Imaginary dog walks help Hoggard to cope

LONDON, May 24: Visualising a Yorkshire moor in the heat and dust of Ahmedabad requires a certain independence of mind.

It entails a further leap of the imagination to pretend to walk an illusory dog through a bustling Indian city of more than five million people.

Still, this most unlikely of pastimes sustained Matthew Hoggard through the rigours of an India tour and added to the folklore surrounding the fourth member of England's pace attack.

''Hoggard? He was the other one (who) encouraged so much farming imagery it would have been no surprise had he stopped midway through his run to close a gate or chase a sheep,'' commented an article in this year's Wisden almanac.

The blond Yorkshireman with the ploughman's gait prompts memories of an earlier era.

Not for Hoggard the complexities of reverse swing or the bonus of searing pace. Instead he bowls late outswing from a slightly round-arm action with a conventional grip at a pace no swifter than fast-medium.

Hoggard also forgoes the cautious non-speak of the modern athlete, schooled to give no hostages to fortune at the obligatory news conferences.

After becoming the 10th England bowler to take 200 test wickets during the first test against Sri Lanka this month, Hoggard was asked yet again about his well-publicised love of dog-walking.

LITTLE SANCTUARY

''I think everybody has got their little sanctuary,'' Hoggard replied. ''Mine happens to be dog walking.

''I'm sure Fred (acting England captain Andy Flintoff) goes to the pub. Andrew Strauss must leaf through the Financial Times to see how his stocks and shares are going.

''I enjoy getting out in the countryside and getting away from it.'' Hoggard's approach to his craft is equally uncomplicated.

After he won selection for the 2004 tour of West Indies, Hoggard said captain Michael Vaughan had told him in basic terms what his role was to be.

''He said that I am on the shop floor sweeping up after everybody else and I'm the person who keeps things tidy,'' he said. ''After that I settled down into a role of just trying to contain people.

''It's a simple game. You put the ball in the right areas, you stop the scoring and you get wickets.'' Hoggard said he had benefited from the speed and aggression of his pace bowling partners, notably in last year's Ashes series when he partnered Flintoff, Steve Harmison and Simon Jones.

''Everyone doesn't want to face them,'' he said. ''They want to face a little dibbly-dobbler at the other end.'' Hoggard, 29, made his debut against West Indies at Lord's in 2000, in a game in which England recovered from a seemingly hopeless position to square a series they went on to win. ''I sat in the dressing room, chewing my bat handle off, watching (Dominic) Cork and (Darren) Gough hit off the runs to win the test match,'' he said. ''I would not have dreamed then of getting 200 wickets.''

CANNON FODDER

He did not consolidate his place in the side until 2004, when England won a series in the West Indies for the first time since 1968 with Hoggard taking a hat-trick in Barbados.

Still there were doubters who thought he could be cannon fodder against the Australians last year if conditions did not favour swing.

During an unforgettable first hour in the first test at Lord's, in which Steve Harmison hit three of the Australian batsmen, Matthew Hayden advanced menacingly down the pitch to Hoggard. Each time he was forced to check his shot and it was the Englishman who triumphed when he clean-bowled the muscular left-hander for 12.

It was not until the fourth test at Nottingham, though, that Hoggard really made his mark on the series, taking three for 32 from 11 overs at the start of the Australia first innings.

He then shared a match-winning partnership with Ashley Giles as England stumbled in chase of a small target, somehow managing to squeeze an express delivery from Brett Lee through extra-cover for four.

Yorkshire has three bowlers in the England top 10, more than any other English county.

Fred Trueman, the first man to take 300 test wickets, holds pride of place with 307. Then comes Gough with 229 followed by Hoggard with 203.

Trueman, a hostile fast bowler with a model side-on action, was the best of the trio.

Gough, who still harbours hopes of playing in next year's World Cup, was England's premier pace bowler at the turn of the century.

Hoggard, if he maintains his enviable fitness record, could overtake them both.

''Three hundred?'' he said. ''It would be lovely to get there, but I am not a massive stats man as I have pointed out on numerous occasions.

''It's nice to join the legends but I take it game by game.

There's competition for places and I have to keep performing and taking wickets. I am not really setting any milestones.''

REUTERS