< 1 minute readMaybe we should consider him two different batsmen – Ian Bell, the guy who chips one to cover, and I.Ron Bell, the guy who plays these sorts of innings. (Make your own metallurgical puns. We had a look at the iron Wikipedia page with a view to coming up with
Continue reading2 minute readWas it only last year when we wrote about how enjoyable it was to watch a number 11 batsman make a record Test score? ‘Cricket at its best,’ we wrote, completely forgetting that a lurching Ashes Test makes us want to vomit until we’re right down to the lung butter.
Continue reading2 minute readWho’d have thought that it would be Peter Siddle taking all the wickets? Who’d have thought that in Australia’s brave new world of James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc and shiny new Ashton Agar, it would be tired old veteran Siddle, with his 150 Test wickets, proven record and exceptional fitness who’d
Continue reading3 minute readThis is an area where you find yourself being dragged along by the consensus. So many people are saying that Australia’s seam bowling is strong that you tend to think it must be true. Frequently, people will talk about the attack as a whole, which is usually a sign that
Continue reading< 1 minute readAustralia’s spinners are both better and worse than people seem to think. Let’s first be clear that, as it stands, neither Fawad Ahmed nor Ashton Agar are actually in the squad. Furthermore, both benefit from being to a large extent unknown and untested. In a barren land, the distant man
Continue reading< 1 minute readBrad Haddin has primarily been brought back as child minder, but he does average 45 in Ashes Tests and he does look like an Australian wicketkeeper, which is more important than you might think. There’s a chance that Matthew Wade might play as a batsman, so it’s safe to assume
Continue reading< 1 minute readWe meant to let you know a couple of days ago that the Ashes crossword answers are now up. There’s a link on that page to an Excel document containing explanations as well. We’ve also added a link to the answers on the original page in case you don’t read
Continue reading2 minute readWe’d say that Australia were one crankshaft short of an engine room if we knew what constituted ‘the engine room’ or what an engine room contained or what a crankshaft was. Also, they appear to be missing more than that. Flicking through our Big Book of Cricket Clichés, we find
Continue reading2 minute readWith his perpetually tear-filled eyes and propensity to snap tendons while waxing body hair, Shane Watson always appears a figure of fun. Add in his comedic insistence on throwing his wicket away before he reaches three figures and the boy-man becomes symbolic of how Australia has fallen. On the other
Continue reading< 1 minute readWe used the term ‘echo chamber’ in reference to the UK cricket media the other day. That was in response to Joe Root worship, but it applies just as much to the way the Australia team is assessed. Half the experts out there are simply rehashing the last thing they
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