an article from the 2021 world test championship final
In 1995 a game between Border and Boland was suspended for 10 minutes because Daryll Cullinan hit the ball into a frying pan full of frying calamari and the umpires needed to wait for it to cool down afterwards. In 1984 a 62-year-old woman named Iris Clarke broke up a match at the county ground in Hampshire when she walked on to the pitch to demand an apology from Robin Smith because he’d broken her window with a six. She refused to give the ball back.
All of which is by way of saying that cricket is, and always has been, a slightly ridiculous business, and that anyone who wants to take it all seriously would do well to keep a sense of humour about it too.
USA vs Oman happened the other day… Moosa Stadium in Pearland TX. ground looks like a dried up riverbed. and this is one of the better surfaces in the whole country!
this is very moving writing. on the greatest Sri Lankan cricketer, a hill country Tamil with a congenital deformity that got him constantly accused of cheating, and what that meant in a time of civil war
Seeing that cricket ground in Brooklyn reminds me of occasionally sitting and watching the south-Asian kids in my college (Polytech) play cricket in the courtyard between the buildings on campus. Seemed like a broken window waiting to happen but they managed not to.
statsposting: asking the question, in the last 7 years, against good opposition, who have been the best batsmen in Test cricket? and which teams have had the best batsmen?
things get interesting when you start looking at the teams that have struggled during this period. keeping in mind an average of 30-32 is generally considered the ‘minimum’ to be a Test batsman
West Indies feels like they have been on a steady 30 year decline. only 3 batsmen in the last 7 years that even deserve to be on the team, statistically speaking.
yikes…
compare that with Bangladesh, which started playing Test matches in 2000, were pathetic for nearly 20 years, but currently have their 5 alltime best batsmen all active
you can see why England has been a revolving door for Test batsmen lately… “Joe Root and inshallah” as their fans say
lastly New Zealand, one of the top Test teams. i’m gonna juke the stats slightly and say minimum 10 innings batted, in order to include Daryl Mitchell who has absolutely been crushing it since 2019
England’s red ball reset is truly resetting. not only did they win the first Test match over world #1’s New Zealand; but also this cheats=on innings by Jonny Bairstow in the 2nd Test today
well, after India dominated the 1st innings for both sides, they failed to put up a good score the second time up and slumped to defeat as both Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow continue their incredible run of form, both scoring centuries
a lot will be written about India’s failure in fourth innings / England’s multiple successful run chases this summer (‘Bazball’ they call it). but imo the more interesting story is about the cricket ball itself.
The cricket ball used in England this year, Duke’s, (Duke’s being the traditional English manufacturer) has turned out a batch of balls which start out lively and moving around the air, but consistently go flat soft and out of shape after 30-odd overs.
By Test match rules, the initial ball must continue to be used until 80 overs of the innings, at which point it can be exchanged for a new ball. If it goes out of shape before then, it can only be exchanged for a used ball in similar condition. Teams keep having to change this Duke’s ball because it literally gets dented when you hit it after a certain point. In the NZ match, Mitchell hit the ball into a fan’s beer, after which point the ball literally stopped swinging in the air and made the batters’ jobs that much easier.
this has been hell for bowlers and a boon for middle-order batters, who can proceed to smack the thing all over the place without fear of getting out. Blundell and Mitchell (batters #5 & #6) put up massive partnerships for NZ against ENG earlier this summer; IND’s Pant and Jadeja (#5 & #7) put up centuries earlier in this Test match; and for ENG throughout, it’s been Root and Bairstow (#4 & #5) who have been feasting.
in overs 30-80 in England this summer, there’s about twice as many runs as usually would be scored.
only took him 3 years, but now he’s tied #2 all time for centuries, congratulations to this man. what a way to get it: 122 not out in a T20 with a strike rate over 200
imam-ul-haq is my blorbo. this video really shows off the uh ‘knightliness’ of a proper cricketer’s shots; blocking clean and crisp like you’re wielding a sword
i guess they got him on the channel cuz he’s currently playing for somerset in county cricket. scored a 90 on debut
Pakistan Test opener Imam, signed for the last four Championship games as Somerset seek to avoid relegation from Division One, helped spare his team the embarrassment of a follow-on by facing 162 balls and hitting nine fours. Thanks largely to the 26-year-old left-hander’s model technique, the home side reached 209 for 8 by the close of a rain-interrupted day…
hell of a flick, bit unorthodox, good. modern game needs more action, reminds me of That Ball and the general aura of 90s international cricket. didn’t realise at the time just how exciting it was
