John Watkins, 94 today, and the oldest living Test cricketer, remembers his playing days for South Africa
South Africa's John Watkins hardly started his Test career in awe-inspiring fashion. Playing in the first Test at Ellis Park against Lindsay Hassett's 1949-50 Australians, he took the second over after Cuan McCarthy and promptly bowled two wides.
He was a nervous young man from Natal, bowling in front of 40,000 boorish Transvaalers, and his natural away swinger barely pitched; Johnny Waite pouched the ball in front of first slip. "Eric Rowan ran across from cover and had a word," remembers Watkins. "'They haven't scored a run off the bat, so you've nothing to worry about. Hold the ball across the seam, it'll offer you better control,' he said, "which I did. My third delivery landed and after that I was away. I'll always be thankful to Eric. As much as I respected Dudley [Nourse] as a captain and cricketer, he wasn't about to come across with a word or two of encouragement. He would let you bowl your spell and then just take you off, no questions asked."
Although Watkins took 2 for 56, bowling Hassett and Neil Harvey, the Australians blithely eased their way to 413, bowling South Africa out cheaply in both innings to win the Test by an innings and 85 runs. While South Africa acquitted themselves slightly better in the second Test, at Newlands (thanks largely in part to a second-innings century by Nourse and a breezy 75 by Hugh Tayfield) they still lost by eight wickets.
Watkins proved to be so expensive in the first Australian innings in Cape Town that he only bowled two overs in the second. Going into the third Test, at Kingsmead, Watkins' home town, the pattern for the summer appeared to be set.
The rest at EspnCricInfo: http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/1091303.html
South Africa's John Watkins hardly started his Test career in awe-inspiring fashion. Playing in the first Test at Ellis Park against Lindsay Hassett's 1949-50 Australians, he took the second over after Cuan McCarthy and promptly bowled two wides.
He was a nervous young man from Natal, bowling in front of 40,000 boorish Transvaalers, and his natural away swinger barely pitched; Johnny Waite pouched the ball in front of first slip. "Eric Rowan ran across from cover and had a word," remembers Watkins. "'They haven't scored a run off the bat, so you've nothing to worry about. Hold the ball across the seam, it'll offer you better control,' he said, "which I did. My third delivery landed and after that I was away. I'll always be thankful to Eric. As much as I respected Dudley [Nourse] as a captain and cricketer, he wasn't about to come across with a word or two of encouragement. He would let you bowl your spell and then just take you off, no questions asked."
Although Watkins took 2 for 56, bowling Hassett and Neil Harvey, the Australians blithely eased their way to 413, bowling South Africa out cheaply in both innings to win the Test by an innings and 85 runs. While South Africa acquitted themselves slightly better in the second Test, at Newlands (thanks largely in part to a second-innings century by Nourse and a breezy 75 by Hugh Tayfield) they still lost by eight wickets.
Watkins proved to be so expensive in the first Australian innings in Cape Town that he only bowled two overs in the second. Going into the third Test, at Kingsmead, Watkins' home town, the pattern for the summer appeared to be set.
The rest at EspnCricInfo: http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/1091303.html