Cricket SPORT BY Richard Streeton rony (;reig stressed that there was no intention to harm the present structure of Test cricket and tours when he made his first public statement yesterday about the cricket circus planned by the Australian newspaper and tele- vision magnate, Kerry Packer. A compromise had to be reached be- tween the English, Australian and other authorities or cricket could, perhaps, suffer but this was not what those involved wanted. - Greig spoke fluently at a press conference at the Hove ground for 90. minutes. If there were brief moments of arrogance and naivety present, too, he was never less than frank. He claimed that his main objective was to improve the financial lot of the ordinary cricketer. He said there was a lot of money being put into the English game from sponsors but. it was not going into the pockets of the players. One quote summarized Greig's attitude and those of the world's other 34 leading players involved : " There is nothing in the world In my case I want to do more than to carry on playing for Eng- land. We do not want this to become a battle. We want a compromise; we want a better deal for cricketers the world over; we want cricketers to get the same rewards as those in tennis and golf. And when this comes about cricket will benefit because of the encouragement it will give for people to enter the game." Greig brought in tennis and golf several times as he answered ques- tions. " Any young man brilliant at golf, tennis and cricket today would be very silly at the moment if he opted to go into cricket." Asked what percentage of his feelings were idealistic and what were self interest, Greig said: " The. whole basis of all this is an ideal, but nobody is going to do it for peanuts. These guys in- volved are the best and have alreadv given their lives to cricket." Greig said that it he lost the captaincy of England through hav- ing signed the corntract witlh Mr Packer it would have to be con- sidered a necessary sacrifice. He was still available for MCC's winter tour of Pakistan and New Zealand. "The only way I'm not available for the tour and to captain Eng- land is if Lord's say so. This sum- mer Is totally in the hands of a compromise between Lord's and Mr Packer." There would, however, have to be some juggling -of dates both for MC C's tour and the ones involving India to Australia and better way of sorting things out than getting round a table " Greig says, which is precisely wvhat he elected not to do with anyone other than Mr Packer before join- ing his attempted takeover. " Come back Boycott, all is for. given "-I could understand any Englishman feeling that at what Greig calls " this moment in time ". All 35 players who have signed for Mr Packer are apparently " legally committed ". Hoiv manv of them regret that now, or soon wilt, is another matter. Not the South Africans, I am sure ; but what about the Pakistanis and the young Australians whose future is at stake ? In cases other than those of Knott, Underwood and Snow, Greig acted as Mr Packer's agent. He has done it, lbe says. to improve the lot of the average county cricketer, though it is hard to know just how he will manage that, other than by bringing it into people's consciousness, where it already is. No one has said yet how much Mr Parker is prepared to plough into cricket in England, West Indies, Pakistan, and elsewhere for having the services of their best players. I need hardly say that the "average county cricketer " views the wvhole Packer operation with a good deal of cynicism. If he is underpaid, as I believe him tv be, I am nothing like so sure that the so-called " super stars " are. Thev have tax-free benefirs-the Englishmen among them, anvway ; they