And the beat goes on. On a day when it is announced that we’ll be playing at least 23 international fixtures next Summer (and let’s hope Summer 2017 is a darn sight better than this one), including an ODI series in late, late September including three day nighters, we are getting set for part 8 of the Super Series against Sri Lanka. The ODI series is in the bag, courtesy of Jason Roy’s pyrotechnics on Wednesday, so there’s not a lot riding on this one in Cardiff. Yes, it’s Saturday, it must be Cardiff.
Obviously you will have noted a curtailment in my output. My thanks for the hardy souls keeping the comments going. Fact is, life with England is quite serene at the moment, there’s a pretty major football competition on, there’s a bit going on in the real world, and well, cricket blogging has had to take a bit of a back seat. I’m sure my many anti-fans are delighted.
I was mildly amused to find that Jade Dernbach has blocked me on Twitter. I was scratching my head wondering why. I’ve never followed him. I wasn’t particularly mean to him over his England travails. And then I remembered…. It was an ancient post on HDWLIA! Lordy. He got the hump with me before it was fashionable to do so!
Comments on the game, weather permitting in this excuse for a Summer, below. I have the Cricket Paper to read this weekend, and wondering if any of their delightful Essex mafia have stuck the boot into Compton this week.
Have a great weekend folks.
Being Outside Cricket 
Well there you are. Nothing much going on, so you’re quiet, unlike a “cricket writer” – a profession we understand is as complex as nuclear physicist – who will be out there trying to prove Compton shops at Tesco, not Waitrose or Cook is the first 10,000 run man to sit in the crowd at Wimbledon.
I confess I’ve turned into a cricket couch potato. Far too delicate to venture out into the unsheltered wastes of a cricket ground stand. Today, by accident, I found myself watching ICC Cricket 360 – a sort of cricket magazine without Pringle or The Analyst – and it was good. Features on Michael Clarke in Hong Kong, Jersey v Oman, interview with Pakistan’s Shan Masood, who was at Durham University.
The wind is howling outside now. Hope the weather is better in Cardiff tomorrow
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At least Tendulkar has been at Wimbledon after scoring 10k+ runs before Cook. Others may have gone as well.
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This is a heck of a piece:
http://www.thecricketmonthly.com/story/1027027/batting-3-0
There is so much to discuss there, and is perhaps a tad more insightful that Selvey’s recent piece with the thesis, the bats are too big.
Very worth the read, I promise.
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Aaaarrrghhhh!
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I like your reply, ‘Balls old thing, although I don’t know what it means.
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Looking good in tartan but, so far, not making any decisions (expect about Saudi Arabia) or holding any press conferences:
The arrangement of their persons gives some idea how much Dave Richardson really matters at the top table.
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First (only, that I can find) account of the substance of what’s been going on:
http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/80965/opposition-over-test-shake-up-disappointing-says-afghanistan-ceo
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So, day-night ODIs in late September. Why don’t they just go the whole hog and arrange a winter tour of Siberia as well?
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Tour of Bangladesh looks in serious doubt:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2016/07/02/englands-tour-to-bangladesh-in-doubt-after-terrorist-attack-in-d/
Also, there seem to be changes to both the LBW rules under DRS and the calling of no-balls agreed at the ICC meeting but precise details aren’t currently clear.
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Official press release here:
http://www.icc-cricket.com/news/2016/media-releases/95256/icc-annual-conference-concludes-in-edinburgh
It says less in more words than the average Ed Smith article.
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Oh Come on! Don’t do the whole, quebecer ‘doesn’t know that we don’t read Ed Smith here because it’s too long’ thing! There is some important stuff in there that recent articles about coaching, technique, sports science, and bat size don’t get anywhere near. I’ll accept it’s a bit wordy, mind you, but the pictures are nice.
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You’re right, q, it is very interesting.
Ed Smith isn’t popular around here on account of his tendencies to pretentiousness and instant theorising, hence his nickname of FICJAM. But that article’s a whole other, erm, ball game.
He’s still got a Theory, mind. He does like those.
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I tried. I took three attempts to read it, and I haven’t quite got to the end yet. Working on it.
I know Smith is not always taken seriously around these parts, but I have no dog in this race. I don’t read him, nor his critics. But since you recommended it, I had a look.
You’re right, it’s a whole lot more nuanced than anything Selvey could produce. But I kept wondering why he was using so many words to make a fairly straightforward point. He does go on a bit, doesn’t he?
He started one paragraph by saying “Imagine you have bought a 16th century house”. I understand the point he makes, but it’s perhaps not the most approachable metaphor, even for a cricketing audience.
I thought his question of “the athlete who’s a batsman vs a batsman who’s an athlete” was quite interesting. Not sure if the game has room any more for the likes of Inzamam ul Haq, who just want to bat (like a god), and are not so fussed about the rest of the game. Unfortunately. Replaced by the likes of Maxwell, God help us.
Thanks for highlighting this, it was interesting. I’ll get back to you when I’ve read the rest of it.
I guess we can look forward to decades of English cricket dominance now, since England has “taken it’s place on the world stage” as Farage puts it. The power of England has been unleashed, no longer constrained by those pesky Brussels bureaucrats.
I didn’t think you could do worse than Giles Clarke, but Boris seems to be at a bit of a loose end at the moment…no, I shouldn’t make such jokes, they’re at risk of coming true these days.
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Liking the name, Fred!
Dont joke about Boris Bloody Johnson, please. If there was any justice in this world he’d have lived an obscure life as the Classics master at a small posh school… the one who has an ill-concealed affair with the headmaster’s wife, never does his marking but the kids (sorry, boys) think he’s great…
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There IS no justice in this life. That’s clear now.
I shouldn’t joke about BJ. He’s probably the most cynical and destructive politician I have ever seen, despite his clown costume. He’s worse than Le Pen, at least she’s open about what she wants.
Australians get English superiority and culture rubbed in their face all the time. Australians are apparently not and simply cannot be as good as the English. If Johnson and Farage are the measure, then I’m proud to be an uncultured ignorant convict.
Ewan McGregor summed it up well.
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@BorisJohnson You spineless c$&t You lead this ludicrous campaign to leave EU. Win, and now fuc& off to let someone else clear up your mess.
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Australians speak better French than the English now.
“Ah fuck…vous etes joking…”
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I actually enjoyed most of the article…. (goes for a lie down)
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This is the first CWOT I’ve watched for a very long time
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Hello
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Hello.
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