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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 3, 2017 8:48:34 GMT
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 3, 2017 16:10:22 GMT
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 5, 2017 15:11:54 GMT
The CRAZI-NESS of County Cricket During 2017 _____________________________________________________________It’s been a crazy county cricket season this year where docking points, in particular, for slow Championship overrates has cruelly affected two clubs. This ruling was first introduced by the ECB in 2001. Initially, the penalty was 0.25 points per over short of the target number in any match. The penalty was then increased to 0.5 points per over in 2004, and to 1 point per over in 2008. The two counties brutally affected are Northamptonshire and Middlesex. First, Northants whom during an away match against Notts at the end of August, were five overs short of their overall target and thus were penalised with a deduction of 5 points to their summer tally. This stopped them from being promoted, less than a month later, as they were 5 points behind Notts at the end of the season. Cruelly, if no deduction had occurred, because they had won more games than Notts, Northants would be playing in Division 1 next season instead. How stomach churning is that! At the time, Head Coach, David Ripley, said: “That's not good. We talk about it far too much and we need some action. That's going to hit us because we go back with minus points. In the past we've not been promoted out of this division by just one point, so every point is vital and we've just lobbed five away.” For Middlesex it was the other way around. Their deduction of 2 points during a game against Surrey at The Oval on exactly the same day as the Northants demeanour (how weird is that coincidence) was even more bizarre. Someone fired a crossbow bolt onto the outfield which landed close to a Surrey fielder. The match was immediately abandoned on that 4th day but because Middlesex were 2 overs behind the target, at that given moment after previously fielding, the club were deducted 2 points. This caused a furore from the Lord’s Club deeming the penalty was harsh and unfair given the extreme circumstance, stating they could have regained the 2 overs during their second fielding period, if the game had not been prematurely ended. But much complaining from Angus Fraser, the Club MD, did not change the ruling. How sick was it then for Middlesex to be relegated, less than a month later, a year after winning the Championship, because of those two deducted points. Fraser continues to complain to no avail. And just as Hampshire were the beneficiaries in 2016 when they were not relegated because of the Durham severe punishment, so Somerset are the lucky recipients in 2017 because without the Middlesex deduction, the West Country club would be playing in Division 2 next season instead. It appears winning the Championship Trophy has become a poisoned chalice in the 21st Century. For Lancashire achieved the same schizophrenic feat like Middlesex by winning the competition in 2011 only to be relegated the very next season. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/county-championship-division-one/tableAnd what of Essex, the perennial underachievers of Division 2, whom in two seasons have gone from zeros to heroes in a feat unchallenged in many years after appointing Chris Silverwood, the club’s former Assistant as Head Coach. What he has achieved in just two seasons is astonishing. After Essex were promoted in 2016 when only one place was available, this year has seen a stunning achievement of winning 10 games out of 14 and drawing the other 4. Double the number of wins over their nearest rival, Lancashire, whilst beating them by a hefty 72 points. Unlike, football where each year similar clubs end up in the top 5 (bar Leicester!), nothing is further from the truth in County Cricket where anything can happen and does happen. In fact, football’s annual predictability is becoming ‘a turn-off’ for some supporters. www.ecb.co.uk/news/472278Meanwhile, the craziness of county cricket has taken a recent new twist with a possibility that in future all grounds will use giant tents to avoid rain delays. I kid you not and this isn’t April Fools’ Day either. An American company has approached the MCC and the ECB with the idea of a transparent mesh that could be held up by wires attached to floodlights and a hot-air balloon in the centre. Testing is at an early stage and the technology is believed to be at least two years away from becoming a reality, with issues such as safety in high winds and water run-off to be considered. MCC CEO, Guy Lavender, explained, ”There are an enormous number of technical challenges and issues, but that's not to say we shouldn't look at it seriously.” He continued, “It’s signalling our intent to think about new innovations and new technologies that can keep the game being played." www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/41497072The Aussies love their Perceived ConvictsWhile, the 50 over RLC tournament has taken another nail to its coffin with recent comments made by former Indian star, Aakash Chopra who believes 50 over ODIs are on their last legs and there will be room only for Test cricket and T20 in the future. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05j14qpAnd as the ECB battle over the 'fors and against' of sending Ben Stokes to Australia this Winter after his recent misdemeanour, (one wag said, "The Aussies will welcome Stokes with open arms. They love convicts!”) to repeat, cricket is never boring and predictable and may this always continue.
