Afternoon all. And welcome to the latest edition of the Wednesday Wensleydale - the weekly roundup that's mature, tasty, and tends to crumble on close analysis. We've chosen a Yorkshire cheese because the white rose county are very much in the news this week. They've signed 26 year old South Africa paceman [...]
Well you can't win 'em all. Even when you're No.1. Our record breaking ODI team, which registered England's highest ever chase in the 1st game of the series, returned to earth with a bump last night. It's just one loss, so there's no need to panic, but it shows there's still work [...]
Everybody panic! Paul Farbrace, the coach who was so integral in national triumphs such as the 2015 World Cup and the 2016/17 Ashes, has decided to leave England and join Warwickshire ahead of the seminal / life defining white ball tournament being held in England this summer. How will we cope?! Apparently [...]
Today we have a guest post from Gareth Fitzgerald. You won't be surprised to learn that I'm quite sympathetic to his views. It's a relief to know that I'm not howling into the wind alone ... Last November Rob Smyth from the Guardian wrote a piece lauding the selection merits of Ed [...]
It’s time to “come together” for the greater good. It’s time to rally behind a plan - the only plan on the table. Sounds like Theresa May’s Brexit pitch doesn’t it? But actually this was pretty much the message conveyed by the gruesome twosome, Tom Harrison and Colin Graves, as the ECB [...]
Progress. I guess that's the word people will use to describe 2018. Our ODI team continues to blossom, and our test team has finally shown signs of life too. The year started badly with a 0-4 drubbing in Australia, and an unsatisfying 1-1 draw at home to Pakistan. However, things improved thereafter [...]
What's the difference between being a cricket blogger and a member of the mainstream cricket media? I could mention the salary, and the long months spent away from home covering the team, but what really sets us apart is the ability to write from the heart. If I was a football blogger, [...]
Ashley Giles won't be a bad Director of English Cricket. He's competent. He's a good bloke. He's a safe pair of hands. But I doubt he'll be an excellent appointment either. Words like 'competent' and 'safe' could easily be replaced by 'conservative' and 'unimaginative'. However, I'd like to chose a completely different [...]
Rangers vs Celtic looks like walk in the park compared to these two. The strips are the same – one wears blue and one wears green, and blood, guts and years of hatred have spilled onto the shirts. It’s religion, it’s politics, and oh, it’s cricket, too. It’s India vs Pakistan. IT’S [...]
The batsman drops the ball onto the leg side and Ben Stokes runs after it. As he catches up with it he hurls the ball into the ground with a cry of disgust. His face is the same vivid red as his shirt. It caps an over spent screaming at his fielders, [...]