Throughout the 2015 international season we’ve been researching the price of tickets for England matches. We approached each host county and asked them to tell us how many seats they were selling, for each match, in which price brackets. Only Durham, Glamorgan, and Warwickshire, were prepared to disclose the exact number of tickets available for specific prices. For those grounds we were able to calculate the average ticket price. For the others, the best remaining option was to work out...
England’s Uncertain Future
Don’t panic about The Oval everyone. The test was a dead rubber. We only got thrashed because our players lost focus after Trent Bridge. Our innings defeat was actually a deliberate ploy to get the game finished quickly. Sir Ian had a BBQ lined up for Monday afternoon and the players didn’t want to miss it. His wild boar sausages in a Courvoisier glaze are legendary. The Cloudy Bay on tap isn’t bad either. Or so we’re meant to believe … You can probably tell from my sarcastic tone that I don’t...
The Final Act at The Oval
The awards ceremony saw the two sides vying with one another for most muted celebration. A welcome glimpse of a more competitive contest. England collected the urn on the back of an innings defeat. With the thumping 405-run loss at Lords still fresh in the memory, it took the lacquer off the reliquary. This series has been described by many cricket writers and broadcasters as extraordinary, and in many ways it has been, but not necessarily as they meant it. It has contained none of the quality...
Reaction: day two at the Oval
Are a semi-engaged England merely suffering from a dead-rubber hangover? Is Australia’s dominance a freakish reflection of their nothing-to-lose sense liberation? Or is this match revealing the true dynamic between the sides? It’s an amalgam of all three factors – but mainly the third. England are taking this match seriously. And look at the score. At this rate, the presentation ceremony might be a bit embarrassing. In the 1990s and early 2000s, we often squeaked a consolatory...
Reaction: day one at the Oval
Preamble The Ashes are won and the fifth Test at the Oval is a dead rubber. To a point Lord Copper. In fact, quite a lot is at stake. Broad themes and subtle nuances have yet to be resolved and the denouement could yet have a profound affect on the teams and many of the players. Alastair Cook’s series average is a modest 31.85, but it’s fair to say that he’s looked in better touch than his stat. The same cannot be said of Michael Clarke, who has had a wretched tour, scoring just 117 runs at 16...
Comments Thread: Day One at The Oval
There’s something special about an Oval test match. Lord’s is beautiful but a little stuffy. The Oval, on the other hand, is a great arena for everyone – the crowds are vociferous, the pitches usually better for entertaining cricket, the beer a little cheaper, and England usually play better there. Although this test is a dead rubber I’m actually expecting a good game. No result would surprise me. If the Aussie bowlers get their lines and lengths right, and find a way to...