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nemmo
Captain 2nd XI
Posts: 285
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Post by nemmo on Oct 5, 2017 19:18:53 GMT
While I agree with the sentiment about 50 over cricket S&F I think calling Aakash Chopra and his 10 test matches a star is a bit sporting!
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 5, 2017 19:41:00 GMT
nemmo,
I take your point. He is, perhaps, more famous for his media and book writing work since retiring from cricket as his Wiki suggests.
Media
His columns regularly appear in Mid-Day and on Cricinfo. He is currently with Star Sports, Sony and Sony Espn as a cricket commentator and analyst.
In 2009 Chopra released Beyond the Blues: A First-Class Season Like No Other, a diary of Chopra's 2007–08 domestic season. It was published by Harper Collins. It was critically acclaimed and Suresh Menon of Cricinfo wrote that it was "the best book written by an Indian Test cricketer".[4] In November 2011, his second book was published by Harper Collins titled Out of the Blue, about Rajasthan's victory in the Ranji Trophy. He went on to write two more books--The Insider with Espn Cricinfo in 2015 and Numbers Do Lie with Impact Index in 2017. Harper Collins has published all his work thus far.
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 10, 2017 9:20:12 GMT
Good news for those who wish to retire the MCC mentality about women for good and bring the fairer sex ever more into the men's cricket game. Claire PolosakA few days back, Claire Polosak became the first woman to umpire an Australian Men's domestic fixture after officiating between New South Wales and a Cricket Australia XI. The 29-year-old was one of the on-field umpires in the 50-over contest at Hurstville Oval in Sydney. Polosak officiated four matches at the Women's World Cup earlier this year. She has been on Cricket Australia's development umpire panel for the past two years and has previously been a third umpire in men's domestic cricket. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claire_PolosakAnother pioneering woman in cricket umpiring is Kiwi Kathy Cross. Her Wiki is impressive. It states: After giving up playing, Cross began umpiring cricket during the 1998/99 cricket season. Cross was the New Zealand representative for the 2000 Women's Cricket World Cup. In 2002, she became the first woman to be selected in a Test match umpiring team when she was named as fourth umpire for a match between New Zealand and England in Wellington.
Kathy CrossCross is now the 'first woman' to be selected to the International Cricket Council (ICC) Associate and Affiliate panel of international umpires. In October 2016 she was selected as one of the eight umpires to stand in matches in the 2016 ICC World Cricket League Division Four tournament.In January 2017, she was one of four female umpires named by the ICC to stand in matches in the 2017 Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifier. Cross has been an umpire in 22 Women's Cricket World Cup matches,the most by any umpire in the history of Women's Cricket World Cup.www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-IAznJkvg0So, what of England? There are 60 women umpires in the UK. A leading light is Sue Redfern, who was one of four female umpires named by the ICC to stand in matches in the 2017 Women's World Cup Qualifier, making her the first woman to have played in a Women's Cricket World Cup and then stand in a tournament as an umpire. www.opticalexpress.co.uk/news/woman-cricket-umpire-for-international-roleJacqueline Williams is a Jamaican cricket umpire who should also be mentioned. In fact, to date only 4 women have umpired in an International cricket match. (Polosak, Cross, Redfern and Williams. What makes Polosak's achievement stand out is because it was a Men's match.) Williams stood as an umpire in the 2015 ICC Women's World Twenty20 Qualifier tournament. In 2016, she became the first female umpire to stand in the domestic 50-over competition in the West Indies, when she was one of the on-field umpires between Trinidad & Tobago and ICC Americas in the 2015–16 Regional Super50 tournament. During the 2016 ICC World Cricket League Division Five tournament in Jersey, she was the third umpire during the fixture between Oman and Nigeria on May 22nd. In October 2016 she was selected as one of the eight umpires to stand in matches in the 2016 ICC World Cricket League Division Four tournament. In January 2017, she was one of four female umpires named by the ICC to stand in matches in the 2017 Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifier. Hopefully, more women will now umpire in Men's internationals.
