May 14, 2026 • 45 mins
This week on On The Front Foot, Bryan Waddle and Jeremy Coney were joined by special guest Wisden Editor Lawrence Booth to chat about the release of the 163rd edition of the cricketers' bible, the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack.
They also reflect on the White Ferns’ one day series against England and the postponed NZ T20 competition.
Your views welcome at onthefrontfoot20@gmail.com
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
You're listening to a podcast from News Talk set B.
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Speaker 2 (00:21):
Take another pat, It's ard, it is out, the Test
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Speaker 3 (00:28):
Goodness make oh wow a beauty.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
It is out here you guys.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
This delivery has in used to Bowl.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
On the Front Foot with Brian Waddell and Jeremy Cody,
powered by News Talks head B at iHeartRadio.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Hello, welcome to on the Front Foot with we first up,
lost to the White Ferns and then rain shortens their
second match. World of Theory of the Injured, Pretty Help
or hinder tea twenty play in New Zealand, the England
selectors have made changes for their first Test squad and
the Cricket Bible twenty six has been released. On the
(01:09):
Front Foot, I'm joined by international tourists. I'm green with
envy while I'm putting a bed up on the lounge
to watch a Test match series through the month of June.
Cony and Moose heading off. They've got their passports at
the ready, their bags packed, their foreign currency and their
(01:32):
nice attitude to American people who are going to welcome
them at the airport, but nice to talk to you guys.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
I'm all packed and ready to go. Next week's one
could be me from Rankovic, that could be ice moos.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
We all need a special we will need a very
special moose. Actually, your your coat could change color up there,
couldn't it anyway to cover off?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Yeah, And they got slow pitches up there, slow damp pictures.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
Actually it's a really interesting point. They've got golf courses
but I down with it, and they've got football fields
soccer football. But it's it's a place where you land
there and it's like landing in some sort of strange,
strange landscape. It's it's like no other place anyway.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
That yes, it'll be drying out good and proper. Now
more importantly, the England cricket selectors are soon to name
a squad and we'll see if we can pick it
a little later in the podcast, Lawrence Booth was the
editor who was going to join us and try and
to add his thoughts to the naming of the side.
But one of the interesting stories that came out during
(02:52):
the week Jerry gus Atkinson, who had to be a
front liner. I think the selection job was done on
him by Josh Tungu who hit him in the head
twice with bouncers sent him off with concussion and he
had to be replaced by another bowl which interestingly enough,
was a guy called Rehese Topley who bowls left arm
(03:13):
gas bowl's right arm.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
Yeah, like for Lake Onds, that's the problem, as we
mentioned the other day. Yeah, well that's good, isn't it.
Get rid of the opposition by Tongue. I don't know
how you guys feel. I just think generally, I think
that this team will be under quite a lot of
scrutiny and pressure after their performance down in Australia. So
(03:36):
there are a number of people I'm sure lining up
to watch them very closely indeed and see if they pass,
they get a past mark or not. So I think
generally they will be very aware of that and therefore
they will be quite a tricky opposition for New Zealand
generally in the three tests.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Yeah, and England is named the squad for the All
Black series and we'll discuss that shortly with Wisden editor
Lawrence Booth.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Brian Waddell Jeremy Cooney on the front foot.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
Lessons for the White after their first up one day
lost to England, same old problems, Jerry. They had great
performance at the top from Amelia Kerr and Maddy Green
showed her value. But you've got to have more people
scoring runs, don't you.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
That's the difference, isn't it That we saw in the
South African series back home here that the runs were
coming from the top. New Zealand were four or five
down when they finished their fifty overs here they got
to a reasonable position of about three for one hundred
and fifty and then we saw in the next fourteen
overs they lost seven wickets and you can't do that
(04:47):
in I mean they didn't even use their fifty overs
in the end once they were positioned quite nicely. So yes,
Kerr and Plimmer got a twenty, but no one else did.
Kerr and Green with the main and the protagonists in
the innings, but Halliday, Gays Sharp all missed out and
the bowlers didn't get in the either. Baits Bates moved
(05:09):
from number eight, as we were talking in that South
African series, she opened, didn't she, So she's gone back
up to open well open It might be a better position,
but she wasn't able to. She was court keeper six
off ten, so she might have another crack at that
to see what happens. But gays then came down to
(05:31):
about number seven, didn't she. So I don't know what
they're doing. Not quite so sure. Experimentation that's called yeah
first came up.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
I suppose this is one way you could have a
look at it. The fact is it was a really
tight finish and they could have won it because Charlie Dean,
who was there and captain of the side, managed to
get them through with the number eleven batsmen and she
was dropped when they were seven runs short of the target.
And so that's another area that I'm sure they remind
themselves on. Those catches are going to be important as well.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Yep, batting and fielding was batting and fielding, movement in
the field catching and also the batting. You've got to
you've got to make runs, don't you.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
The feeling has this This isn't something new. The White
films have been quite regularly dropping catches and the one
that was dropped that.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
Would have won the game standard catch.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Yeah, I'm trying. I don't want to be unkind, but
really that's the sort of stuff you've got to get
and and and and this isn't anything new here, So
I'm yeah, you've got to take those chances, and especially
if they're just rudimentary. So that is a problem that
needs to be worked on. But just back on Plummer,
(06:47):
I was watching that and the way she got out
was going across the line, and it seems to be
a concern that we either our players don't have the
power to hit through the covers or hit up and
over over where the balls going. And of course she
just she just coughed it up into into extra cover.
(07:08):
And they touched on that in the commentary about about
this and that that England has been working very hard
trying to hit hit heavily through through the covers up
and I rather going across the line, which just opens
you up. And I think we just saw that again
from Plumber and and that was a pretty wee can
(07:28):
we can lame out for her when she was when
she was set, and I don't think that, for whatever reason,
we don't have that. The only one who can really
seem to do that is Kurt, who's just a fabulous player.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
What she needs, what she needs is a bit of
Craig McMillan honesty. I think he worked on her game
when she had a fairly good end to the last
year's series and she needs to be brought in the
line to play more technically correct. I mean they're over
there for the t twenties, but you've got to get
(08:04):
your batting sworded when you get this opportunity in eyes,
don't you.
Speaker 4 (08:10):
No question, it was just picking on that. I'm not
trying to pick on Plumber, but it was just it
was a really lame way of getting out and it
just it just said something to me, and it's something
that I'm no doubt they've been talking about, but it
just is it's just repeating itself and they and the
better sides like especially Australia and when England bring back
(08:32):
their players. I mean this was an England selection when
when you had three or four of their best players
not playing. So it's really one that New Zealand should
have expected to do better. And okay close type finish, yes, great.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
I see. I think there is an issue though, guys
with them playing spin bowling. They tend not to use
their feet only to tends to be you know, whipping
down the track and trying to put pressure on links.
But I think spinners are going to cause them problems
in this T twenty and also the the ode eyes.
(09:06):
Don't be surprised at tea of spinners against them, you know.
