@aggerscricket Don't be too hard on yourself – the campaign is sure to feature pain, after all #
@unslugged Hideously difficult to time it so everything is cooked at the same moment… #
“As I write this I am 38,000 feet above sea level, hurtling towards New York City at 533 statute miles per calendar hour. Happily Alan, the captain of the plane, has personally popped down to tell me the current cricket score – my chosen career and its attendant baggage of fame have their advantages (carry-on baggage of fame, I suppose one should term it). The flight deck had tuned in to the BBC’s 198 longwave transmissions of TMS to receive the news that England were 100 for 3″ – Stephen Fry’s surely unique Ashes experience.
See what we were wittering on about today.
“I had the chance of a long chat with Geoff Miller, the national selector, who came to talk with me while he was there. I appreciated that opportunity and I was able to talk through my thoughts about my enduring claim to an England batting place. I told Geoff why I feel I have improved as a batsman, and am still improving, and that I feel fit enough to play at the top level. It is my continuing work ethic and my attitude which has led to that improvement. I said that if he was looking for a number three batsman for this winter’s South Africa tour – or a batsman for any middle-order position indeed – that I would be available to go and would wish to be considered” – Mark Ramprakash stakes his claim.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
See what we were wittering on about today.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
“Realistically, the game was scheduled much too close to the Ashes. If it had gone on to a fifth day on Monday it would have been absolutely ridiculous as we would have had to get to Manchester the next day to travel out. Fortunately we wrapped it up on day four so we had a bit of extra time, but it was still a tough ask to be honest. Scheduling was one of the main reasons our Ashes celebrations were considered a bit low-key” – Paul Collingwood on the Ireland ODI that fell between the team’s Ashes victory and the start of its one-day campaign against Australia.
See what we wre wittering on about today.
“Coaches reported through their county votes that the leading one-day team in world cricket – South Africa – do not mirror 50 overs at domestic level and that, provided powerplays and fielding restrictions were the same as the international format, the skills required were very similar… There has never been a better time for English-qualified players to make a name for themselves in a tournament creating great interest” – ECB chairman Giles Clarke on the counties’ decision to stick to 40-over cricket.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
See what we were wittering on about today.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Us listeners of the Test Match Special can be a defensive lot. And not to realise this was a major mistake by Observer writer Will Buckley when he decided to take a pop at Jonathan Agnew.
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