page_title: Jack Hobbs
section_title: Style and technique
hierarchical_section_title: Jack Hobbs / Style and technique
caption_attribution_description: circa 1925: English batsman Jack Hobbs (1882 - 1963) gripping his cricket bat.
context_page_description: Sir John Berry Hobbs, always known as Jack Hobbs, was an English professional cricketer who played for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England in 61 Test matches between 1908 and 1930. Known as "The Master", he is regarded by critics as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the leading run-scorer and century-maker in first-class cricket, with 61,760 runs and 199 centuries. A right-handed batsman and an occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Hobbs also excelled as a fielder, particularly in the position of cover point.
  Born into poverty in 1882, Hobbs wished from an early age to pursue a career in cricket. His early batting was undistinguished, but a sudden improvement in 1901 brought him to the attention of local teams. In 1903 he successfully applied to join Surrey, with the support of England batsman Tom Hayward. His reputation grew and when he qualified to play for Surrey, he scored 88 on his first-class debut and a century in his next game. Over the following seasons, he established himself as a successful county player and in 1908 made his Test debut for England, scoring 83 in his first innings.
context_section_description: For much of Hobbs' career, critics judged him to be the best batsman in the world. E. W. Swanton described him in 1963 as "a supreme master of his craft, and the undisputed head of his profession". Neville Cardus said that Hobbs was the first batsman to develop a technique to succeed consistently against googly bowlers, and that he mastered all types of bowling, all over the world and in a variety of conditions. Other critics have suggested that Hobbs moved the focus of batting from aesthetic off side shots to leg side play more suited to swing and googly bowling. Swanton wrote that Hobbs combined classical play with effective defence—including protecting the wickets using his pads—against the ball unexpectedly moving towards the stumps. His pad-play was controversial: it removed any possibility of dismissal but was regarded by some cricket authorities as negative and unsporting.
  Many of his English contemporaries rated Hobbs superior to Donald Bradman, often regarded as the greatest batsman in the history of cricket, on difficult pitches. In difficult batting conditions Hobbs batted with great success, and several of his most highly regarded innings came in such circumstances. Murphy suggests: "Before Bradman, he was the most consistent run-getter of all time, yet no one worried less about the sheer slog of carving out big scores." Hobbs frequently was out deliberately soon after reaching a century—roughly a quarter of his centuries were scores less than 110—and was not particularly interested in most statistics. An article in Wisden in 2000 stated: "He was never as dominant as Bradman; he never wanted to be. But his contemporaries were in awe of his ability to play supremely and at whim, whatever the conditions."
  Hobbs' technique was based on strong forearms and good foot movement. R. C. Robertson-Glasgow suggested that "his footwork was, as near as is humanly possible, perfect. In every stroke, he moved into line with the ball with so little effort that he could bat for hours without over-taxing energy of mind or body." He played every type of shot—he did not have a "signature" shot like other batsmen, but selected his strokes effectively; according to Alec Kennedy, who bowled to Hobbs, it seemed that he could predict what the bowler would do. In contrast to many leading batsmen from his time, Hobbs preferred to play off the back foot as he believed it gave him more time to see the ball and adapt his shot. Capable of playing all the strokes, he hit the ball precisely between fielders and sometimes delayed his shot to make the ball travel more slowly and allow more time to run; he also ran well between the wickets. He liked to score his first run quickly when he came into bat, and he often looked to score quickly at the start of an innings, before the bowlers had settled; on occasion, Hobbs targeted the main bowling threats from the opposition in an attempt to neutralise them. Early in his career, mainly before the First World War, Hobbs was an aggressive, fast-scoring batsman who played many shots. After the war, he was more circumspect and adapted his technique to account for both his increased age, and the increased pressure and expectation from the public and teammates. He concentrated to a greater extent on batting for longer periods; many critics, including Hobbs himself, recognised the change and suggested that he was a better batsman before 1914. However, commentators also noted that he displayed greater certainty and control in this later period; Cardus wrote that "he scored his centuries effortlessly now; we hardly noted the making of them." This was the period in which he became known as "The Master", and he was more consistent than before the war. This was the time when the public regarded him with the most respect and affection; 98 of his centuries and 26,411 of his runs (at an average of 58.62) in first-class cricket were scored after he reached the age of 40.
  Hobbs was an occasional medium-paced bowler who bowled a good length and made the ball swing. Some critics judged him to be a potentially good bowl
caption: Hobbs grip
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