When Statham came to India
His Test career lasted from 1951 to 1965, during which he took 252 wickets in 70 Tests at an average of 24.82
Partab Ramchand
12-Jun-2000
His Test career lasted from 1951 to 1965, during which he took 252
wickets in 70 Tests at an average of 24.82. He earned a name for
himself as a gentleman fast bowler who used the bouncer sparingly and
had none of the aggressive mannerisms that are the fast bowler's
traditional landmarks. He was one of the great fast bowlers in the
post war era, known for his accuracy and stamina and he and Freddie
Trueman took their place as among the finest pace bowling pairs in the
game's history. Oh yes, John Brian Statham who passed away on Sunday
following a long battle against cancer, was one of the game's quiet,
undemonstrative characters.
It was to India that the young Statham made his first full tour in
1951-52. But in Statham's own words, it was anything but a memorable
experience. In fact, in his autobiography `Flying Bails', published in
1961, he has a few harsh things to say about Indian cricket and the
trip in general. He wrote in rather severe terms about the food,
accommodation and the umpiring and the attitude of the Indian
cricketers whose approach he found difficult to understand. For
example, he was convinced that Vijay Merchant and Vijay Hazare were
playing against each other instead of trying to hammer a tired England
attack on a dead Kotla batting track in the first Test. The rivalry
between the two in running up big scores is well known and Statham was
of the view that Merchant and Hazare were rather keen to carry this
rivalry into the Test. Interestingly enough, Merchant was bowled by
Statham for 154 and Hazare, the captain, declared the innings closed
when he had scored 164 not out and Statham offered this as proof to
back his theory.
Statham also spoke disparagingly of the kind of wickets he bowled on
in the sub continent. ``I played in all five Tests, none of which gave
me any pleasure for the the pitches were as useful to fast bowler as a
fridge would be to an Eskimo.'' Indeed, he took only eight wickets at
36.62, enjoying himself only at Bombay when in the first innings he
took four for 96.
Not surprisingly, Statham declined invitations to tour India in
1961-62 and 1963-64. By that time of course he was one of the leading
England players. He did however play in three Tests against India in
1959 when he was at the peak of his powers. In bowler friendly
conditions and faced with a weak side which lost all five Tests,
Statham troubled all the batsmen and took 17 wickets at the niggardly
average of 13.11. He also played against the touring Indian team in
1967 for Lancashire and even though he was no longer an England player
and was a year away from retirement, he surprised quite a few of the
younger batsmen with his pace, swing and bounce.