work nowhere near as hard or as long at their game as the golfers. (" I am amazed that tour- ing cricketers don't practise more ", Peter Thomson said to me once) or the tennis players ; nor are they always particularly good. Few cricketers are subiected to such constant pressures as Nick- laus, Palmer, Jacklin, and Ooster- huis. They, too, are plaving for themselves. When they play for their countries, in the Ryder Cnp, they receive surprisingly little for it. I only hope that Greig may not have queered the Dttches of some of cricket's finest players. Sydney, Mlay 11.-The chair- man of the Australian Cricket Board, Robert Parish, intends to fly to London at the first oppor- tunity to discuss w%ith leading English officials the proposed series of matches organized by Kerry Packer, Tony Greig answering questions at Hove yesterday. we have here is something based on a principle: the plight of the Australia to West Indies. " What modern cricketer is dreadful . . . they are not paid what they are worth." Greig said that so far Donald Carr, the TCCB secretary, and the Australian Cricket Board, had refused to speak to Mr Packer on the telephone. Mr Packer had instructed Greig: "Keep telling them at Lord's that I atn ready to talk at any time. England is only a plane flight away." Greig constantly reiterated his faith in Mr Packer, whom he was certain would not let the 35 players down. " The worst thing that could happen would be if the cricket authorities took a hasty decision and forced Mr Packer to go it alone. If the 35 players involved are blackballed Mr Packer has got a huge organization behind him. He is a man who. does not often come second and he knows he's in for a fight. "When the authorities know all the facts they could well take a different view of it all. Lord's and the others must sit round a table with him ; I know no better way of sorting things out. The door is open." Greig said it had to be the top and older players who took on the cricket authorities head-on if this " super Test situation " was to be achieved. For that reason, Randall, the young Nottingham- shire and England batsman, had not been approached. Mr Packer had wanted him as he seemed ideal television material but Greig had persuaded the Australian that this would be unfair at this stage to Randall's future. Greig, who is hoping to see officials at Lord's today, dis. closed that the 13 Australian players had been the first to sign contracts with Mr Packer, followed by Barry Richards, the South African. He himself had been approached when he visited Mr Packer after the centenary Test in March with. a view to worldng for him next winter before MCC's tour began. He considered the offer most care- fully and at one time contem. plated seeking advice from Lord's. He had decided against doing this, however, as he felt Lord's would advise him against it and would not,see the position dispassionately. The whole scheme would be jeopardized and if lie had not signed he would .have let down the other cricketers tfivolved. Greig admitted he had acted as Mr Packer's agent for all the other players who had signed. There had not been a single refusal from those approached apart from Boycott and the facts in this case were basically correct. aS already reported. (Boycott in several newspapers has been re- ported as stipulating he would play only under two captains, by inference neither of them, Greig.) The present intention for the cricketing circus next winter was for a team of Australians to play a Rest of the World eleven in .six Sday international matches with 100,000 Australian dollars (?63,000) prize money, the winners to take al. There would also be five one-day international games and a round-robin