“We already know each other pretty well. We’ve played a fair bit against each other and now we’re going to play a little bit more but I like that. There won’t be much we don’t know about England by the end of the summer” – Ricky Ponting announces that the phony war is over and the hostilities have begun.
“I think England have a good chance of retaining the Ashes” – Sachin Tendulkar. Thank, you sir. Come again any time.
“Australia will surely be combing the land for a left-arm-spinner” – Andy Bull points to the glaringly obvious attack point for England’s current batting line-up.
“It’s pretty hard not to [think about winning back the Ashes every day] with a big series like this coming around when you need to redeem yourself as a playing group. The reason I play international cricket still is for series like this. Test cricket’s all about Ashes cricket for me” – Ricky Ponting proves it’s not just us.
During the past week or two, with the advent of both the third IPL season and the slightly frustrating First Test in Bangladesh, The Nurdler has found itself with a foot poised over a trap.
“I fear a bit for England’s bowling in Australia. We’ve got Jimmy Anderson, Stuart Broad, Graham Onions and Ryan Sidebottom, but beyond that I’m not sure” – Never fear, cricket fans, because Steve Harmison could soon be along to sort that shower out. What a relief!
“It’s a lack of respect for Test cricket. It’s disappointing that the captain of England decides to have a rest from a Test series, I can’t comprehend that… I hope they are not taking Bangladesh too easy because they can be quite strong” – watch out folks, here’s Shane Warne back at his post, fighting the Ashes air war on Ricky Ponting’s behalf. Stand by your beds!
“You don’t have to be close to me, I’d tell a complete stranger that. If you spoke to Ian Botham, he’d love to play Tests tomorrow. However, I’ve retired” – Fred says he’s really not coming back for the Ashes.
“England’s players are like the planets of an orrery: when one is passing close to the sun and in decent nick, another will inevitably be orbiting on the dark side and struggling for form – and so the cycle continues with each passing series. The planets will need to be perfectly aligned against the Aussies, or England could get buried” – Ben Dirs reflects on the series for BBC sport.
“It says a lot about him that 35 of his 53 wickets were batsmen in the top six, so he gets top-order batsmen out with the new ball. He is his own person and doesn’t get too analytical about his action, which is a nice, high, strong action. He just likes to talk to other bowlers about bowling. If he does err, he doesn’t spray down the leg-side – he tends to drop a bit shorter. But you can’t be too critical of someone who has taken on such a workload at such a young age” – Middlesex directory of cricket Angus Fraser on the county’s basketball player turned fast bowler Steve Finn, 20, already tipped as a star of the next Ashes. No pressure, lad.