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 11, 2017 13:45:23 GMT
The regular Sussex CCC 'WHERE CRICKET MEETS...' event has become a major success for the club. While, it is more social networking for local business, when you throw in a 3 course lunch, charity auction and a special guest speaker, a ticket price of £50, sounds almost fair. Guests over the years have included mainly sportsmen like Matt Le Tissier, Paul Merson, Jason Leonard and Sir Viv Richards. Therefore, what makes this latest event on November 17th a little different is that the speaker is an actor, and he's no ordinary actor at that. Star Wars and Harry Potter fans may recognise the name. I first came across him via the excellent TV comedy series Life's Too Short. Have you guessed? Warwick Ashley Davis. A man who has proven that a physical impairment doesn't stop you from achieving your dreams. In today's PC world, Davis challenges the public. First, what do you call his condition and is it even viewed as an impairment? Is the word 'dwarf' still acceptable? Presumably 'midget' is definitely non-PC. For Davis was born with 'Spondyloepiphyseal Dysplasia Congenita', an extremely rare form of dwarfism. I am using 'dwarf' because this term is written on his wiki, so it must be OK, given the number of censors that roam the internet now. Yet, dwarfs or is that dwarves have always been in demand for films. Do you remember that brilliant Pythonesque comedy The Time Bandits? While, Star Wars is always seeking dwarf actors to play the Ewoks. Anyway, I digress. This could be a really good event. Davis has lived a quite different but courageous life and he's refused to allow his condition to stop him becoming successful. His personal story is fascinating too. Unlike most dwarfs (70%) who have a condition called achondroplasia, Davis' more rare form has created a series of physical health problems. Of his own dwarfism, Davis has said, "As you get older, you can suffer from painful hips, and our joints wear a lot quicker than for people of average height". Davis's wife, Samantha, has achondroplasia and their two children also have the condition. Their daughter Annabelle Davis stars in the CBBC show, The Dumping Ground as Sasha Bellman. As a result of having different causes of dwarfism, the couple's first two children, sons Lloyd and George, died shortly after birth. Meanwhile, wife Samantha is the daughter of his business partner Peter Burroughs, and the sister of actress Hayley Burroughs. Davis met the Burroughs family while filming Willow, where she had a minor role as a Nelwyn villager. I am almost tempted to attend myself. I am told Davis is a very personable man and has many tales to tell; He is a comedian on the side too and it's the annual 'Beaujolais Nouveau' event thrown in. Meanwhile, 'Where Cricket Meets...' has raised over £100,000 since 2011 for such charities as 'Rockinghorse', 'Blind Veterans' and the 'Lady Taverners'. Individual places are available for £50 (inc VAT) with tables of 10 available for £450 (inc VAT). To book, or for more information, please call Lisa Hogan on 01273 894243 or e-mail lisa.hogan@sussexcricket.co.uk
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 12, 2017 21:02:33 GMT
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 14, 2017 8:56:48 GMT
"MILLS THE MEDIA MAN"___________________Tymal Mills continued his foray into the media limelight by appearing on the latest episode of BBCs Question Of Sport (QOS) this week. A member of the Matt Dawson trio, Mills was the star of the 4 guests, correctly answering all his questions and many of his team’s, helping them thrash Tufnell’s motley crew by 7 points.
