or, at any rate, fair defence, but apart from him there was no good bat in the eleven. The batting was rough, far from correct, very unscientific: several of the eleven—Murdoch, and, in a lesser degree, Horan—showed symptoms of developing into sound bats, but that was all. The experience gained in England no doubt made Murdoch what he afterwards became; and, speaking generally, it may be said that as England learnt a big lesson from Australia in bowling, Australia was equally indebted to England for their subsequent success in batting. Charles Bannerman was a natural bat of the first order, but Murdoch was perhaps the first and the best of the Australian batsmen, and was the forerunner of many others, who, I think, owed their success largely to the sort of stamp they got through Murdoch from English batsmen. But another great fact was early recognised in Australian cricket, whether by accident or design I do not know, and that was the undoubted advantage of hitting.
Possibly Charles Bannerman taught them
