Injured and with a batting average of four, Eddie Hemmings found a gap to win the B&H Cup and end Essex’s dominanceEverybody remembers the ending. With one ball remaining Nottinghamshire had to score three to win, and steal the Benson & Hedges Cup away from Essex. “To bowl the last ball was John Lever, 40 years old, 40 years wise,” wrote Mike Selvey in the Guardian. “Facing was Eddie Hemmings, four days older than Lever and no less wise or yeoman-hearted. It was a shoot-out of the old brigade. A game now of bluff, double bluff and raw nerve. Gooch and Lever took an eternity to set the field. Lever breathed deep and set off.”It was 1989; Essex were the...
Somerset and Surrey look best equipped to battle for the title while Division Two features an intriguing race to make the top three promotion places Related: The Spin | Enjoy the cricket season ahead … it will be the last of its kind | Tanya Aldred Twitter: follow us at @guardian_sport Related: Alex Hales: ‘It takes 10 seconds to get an image, 10 years to undo it’ Related: Joe Root v Stuart Broad kicks off cricket bonanza in summer to savour | Vic Marks Continue reading...
Derek Pringle’s unconventional autobiography romps through the 80s and is a reminder of a lost age – when cricket was a serious game and sociable with itI first met Derek Pringle on 23 April 1982, St George’s Day. It can be dated exactly because the occasion is noted in Wisden: Cambridge University v Glamorgan at Fenner’s. Our conversation is reported in Pringle’s new book.He was the dashing captain of Cambridge who had just come extremely close to leading his team to victory over a first-class county for the first time since, well, a long time. And almost wholly through his own brilliant batting. But they hadn’t won, because with five wickets down, Pringle still in and the target within reach,...
From England’s victorious youth football squads to cricket’s county championship underdogs, there are strong claims aplenty this yearThey did not beat the double world champions over three compelling Tests, but Warren Gatland’s Lions deserve a place on the list for their part in a thrilling series in New Zealand that will stand the test of time. Often under the cosh, there were times when it looked as if the Lions would be hopelessly outmatched against a team as brilliant and confident as the All Blacks, especially after losing 30-15 in the first Test. Instead of allowing their hosts to run away with it, Gatland’s tourists responded with a magnificent performance in the second Test, fighting hard to win 24-21. Their...
Essex and Worcestershire will remember the 2017 season for ever while Middlesex and Yorkshire cannot forget it soon enoughWith a word for Worcestershire, another of the little guys whose overachievement has been fostered at home, this has to be Essex. Well supported from east London to East Anglia, brilliantly coached and captained, and with the best spinner, seamer and eight blokes who scored a ton. Little wonder they won. Related: Hampshire’s James Vince ensures Middlesex complete slide to relegation Related: County Championship: fans from all 18 counties look back on the season Continue reading...