competition over three days between three teams picked from the complete Pool of players. The grounds were alrtady arranged and the scheme would definitely go ahead and Mr Packer was receiving offers from numerous Australian civic heads for their towns and cities to play hosts. The contracts had all been legally vetted on behalf of the cricketers and there was no question that Mr Packer could sell them off to another bidder as happened in American baseball. Greig declined to speak of individual players' contracts though these are understood to be wortlh ?20000 to the leading players. Not all the players, Greig revealed, were on three-year con- tracts. Asked what Mr Packer w%as, putting back into cricket, Greig said he had paid ?150,000 for the television rights of this summer's Ashes series to the English authorities and the circus players would also spend five days intensively coaching promis- ing young players in New South Wales. On his own position, Greig said that if his cricketing future had to be restricted to playing for Sussex, he would welcome the chance to put something back in the game for the county who had given him his first nnnn,-,,iti_c Idea that talks will solve problem is naive By John Woodcock Cricket Correspondent Tony Greig has many sides to him. He is competitive and articu- late, charming and fearless, mercenary and handsome. He is also extraordinarily naive if he thinks that he can play in Aust- ralia for the next three winters, as he appears to have committed himself to doing, and at the same time retain the England captaincy. From what he said yesterday the only thing that can stop him now from playing for Mr Packer is if the - televised Tests " which 'vlr Packer hopes to stage come to nothing. Failing that, Greig viill :Ie in Australia next winter at the ame time as MCC will be in I'akistan and then New Zealand. So, it seems, will Knott and Underwood, and also Snow. That Snow should jump at the chance of a lucrative winter, now that his Test days are over, is understandable. Because he has this obsession for making every penny he can from cricket, I am not wholly surprised that Greig has acted as he has, though I have little doubt that if he does play for Mr Packer he will live to regret it. I can even understand Knott being carried along by his captain. He has spoken for a year or two about wanting to give up Test cricket. But not Underwood, who must be wondering this morning whether he has allowed himself to be talked out of taking more Test wickets (of the kind that matter) than anyone has ever done before. It is an astonishing situation when the England captain goes to two of his best players (Knott and Underwood) and on behalf of an Australian impresario buys their ser-vices, knowing that it will al- most certainly drastically rduce, if not bring to an end, their appear- ances for England. Ho will Greig, Knott and Underwood feel in the winter of 1978-79, when England are playing Australia at Mel- bourne while they themselves are going through the motions in Yet another " exhibition " game, the novelty of which will have long worn off ? To suggest, as Greig does, that the Test and County Cricket Board must sit down and come to some accommodation whereby plavers can appear for Mr Packer while at the same time being on tour with England is where the naivety comes in. " There is no Steele defies Yorkshire: BRovett durk David teele, of Northampton- shire, defied Yorkshire for 59 overs in making a valuable 69 at Northampton yesterday. He en- abled his side to make 235 against a keen attack and Yorkshire then lost Boycott for a duck as they made one in six overs. The main support for Steele, who hit eight boundaries, came from Larkins (48) and