Any any opposition who's got accurate slow bowling, I think
has the potential to upset this New Zealand side. From
my point of view, our batsmen tend to lose their shape.
They lose their shape with the slow the ball coming.
They're very happy to play medium paces because they face
(09:27):
those a lot. But as soon as the ball takes
some time to get to the batsmen, they lose their
shape and their their front shoulder, which is that which
you should always get to the ball. Get your shoulder
to the ball, you know, and it tends to open
up to the leg side, and so they're coming across
the ball and you're not using the full face of
the bat. You can get a leading edge, but but
(09:50):
you're looking to hit to the leg side. They don't
look to hit through the off side quite so much.
By the time the ball arrives, they've lost that shoulder
and so you're either LBW or you miss it, or
you get caught or you get bald, you know. So
presenting the full face of the bat has gone and
they're looking to hit the ball to mid on or
wider and so there is a real problem for them.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
That was a point we made previously two about the
ability to access the off side and the only two
who've done that adequately were Meely Kerr and Maddy Green
and they were the ones who scored the run. So
you know that opening up the full range of the field,
to my mind, is important to them. Will follow the
(10:35):
performance of the New Zealand Women's White Fans as they
head up towards the World T twenty and the New
Zealand at T twenty n ZED twenty has been put
off four to twelve months. We said that was more
than likely, didn't we They haven't been able to get
the money together. I imagine they haven't been able to get
(10:56):
everything in place. They were just trying to push it
into two shorter space moves, weren't they.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (11:02):
We foreshard that this a few weeks back, couldn't possibly
understand how you were going to recruit players, arrange venues
then also secure the respective the amount of capital for
the teams. Well, I think at the time we said
this needs a little bit more detail, so because it
(11:25):
was done, but I so predictable, yes, and common common sense,
so we'll roll out the super smash and crack on.
I thought the way that they portrayed it in the
media was interesting, that the international window for tests and
when they didn't want to upset that. I think that
(11:48):
was a bit of a pr stunt, frankly, but you
know whatever, it was predictable. I still am very interested,
and you can't wait to see one where the money
is coming from, to where that gets applied. And I've
(12:09):
noticed that they've been rolling out Roger Two's together with
is it Donal McKinnon. He's been out there and McKinnon
comes across as a pretty sensible person, but clearly with
a vested interest, of course, because he wants to get
this competition up and running. But I guess we'll see
(12:29):
where it all plays. Yeah, I can't wait, Well, not
really actually.
Speaker 3 (12:36):
I don't think you're right. I've got to agree with
all that. I mean, no surprise. It appears they've got
a model, doesn't it. They're going to have a company
and a separate company to run it, not New Zealand Cricket.
It appears that they've got a good chance for a license.
They've got even New Zeed some of New Zealand's staff,
you know, and labor to assist them to get there.
We don't know who the owners are.
Speaker 4 (12:57):
Know.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
Do we know how many teams? They say six? But
who knows? Where will those teams are based? We don't
really know. Are women going to be involved? Well, New
Zealand want that, so we would probably say they'll have
to do that if they want the license. Who will
be in the teams? Who'll be playing? No, we don't know.
Do we know the quality of them? Know how much
(13:19):
are they going to be pat No? What are the
names of the teams? We don't know. You know, where
are the grounds? We don't know. What are the costs
of tickets and things like that. We don't know the
coaching staff, We don't know, sponsors, we don't know. We
actually know very little. They've got the New Zealand board.
(13:40):
By the sound of it, they're going to agree. So
they got their man in as a CEO. He's with it.
In other words, they have control. They'll tell us everything's fine,
as they did. They'll love the extra time. We will
reserve judgment on that and make our minds up ourselves.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
I think they've made the right decision and defert it.
Whether you want T twitty or not, it's got nothing
to do with it. You've got to have a T
twitty competition. That's the only way you're going to generate
revenue within the game or to fund the game. Provided
it does help fund the game and it's a separate
entity to the running of the game, they have to
make sure that it works properly, and that's what they've
(14:19):
deferred it for.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
We don't know the broadcast right that's probably the place
where they are going to make them will try to
make their money because the crowds aren't going to be huge.
We haven't got big stadiums other than Auckland, so broadcasting
becomes very important. I know Ian Smith was asking that
question of McKinnon and he didn't He said, no, we're
going to get a license first. Well, okay, so we
(14:43):
don't know that either. That's one of those little long
lists that I've just mentioned.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
Yes, indeed, the point around broadcaster is probably the most
pervotable piece because that's that's where your top line, your
revenue is going to come from, and that and that's
the key component to the success of any any competition
frankly these days, isn't it. Yes, we we await that
my expectations somewhere out of the subcontinent. But then you
(15:11):
don't need to be genius to think it come up
with that, do you?
Speaker 2 (15:14):
Oh? Well, yeah, I think you need to have a few,
you know, with long pockets, yeah, and a bit going
on between the years to work that out.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
Most Brian Waddell, Jeremy Cooney on the front foot.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
The one hundred and sixty third edition of Wisdom The
Cricketers Almanac has been released one thousand and five hundred
and twenty pages. Boy, the most comprehensive coverage of a
year's cricket, and I guess it takes the best part
of a year to put together so much of the
cricket program that exists currently. We're honored to once again
(15:52):
have the editor of Western Lawrence Booth, join us, who
not only prepares and edits the Wisdom, but of course
has a day job as well as the cricket correspondent
for Daily Mail. I just wonder, Lawrence, whether you have
a day off because you've been doing the Wisdom for
(16:12):
what nearly fifteen years, haven't you?
Speaker 3 (16:15):
Hi?
Speaker 5 (16:15):
Brian yea thanks having me. Yeah, fifteen editions I've done.
Now I've got three small daughters as well. Actually probably
my that is my day job, so I fit the
daily mail and wisdom around family life, to be honest.
But no, there's not a spare moment. I wouldn't have
it any other way exactly.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Yeah, and doing the things that you love are important,
are they?
Speaker 5 (16:35):
Absolutely? I mean being able to sound a bit corny here,
but being able to wake up most days and not
thinking that what I'm about to do is work is
a great blessing. To be paid to go and watch
cricket around the world.
Speaker 4 (16:47):
You know.
Speaker 5 (16:47):
I had a two months in Australia. The result in
go England's way, but it's still a terrific tour as
in your part of the world eighteen months ago. It
is a lovely job. So there are no grumbles for me.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
Yes, I must admit I missed the opportunities to get
to England or trail around the world now that I've
been put on the scrap heap of commentators. But you know,
that's the life that we live. Wisdom out I just
mentioned fifteen hundred pages. Boy, there's a lot of work
goes into that doesn't it.
Speaker 5 (17:16):
Yeah, there is. I mean I've got a great team.
I have to say my name goes on the cover.
But without the likes of Hugh Chevalier and Kit Harris,
harritmunkas Stephen Lynch, all these people who do a lot
of the grunt work behind the scenes, it wouldn't be possible.
