Today Geoffrey Bunting returns to TFT with some strong views about Joe Clarke’s inclusion on England’s Covid standby list for the series against the West Indies. In early February, reports revealed that Joe Clarke is among the Covid reserves for the test series against the West Indies that starts on the 8th March. It emerged on the back of news that the ECB omitted James Anderson and Stuart Broad from the tour – possibly in the hope it would pass under the radar. Cricket journalists...
Or, Geoffrey gets upset about English spin bowling again… What has Jack Leach done while carrying drinks that has so impressed? To the point the ECB appears to have hustled him away from playing cricket in favour of hydrating those that do. In late-2018, Leach appeared to answer the questions left by Graeme Swann’s retirement. The best spinner on show for England this winter, it was certain he was going to play a major role for England this summer. But two days into the second test...
Today Geoffrey Bunting looks at England’s dreadful treatment of specialist spinners. Is it a failure to appreciate the art, a failure to recognise that development takes time, or simply a failure to value specialist cricketers in general? Summer 2019. Everything’s coming up Jack Leach. At the beginning of the season, he dug England out of a hole against Ireland with the bat. He does it again against Australia at Headingley – albeit with a little help from Ben Stokes. Leach’s teammates...
Today we welcome Geoffrey Bunting back to TFT. He’s penned a lovely tribute to a true England hero … There’s something strangely endearing about ugly things. Walking through a pet rescue centre we might immediately be drawn to the cutest kitten or the most-friendly puppies but it’s often the misfits that maintain our attention; the one-eyed, three-legged survivors that elicit the most deep-seated sense of care. National Geographic suggests it is “baby schema” – a basic human...
Australia look stunned. That’s the only way to describe the vacant husks that have replaced the real Australian side. Over five days at The Wanderers, they look like eleven men whose minds are so far from their task that they may as well be on Mars. Tim Paine has barely been back in the side a few months, and now the captaincy has been thrust upon him in his 13th test match. How long he’ll hold on to the role, nobody knows, but he’s the only man trusted to lead in the wake of one of the biggest...
Ramiz Raja has lost it. He’s frozen mid-pitch, stuttering through a sentence he’s destined never to complete while his eyes plead with the strip for any clue on what to say next. Call it green, Ramiz, dry, a camel, swear on live television – anything – just get the hell out of there. But he doesn’t. He just stares into the camera. Silent. Organisers want you to believe that this is the biggest tournament in cricket – “make it large” they cry over and over – but one of its most memorable moments...
