Poignancy presides over the time of year when fans and players brace themselves for a long goodbyeThe last day of the domestic cricket season fell on Thursday when Essex, the defending county champions, played out the final day of the final match against this year’s champions Surrey, at the Oval. The sky was gentlest blue, the leaves of the south London trees thinking about falling. Entry was free and though the hordes failed to storm the bastion, the plastic tip-up seats filled up well enough, comfortable pair of trousers by comfortable pair of trousers, for a last deep breath of late summer. The day was a thriller, one of the very best, but no one knew that for sure when...
The county title was won in a thriller reminding us how the West Midlands club retains the heart of first-class cricketWhen 22 players gather in huge stadiums built for full houses in midsummer, and rattle around in late season gloom to the applause of 20 hundred-weight of empty tip-up chairs and a crisp wrapper, County Championship cricket can feel a little soulless.But not at New Road, not last week. There in full view of the glorious cathedral, that has chimed the passing of so many seasons, Surrey clinched the County Championship for the first time since 2002. It couldn’t have happened in a more perfect setting. Related: County cricket talking points: Surrey's youngsters deserve their title Continue reading...
That outground games live on, sun-soaked and sea-specked, is a small miracle and this week we can enjoy one such treat for freeTo North Marine Road! The turnstiles! The future! What’s that you say? It was hard to hear, with the gulls fine-dining over greasy scraps before flying back to strut their stuff over the long sweep of South Bay, and The Past leafing through dusty pages of Wisden, coughing out old names in incantation – Hobbs, Hutton, Boycott, Byas.It might be hard to believe but Yorkshire’s famous old ground, where the crowds have been walking up since 1878 and vanishing at 5:30pm prompt each evening for a 6 o’clock landlady-tea, is hosting a remarkable experiment this week. Top-of-the table...
Let the zany joy of outground cricket stream in County cricket talking points: Surrey go top thanks to Pope 10.06pm BST There was cricket galore on the hottest day of the year, as the County Championship restarted with only a day’s break.At Scarborough a late-afternoon fightback kept Yorkshire in the game against Championship leaders Surrey. Jonny Tattersall made his maiden first-class 50, and Tim Bresnan made 48 as Yorkshire wriggled free from the clutches of 166 for 6 to finish on 299 for eight. Earlier Amar Virdi, inexplicably bowling in a cable-knit jumper, had taken two wickets in two balls when he had Cheteshwar Pujara caught at short-leg and then duped Harry Brook lbw for a duck two balls later....
Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes give their first-hand experience of playing alongside India’s biggest starDue to GDPR, you may need to resubscribe to The SpinThe last time an incumbent captain of India joined an English county side was in 2000, when Sourav Ganguly pitched up at Lancashire. The story goes that early on, such was their overseas signing’s attitude that he handed his batting partner, one Mike Atherton, his sweater during a break in play with orders to run it back to the dressing room.It’s a great line but, sadly, one that is apocryphal, or has at least been spun to such an extent that Muttiah Muralitharan would have been be proud. Atherton did briefly find himself holding said cable-knit...