It's a year long endeavor. You're working on the following
year's book, even before the most recent one has been published,
because of course we cover the calendar year and we're
(17:37):
published in April, So in those early months of the year,
we're already thinking ahead to the one that sixteen months
down the line would be like, it's NonStop. But it's
a great privilege and great fun.
Speaker 2 (17:47):
Yeah, and you keep up to date with the various
issues that cricket facism. We'll talk about them at the moment,
but I'm always interested in you five players of the
Year as such, and that's extended now of course to
international players. And bearing in mind the tradition of wisdom,
you can only be a player of the Year once,
(18:09):
gud you And so you have five and they've all
got something in common. Four of them are Indian, one
of them has an Indian background in terms of his
family come from the Gujarat States in the past. But
has Hamid of course born in England and as captain
(18:29):
of the Nottinghamshire Society, and he's an interesting one. I
can understand Shubmn Girl rather Jadejah, Rishad Pant and Mohammad
Saraz they earned their award. Hussi Hamid well, he's played
for England in the past and he must have come
into contention with his performances for the current England squad.
Speaker 5 (18:52):
I think at the start of the season he was
in the mix for who which of the openers would
replace Sat Crawley. But he's not had a great season
so far. He's averaging kind of low to mid thirties
for knots, which is a shame. I mean, last season
part of the reason he won the award, not just captaining,
not seem sure to their first title to think teen
years by averaging sixty six. He got four hundreds, he's
got two doubles, he carried his back twice. He was
(19:13):
kind of doing all the right things. This season's fallen
away slightly and that means that other guys have overtaken him.
But he's not yet thirty. You know, he's had two
cracks at Test cricket. He may come again if he
has a couple of good seasons for Notts. He could
have a couple of seas in the Test team, but
at the moment he's back in the queue.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Yeah, it's an area where England are probably struggling, more
so than the middle order at prison time. But the
Indian names you've got there from your last season, girl Jadasia,
Pump saraj I, guess Jesperit Bummer has been a player
of the Year in the past, so he doesn't require
But that's the success of the England season that you
(19:56):
can't find an England Test player to fit under that
role of player.
Speaker 5 (20:02):
Of the Year. Yeah, it's an interesting one. A couple
of people have made that point. I mean part of
the reason is, of course, as you alluded to early,
you can only be chosen once and a lot of
the England players had already been named as a Wisdom
Cricket of the Year. But having said that, there were
still candidates who would have been eligible and they just
didn't get over the line. I mean, India, it was
a great series in England last summer to all it finished,
of course India clinching a six run win at the
(20:24):
Oval on the dramatic last morning to square the series.
And the four guys you got it were all all
had outstanding performances and shuvemn Gill scored over seven hundred
runs in the series, including four hundreds and a double
and a single at Edgeburston. Jadaeid ravage eighty six with
the bats that have held them together, began the series
with two hundreds headingly and celebrated with a summersault, so
(20:46):
it's kind of probably the most watchable cricketer of the
English summer. And Siraj was the leading wicket taking the
series of twenty three and polished off three of England's
last four wickets on that last morning at the Oval,
so very hard to ignore all four. Kal Rahle did well.
It was almost an Indian clean sweep, but I thought
Hamid just edged him. And it's nice to show a
bit of pay a bit of attention to the county
(21:06):
game as well in this award.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
I think in the past the editor probably made those
choices do you do that or do you do it
with a group around it.
Speaker 5 (21:16):
I mean, the buck still stops with me I mean
I do discuss with my Wisdom colleagues. I get them
to give me their five come sort of end of September,
which is roughly when the English summer ends, and I
just check I haven't missed anyone, obvious there's a bit
of debate, but yes, essentially it's it's the editor's gift
in a way.
Speaker 4 (21:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
And you have other awards of course that you make
and Book of the Year photograph. Are they done by
a group or do you have a sit person responsible
for doing those?
Speaker 5 (21:49):
No, I mean the sort of playing awards are done
by Again, the editor makes the choice, but in consultation
with colleagues and another colleagues outside in the within the
press box whose opinion you trust that the book of
the year is done by the reviewer. So it's a
bit but generally it's a kind of wiz and centric
(22:09):
that the Wisdom editorial team will will make those big
calls at Mitchell Stark as the leading men's cricketer in
the world. Dipty Sharma, India's all round was a leading woman.
We have a Wisdom Trophy now which we give to
the best individual performance in a Test match men or
women in the calendar year and they went to Shugman
Gill for the match I just mentioned at Edgebuston really
(22:30):
got a double and a single. Of that he scored
more runs in a Test match than any player other
than Graham Gooch against India in nineteen ninety when he
scored four hundred and fifty six runs. I think Gil
was only about twenty runs off incredible effort. And Abish
Eksham was our T twenty cricket, leading Tea twenty cricket
in the world. So yeah, an Indian theme there a bit,
really yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
I mean the Player of the Year situation is a
prestigious award. It's something that's looked at and wisdom has
made changes over the year. Is it likely to have
to be a change in the background event that if
you've heard it once ten years ago with along, you
can't win it again.
Speaker 5 (23:11):
Well, so in case listeners aren't aware that the leading
cricket in the world you can win it more than once, right,
unlike the five crickets where he can't. So the leading
cricket is very much who would be the first name
on your team sheet, and I think that still works
for us as a concept. So if you know vera
COLEI won it two or three years in a row.
Ben Stokes at the height of his career, won it
(23:32):
two years in a row. You're kind of naming if
you're picking a team to play a Mars Mars eleven,
who's the first guy on your lineup? And for us,
for me last year was Mitchell Stark. I mean he
was just he led Australia's attack. He carried them in
the ashes when Cummins and hazel Wood weren't there, rose
to the challenge and he's just become an all round
(23:55):
master with his left arm swing and red or pink
ball or white. He's just super.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Yeah and deeply Shama interesting because there's a bar in
a game that I think betters generally dominate the women's game,
don't they.
Speaker 5 (24:08):
Yeah, I mean she's you know she. I think she'd
probably argue she's an all round her and she's been
there or thereabouts for that award for a while. And
then she had a terrific year for India. Of course,
they had this very emotional victory in to win the
World Cup in front of their home fans, and in
the final itself she scored a fifty and took five wickets,
So you know, in the Crutch, the clutch game of
(24:29):
the year, she rose the occasion, so she was quite
an easy one to give in the end.
Speaker 2 (24:34):
Well, hopefully a new Zealander will appear next year after
the current World Tea Twitty competition. You've got a very
very good array of contributors. One of my favorite writers,
Gidion Hay, traces the history of Indo Pakistani relations. Boy,
(24:55):
that's a tough subject to get into it, and I
imagine Gideon's probably the best man to do that, doesn't he.
