The Full Toss
Welcome to TFT, one of the UK’s longest serving cricket blogs. We’ll be here throughout the year to debate, moan, and occasionally rejoice about the England cricket team. If something’s bothering you, whether it’s selection, governance, or the cost of a pint, don’t hesitate to get in touch. You don’t need to be a professional writer or copywriter, just a fan with something to say. Email james@thefulltoss.com for more info. Cheers.
The White Horse Awakens
Today's article comes courtesy of cricket poet Marco Jackson. He's been following Kent over recent weekends and has spotted several signs suggesting something special's brewing down south. Does that pass for an acceptable alliteration, Marco? The following piece comes in two stages: a love letter to Kent in general, and then a tribute to Daniel Bell-Drummond, a player who has [...]
No More Test Cricket Until August 1st
What's on the agenda today? The headline says it all. We're about to enter the height of summer, a time synonymous with long sunny days and Richie Benaud saying "morning everyone", yet England won't be playing a test match this month or next. Instead our ECB overlords have created what amounts to a 'no-test' zone. England's test series against India [...]
Headingley And Humble Pie
So England are back on track. At least until the next game. This win at Headlingley was ridiculously easy. We were as good here as we were lamentable at Lord’s. And the same could be said of Pakistan, but the other way around of course. Lot’s of people will be very happy with the win, and justifiably so, but I’m [...]
The Headingley Test
Back in the late 1980s and 1990s, England would often travel to Leeds trailing in test series. We'd draft in someone like Neil Mallender, who would swing the ball around corners, and we'd win inside three days - thus keeping Ted Dexter or Mickey Stewart in charge for another few months. Headingley's cloud cover was like a huge comfort blanket [...]
England’s Best Ever XI Revisited
It was my tenth wedding anniversary at the weekend, so my Mrs and I took a trip down memory lane and stayed at the hotel where we got married. "That's all very well" you might say "but on earth has this got to do with cricket"? It's because the one thing I controlled at the wedding (us blokes are usually [...]
Ignominy at Lord’s
It was another awful performance and yet another dispiriting defeat. I might as well have just cut and pasted a report from the Ashes. Is this English cricket’s lowest ebb? Obviously we’ve had worse defeats in the past, and this particular test probably isn’t a watershed, but it’s hard to think of a time when the future has looked so [...]
The Lord’s Test – Day 2
Bizarre captaincy, shambolic catching, and good traditional test batting. Suddenly Pakistan look like huge favourites for this test match. And they deserve to be in this position too. They bowled really well on Thursday and they batted just as well, if not better, on Friday. Well played guys. As for England, I'm struggling to find anything original to say. Basically [...]
The Lord’s Test – Day 1
Day 1 I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry. So I'll do neither. I'll rant instead. What a horribly lacklustre and lamentable start to the summer by England. Our batting was quite frankly pathetic. It was a continuation of the winter's woeful succession of train wrecks. There were far too many poor shots and a complete inability to knuckle [...]
1982: The Summer Of The All-Rounder
The first home test of 2018 begins today when England face Pakistan at Lord's; therefore we're going to bring you a touch of nostalgia to put you in the mood for some good old fashioned test cricket. New guest writer Haroon Khalid, who is a bit of a fearsome fast bowler himself, has penned the following look back at the [...]
Strauss Steps Away But Leaves Everything In A Muddle
First let me begin on a sympathetic note. When I heard the news that Andrew Strauss would be stepping away from the ECB for a while to look after his wife my heart sank. It must be a horrible time for him and his family. I hope this seemingly unscheduled break doesn't mean that the prognosis has worsened. I really [...]