Cricket Comment: March of time lends extra edge to this series for England stars November 19, 2013 IT’S not quite the end of an era, but this Ashes series in Australia represents the end of a cycle that coach Andy Flower and selectors have long been gearing up for. A number of players who make up England’s spine are the wrong side of 30 and will know that this could be their [...]
Cricket Comment: England have to call cover if Prior out of first Test November 12, 2013 HE MAY not grab the headlines like Alec Stewart or Adam Gilchrist did, but we mustn’t underestimate the contribution Matt Prior has made to England’s success. Not just a wicketkeeper but also a genuine batsman, Prior is a major cog in this squad’s wheel. I am a huge fan of his and in all of [...]
Cricket Comment: My concerns over standard of opposition October 29, 2013 AS ENGLAND prepare to dust off their whites for the first practice match of this Ashes tour, it’s worth reiterating what these games are for. Results and even performances are secondary. In some previous tours England have done terribly but then shone when it matters. These three games are about getting all players time in [...]
Cricket Comment: Selectors crazy to opt for Rankin over Onions September 23, 2013 IMAGINE this scenario: England lose James Anderson to injury early in this winter’s Ashes series and arrive in Melbourne for the fourth Test without their key bowler and needing to beat Australia. To who do they turn to take his place? Whoever it is won’t replicate Anderson’s swing, as England have overlooked Graham Onions and [...]
Cricket Comment: England must unleash future stars or risk World Cup failure September 10, 2013 ASHLEY Giles has his hands tied with a number of his top players not available for selection to England’s one-day international squad, but that gives him licence to try the younger players and I think he’s missing a golden opportunity at the moment. I didn’t see the sense in selecting Steven Finn and James Tredwell, [...]
Sport Comment: Time for cricket world to get priorities straight and put fans first September 8, 2013 IT’S ANY old Monday but you suspect that somewhere in the world a one-day cricket international is being played. It doesn’t really matter who between. It will fill a hole in a couple of TV schedules, exercise a few people on the sub-continent who fancy a bet and slip into the record books unnoticed and [...]
Cricket Comment: Fans being fleeced by under-strength England September 4, 2013 AS ENGLAND prepare for their one-day series against Australia, which starts tomorrow, it’s hard to escape the feeling that ordinary punters are being cheated. Cricket fans up and down the country have shelled out in the hope of seeing Ashes heroes such as Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Graeme Swann and Ian Bell. None of them [...]
Cricket Comment: Disappointing finale to Ashes shows game in bad light August 26, 2013 AFTER a thoroughly enjoyable Ashes series played in excellent spirit it was a terrible shame to see a thrilling final day’s play halted before its fitting conclusion, leaving cricket looking silly. England fans hoping to see a first ever 4-0 home series victory were up in arms, quite understandably, when the match was abandoned due [...]
Cricket Comment: Prior primed to deepen Aussies’ Ashes suffering August 20, 2013 WITH the Ashes long since retained and a series victory also ensured before today’s fifth and final Test, there is an obvious danger that some England players could ease off when play resumes at the Oval today. But if any team is likely to wilt as the end approaches then I think it’s the tourists, [...]
Cricket Comment: What would Australia give to have Ian Bell? August 13, 2013 WHEN Ian Bell was selected for Michael Vaughan’s team in the 2005 Ashes series he was ridiculed by Australia. They nicknamed him the Sherminator and, Old Trafford aside, he scored 47 runs in four Test matches. Fast-forward eight years and what would Australia give to have Bell in their team now? He has been by [...]