2 minute readIn some parts of England, they talk about ‘schools cricket’ – note the plural. This is a bizarre, alien form of the game in which posh 15-year-olds play on immaculate grounds in exquisite locations having been expertly coached by former internationals. ‘School cricket’ (singular) is rather different. In school cricket,
Continue readingCategory: India
Jade Dernbach – where do we all stand on this at the minute?
2 minute readBack when everyone was going mental about Jade Dernbach and his ‘variations’ we pointed out that he was essentially half a bowler. He did the eye-catching things well, but he was fairly useless at the everyday stuff that’s equally important. Shortly after that, we argued that he shouldn’t be dropped,
Continue readingJames Tredwell brings more wonders
< 1 minute readWhen England won a Test series in India, we felt moved to ask: “Will wonders never cease?” It wasn’t a rhetorical question, so in light of England winning a high-scoring one-day international in India, we now have an answer: WONDERS WILL NEVER CEASE. England don’t do high-scoring one-day matches well.
Continue readingLet’s start as we mean to go on
< 1 minute readBy going away, not updating the site properly and then doing a half-arsed round-up post on a Monday morning, even though we don’t really know what happened because we weren’t actually paying any attention. Pakistan won a one-day series against India We did actually watch some of this. And by
Continue readingIndia and England need to strive for more mediocrity
< 1 minute readEngland hit the new ball well and Jos Buttler played the final over brilliantly, but in between it was like they were running through pudding – plenty of effort, but nothing but the slowest, steadiest progress. With the ball, they mostly bowled wides and then occasionally rattled a batsman. In
Continue readingEngland’s rich and femmer tourists – and also the journeymen
3 minute readWe’ve always wondered how an England team could win in India. Winning in Australia always seemed impossible because of how good they were and because a squad on a long tour always seemed to unravel like the stitching in our rucksack. Winning in India seemed equally impossible, but for different
Continue readingFollow this, watch that
< 1 minute readThis pitch and this match are being slagged off by many people, but we’ve found it compelling because it’s been so alien. It hasn’t been a match that’s been great to watch, but it has been fascinating to follow because cricketers are so rarely tested in such conditions. As a
Continue readingWhen MS Dhoni was run out for 99
< 1 minute readTo fall one centimetre short of a hundred is probably a little bit irritating. MS Dhoni is doubtless wishing he had longer arms. We quite like a 99 and to be run out is the best way to do it. There’s a sort of soiled majesty about it – so
Continue readingCricket owes James Anderson
2 minute readLike most bowlers, James Anderson is frequently up against it. Modern pitches are generally against him, overseas conditions are often against him and the fixture list is always against him. However, like a fat man’s old belt, Jimmy hasn’t buckled in a long, long time. Fit for purpose Most of
Continue readingThe drab life between the leave and the lofted block
2 minute readOn Sky, Nick Knight asked why England had been scoring at two runs an over, like it was some sort of policy. The truth is that even Kevin Pietersen couldn’t score quicker. Early wickets probably brought added caution, but the pitch seems to have dictated that there will be some
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