Gary Bartlett is still regarded by some as the fastest bowler New Zealand has produced. His pace and hostility are part of the game's folklore. Cricket writer Adrian Seconi caught up with the tearaway dubbed the ''Meteor over Marlborough'' in a recent book, for chat about his career.
Adrian Seconi: How is life these days, Gary?
Gary Bartlett: It's good. I'm retired. I'm 73 and still do a wee bit of part time work for Wool Marketing in Blenheim. I do a lot of shooting, still. I shoot geese and ducks.
AS: Do you still take a keen interest in the game?
GB: Yes, I do. I haven't got Sky TV but I still follow it. I do a wee bit of a coaching and still do some deep tissue massaging.
AS: What do you make of the Black Caps' prospects this summer?
GB: I think they have developed into a very good side. They look like athletes. They are all very good fieldsmen. They've fixed the top order. It is looking good.
AS: Are you more of a traditionalist or have you embraced the limited-over formats?
GB: I've spoken to a lot of our old players and they did it on a shoe-string [budget]. They didn't want it any other way. You can see the money that now comes into it and that creates its own problems. I'm a traditionalist and I like test cricket. That series against India out here [last summer] was really good.
AS: You gained notoriety through being a fast and hostile bowler. How quick do you think you were in your prime?
GB: We had [speed guns] then but they only went up to 80mph. I don't like to say how fast I was and all that. I'd rather let other people say. But with tongue in cheek, I'd say the wicketkeepers must be better at their job today than they were when I was playing, because our keepers kept from further back.
AS: I take it you would be mortified if a keeper ever came up to the stumps when you were bowling then?
GB: Yes.
AS: What makes a good fast bowler? Is it technique, temperament or a combination of both?
GB: It is hand speed and foot speed. I had very long levers and an exaggerated bowling action. Real desire. You have to practise a lot. You have to be fit. Technique has a tremendous amount to do with it. You have to have good rhythm and timing and you have to hit the wicket hard. And you've got to have a bit of manure on the spark plug, eh?
AS: Did you have any qualms about bowling quick? I hear you were responsible for sending more than your share of batsmen to hospital over the years.
GB: It was not something you set out to do. You were just trying to push them out of line. If they did get hurt it was just unfortunate. There was a rule that you did not bounce a player below No 8, or until they got to 30, or something like that.
AS: There is a lot of focus on technique and whether bowling actions are legal these days. Would your bowling action have stood up to closer scrutiny?
GB: There was throwing controversy when I was playing. There were rumours and all that about the legitimacy of my bowling action. You're allowed to have a 15deg bend. I got caught when my foot slipped down in Dunedin on a wet wicket and I couldn't pull out of my release. My arm was really bent and you see that photograph around the place quite a bit. But it wasn't like that at all. That was just one photo on a wet wicket.
AS: What do you recall about your test debut on the 1961-62 tour of South Africa?
GB: It was cold, cloudy and we had a late start. There was a tail wind and probably I bowled as well as I've ever bowled in my life in that game. That tour has grown over the years. We drew [the series] 2-2 but should have won 3-1. We should have won the first test.
AS: Sounds like that 30-run loss in the first test still annoys you. Did you lose some sleep over it?
GB: You're telling me. I should have won it myself with the bat. We had about 200 to get and I had made 23 in the second innings. You do the maths in your head and you think if all the rest would have got 23, we would have won. We should have dug in a bit more.
AS: Is there a career highlight which sticks out in your mind?
GB: Winning the third test in South Africa. I got too much credit for taking the wickets of [Jackie] McGlew and [Roy] McLean, because Frank Cameron got five wickets in the first innings. But the thing that stood out in that game was a catch I took to dismiss McGlew in the first innings. I was in the gully and it was the best catch I've ever taken in my life. It was slashed low to my right knee and going like a rocket. It hit the middle of the hand and spun me right round. That stands out in my mind.
• Meteor over Marlborough: The Gary Bartlett Story written by John Alexander is available through Copy Press Books, Nelson.