Speaker 5 (25:01):
Well, it was a tricky ones so I thought, I
can't commission an Indian writer or a Pakistan writer for
this because the other side will accuse the piece of
being biased. So I had to choose a neutral and
I thought, who better really than Gideon, who's all over
the history of the game. And it was a piece
that kind of the main lesson I think that you
could draw from it was that Indian Pakistan used to
use crickets as a bridge for peace. It was something
(25:24):
that brought them together, that unified them, and that was
that idea was sparked really by what been going on
last year, which started with India refusing to shake Pakistan's
hands at the Asia Cup, and that then spiraled into
all kinds of political ramifications, with Pakistan then threatening to
pull out of their World Cup game against India in Colombo.
They played in the end, but that shone a light
(25:45):
on the fragility of the global ecosystem if you like
people going well. If India don't play Pakistan at the
World Cup, the game's finances are in serious trouble. So
I wanted a piece that sort of didn't take sides,
but just told in a very matter of fat historical
way the story and it hasn't always been a bad story,
and Gideon of course did it brilliantly.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
But it leads a course to another issue that you
cover as well from your notes previous to the sending
this out lament the game's increasing politicization, which is a
tough way to say for anybody, but we can spell
it properly. But I mean that is an issue that
the game faces, and Wisdom obviously deals with it.
Speaker 5 (26:33):
Yeah, we've been on the case for a few years now.
Get accused of sort of obsessing about it, but I
actually think it's one of the most crucial storylines in
the game at the moment. As long as the bj
neuendrum odes BJP is in power in India, cricket will
continue to be politicized. They've cottoned on to the fact
that cricket can be used as a tool to sort
of fan nationalism if you like. Jaysha who's now the
(26:55):
head of the ICC, previously Honorable Secretary of the BCCI
here is the son of the second most powerful politician
in India and it all stems from that. So it's
not just India that's politicized. And Pakistan cricket is heavily politicized.
The Interior Minister of Pakistan government is the head of
the PCB. Slankan cricket's always been heavily politicized. The teams
(27:17):
often picked by the sports ministry. And we saw during
the World Cup that the politicians all came together to
save that tournament. Essentially, you know, when push came to shove,
it was it wasn't the ICC that saved the Pakistan,
Indi came. It was the politicians of various stripes. So
we've got to be careful about where we go. We've
got to be careful that doesn't spill over too far
into the field. I accept that sport and politics do mix,
(27:39):
but if politics starts to dictate sport, then I think
we've got a problem.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
Yes, but you also have to address the issue too,
don't you. And that's a significant part of it as well,
because I think there's some article and I've lost Oh, yes,
the incarceration of Imran Khan, which is one of crickets
great players, you know, doing a political job, but you
(28:05):
know he's behind bars.
Speaker 5 (28:08):
Yeah. I mean that's almost a sort of separate thread,
isn't it. It's the it's Pakistan's internal politics, which has
always been a messy business. Let's be honest about fourteen
X Test stars and people who played against them with
him and signed a letter earlier this year to the
Pakistan government to urge his release because he's been in
(28:29):
very poor health. As you'd expect, he's been in isolation
in prison. It gets great figures and here he is
languishing in a cell. It's an incredibly sad story and
well told in our book by Osmond Sammy Uddin.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
The photo of the Year. You must have plenty of
opportunities to decide that one, and you've got. I think
Petrick Ega is one of your judges, Well they couldn't
be a bit of chals and Patrick Eger could be
this year's winner.
Speaker 5 (28:57):
This year's winner was a terrific shot of Harmon PreK Corps,
the Indian captain. She was about to sort of catching
a ball in the World Cup final. In the background
or a lot of the fans of got their lights
on on their phone. You know they do this thing
now where they get the lights on it. It creates this
kind of it looks like the night sky effectively. So
you got this ball about to land in a hand
(29:18):
with this was terrific backdrop. And so that was a
lovely one to award.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
Yeah, and the other one's a Book of the Year.
There are pretty of chances for that one too. I've
read a couple of cricket books, but I certainly didn't
read Simon Wilde's book. I think he won it this year.
I haven't read it yet.
Speaker 5 (29:38):
Yeah, Simon wrote about and this is a very sort
of English centric subject really. But in nineteen oh two
the Ashes Test at the Oval, Gilbert Jessup scored one
hundred against Australia to help set up a one wicket
win India for England. And there's been some debate down
the years about how many balls he actually faced for it.
(29:59):
Historically people have said it's seventy six, and that has
remained in England's fastest test one hundred in terms of balls.
Simon goes back to the original sources, reads various newspa reports,
pieces together everything, and he reckons it's probably seventy three. Now,
whether we sort of incorporate that into wisdom is another matter.
At the moment, the official figure still seventy six. He
(30:21):
spends a book kind of explaining that actually get suchessup
scored one hundred and three balls. Fear and Steven Moss,
who reviewed the books, thought this was the winner, and
it's a terrific read by Simon. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (30:31):
Of course, the scoring system these days are totally different
to the scoring systems in those days, aren't they.
Speaker 5 (30:37):
Yeah, I mean, you know, they didn't always do ball
by ball. It might just be the runs that dot
balls didn't necessarily get covered. So he had to piece
together everything he possibly could to work out that the
correct picture. But even seventy three, I think even Simon
would admit, is not absolutely definite.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Yeah, there's so much in this, As I said fifteen
hundred pages. There's also some unusual occurrences and one that
took my mind. Four wickets in three balls. I don't
know how that occurred.
Speaker 5 (31:11):
Well, we want readers to turn to the page and
find out. So what happened there was it was a
Pakistan domestic match, and so the first two wickets fall
in conventional fashion, but because of because the chaos that
has ensued in the dressing room as people are looking
for their pads and gloves. The next guy, who was
sud shakiel Test batsman, didn't get out in time, so
(31:33):
he was timed out. So that's three wickets in two balls.
And then the next guy comes and he's out to
the hat trick ball. So so the three balls have
been bold, but four wickets have fallen. It's you know,
it may never happen again, and we thought it was
worth recording.
Speaker 2 (31:48):
Yeah. I don't know whether you've seen something that I
just picked up from Zimbabwe about a club called the
Scorpion Cricket Club scored eight hundred and twenty two in
a fifty over game. They won by siven four runs.
That'll feature in Wisdom when.
Speaker 5 (32:05):
I reckon that'll get a mention. Yeah, they just squeak
over the line by the odd seven hundred runs.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
So yeah, yes, an interesting one. I must say. I
enjoy your forthright approach to issues, and in the England
the Ashes series brought out not only forthright views from you,
but many other journalists and followers of the game. And
I picked up one little line in the game's long history,
(32:33):
it's hard to think of a privilege so carelessly squandered,
a chance so blithely spurned, which I think a lot
of people look at that and wonder why England haven't
made greater changes, Why they weren't aware of those issues
because they were talked about right throughout the Eshes series,
(32:55):
weren't they?