Tymal Mills really is the part. He looks right, his demeanor is right and his relaxed personality has the correct amount of amiability and joviality without being too overpowering. An intelligent man who holds much sporting knowledge, his appearance on QOS will do him no harm and his name, no doubt, will be placed in the TV diaries for future guest appearances. Next stop could be the charity celebrity game shows and anything else that springs to mind. He has a quick mind and wit alongside a pleasing smile. Mills delight in appearing on QOS was portrayed by this tweet: “Lived out a childhood dream being on this tonight!”
twitter.com/tmills15?lang=en twitter.com/questionofsport
Watch the Show here
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0991v5p
Meanwhile, our left-arm seamer is enjoying a new found wealth. Above is a picture of a recent purchase, a 2017 Audi Q7 4x4, which sells for £70,000+. Mills winter is also well oiled. He’s off to Australia and the Big Bash in December to join the 'Hobart Hurricanes'. His first match is against the 'Melbourne Renegades' on December 21st.
Tymal has also played in the Bangladesh Premier League, the Pakistan Super League and New Zealand’s Super Smash. But the Indian IPL is the jewel in his crown when last April he was bought by 'Royal Challengers Bangalore' in auction for a stunning £1.5m. The first thing he did was to buy his Mum a new house. What a lovely boy.
Mills blames his T20 mercenary capers on Sussex. He was quoted in the Telegraph earlier this year. “Financially, I don’t earn very much playing in the UK for Sussex,” he says. “So I have to go and play in these tournaments around the world, in terms of getting paid. If I get injured, obviously that affects me in a different way. So my security is a little bit less now.”
And injury is a word that plagues Mills. His four T20 overs a match makes little difference to his penchant for physical affliction. While one can offer sympathy for his unique back impairment, as Sussex and their supporters realised this summer, when you can only play in a handful of games all season due to injury, is there any point in signing him? But, as Mills suggests, perhaps, Sussex pay him per game which makes Tymal a worthwhile club player. One hopes the 'Hobart Hurricane' fans will see him bowl a lot more this winter than Sussex supporters did during the summer.
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 16, 2017 10:14:52 GMT
The Cultivation of a Settled Ben Stokes _________________________________________________It was a god-given gift for Neil Fairbrother when Ben Stokes married his long-term fiancee Clare Ratcliffe on Saturday. Former England International, Fairbrother, is now Stokes’ agent and oversees a gaggle of other top cricketers under the ‘ISM’ agency banner including Joe Root, Jos Buttler, Stuart Broad, Michael Vaughan and Marcus Trescothick. 'That' IncidentThe traumas of recent weeks after 26 year-old Stokes was accused of “flooring” a former soldier, Ryan Hale, in the Clifton Triangle area of Bristol at 2.35am on Monday September 25th, due to an alleged row about homosexuality, could be forgotten. Just a bandage around Stokes right hand is the only evidence today of the “alleged” punch/es that might have made Anthony Joshua proud. Unfortunately for Stokes, the brawl had been filmed on CCTV and someone then sold the footage to The Sun newspaper for an undisclosed sum. Drunkenness or being high on drugs is one thing but alleged GBH is altogether another level of gross misconduct. Ben had been engaged to 28 year-old Clare since 2013 and why the timing of the marriage ceremony could not have been better. Even the church’s name, St Mary the Virgin, has an innocent ring, located across the road from Clare's widowed mother, Jane, in East Brent, near Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. The couple already have two young children, a boy and girl. Afterwards a reception took place at the 16th century 'Rookery Manor', a four star country house hotel and spa, in nearby Edingworth for several hundred guests. ' That' Damaged Handwww.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4982798/England-cricket-stars-leave-Ben-Stokes-wedding.htmlSir Alex Ferguson is renowned for telling his ‘Fergie Babes’ to find a good woman and settle down and it appears the ECB have similar ideas for their talented new generation. A large number of the cricketing glitterati were in attendance including Jos Buttler, Eoin Morgan, Stuart Broad, Alistair Cook and Sam Billings, where a number like Jason Roy and Jos Buttler have recently married too. Yet, Captain Joe Root who became a parent for the first time in January (a son named Alfred) remains “living in sin”, although, his engagement to sweet-heart Carrie Cotterel is rock solid. There was no sign of Stokes’ fellow Bristol desperado, Alex Hales, and his blond