Cook (36). Leicester The Leicestershire bowlers, Clift and Booth, sent Worcestershire stumbling from 142 for three to 182 all out. Clift took five wickets for 47 and Booth four for 39, and in one spell of six overs five wickets tumbled for nine runs. Hemsley was the only Worcestershire batsman to time the ball well. He scored 58. Dudleston also made 58 as Leicestershire struggled in reply. They lost five wickets for 137 in 45 overs, Inchmore taking four wickets. Lord's Daniel, Middlesex's new fast bowler, took all three Kent wickets to fall in the 135 minutes of play that were possible. The West Indian trapped Johnson leg- before at 10 after Selvey had had three consecutive appeals rejected by the Australian umpire Toni Brooks. Kent were revived by a second wicket stand between. Woolmer and Rowe, who added SO in 31 overs. Despite being dropped twice, Woolmer showed England class, playing Middlesex's three-pronged speed attack comfortablv. He was missed off a firm cut against Selvey and again when he edged Edmonds. Woolmer and Rowe flourished against the change bowlers, Gatt- ing and Featherstone, accelerating the run rate sharply before Daniel's dramatic return shortly before lunch. Daniel knocked out Rowe's off stump, beating him by sheer pace, and two balls later had Asif caught behind off a casual square cut, leaving Kent 90 for three. Cambridge A fighting innings by Roebuck (92) helped Cambridge University to a respectable total of 208 after Nottinghamshire had had them reeling at 46 for four. He was helped in a fifth wicket stand of 108 in even time by Ian Greig (43). No play yesterday SWANSEA: Glamorgan v Derbyshire. SOUTHAMPTON: Hampshtre v Australians. BIRMINGHAM: WYarwickshire 360 for 4 (R. W. Abberley 159. J. White- house 119) v Scotland. Northants v Yorkshire AT NORTHAMPTON NORTHAMPTONSHIRE: firSt Innings R. T.- Virgin. c Bairstow. b, Stevenson . . .. . 8 G. Cook. b Old .. .. 36 D. S. Steele. c Bairstow. b Old 69 NMushtaq Mohammad. I-b-w. b Stevenson . .... . . 11 '. WVIlOy.y, I-b-w. b Stevenson . 16 9.'. Larklns. c Atbey. b Robinson 48 ;. Sharp. c Balrsmow. b Old 1 Sarfraz Nawaz. c Boycott b Robirson .. .. 14 A. Hodgson, run out .. 5 B. S. Bedl. not out 12 J,. C. J. Dyc, run out 3. Extras (b 4. I-b 4. n-b 4) 12 Total (92 overs) .. 255 FALL OF WiCKETS: 1-29. 2-61. 3-80. 4-131. 5-174. 6-178. 7- 214. 8-214. 9-220. 10-235. BOWLING: Old. 17-5--35--3: Robinson, 23--6--4.5--2: Stevenson. 28-7-87-3: Carrick. 18-8-35- 0: Cope. 6-2-21-O. YORKSHIRE: First Innings *G. iloycott. l-b-w. b Sarfraz 0 G. G. Lumb. not out 0 G. A. Cone, not out .. . 0 Extras (n-b 1) . 1 Total (1 wkt. 6 overs) . I. C. W. J. AtheY. J. H. HamDshire. C. Johnson, C. M. Old. 'D. L. Bairstow. P. Carrlck, G. B. Stevenson and A. L. Robinson to bat. FALL OF WVICKET: 1-3. Bonus Doints (lo date): NorthanD. tonshlre 2. Yorkshire 4. 1'nmpires: A. C. JeDson and D. Sang ilue. Middlesex v Kent AT LORD'S KENT: First Innings G. Wf. Johnson, I-b-w, b Danicl 3 R. A. Woolmer. not out .. ,. 56 C. J. C. Rowe. b Daniel .. . 31 *Asif Iqbal. c Ross. b Danirl . 0 A. G. E. Ealham. not out .. 0 Total (3 wits. 41 overs, 90 A. P. E. Knott. D. Nicholls, C. S. Cowdrey. R. NV. Hills. D. L. Under. wood and K. B. S. Jarvis to bat. FALL OF WICKETS: 1-10. 2-90, 3-90. MIDDLESEX: J. M. lirearley. M. J. Smith. G. D. Barlow. C. T. Radley, N. G. Feathorstone. hl. W. Galttng. P. H. Edmonds N. P. D. Ross. M. W. WV. Selvey. NV. WV Daniel and A. A. Jones. Bonus points (to date): hiddlesex 1. scent 0. Umnpires: T. F. Brooks and A. E. G. Rhodes. Minor Counties MANCHESTER: Lancashire 128 fo, 7 deC (P. J. Kippa 6 for 44): North- umberland 66 for B. Under-25 competition TAUNTON: Glamorgan 172 for B (S. Harrison 48' K. F. JennLIngS 4 for 401. Somerset 92. Glamorgan won by 80 runs. Leicester v Worcester AT LEICESTlR WORCESTERSIHIRE. First Innings G. M. Turner. I-b-w. b Clift .. ) J. A. Ormnrod. b Hiegs . . P. A. Neale. b Booth .. .. 