I am one of many who is not so fortunate to be jetting off to Australia. I am not so fortunate as to have invented cling film or some other money-making invention, and sadly, in order to enjoy hot showers and asparagus on a semi-frequent basis have to work for a living. 9-5 ish, 5 days a week ish. My day starts around 7am and normally finishes after midnight. 7 hours sleep is usually enough to get me up in the morning, and after a couple of gallons of coffee and the odd hour trawling the Internet, I am, by around midday vaguely approaching a state of mind that might be considered vaguely productive. But factor in to the equation the time difference between England and Australia which results in matches starting around midnight GMT, and lasting approximately 8 hours, that would mean, if I wanted to to watch a significant proportion of the cricket, which I do, I would have to either condition my body to be awake for 24 hours straight, or develop a world-wide new working day. And since none are particularly likely, in the short term at least, it calls for a plan.

Fortunately, living and working on a small island, devoid of the usual city headaches such as rush hour, commuting and 3 hour traffic jams means I can be home from work by 1715. A couple of herbal sleep remedies washed down with a couple of cans of strong lager ought to knock me out smartish. All I need to remember is to set my alarm.

The it’s a case of 8 hours of pure cricketing delight. You know the delight – the shock, the pain, the anger, the frustration. If all goes to plan, I’ll be bright as a button for work in the morning.

Whether I can keep this up for 5 days, I don’t know (fortunately two of the days are over the weekend) but I’m sure as heck giving it my best shot. Maybe a cover drive. (Get it?)

What are your plans for watching this event?

Post from: EveryJoe

My Ashes schedule

So as something of a quick interlude, may I present two cricketing items that’ll remind you why you love this game. It won’t make the scandal go away, but it’ll be a quick hiatus from it all.

Number 1: One of the most staggering cricket moments of all time : Jonty Rhodes in full flight

Number 2: A fantastic story as told by Dickie Bird, legendary English umpire, in his autobiography “From the Pavilion End”

“Bomber” Wells, a spin bowler and great character, played for Glocuestershire and Nottinghamshire. He used to bat at No.11 since one couldn’t bat any lower. Of him, they used to paraphrase Compton’s famous words describing an equally inept runner; “When he shouts ‘YES’ for a run, it is merely the basis for further negotiations!” Incidentally, Compton was no better.

John Warr said, of Compton “He was the only person who would call you for a run and wish you luck at the same time.” Anyway, when Wells played for Gloucs, he had an equally horrendous runner as the No.10. During a county match, horror of horrors…….both got injured.

*Both* opted for runners when it was their turn to bat. Bomber played a ball on the off, called for a run, forgot he had a runner and ran himself. Ditto at the other end. In the melee, someone decided that a second run was on. Now we had *all four* running. Due to the confusion and constant shouts of “YES” “NO”, eventually, *all* of them ran to the same end.

Note – at this point in time, the entire ground is rolling on the floor laughing their behinds out. One of the fielders – brave lad – stops laughing for a minute, picks the ball and throws down the wicket at the other end. Umpire Alec Skelding looks very seriously at the four and calmly informs them “One of you buggers is out. I don’t know which. *You* decide and inform the bloody scorers!”.

And those, my friends, are just two reasons why we love Cricket. (Both items found at CaughtBehind)

Post from: EveryJoe

On a lighter note than the ball tampering

(Incidentally, fielding for 62 overs on the bounce is not something I’ve done in a while.)

Part of the MCC’s tour of the Channel Islands is a match against the actual Guernsey side – and including two games against Bermuda forms part of Guernsey’s preparation for international competition – they’re involved in the European Cricket Council Division Two Championships, this August in Scotland.

So why have I bothered posting all this babble? Because it marks an important point – something that I’ve touched on briefly – the development of cricket. Last week I was reading about Bermuda vs Canada on Cricinfo, and this weekend I can actually see Bermuda playing. (Again, probably sounds a lot more glamourous than it really is.)
Cricket development is such an ambiguous term. What the hell does it mean? How do you quantify cricket development? You can count the number of people playing for a given area. Or then calculate the proportion of people playing. And the age groups. Or perhaps calculate interest in cricket by considering viewing figures (assuming it’s televised, of course) or match attendances. Or look at the sale of cricket equipment. These items will give a vague idea of how cricket is developing on any specified scale.
I actually thought I had a point when I started writing this diatribe. Something meaningful about the state of the game. Actually, I’ve realised two things:

• I don’t have a point (or at least I don’t currently have the literary agility to transcribe it this blog)
• I love cricket

The latter point was not so much of a shock. But whilst I was facing the likes of ex-England bowlers on the weekend, with balls whizzing past all areas of my anatomy, it reminded me how much I love this game. I wish more people tried cricket. Apart from the sunburn on my head, a game of all day cricket is such an enjoyable pastime.

I’ve decided to make the point of this post thus : watch and play cricket – it’s NOT boring!

* The dubious lack of information about my performance in the match is highly intentional. Make of it what you will.
* Ironically, I might be in next year’s Wisden because of it.

Post from: EveryJoe

Gratuitous self-promotion. And something serious. Ish.

Kevin Pietersen – England’s new wonderboy – has really made a name for himself. Doubted by the cynics and critics (which included me) about his ability to play the highest level of the game, due largely to the fact that his shot selection seemed irresponsible, he has successfully proved a lot of people wrong. His 158 in the final Ashes test match at The Oval was a match-drawing series-winning display of skill.

A criticism I have of him, though, and this relates particularly to the recent India and Pakistan tours, is that he doesn’t appear to have any problems getting played in, but he is not going on to make really big scores. The same is still largely true now – yes he has scored 3 centuries on the trot – and his 142 at Edgbaston made all of the other batsmen in the side look a bit silly and ultimately gave England the platform on which to grab the win. However, the day needs to come when he scores a test double century. That day will come but I believe it will be a defining moment as he moves from a routine of scoring centuries into a routine of scoring match-winning runs. There’s a big difference.

But none of that is to criticise him, crikey, he’s still very new to the Test arena, having played just 13 matches (and averaging over 50, I might add). I admit on a personal level, I don’t really like the guy. He seems too smug, a little too up himself – let’s face it, he’s the David Beckham of the cricket world, and for that reason alone, he’s going to encounter some stick. But it’s his natural confidence which lets him play the way he plays. He has faith in his own ability and the confidence that if he takes on the worlds best bowlers (which he has done – both Warne and Muralitharan have been on the receiving end of an agricultural KP slapping) more often that not he’ll get away with it. Whilst a lot of people have him pegged as a slogger, Duncan Fletcher assures them otherwise.

It’s that type of information that really heralds a great future for KP. I’m not interested in hearing “he’s the next Bradman/Richards” just as Freddie was “the next Botham”. That does a disservice to everyone named. Nope – KP is KP. He still lacks experience and I think he has a lot to learn yet. But his displays over the last 12 months have proven that he is learning – and that KP still has an awful lot left that we haven’t yet seen.

Post from: EveryJoe

Why KP is so damn good