✍️ Sharda Ugra on the failures in Gautam Gambhir’s tenure.
“Gambhir came into Indian cricket in July 2024, on the back of IPL success and was appointed for three years, in the most generous of tenures. Everyone walks on eggshells around him because he is well connected. Whatever is being said on social media by furious fans, will carry no weight because the BCCI’s attention has moved on.”
✍️ Jarrod Kimber asks if this is South Africa’s greatest run as a cricketing nation.
“So if we call the 2006-2014 span a great period for South African cricket, it’s kind of putting all the emphasis on the fact that they were really good at one thing. And not just really good, they were great at that one thing. They had one of the best Test teams that has ever existed. However, they were pretty ordinary at everything else.”
✍️ Nick Miller has a fascinating re-telling of the time Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger tried to stream the game using the Internet in the 1990s.
“When Jagger discovered that nobody was planning to broadcast the Akai-Singer Champions Trophy — a relatively minor one-day tournament in December 1997, held in Sharjah and featuring England, Pakistan, India and West Indies — he duly did the only logical thing.
He formed a company and broadcast it himself.”
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“India’s fortress falters”
✍️ Deepu Narayanan analyses IND’s sudden home slump. -
“A Report from Sub-Zero England”
✍️ Daisy Cutter on the struggles of waking up at 2 AM to watch ENG lose. -
“All the Points on the Circle”
✍️ Siddhi has an intriguing personal essay on watching Kohli’s last century in Perth, struggling to accept the end, watching him accept the end, and realising that the lack of control as a fan can also be freeing. -
“Last hope”
✍️ Will Taylor with Jemma Barsby on living and playing with multiple sclerosis.
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“How cricket unites and divides Afghanistan”
📽️ Deutsche Welle have an incredible documentary on the importance of cricket to everyday Afghanis, and how it brings a fractured society together. [YouTube] -
“100 Years Of Cricket Bats”
📽️ Kevin Pietersen hosts Yuvraj Singh to test out cricket bats built over a 100 years to understand what goes into bat innovation. [YouTube] -
“Out of our league”
🎤 Stories After Stumps on the short-lived “Cricket Australia XI” that seemed a failure in its three years of existence – but has produced nine international cricketers for Australia years after the team was shut down. [Apple/Spotify] -
“Discovering Your Cricket Identity”
🎤 Raunak Kapoor talks to Aakash Chopra about discovering his voice in the cricket media, and finding success off the field. [Apple/Spotify]