30 E. 1. 0. Iiemsley. b Clift . . B. L. D Oliveira, l-b-w. b Clift. . 29. C. N. Boyns. c Birkenshaw. b ,,D. J. Humphries. c Toichard. b Booth . . J1. B. lnchmore. not . .o ut N. iliford. b Booth . . .. 0 V. A. Holder. 1-b-w. b Clift I J. Cumbes. c Tolchard. b Bootlh 3 Extras lI, 10. n-b 51.. .. 13 Total (58.2 overs) .. .. 182 FALL OF WICKETS: 1-6. 2-31. .3-82, 4-142. !5-151. 6-153. 7-157. 8-162. 9-163. 10-182. BOWLING: Higgs. 11- '-39-1: B7oth. 14.2-39-4: Clift. 18-5- 47--5: Birkenshaw. 1-O--B--0: Ward. 14-2-34-0. LEICESTERSHIRE: Flrst Innings D.. 1. Gower. b Inchmore 27 B. Dudleson. b Gifford 58 J. C. Balderstone. b Inchmore 6 B. F. Dav!son, b Inchmore 12 R. W. Tolchard, b Inchmor, .. 4 R. IlII nqworth. not out . 14 ;. Birkenshaw. not out . . 0 Extras tb 5. I-b 1. n-b 10, 16 Total (5 wkts. 45 oversm' 137 B. n. Clift, P. Bo3th. A. Ward and K. i-119s to bat. FB EL 0F WIfCKETS: 1-37. 2-43. 3-75. 4-81. 5-1-55. Bonus points (to dale' : Leicester. shire 4., Worcestershire 3. Umpires: H. D. Bird and D. J. Ha lfyard. Cambridge U v Notts AT CAMBRIDGE. CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY: Flrst Inningsqit . P M. Roebuck. I-b-w. b Doshi i2 A. J. Hignell. c Todd. b Doshi 0 P. Parker. C Rice. b Doshi .. 0 M. Fosh. b White - - ? 1. Greig. c Todd. b While .. 4S D. Beaumont. I-b-w. b White . . 21 N. Povpewell. not out . ............ .. i) C. S. anntster c Cooper. b Doshi I M. G. Howat. b While .. .. 0 M. Allbrook. st Harris. b Doshl I Extras (b 8. I-b 5. n-b 1) .. 14 Total .. .. .. 208 FALL OF WICKETS: 1-42. 2-43. 3-43. 4-46, 5-154. 6-182. 7- 198. 8-205. 9-205. 10-208. BOWLING: Wilkinson. 5--3-6-: Cooper 5-0-27-0: Doshi, 42.5- 13-85--5: Btrch. 5-2-7-0: White. 37-14-69--5. NOTTINGHAMSHIRE: First Innings B. Hassan, c Hignnll. b Greig 7 P. A, Todd. not out .. .. 68 D. W. Randall. not out .. .. 26 ExrIfas (b 4. I-b 1. n-b 2) 7 Total 11 wktI .. .. '98 C. E. B. Rice. P. D. Johnson. tit, J. Harris. R. A. Whtte. J. D. Birch. P. A. Wilkinson. K. Cooper and D. R. Doshi to bat FALL OF WICKETS: 1-7. Umpires: R. Jultan and iR. E. Barnard. Sussex v Lancashire AT MlOVE SUSSEX: First Innings J. R. T. Barclay. not ou' .. 6 K. C. %vessels, not out . . . 4 Total (no %vwkt. 4 overs) 10 R. D. V. Knight. Jtaved Mlandad. 'A. W. Greig. P. J. Graves. MI. A. Buss. J. A. Snow. A. Long. J. Spencer and C. E. Walter to bat. LANCASHIRE: B. Wood. D. Lloyd. H. Piling. C. H. LloYd. F. C. Hayes, J. Abrahams. J. SimmonS. R. M. Rat- cliffe.. - J. Lyon. P. G. Lee and R. Arrowsm ith. Bonus points (to date): Sussex 0. Lancashtre 0. UmpIres: J. G. Langrldge and B. J. Meyer. Oxford U v Gloucester AT OXFORD GLOUCESTERSHIRE: First Innings A. W. Stovold. not out 2. N. H. C. Cooner. b Savage 7 J. C. Foat not out . 0 Extras 1w 1. i-b 2. n-b 4) .. 7 D. R. Shepher. A. Border. b. A. Graveney. 't. J. Vernon. J. H. ShacRle ton. 'A. J. Brassinaton. N. H. Finan a'nd 3.H. Chtids to bait. FALL OF WVICKETS: 1-33. OXFORD UNIVERSiry: J. R. ClauPh- ton. B. B. C. WetIs. V. j. M,arks. t1. LEstrange. S. M. Clements. D. DRa,U. tfJ. Matheson, D. Br3ttel,. ). R. Gurr. D. nugge- and R. 8avage. UmPires: J. P. Crao, and P. Roch- ford. Second XI competition ROEHAPTON:Middlesex It 97 for 8 tA. Needham 5 for 16) v Surrey II. Today's cricket TOUR MATCH lians (11.30 t 6.So,. v Austra. COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS SAWANSEA: Glamorgan V Derbyshire LEICi ST : Lcestershire v Worces_ tershlre (11.30 to 7.0,. LORD'S: Middlesex v Kient (11.0 to 6.30,. NORTHAMPTON: NorthaMptonshlr v Yorlshre 11 S 30 to 7.0) THE OVAL: Surry