Richard Spiller looks back 70 years, when Worcestershire came to The Oval and were beaten in just over five hours of play
Chasing a hat-trick of County Championship titles in 1954, Stuart Surridge’s side looked anything but triple champions by the end of July. They were eighth in the table, 46 points behind Yorkshire.
But with a magical change of gear which would have impressed Stirling Moss, seven of the next eight matches were won – five of them in two days – and when Worcestershire arrived at The Oval on Wednesday August 25 for the penultimate game of the season, another victory would be enough to land the hat-trick.
A horribly wet summer continued to play its part and play on the first day was delayed until 2pm, Surridge inserting the visitors. No side was better equipped to exploit a drying pitch than Surrey’s and Worcestershire were dismissed in just 100 minutes for 25, the lowest score in first-class cricket since 1947.
Alec Bedser removed the openers, although the crisis of being 16-2 was soon to appear a position of wealth given what happened next. Sri Lankan Laddie Outschoorn’s nine would prove to be the highest score of the innings, the final seven wickets falling for five runs as left-arm spinner Tony Lock claimed a devastating 5-2 in 5.3 overs, off-spinner Jim Laker’s 2-5 and Bedser’s 2-12 the other components, plus a run out.
A day of drama was far from complete, Surrey now having to deal with the difficult conditions. They lost openers Tom Clark (10) and Micky Stewart (11) to be 31-2, Bernie Constable (29) helping Peter May to add 46 for the third wicket.
Ken Barrington (10no) joined May and the home side seemed set for a mighty lead when, with an hour to go, Surridge suddenly declared at 92-3. There had been several occasions when his team had questioned the sanity of their barnstorming captain and May – one of the world’s leading batsman and going nicely on 31no – might well have joined them.
But Surridge wanted to take advantage of the help left in the still damp pitch, his calculation paying off when Worcestershire ended a bruising day on 13-2.
Surely the second day could not go as horribly badly for them?
Just an hour of the second morning was required to polish off Worcestershire for 40, this time Laker (4-25) and Bedser (3-7) taking the lead, Hugo Yarnold’s 14no the only score in double figures for his side and the match aggregate of 157 runs a record low which still stands.
It remains Surrey’s shortest Championship match at 529 balls bowled (plus a no-ball and wide) and meant could get on with celebrating their title hat-trick in what was to become an extraordinary run of seven in a row, five under Surridge and two under May.
The key in that hat-trick season was having four bowlers exceeding 100 wickets – the first to do so since Worcestershire in 1937 – in Bedser, Peter Loader, Laker and Lock. But while the first two already had a winter assured in Australia, fighting to retain the Ashes, Laker and Lock had been omitted when the squad was announced midway through the Test series against Pakistan.
Their response could not have been better. Laker’s 44 wickets at 9.06 and Lock’s 43 at 8.83 were an enormous contribution to their side’s charge, going on to finish with 112 and 101 respectively over the whole summer.
Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack ensured that no one forgot the captain’s importance, commenting: “Surridge thought and acted in terms of attack from the first ball and once again the force of his own drive infected his men.”
