“When we come to your town, come on out, support the tour…and let freedom reign”. So said Bruce Springsteen when introducing Chimes of Freedom at a 1988 live performance in Stockholm. He was talking about supporting Amnesty International, in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights. Granted, England’s 2021-2022 Ashes Tour to Australia is not quite the same as a major worldwide charity tour. And yet, the Boss’ famous words strike some similarities with...
Today Mark Cohen discusses England’s habit of dropping crucial slip catches. He argues that consistency of personnel is the solution to our cordon woes … The cancellation of the fifth and final test at Old Trafford has robbed England of the opportunity to right a number of wrongs from a second Monday defeat of the summer. Captain Joe Root has often resembled Atlas in shouldering the middle order for much of this summer. England’s failures with the bat may continue to bear the brunt...
To coin a phrase, a week is a long time in cricket. Just tell that to Joe Root. As he did the obligatory post-match media duties on the Headingley outfield on Saturday, with his bowlers having just reduced India from 215-2 to 278 all out, Root probably wondered if events at Lords had taken place in an alternate universe. In that alternate universe, Mohammad Shami played the square cut like Kapil Dev and Ollie Robinson was physically unable to bowl an off stump line. In that alternate universe...
Following my lament earlier in the week, Mark Cohen puts a slightly different spin on England’s current predicament… So Dawid Malan is the latest recall to be called back off the white ball wagon and thrust straight into the test match arena. The announcement of England’s squad for the third test at Headingley brought with it a welcome back for the former Middlesex captain to the international fold, ahead of a likely return to the starting eleven next Wednesday. This has come with...
Today Mark Cohen discusses the ECB’s latest madcap idea for The Hundred. Apparently wickets will be called ‘outs’ to make the game easier to understand. Sigh. First things first, the ECB gets a lot of things right. It rightly embraced T20 before anyone else. Ditto the use of DRS . The radio deals it has struck are bearing fruit across the airwaves, most recently with the BBC’s excellent County Championship coverage. The ECB has also fostered the national game’s gradual...
Although many people have already made up their mind about England’s second ginger ninja, I’ve received more guest articles about Jonny Bairstow than any other cricketer in recent weeks. Therefore, I suspect this debate hasn’t quite run its course. Here’s Mark Cohen with the case for the defence … The conclusion of England’s mammoth tour of India felt like the end of some dystopian cricketing odyssey. From a personal experience, one of the few bright spots in these...