Speaker 5 (32:58):
They were, And I think it's a fair question. I mean,
England have reacted. England have made all the points after
the Ashes that most people were making before it, such
as no proper preparation. You know, they went to New
Zealand for a white ball series in totally different conditions
from what they're about to face in the first Test
in Perth, and then had a lousy three day warm
up game against the England second string team, the Lions
(33:19):
at Lilac Hill, which is a kind of Genteel club
ground again nothing to do with sixty thousand screaming Australians
at the Perth Stadium on day one. So the preparation
was poor and they stuck with the wrong players who
they've a couple of them. They finally dropped Dolly Pope
and Zach Crawley. But you're you're right that nothing has
changed in the hierarchy. Ben Stokes is still captain, Brenda
(33:40):
McCullum is still head coach, Rob Key is still managing director.
So they've left themselves with little wriggle rooum. If things
go wrong in this English summer which is about to
start a course with a three Test series against New Zealand,
and people will be very quick to jump on their
backs and say you had a chance to make changes,
you didn't take it, and here we are again. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
One hreline I saw earlier in the summer was no
change is all change as ecv OP for the rints
and repeat cycle. I think that was krick and though
wrote that. But they have no change. They've picked some
new players for the series against New Zealand, and I
guess some of them may well have been forced. I'm
(34:19):
just lost in the fact that the only player punished
for the er series is zech Crawley. I mean he
didn't deserve to stay, but is he the only one
that deserves to be punished.
Speaker 5 (34:31):
I think when you look at England's top seven, I think,
despite what happened in Australia, I think Crawley is the
only one who you could really say had to go.
I mean, look, Duckett had a poor series, but he'd
been averaging forty up to that point. Bethel finished a
series with one hundred and fifty at Sydney, and look
the goods Rutenbrook obviously aren't moving Stokes as a captain,
and Smith, despite not a great series, I think is
(34:53):
still worth a crack at number seven. So I didn't
have a massive problem with that.
Speaker 4 (34:57):
Some of that.
Speaker 5 (34:57):
There might be changes in the bowling line up. Clearly
they've Rayhan Armid, the leg spin who hasn't played a
home Test yet. He's come into the fifteen and will
probably play the first Test at Lord's Ollie Robinson's and
he's returned after two years in the wilderness. That of course,
he had a very good Test tabue against New Zealand
at Lord's five years ago. He's a good bowler and
a lot of people have been pushing for him to
(35:19):
come back. But you're right. I mean at the moment
Crawley looks like a bit of a scapegoat. But I
don't think even he would say he should have stayed on.
He's averaging less than twenty for Kent in five matches
at the start of this season, so he's got to
go back and score runs to get back in.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
Yeah, the borrowing resources I suppose have been attacked by
IPL and other forms of competition. Joffre Atcher might be
a first choice pick normally, but he's playing white ball
cricket and won't have gone through the hard yards needed
for Test match.
Speaker 4 (35:50):
Would he.
Speaker 5 (35:51):
That's right. I mean Rob Key, the managing director, was
asked about this when they had a Zoom call with
him yesterday and he basically said, look, that's the way
the world works now. I mean, ideally the best players
will put Test cricket first, but Joffre has wanted to
cash in at the IPL. In a sense, you can't
necessarily blame it, but it you know, when you've you've
got a Test series in which England are trying to
(36:12):
rebuild after the Ashes, ideally you'd want your best eleven
out there. In England don't feel they can pick Archer
on the back of just bowling four overs at a
time with the white ball. They want to see some
red ballovers in his legs. I suspect we'll see him
later in probably later in the New Zealand series. England
have got three Tests against Pakistan later in the in
the northern summer. I suspect he'll play second or third
(36:32):
Test against New Zealand once he's got some overs in
his legs.
Speaker 2 (36:36):
Yeah, you say Rayan Ahmad might play in the first
Test match. Is it because he's the best spinner or
because he can better?
Speaker 5 (36:41):
But I would say more of the latter. Look, English
spin bowling is a low eb at the moment, so
they have to make pragmatic choices where they're not expecting
their spinner to bowl teams out, but to take ten
wickets or even five in the fourth innings. So what
they're doing is looking for someone who can hold up
an end in the in the first innings, take a
couple of weeks in the second and meanwhile strengthen the batting.
(37:02):
You know, he's called five first class hundreds for Leicestershire
last season. He often thinks of himself as a batting
all round A lot of people think he's a bowling
all around it. But again I think it says more
than anything about the lack of depth in English spin
bowling at the moment, which has been the case really
since Graham Swan retired.
Speaker 2 (37:19):
I've just taken a bet by rob Key calling Oli
Robinson the best, one of the best bowlers in the world.
So where's he been for the last two years? I mean,
he may well be right. Robinson is a good performer,
but fitness and attitude I think has probably got on
the way, isn't it.
Speaker 5 (37:38):
Yeah, I mean he did say in fairness to him
that when Robinson's at his best, he is one of
the best bowlers in the world. And he's got seventy
three wickets at twenty two in his Test career so far,
which are pretty good figures. He's I mean, I saw
him bowl on some very flat decks in Pakistan and
he was making the ball move both ways. He bowled
barber as him twice in one Test in Moultanan. It
(37:59):
was a great performance. But you're right, but fitness and
attitude have been the problem, and that's why he's been
he's been sent to the wilderness for two years. He
upset a lot of people with his attitude on the
tour of India in early twenty twenty four. He still
doesn't seem to understand why, which is slightly worrying, but
Stokes and McCullum were very much like, well, we've given
this guy lots of chances. He's talented, but we can't
(38:20):
have this kind of drain on the energy in the
dressing room. So look, it's going to be fascinating to
see how he slots in again. It's an SOS call
from England really, it's saying we recognize you're probably the
best seemer in county cricket. You've been a pain in
the backside for a long time, but now show us
what you can do and we'll give you another chance.
Speaker 2 (38:39):
What do you see as McCollum's future then, is this
the last chance saloon for him?
Speaker 5 (38:45):
Well, his contract goes through to next year. There's an
ashes in a World Cup and when he signed his
original contract, that was the that was the plan. Look,
the only way he'll not see out his contract is
of England have a shocker. This summer. You know, if
they if they lose either of the seer is probably
or draw on and lose the other or that that
(39:05):
could be, that could be trouble for him. But then
then you're running into a situation and where England don't
have many tests left before the twenty twenty seven home ashes.
You know, after this summer they got a three test
tour of South Africa, two in Bangladesh, the one hundred
and fiftieth Anniversary Test in Melbourne and then the home
summer again. So the ECP don't want to be in
a position where they're sacking Brenda McCullum with less than
a year to go, so basically they put everything on red.
(39:28):
They've said, look, you've got to turn it around this summer.
We're backing you to take England all the way through
to the next ashes.
Speaker 2 (39:34):
We'll bypass that test in Mobern being a day night game.
That's part of the Wisden Almanac. And I see from
your reaction you probably feel much the same way as
I do about it. But time is going against us
and we're quite proud of what New Zealand is sending
to play a three Test series against England. What's been
(39:58):
the attitude to the selection of the New Zealand side
to take battle that series.
