“Of course he ran a country from 1996 to 2007, which qualifies a person for many things, but he now enters a complicated past-time on the basis of his diplomatic skills. In the meetings he will be a cricket fan in an executive chair made for people who have lived their lives deciding on matters at club, state and international level” – Cricinfo ruminates on the appointment of former Australian premier John Howard as ICC president – and wonders how he will negotiate the complex diplomatic maze ahead.
Monday, February 15, 2010
“The way our schedules are because we’re the only northern hemisphere team, we are going to miss parts of the IPL here and there. That is a shame because ideally we’d be there all of the time. We do seem to be a team that, I wouldn’t say get picked on, but we are missing out on a fair bit. It is disappointing not to be able to play in the Champions League.” England Twenty20 captain Paul Collingwood hopes a deal can be done to maximise participation in the tournament.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
“I won’t even begin to attempt to assess the impact that the team could have on this riven nation. I only read the back pages. Of the free papers they hand outside the tube. But I don’t think that the heroics of 11 young men in blue pyjamas can melt away centuries of tribal strife” – Nick Harrison is mulling over the fortunes of the Afghanistan cricket team.
Friday, February 12, 2010
“The Champions League is not for international players. It is for the county lads to earn a few quid and get a massive buzz from playing in big grounds in front of decent crowds, something they never experience at home. It means a little bit more employment for some guys who face winters that are long and hard and full of nothing but netting from October to March” – The Champions League: Michael Vaughan thinks we should be in.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
“The pioneer years of Twenty20 are over. For the counties it is time to start swimming or sink like a stone. The IPL teams’ revenues are hindered by one obvious problem – they only play for a tiny fraction of the year. All of the franchises will, naturally, be looking to expand to become year-round operations. That is the natural course of remorseless profit-logic, and the biggest single force for change in cricket at the moment” – The Guardian’s Andy Bull on the implications of the Rajasthan Royals’ incursion into the home counties.
“Fans cast further doubt over one-day cricket’s long-term future by voting with their feet, as only 25,463 spectators attended Sunday’s game between Australia and West Indies at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground)” – The glass is half-full for Australia’s The Age newspaper. Not.
“Rumours about Gibson’s imminent appointment have been circulating in the Caribbean but the England and Wales Cricket Board have until now flatly denied all knowledge of Gibson’s leaving. That departure, so Telegraph Sport understands, is now a formality. England’s players have already been informed” – The Telegraph reports on how England is now minus a bowling coach.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
“An exciting opportunity has arisen for the right individual to assist Graeme in taking South African cricket to the next level, and also with any other odd jobs he might have that need doing” – Alan Tyres pens a job ad on behalf of the South African national squad.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
“It is never a bad thing to have a fresh pair of legs running the show” – a metaphor from Mickey Arthur that is either ludicrous or inspired, The Nurdler simply cannot decide.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
“All good things must come to an end and now is the time for someone else to take over” – SA coach Mickey Arthur announces a shock resignation days before the team is due to go on tour to India.
Cricket Blips: England feed