2 minute readThat’s right – Ian Bell. Weird but true. Dale Steyn came pretty close to becoming the second player to earn a promotion to Grand Lord Megachief of Gold, but Ian Bell’s year was just too ridiculous to overlook. Some numbers 11 Test innings, 950 runs, five hundreds, an average of
Continue reading< 1 minute readThe Test world is a baffling place right now. There’s more uncertainty than when the cat finds himself equidistant from some food and an open door. Australia are worse at home than they used to be, but India are worse away than they have been in recent times, so what
Continue reading< 1 minute readIt was only just over a month ago when South Africa were given the most memorable of lessons by Australia. In being dismissed for 96, South Africa thought they’d set the standard when it came to batting collapses, only to see their opponents proudly stumble to a score of 47
Continue reading2 minute readSuppose we should write about at least one of the Boxing Day Tests. Australia v India is the more interesting one from an impartial perspective and so far India have the upper hand thanks to Zaheer Khan and some old bastard fifties. One of those was from Sachin Tendulkar, who
Continue reading2 minute readWe couldn’t remember whether we did anything on the site for Christmas. Turns out we don’t. The closest we’ve come is wishing everyone a happy Boxing Day Test Eve. The Boxing Day Test is a great tradition. There are a great many things that make cricket better than other sports
Continue reading< 1 minute readWe’ve written an episodic short story about taking rational decisions based on empirical evidence. You’d think that every cricket writer would be jumping on that crowd-pleasing bandwagon, but weirdly they’re not. Short stories about sports administration are in worryingly short supply during this year’s festive period. It’s inexplicable. Part one
Continue reading< 1 minute readNot at the same time – that would be MENTAL. Here he is with the scissors: And here he is with a cup of tea: If you’re wondering what’s going on here, our correspondent said that Mark was at “some sort of thing”.
Continue reading2 minute readWe told you Australia had bottomed out. Logic has penetrated their camp and infected a handful of people. We’re worried it might spread. First of all, Ed Cowan comes into the side (or “Cricket With Balls’ own Eddie Cowan” as Jarrod would have us refer to him). He replaces Phillip
Continue reading< 1 minute readA reliable and organised Pakistan cricket team is essentially just a theoretical construct. Nevertheless, Misbah-ul-Haq has got them about as close as they ever get. In recent months, they’ve reached a state of solidity they rarely experience. They’re scoring runs, they’re taking wickets and they’re winning pretty much all of
Continue reading< 1 minute readGordon Greenidge is always worth writing about and his 214 not out in the fourth innings at Lord’s in 1984 deserves better treatment than we’ve given it over at Cricinfo. Stu and Ash are going to take a break for a while now and we’re going to do something a
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