Son caught monkey after effort initially to run away (6)
I believe the answer is:
escape
'run away' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'son caught monkey after effort initially' is the wordplay.
'son' becomes 's'.
'caught' becomes 'c' (cricket abbreviation**).
'monkey' becomes 'ape' (I've seen this before).
'after' says to put letters next to each other.
'initially' indicates taking the first letters.
The initial letter of 'effort' is 'e'.
's'+'c'+'ape'='scape'
'scape' after 'e' is 'ESCAPE'.
'to' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for escape that I've seen before include "Elude; break free" , "Get away from confinement" , "Gain freedom" , "Get out of captivity, go over the wall" , "Leak; avoid" .)