Speaker 5 (40:03):
Well, I think when people do analyze it properly, instead
of just being Anglo centric and saying England need to
win put the ashes behind them, they will see that
New Zealand are sending one of their strongest teams ever
to England. That's my view anyway. I mean that bowling
lineup with Jamison back, willow' rourke who was outstanding against England,
unlucky but outstanding when England toured eighteen months ago, and
(40:25):
of course Matt Henry, who will be sorry that Zach
Crawley isn't featuring this time. That is a three man
attack that is better than anything England will be able
to put out. And they've got a course of batting
lineup that is strong and experienced. You know Mitchell and Blundell,
who were Wisdom cricketers a year in twenty twenty four
(40:46):
for their performances in England at the previous summer sorry
twenty three for they were superb scored hundreds but ended
up losing three and nil, which seemed a very harsh
sort of reflection of that series. So look They're going
to be a tough team to be. If people in
England are expecting them to roll over and help with
(41:06):
England's rebuild after the Ashes, they probably got another thing coming.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
Yeah, exciting looking forward to that series. And you know,
hopefully New Zealand are able to deal to England. It's
I know it's the last thing on your mind that
England could take a loss because they're fighting back from
difficult times. But thank you very much Lareens for joining
(41:31):
us and keeping us up to date with Wisdom. It's
just another book that I'm going to have to spend
a lot of time reading. I'm finding so many of
these books that are being written now. I've got a
lot of pages and they take up a lot of time,
don't they. And you must read most of Wisdom anyway
because of your job as editor.
Speaker 5 (41:52):
Oh I've probably read it two or three times. I don't.
I don't pick it up in case I see a
mistake we missed first time round. But happy reading. Don't
read it all at once once. That's my only advice.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
Okay, thanks very much, and thanks very much for your time,
and hopefully we will be able to read some of
your copy out of the England series coming up in June.
Speaker 5 (42:13):
Thanks having me on to really appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (42:14):
Brian Wannold, Jeremy Cony on the front foot.
Speaker 2 (42:20):
Here's been for you guys. I don't know whether you
look closely at places on Facebook, but they've got a
site called Vintage Cricket and yesterday they had a score
from a fifty over game featuring the Scorpions Cricket club
in Zimbabwe, who batted their fifty overs and scored apparently
(42:45):
eight hundred and twenty two for four. Opener Takunda Medembo
scored three hundred and two off one hundred and forty
three balls before he retired. The other opener Winfed Matendo
two hundred and three from seventy five balls. The captain
praised Mcaza faced five balls and got two. Abriel Jaya
(43:09):
got one hundred and ten from forty nine and there
are one hundred and eight extras, seventy nine of them wide,
twenty eight of them no balls. I wonder what the
opposition was like. Was there an opposition?
Speaker 3 (43:26):
Were they playing the Scorpions versus who?
Speaker 2 (43:29):
It didn't say I'll be trying to eight hundred and
twenty two for four that's got to be a world
record for fifty over game, doesn't.
Speaker 3 (43:38):
It was the reply, we don't know that either.
Speaker 2 (43:43):
No, no, I'm searching for that. I'll try and find
it and bring it out next week. Okay, let's pay
tribute to the Scorpions Cricket Club and congratulate them on
their eight hundred and twenty two for four and have
some sympathy for the captain. Praise Makasa who only phase
five balls and got worried.
Speaker 4 (44:03):
About the opposition to fix the ball all the time.
Speaker 2 (44:07):
I you know, I'm more worried about their mental state
now that they can see the eight hundred and two.
Enjoy your trip, Moose, and well Jerry, you'll still be
with us before you head off to far Climbs to
watch the Test match in London. Thanks for joining us,
and fly safely.
Speaker 4 (44:26):
And I and I'm I'm I've decided I'm going to
push out my return to here and and I'll hang
around for the first couple of days with the Lord's
Test mess.
Speaker 2 (44:38):
You can smell that happening last week, Yeah, I can
smell that happening.
Speaker 3 (44:43):
The best to get you a ticket to another ground, front.
Speaker 2 (44:51):
Up front, up and pretend to be me Moost.
Speaker 4 (44:58):
You've got thanks guys, Thank you.
Speaker 2 (45:09):
Using do
Speaker 1 (45:16):
For more from News Talks at b Listen live on
air or online, and keep our shows with you wherever
you go with our podcasts on iHeartRadio
You're listening to a podcast from News Talk set B.
Follow this and our wide range of podcasts now on
iHeart Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Take another pat, It's ard, it is out, the Test
is over.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
Goodness make oh wow a beauty.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
It is out here you guys.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
This delivery has in used to Bowl.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
On the Front Foot with Brian Waddell and Jeremy Cody,
powered by News Talks head B at iHeartRadio.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Hello, welcome to on the Front Foot with we first up,
lost to the White Ferns and then rain shortens their
second match. World of Theory of the Injured, Pretty Help
or hinder tea twenty play in New Zealand, the England
selectors have made changes for their first Test squad and
the Cricket Bible twenty six has been released. On the
(01:09):
Front Foot, I'm joined by international tourists. I'm green with
envy while I'm putting a bed up on the lounge
to watch a Test match series through the month of June.
Cony and Moose heading off. They've got their passports at
the ready, their bags packed, their foreign currency and their
(01:32):
nice attitude to American people who are going to welcome
them at the airport, but nice to talk to you guys.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
I'm all packed and ready to go. Next week's one
could be me from Rankovic, that could be ice moos.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
We all need a special we will need a very
special moose. Actually, your your coat could change color up there,
couldn't it anyway to cover off?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Yeah, And they got slow pitches up there, slow damp pictures.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
Actually it's a really interesting point. They've got golf courses
but I down with it, and they've got football fields
soccer football. But it's it's a place where you land
there and it's like landing in some sort of strange,
strange landscape. It's it's like no other place anyway.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
That yes, it'll be drying out good and proper. Now
more importantly, the England cricket selectors are soon to name
a squad and we'll see if we can pick it
a little later in the podcast, Lawrence Booth was the
editor who was going to join us and try and
to add his thoughts to the naming of the side.
But one of the interesting stories that came out during
(02:52):
the week Jerry gus Atkinson, who had to be a
front liner. I think the selection job was done on
him by Josh Tungu who hit him in the head
twice with bouncers sent him off with concussion and he
had to be replaced by another bowl which interestingly enough,
was a guy called Rehese Topley who bowls left arm
(03:13):
gas bowl's right arm.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
Yeah, like for Lake Onds, that's the problem, as we
mentioned the other day. Yeah, well that's good, isn't it.
Get rid of the opposition by Tongue. I don't know
how you guys feel. I just think generally, I think
that this team will be under quite a lot of
scrutiny and pressure after their performance down in Australia. So
(03:36):
there are a number of people I'm sure lining up
to watch them very closely indeed and see if they pass,
they get a past mark or not. So I think
generally they will be very aware of that and therefore
they will be quite a tricky opposition for New Zealand
generally in the three tests.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Yeah, and England is named the squad for the All
Black series and we'll discuss that shortly with Wisden editor
Lawrence Booth.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Brian Waddell Jeremy Cooney on the front foot.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
Lessons for the White after their first up one day
lost to England, same old problems, Jerry. They had great
performance at the top from Amelia Kerr and Maddy Green
showed her value. But you've got to have more people
scoring runs, don't you.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
That's the difference, isn't it That we saw in the
South African series back home here that the runs were
coming from the top. New Zealand were four or five
down when they finished their fifty overs here they got
to a reasonable position of about three for one hundred
and fifty and then we saw in the next fourteen
overs they lost seven wickets and you can't do that
(04:47):
in I mean they didn't even use their fifty overs
in the end once they were positioned quite nicely. So yes,
Kerr and Plimmer got a twenty, but no one else did.
