2 minute read As the old saying goes, if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen and if the smoke drifts into the dressing room, you should probably exit there as well. A number of England one-day players have exited both kitchen and dressing room for this series, although some
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This is the way a cricket career ends, not with a bang
2 minute read Hurray! Friday! Let’s celebrate by writing about melancholy exits! We’ve sadly had two recently. Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s international career ended just as he imagined it would when he first took up the sport as a boy, with a WhatsApp exchange between Test series. Meanwhile, Craig Kieswetter has had to call it
Continue readingThe myths of parity
2 minute read Parity on first innings isn’t really parity because one team has to bat last. When England matched New Zealand’s 350, they were behind. Not that this was where the match was decided, but it’s worth noting when so much attention is on fourth innings shot selection. Several days ago… Two
Continue readingEngland’s most influential player puts his hand up and comes to the party
< 1 minute read Sometimes the crowd are said to be a 12th man. Sometimes the 12th man is a 12th man. At times, in England, persistent drizzle is the 12th man. Even Brendon McCullum at his most innovative couldn’t get the better of the United Kingdom’s damp, maritime climate today. “What if I
Continue readingBJ Watling – not just a weirdly-named man in an oversized jumper
< 1 minute read Bradley-John. BJ stands for Bradley-John. We’d have gone with Brad. Or John. Or Bradley. Or Bradley-John. BJ went for BJ. As for the surname, we can’t hear ‘caught Watling’ without thinking it’s some sort of archaic crime. As in: ‘Broad was caught watling behind the keep and was sentenced to
Continue readingAdam Lyth and a big noise in Yorkshire
< 1 minute read After day two of the second Test, the important question is this: Is Michael Vaughan getting louder? Maybe he was always like this, but it seems to us that he’s crossed the speaking-shouting threshold this season. At the start of Channel 5’s highlights programme, when he’s standing in the middle
Continue readingA series of things for which it’s quite hard to come up with an appropriate headline
< 1 minute read Q: What do you call a donkey that was born in New Zealand, grew up in Australia, got a snorter first ball in his first Test but survived and went on to make 88 off 70 balls? A: A Ronchi It’s probably not the greatest joke, but that’s not what
Continue readingEngland are playing
< 1 minute read So are New Zealand. It’s a Test match. You’ll probably have something to say. Leave your comments on this post while we busy ourself desperately trying to come up with something insightful and pithy to say about the first day’s play. If you’re interested in our thoughts while the match
Continue readingEngland have a new coach!
< 1 minute read He’s called Nigel or something. We’re not sure. We haven’t really been paying attention. From what we can tell, he’s been coaching a club in South Wales and he once appeared in an episode of Knight Rider. He seems well qualified. Jason Gillespie had of course been the favourite for
Continue readingLike that dumpling from the Caribbean place last week, this match may well take a day or two to digest
< 1 minute read Imagine going back in time and trying to tell cynical, world-weary you from a week ago about this match. “England were 30-4 inside the first hour of day one,” you’d say. “Yeah, that seems about right,” Earlier You would reply. “And they then conceded 523 in New Zealand’s first innings,”
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