England

Some sort of James Vince type substance

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James Vince is stylish. We don’t generally trust that in a batsman and the feeling has been compounded by a nameless county bowler who recently told the Guardian’s Mike Selvey: “He likes to look good.”

Despite this, it is technically possible that we could warm to a player likely to flick Mark Nicholas’s Ron Manager switch, causing the oleaginous commentator to purr about aesthetics before descending into an unchecked nostalgic reverie about dreamy cover drivers of yesteryear. Countless batsmen have managed to marry style with substance. Vince could be one of them.

He has The Rule on his side, for one thing. He’s playing for England, so we can’t help but want him to do well. He also did good things the only time we’ve ever seen much of him, which, somewhat unhelpfully, was in a Twenty20 series against Pakistan in the UAE.

His record is solid. People who watch more county cricket than we do say nice things about him – but then they often do about young, stylish batsmen. Domestic cricket can, at times, become something of a who-saw-a-future-England-player-first-and-championed-his-cause-the-most competition. The meaningful test – a Test – comes on Thursday. Good luck to him.

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James Vince: first look in Test cricket Default ThumbnailLet us tell you about James Vince from England’s World Cup squad Default ThumbnailJames Vince’s batting average in the second division, first division and Test cricket James Vince and the Gower Law

14 comments

      1. Test season starts tomorrow, folks! Who’s going to Headingley? I’ll be there on day 2 and 3. I’m looking forward to seeing if any other intervals or intangible cricketing parlance has been branded to add to the Yorkshire Tea Break and the Harrogate Spring Hydration Break. Please do also keep the meaningless platitudes for the big screens coming in via the Tweetosphere!

  2. Apparently Vince bowls dobble and has a five-wicket haul. Without Trott and Ballance I’ve felt that England is lacking in the “utter filth” department. I feel better about him now.

  3. Two first names, though. Always something unconvincing about a player with a first name for a surname. And in his case, to make matters worse, both first names can just about do the job of a surname.

    Vince James.

    Not even a pesky double consonant or otherwise left-field spelling. Nothing there to confuse the commentator or the oppo. Unconvincing.

    1. Lewis Gregory’s potential international career might be in jeopardy on this basis, Ged.

      1. All the points made about James Vince’s name apply to Lewis Gregory.

        Gregory Lewis.

        Very unconvincing.

  4. I found out yesterday how to put a new grip on a cricket bat using only a cricket bat, a new grip, and an old plastic bag. This is literally the best thing ever on the entire internet. No more gripping cones for me, old plastic bags are the future.

  5. Yorkshire, the mighty all-conquering multiple reigning county champions of all that comes before them Yorkshire, look set for an afternoon of clinging on for grim survival against the unbeaten Somerset. Shove that up yer arse, Yorkies! (That’s a tenuous joke for any lorry drivers from the 70/80s that might be reading this)

  6. Chris ‘harshly treated’ Read gone for a gozzer.

    Warwickshire returning to glory.

    Youuuuuuuuu Beeeeeeeears

      1. 29.5
        Patel to Patel, SIX
        29.4
        Patel to Patel, no run
        29.3
        Patel to Patel, SIX
        29.2
        Patel to Patel, SIX

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