V Essex (11.0 to HIOVE: Sussex v Lancashire (11.0 to 6.30). OTHER MATCHES CAMBRIDGE: Cambridge UJniversItyVv NOXttlng Ia,s anR(11.30 to 6.30). BhRDghamshirorsirIVNoUD OXF{TOBO: xford UnIverst1 v Gl iou- r.,estershire (11.30 to 6.30). BlRMINGHAM: war~iclshlre v Scot- land (11.30 to 6.30). SECOND XI CHAMPIONSHIP ROEHAMPTlON ( Bank OfEnan: BASurE'y Iv Mtddlesex II hamshlre 11I khi IV oUg TAIIINTON: SomerSet 11 V' Galanorgan Shoreditch. Sparrow still poised for action By Alan Gibson THE OVAL: Surrey tave scored 65 for six against Essex. The rain, though never distant, began at lunchtime. It continued, only intermittently severe, but ver stopping, throughout ,he qute oe At aquaxtrpast four ther =ad a b ndonefo the day. AfSer the umpitres had inspected the pitcht, and folund it unfit for play, they went out azain wvith the captainS. Fletcher wld presumably have liked a few more overs to kwck off the Surrey innings, but Edrich-I am just going by their gestures, not by any secret exclusive interviews-rea- sonably felt that it would be wrong to rob the Shoreditch Spamw of his chance of scoring a flawless hundred. A comnbnation of a late train and an early thirstt prevented me from doing justice to Jack- man's inrengs, but he wiU be there chirpy as ever, this morning. " Always win the toss," was the advice of W. G. Grace to younger captains, " and always bat ". Not that he endUely followed his own advice, but Edrich must have had some such pinciple in mind m-hen, after winning the toss, he opened the Surrey innings. The pitch was green, the ball swung unexpectedly under the low but fluctuating cloSuds. Lever antd Turner enjoyed thtmselves. Lever had firs;, Butcher, then Edrkh himself leg-before, the score only At 27, Turner caught and bowled Howarth, and three runs later he bowsled Younis. Roope and Sldnner held on for a while, though unable to score manly, but Boyce, replac. ing Lever, had Sldnner leg-before, and then Turner, after a brief rest came back and bowled Roope. That was 64 fot six. At lunchtime, after 41 overs, Surrey were 65 for six, which was not particulrlly good even though Jackman was still poised for his assault. We spent the afternoon waitin8 for the umpires. Sam Cook and Peter Wight. clad in their saintly robes, are less enthusiastic about calling off play than when they were flannelled. Yet it was not a wasted after. noon. I had a cheap and substan- tial portitn of shepherd's pie which put the catering at Lord's to shame, and I met an underwriter from Lloyds, and a diplomatist from Burma, and a young rnan freshly back from a kibbutz. You do meet thetn, at the Oval. SURREY: First innings 'J. H. Edrich. I-b-w. b Lever .. 5 A. Rp Butcher. I-b-.a b Lever 4 G. P liowvarth. c and 1b Tumier YouncS Ahmed. b Turner . .. 10 0. Rt. J. Rtoope. b Turner .- 17 'L. E. Skinner. It-b-w. b Boyce 7 Intikhab Alam. not out ,, 6 R. D. Jackman. not out 0 Extras cI-b 3. b 1. n-b 3) :: 7 Total (6 wkts. 41 overs) . s 6S p. G . Arnod. R. P. Baker and P. 1. Pococtc to bat. FALL OF W~ICKETS: 1-6, 2-19. ;S27- 4-30. 5-45 6- 646 . OESSEX: M.. H-. Denness. G. A. Gooch. K. S M. CEwan. K W . R: Tr4vcher. S. Turicer- IC. D. P.ov'ce. B. P . Hardle. R E. Ea6t. N. Smith. J. K. Lever and D. L. Actield. Bonus, PoIrts *(to date): surrey o. Umpires: C. Cook and P. B. Wight Pakistanis told they cannot go Karachi, May 11.-The Pakistani Test players Majid Khan and Imran Khan will not be allowed by their employers to play in the cricket series between Australia and the Rest of the World, a spokesman for Pakistan Inter- national Airlines (PIA) said today. Majid and Imran, like many of Pakistan's sporting celebrities, are employees of the government- owned airline. Cricket Greig is hoping for a compromise