Page:The Crisis in Cricket and the Leg Before Rule (1928).djvu/35

Rh place, page 47: " When leaving the off ball alone it is strongly advisable to keep the bat well up in the air above the head and to back up and cover the unguarded wicket with both legs. Many a time have men been clean bowled, and so ignominiously too, by a break-back by ignoring this simple rule."

Mr. Knight in the passages quoted above lays down the principle that to bring both legs back together to straight balls—i.e. those pitched between wicket and wicket, is bad cricket except when a pull to leg off, presumably a very short ball or full pitch is attempted, which is not only sound but just. This is very obvious advice because if the bat misses, the batsman is given out l.b.w. But when we come to balls that pitch off the wicket, i.e. outside the bowler's territory, we see what deadly results have ensued from Shrewsbury's example. Mr. Knight tells us in effect that to most of these balls the legs are to be used as often as the bat to defend the wicket. Even when the ball is attempted to be met with the bat, the legs are to be placed in such a position that they are a second line of defence, while when off balls are left alone, which modern batsmen do again and again, the bat should be kept well up in the air above the head out of action altogether; the legs should cover the wicket and may be used not only to stop the ball, but actually to kick it with the knee if the batsman chooses to do so.

In 1923, Oxford played the Army and The Times' report of the 6th of June, 1923, contains the following: "Mr. Jardine stopped one terrible break-back from Captain Hyndson with his pads, a wonderfully good stroke of its