Kerr and Green with the main and the protagonists in
the innings, but Halliday, Gays Sharp all missed out and
the bowlers didn't get in the either. Baits Bates moved
(05:09):
from number eight, as we were talking in that South
African series, she opened, didn't she, So she's gone back
up to open well open It might be a better position,
but she wasn't able to. She was court keeper six
off ten, so she might have another crack at that
to see what happens. But gays then came down to
(05:31):
about number seven, didn't she. So I don't know what
they're doing. Not quite so sure. Experimentation that's called yeah
first came up.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
I suppose this is one way you could have a
look at it. The fact is it was a really
tight finish and they could have won it because Charlie Dean,
who was there and captain of the side, managed to
get them through with the number eleven batsmen and she
was dropped when they were seven runs short of the target.
And so that's another area that I'm sure they remind
themselves on. Those catches are going to be important as well.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Yep, batting and fielding was batting and fielding, movement in
the field catching and also the batting. You've got to
you've got to make runs, don't you.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
The feeling has this This isn't something new. The White
films have been quite regularly dropping catches and the one
that was dropped that.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
Would have won the game standard catch.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Yeah, I'm trying. I don't want to be unkind, but
really that's the sort of stuff you've got to get
and and and and this isn't anything new here, So
I'm yeah, you've got to take those chances, and especially
if they're just rudimentary. So that is a problem that
needs to be worked on. But just back on Plummer,
(06:47):
I was watching that and the way she got out
was going across the line, and it seems to be
a concern that we either our players don't have the
power to hit through the covers or hit up and
over over where the balls going. And of course she
just she just coughed it up into into extra cover.
(07:08):
And they touched on that in the commentary about about
this and that that England has been working very hard
trying to hit hit heavily through through the covers up
and I rather going across the line, which just opens
you up. And I think we just saw that again
from Plumber and and that was a pretty wee can
(07:28):
we can lame out for her when she was when
she was set, and I don't think that, for whatever reason,
we don't have that. The only one who can really
seem to do that is Kurt, who's just a fabulous player.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
What she needs, what she needs is a bit of
Craig McMillan honesty. I think he worked on her game
when she had a fairly good end to the last
year's series and she needs to be brought in the
line to play more technically correct. I mean they're over
there for the t twenties, but you've got to get
(08:04):
your batting sworded when you get this opportunity in eyes,
don't you.
Speaker 4 (08:10):
No question, it was just picking on that. I'm not
trying to pick on Plumber, but it was just it
was a really lame way of getting out and it
just it just said something to me, and it's something
that I'm no doubt they've been talking about, but it
just is it's just repeating itself and they and the
better sides like especially Australia and when England bring back
(08:32):
their players. I mean this was an England selection when
when you had three or four of their best players
not playing. So it's really one that New Zealand should
have expected to do better. And okay close type finish, yes, great.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
I see. I think there is an issue though, guys
with them playing spin bowling. They tend not to use
their feet only to tends to be you know, whipping
down the track and trying to put pressure on links.
But I think spinners are going to cause them problems
in this T twenty and also the the ode eyes.
(09:06):
Don't be surprised at tea of spinners against them, you know.
Any any opposition who's got accurate slow bowling, I think
has the potential to upset this New Zealand side. From
my point of view, our batsmen tend to lose their shape.
They lose their shape with the slow the ball coming.
They're very happy to play medium paces because they face
(09:27):
those a lot. But as soon as the ball takes
some time to get to the batsmen, they lose their
shape and their their front shoulder, which is that which
you should always get to the ball. Get your shoulder
to the ball, you know, and it tends to open
up to the leg side, and so they're coming across
the ball and you're not using the full face of
the bat. You can get a leading edge, but but
(09:50):
you're looking to hit to the leg side. They don't
look to hit through the off side quite so much.
By the time the ball arrives, they've lost that shoulder
and so you're either LBW or you miss it, or
you get caught or you get bald, you know. So
presenting the full face of the bat has gone and
they're looking to hit the ball to mid on or
wider and so there is a real problem for them.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
That was a point we made previously two about the
ability to access the off side and the only two
who've done that adequately were Meely Kerr and Maddy Green
and they were the ones who scored the run. So
you know that opening up the full range of the field,
to my mind, is important to them. Will follow the
(10:35):
performance of the New Zealand Women's White Fans as they
head up towards the World T twenty and the New
Zealand at T twenty n ZED twenty has been put
off four to twelve months. We said that was more
than likely, didn't we They haven't been able to get
the money together. I imagine they haven't been able to get
(10:56):
everything in place. They were just trying to push it
into two shorter space moves, weren't they.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (11:02):
We foreshard that this a few weeks back, couldn't possibly
understand how you were going to recruit players, arrange venues
then also secure the respective the amount of capital for
the teams. Well, I think at the time we said
this needs a little bit more detail, so because it
(11:25):
was done, but I so predictable, yes, and common common sense,
so we'll roll out the super smash and crack on.
I thought the way that they portrayed it in the
media was interesting, that the international window for tests and
when they didn't want to upset that. I think that
(11:48):
was a bit of a pr stunt, frankly, but you
know whatever, it was predictable. I still am very interested,
and you can't wait to see one where the money
is coming from, to where that gets applied. And I've
(12:09):
noticed that they've been rolling out Roger Two's together with
is it Donal McKinnon. He's been out there and McKinnon
comes across as a pretty sensible person, but clearly with
a vested interest, of course, because he wants to get
this competition up and running. But I guess we'll see
(12:29):
where it all plays. Yeah, I can't wait, Well, not
really actually.
Speaker 3 (12:36):
I don't think you're right. I've got to agree with
all that. I mean, no surprise. It appears they've got
a model, doesn't it. They're going to have a company
and a separate company to run it, not New Zealand Cricket.
It appears that they've got a good chance for a license.
They've got even New Zeed some of New Zealand's staff,
you know, and labor to assist them to get there.
We don't know who the owners are.
Speaker 4 (12:57):
Know.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
Do we know how many teams? They say six? But
who knows? Where will those teams are based? We don't
really know. Are women going to be involved? Well, New
Zealand want that, so we would probably say they'll have
to do that if they want the license. Who will
be in the teams? Who'll be playing? No, we don't know.
Do we know the quality of them? Know how much
(13:19):
are they going to be pat No? What are the
names of the teams? We don't know. You know, where
are the grounds? We don't know. What are the costs
of tickets and things like that. We don't know the
coaching staff, We don't know, sponsors, we don't know. We
actually know very little. They've got the New Zealand board.
