For the former captain, this has been a rare golden summer and he may just be ripe for a Gooch-like late career surge as the South Africa Test series loomsComfort often arrives in unexpected places. The last two years of Alastair Cook’s time as England captain were fretful at times, marked by scratchiness, defeats and some elbow-gnawing press conferences, an understandable sense of basic human metal fatigue at the prospect of being forced to communicate yet again in a series of terse, angsty soundbites in front of a board covered with adverts.Cook is a good man and a wonderful cricketer but his manner has perhaps chimed with something a little alienating, a sense that here is a child entirely of...
Joe Root will have some input for the first Test with South Africa but the new captain will not be the only one finding it hard to name an able-bodied pacemanA captain is seldom more powerful in selection than before his first Test in charge. On Saturday morning Joe Root’s squad for the opening Test against South Africa, which starts at Lord’s on Thursday, will be revealed and it will surely have the imprint of the new leader. Related: Live cricket returns to BBC as part of deal for new Twenty20 tournament Continue reading...
A visit to the Dukes warehouse reveals a lovingly crafted ball that could help light up the spectacle when English cricket steps out into the night“New ball bowlers will look forward to bowling with this,” grinned Stuart Broad, just after zipping one past his best mate Luke Wright’s outside edge in a live demonstration on Sky last Friday. Broad was referring to the pink Dukes ball, which he will use at Edgbaston when England play West Indies in a day-night Test in August, and in nine Championship games from Monday.These rather lovely little pink things are made at the endearingly ramshackle warehouse that is Dukes’ north-east London home, and Dilip Jajodia, the company’s boss, is explaining the process to the...
There will be a temptation to paint England’s semi-final defeat by Pakistan as a failure but that would be unfair on many levelsOh, England. Plus ça change, plus c’est the same bleeding thing all over again. Engines revving, back seat loaded with buccaneering white-ball heroes, the England and Wales Cricket Board’s grand, musical Champions Trophy carnival float stalled decisively in Cardiff, undone by some familiar foes. For all the talk of adrenal new eras and white-hot modernity it was the old uncertainty batting first against nagging bowling on a grippy pitch that derailed England’s campaign against a Pakistan team who produced a wonderful all‑round performance in victory by eight wickets.In one sense we have been here before, most notably four...
Pakistan’s lack of batsmen who clear the ropes regularly means Sophia Gardens is likely to be more suited to their ‘old England’ style in Wednesday’s semi-finalSo it is England against Asia for the Champions trophy. Against expectation Pakistan and Bangladesh are semi-finalists – there is no surprise India have qualified. This should ensure all sides have vociferous support in Cardiff on Wednesday and at Edgbaston on Thursday. Even better, they say the sun is going to make an appearance as well. A fitting climax to the tournament is in prospect.Pakistan may not have taken on the role of cornered tigers, a description Imran Khan as captain coined so effectively in the 1992 World Cup in Australasia but Sarfraz Ahmed’s motley...