< 1 minute readAndrew McDonald hit 163 off just 116 balls for Victoria this week, despite a duck before play. “We walked too close to the ducklings and the old father duck attacked me. He got on top of my backpack and started chipping away at my head. It was a savage attack
Continue reading< 1 minute readWe’ve not had any high-minded criticism of our latest Cricinfo piece yet, which is a bit disappointing. In case you’re wondering what it’s about, it’s about two of our greatest interests: gravy and depression. If we could have squeezed ‘worrying about whether we’ve offended somebody by accident’ in there too,
Continue reading< 1 minute readIt is so easy to take Sachin Tendulkar for granted. He’s 191 not out against Australia. You see that and you think: “Of course he’s 191 not out against Australia. Why wouldn’t he be?” The statistics are everywhere. Picking some pretty much at random, this was his eighth hundred in
Continue reading< 1 minute readThere is only one acceptable way to get a royal title: by going along with what everyone’s calling you because you can no longer be arsed explaining that Brian Lara’s the king, not you. Royalty through exasperated resignation. Any other route to a title is flat-out wrong. If you self-apply
Continue reading2 minute readLaurence Elderbrook is beginning his Odyssey and Laurence Elderbrook will return as king of Ithaca. After an unexpected issue with my flights, I instead opt to travel to Australia by ship, the way all the greats did. The long hours during the trip give me plenty of time to practise,
Continue reading< 1 minute readRob Key’s on Twitter now. We knew we had to make contact, but we were painfully aware that we’ve spent the last three or four years being mental about him on the internet. This made the situation a little awkward. We knew Rob had seen the greatest post of all
Continue reading2 minute readOur mum writes: Had an early tea in preparation for the long journey to the ground (five minutes’ walk round the corner). Noticed in passing an excellent crop of sloes in the hedgerow – will know where to come if our own fall short for the gin in the autumn.
Continue reading< 1 minute readRun chases are exciting. Why? Some people think that run chases are exciting because there are fours and sixes, a target and an eventual victor. These people brought us one-day cricket in all its forms. These people just don’t get it. Run chases are exciting because we care what happens.
Continue reading< 1 minute readA warm-up for the Ashes in the eyes of some of the Australians. A dying form of the game in the eyes of a few Twenty20 fans who think they see an inevitability about the spread of that format, despite it being ridiculously early days. India v Australia Tests still
Continue reading< 1 minute readIndia are right to persevere with spindly, lank-haired Rubik’s Cube swallower, Ishant Sharma, but of late it’s seemed a bit like a Care in the Community obligation rather than a forward-looking show of faith. There comes a point where you’re not encouraging a player, you’re just putting him on a
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