind forever. People say my 169 at Perth was my best, but I don't think so.

Q: Any regrets?

A: Not really. I made ducks but I looked at it differently. I would think what went wrong and work that out. I would try and avoid making the mistake the next time I went to bat

Q: What would you tell the youngsters of today?

A: Look, cricket in these days is very attractive. You could make a lot of money and if you want to be a successful cricketer, you should be able to work things out. You must be very fit, dedicated and train hard because you have to play a lot these days. Fitness builds the concentration and it will make you very successful. But you got to work towards it. Practice hard and play your cricket hard and you will be successful.

- Vijay Lokapally (The Sportstar)

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