Cricket is popular

No sh*t, Athers. But the prudent observation is that grassroots initiatives are paying off – not least by getting youngsters involved in cricket.

Grassroots initiatives are thriving. The Chance to Shine campaign has now garnered £9 million in private funding and a commitment from the government that the National Sports Foundation will commit £2.5m per annum over the course of the next 10 years, bringing a sustainable cricket legacy into a third of all state schools. Urban Cricket – with the street urchin look-a-like Kevin Pietersen as its face – is up and running, bringing cricket with ‘no rulez’ to urban environments. Yo!

And with that investment, and the likes of Kwik Cricket still popular, there’s a positively rosey future for English cricket. Except if people like Athers are allowed to bore us to tears with stories of his shopping.