TagGary Ballance

South Africa v England: Battle of the Middleweights

So England have arrived in South Africa – a nation of biltong, wildlife, beautiful scenery, guns, macho men, and foreigners spouting generalised clichés. South Africa is also home to the world’s best test team – or so we’re repeatedly told. Most of us realise this is a bit of a fib though. The Proteas might be ranked number one (by a whisker) but there’s no dominant team in test cricket right now. The world is awash with teams in transition – teams with some strengths but also glaring...

The Beard to be Revered – Day 5 at the Ageas

Bloody fantastic! It feels great to write about something positive for a change. The team has been heavily criticised over the last few months, and rightly so, but there was absolutely nothing wrong with the performance at the Ageas Bowl. It was the perfect team effort. Congratulations all round. It’s important not to go over the top – we all know this side is capable of mindless cricket as well as the inspired variety – but let’s just enjoy this victory without worrying too much about the...

Thanks Very Much, Mr Jadeja – Day One at the Ageas Bowl

Eng 247-2 stumps After being a right royal pain in the bum at Lord’s, Ravi Jadeja finally gave England something to smile about today. He shelled a straightforward chance at slip, gave our beleaguered skipper a second life, and potentially breathed new life into an England team that barely has a pulse these days. The relief around the Ageas Bowl was palpable. Maybe Cook’s luck was finally turning? He could have been out to the very first ball of the match: he felt for the ball outside off...

A tale of two openers – day two at Leeds

When England’s openers strode to the crease yesterday, one was a fresh faced youngster with just one test under his belt (in which he looked unconvincing), and the other was a seasoned test player with more hundreds under his belt than any other England player in history. People who had never watched a cricket match before would have assumed that Alastair Cook was the former, not the latter. Cook’s dismissal was so predictable it was painful. He should have been given out on Friday evening...

C’est la vie – Day 5 at Lord’s

So what did you think? For me it was a match that didn’t quite make sense. The pitch was lifeless (a poor one for test cricket) yet the match ended in compelling drama. Both attacks spent most of the match aiming at the batsman’s head – even though there was no pace and bounce to speak of – and Alastair Cook set some pretty creative fields on day five. I know this was because runs weren’t an issue, but it was still jaw dropping to see. Maybe they put something in his water at...

Odds and ends – England favourites for 2015 Ashes

It’s been a rough few weeks. First we had our noses put out of joint; then we had them rubbed in the dirt by our understandably elated antipodean cousins. However, if the bookies are to be believed, we should get our revenge in 2015: they make England slight favourites at odds of 6/5. Basically, the bookies have looked at the real stars of this winter’s Ashes – Rogers, Harris, Haddin and Johnson – and concluded that Australia’s difference makers will be different themselves in two years time...

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