girlfriend Danni Gisbourne, but, perhaps, they snuck in at the back, in an attempt by Neil Fairbrother to lessen any media damage. The cricketing WAGS increasingly influence England International players but after the Flintoff drunken escapade on a midnight pedalo jaunt, the ECB are determined to keep any misdemeanours under wraps and why Kevin Pietersen had to be sacked. He couldn’t be controlled. And now KP is off saving the rhinos, for the tabloid press, Ben Stokes recent “incident” has been sweet manna sent from Heaven. The Happy Couple(Pic: PA)What made things worse for Stokes was a few days after the CCTV coverage appeared, a video emerged of him doing unkind impressions of celebrity Katie Price and her disabled son Harvey. It was two misdemeanours with one stone. Already on the backfoot, following outrage over this offensive video, Stokes apologised, saying he did not intend to mock the youngster, but admitted that his actions were ‘foolish’. So what now? After the expected anger gravy train from cricket commentators and the media, the ECB are caught between a rock and a hard place. While, they need to punish Stokes, there is an Ashes tour in Australia just around the corner, and pressure from SKY BT Sport s and Cricket Australia may be placed on the ECB to keep him on the tour. This didn’t stop former Aussie Captain, Steve Waugh, from saying England can’t win the Ashes without Ben Stokes... then putting the boot in by adding, the all-rounder would have been dumped immediately if he was Australian. A Few of the Cricketing Glitterati in Attendance(Pic: PA)At present, Neil Fairbrother and the ECB are allowing the waters to calm via an investigation which may last a long time. Fairbrother has told the media that Stokes will discuss "his version of events" on September 25th in due course, but does not wish to prejudice the present inquiry. The diplomacy game is now well under way and marriage and a church ceremony all help the cause. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/41642005
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 16, 2017 12:51:28 GMT
A very moving interview with Jonny Bairstow. Michael Vaughan asks the questions. Bairstow certainly had a tough childhood with his father committing suicide when he was 8 years-old and his mum contracting cancer twice. Below is a taster. The full interview is to be broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live on Thursday, 19 October. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/41523011
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 16, 2017 16:13:55 GMT
It's time to vote again for the final Sussex @porschegb Performance of the Month Award of 2017. Click the link for the September candidates. A closely fought battle between Jordan and Burgess, perhaps? twitter.com/SussexCCC
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Post by crickettrader on Oct 16, 2017 18:52:09 GMT
Not sure how much pressure SKY will be exterting over Stokes Ashes participation as they don't have the rights to the tour. BT are covering it and I'm sure his abscence would be a blow for them in terms of star appeal and the chances of a competitive series.
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 16, 2017 19:55:59 GMT
ct, I bow to your superior knowledge. Of course, I should have said BT Sport and not SKY Sports. One forgets the times are a-changing!
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 17, 2017 10:21:42 GMT
The Ashes has begun. As ever it begins with "the war of words", followed by media attacks on the English players psyche, finally, the cricket starts. As with so many previous Ashes away tours, the English are often psychologically drained before a ball is even bowled. A Whiny BratStage 1 is now afoot and the obvious England player to attack is Ben Stokes. Steve Waugh started the volley of rhetoric last week, now David Warner has waded in stating that he was banned from playing a number of games for "a lot less" after the incident with Joe Root. In fact, Warner and Stokes are two peas in a pod. They both see red-mist and turn to their fists for expression. So, it is utter hypocrisy for Warner to complain without sounding self-piteous and a whiny brat. The ECB must be delving in to the ultimate annals of diplomacy. Perhaps, ban Stokes from a number of games like Warner is one path to travel, for the idea of banning him from the entire Ashes Series as well as all the other ODIs surrounding it would be cutting off their nose to spite their face. I can imagine BT Sport presently having kittens about this whole situation and are bearing pressure on the ECB with all their worth. www.skysports.com/cricket/news/12123/11084846/david-warner-says-world-waiting-for-decision-over-ben-stokes-incident?utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral
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