(13:40):
By the sound of it, they're going to agree. So
they got their man in as a CEO. He's with it.
In other words, they have control. They'll tell us everything's fine,
as they did. They'll love the extra time. We will
reserve judgment on that and make our minds up ourselves.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
I think they've made the right decision and defert it.
Whether you want T twitty or not, it's got nothing
to do with it. You've got to have a T
twitty competition. That's the only way you're going to generate
revenue within the game or to fund the game. Provided
it does help fund the game and it's a separate
entity to the running of the game, they have to
make sure that it works properly, and that's what they've
(14:19):
deferred it for.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
We don't know the broadcast right that's probably the place
where they are going to make them will try to
make their money because the crowds aren't going to be huge.
We haven't got big stadiums other than Auckland, so broadcasting
becomes very important. I know Ian Smith was asking that
question of McKinnon and he didn't He said, no, we're
going to get a license first. Well, okay, so we
(14:43):
don't know that either. That's one of those little long
lists that I've just mentioned.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
Yes, indeed, the point around broadcaster is probably the most
pervotable piece because that's that's where your top line, your
revenue is going to come from, and that and that's
the key component to the success of any any competition
frankly these days, isn't it. Yes, we we await that
my expectations somewhere out of the subcontinent. But then you
(15:11):
don't need to be genius to think it come up
with that, do you?
Speaker 2 (15:14):
Oh? Well, yeah, I think you need to have a few,
you know, with long pockets, yeah, and a bit going
on between the years to work that out.
Speaker 1 (15:25):
Most Brian Waddell, Jeremy Cooney on the front foot.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
The one hundred and sixty third edition of Wisdom The
Cricketers Almanac has been released one thousand and five hundred
and twenty pages. Boy, the most comprehensive coverage of a
year's cricket, and I guess it takes the best part
of a year to put together so much of the
cricket program that exists currently. We're honored to once again
(15:52):
have the editor of Western Lawrence Booth, join us, who
not only prepares and edits the Wisdom, but of course
has a day job as well as the cricket correspondent
for Daily Mail. I just wonder, Lawrence, whether you have
a day off because you've been doing the Wisdom for
(16:12):
what nearly fifteen years, haven't you?
Speaker 3 (16:15):
Hi?
Speaker 5 (16:15):
Brian yea thanks having me. Yeah, fifteen editions I've done.
Now I've got three small daughters as well. Actually probably
my that is my day job, so I fit the
daily mail and wisdom around family life, to be honest.
But no, there's not a spare moment. I wouldn't have
it any other way exactly.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Yeah, and doing the things that you love are important,
are they?
Speaker 5 (16:35):
Absolutely? I mean being able to sound a bit corny here,
but being able to wake up most days and not
thinking that what I'm about to do is work is
a great blessing. To be paid to go and watch
cricket around the world.
Speaker 4 (16:47):
You know.
Speaker 5 (16:47):
I had a two months in Australia. The result in
go England's way, but it's still a terrific tour as
in your part of the world eighteen months ago. It
is a lovely job. So there are no grumbles for me.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
Yes, I must admit I missed the opportunities to get
to England or trail around the world now that I've
been put on the scrap heap of commentators. But you know,
that's the life that we live. Wisdom out I just
mentioned fifteen hundred pages. Boy, there's a lot of work
goes into that doesn't it.
Speaker 5 (17:16):
Yeah, there is. I mean I've got a great team.
I have to say my name goes on the cover.
But without the likes of Hugh Chevalier and Kit Harris,
harritmunkas Stephen Lynch, all these people who do a lot
of the grunt work behind the scenes, it wouldn't be possible.
It's a year long endeavor. You're working on the following
year's book, even before the most recent one has been published,
because of course we cover the calendar year and we're
(17:37):
published in April, So in those early months of the year,
we're already thinking ahead to the one that sixteen months
down the line would be like, it's NonStop. But it's
a great privilege and great fun.
Speaker 2 (17:47):
Yeah, and you keep up to date with the various
issues that cricket facism. We'll talk about them at the moment,
but I'm always interested in you five players of the
Year as such, and that's extended now of course to
international players. And bearing in mind the tradition of wisdom,
you can only be a player of the Year once,
(18:09):
gud you And so you have five and they've all
got something in common. Four of them are Indian, one
of them has an Indian background in terms of his
family come from the Gujarat States in the past. But
has Hamid of course born in England and as captain
(18:29):
of the Nottinghamshire Society, and he's an interesting one. I
can understand Shubmn Girl rather Jadejah, Rishad Pant and Mohammad
Saraz they earned their award. Hussi Hamid well, he's played
for England in the past and he must have come
into contention with his performances for the current England squad.
Speaker 5 (18:52):
I think at the start of the season he was
in the mix for who which of the openers would
replace Sat Crawley. But he's not had a great season
so far. He's averaging kind of low to mid thirties
for knots, which is a shame. I mean, last season
part of the reason he won the award, not just captaining,
not seem sure to their first title to think teen
years by averaging sixty six. He got four hundreds, he's
got two doubles, he carried his back twice. He was
(19:13):
kind of doing all the right things. This season's fallen
away slightly and that means that other guys have overtaken him.
But he's not yet thirty. You know, he's had two
cracks at Test cricket. He may come again if he
has a couple of good seasons for Notts. He could
have a couple of seas in the Test team, but
at the moment he's back in the queue.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Yeah, it's an area where England are probably struggling, more
so than the middle order at prison time. But the
Indian names you've got there from your last season, girl Jadasia,
Pump saraj I, guess Jesperit Bummer has been a player
of the Year in the past, so he doesn't require
But that's the success of the England season that you
(19:56):
can't find an England Test player to fit under that
role of player.
Speaker 5 (20:02):
Of the Year. Yeah, it's an interesting one. A couple
of people have made that point. I mean part of
the reason is, of course, as you alluded to early,
you can only be chosen once and a lot of
the England players had already been named as a Wisdom
Cricket of the Year. But having said that, there were
still candidates who would have been eligible and they just
didn't get over the line. I mean, India, it was
a great series in England last summer to all it finished,
of course India clinching a six run win at the
(20:24):
Oval on the dramatic last morning to square the series.
And the four guys you got it were all all
had outstanding performances and shuvemn Gill scored over seven hundred
runs in the series, including four hundreds and a double
and a single at Edgeburston. Jadaeid ravage eighty six with
the bats that have held them together, began the series
with two hundreds headingly and celebrated with a summersault, so
(20:46):
it's kind of probably the most watchable cricketer of the
English summer. And Siraj was the leading wicket taking the
series of twenty three and polished off three of England's
last four wickets on that last morning at the Oval,
so very hard to ignore all four. Kal Rahle did well.
It was almost an Indian clean sweep, but I thought
Hamid just edged him. And it's nice to show a
bit of pay a bit of attention to the county
(21:06):
game as well in this award.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
I think in the past the editor probably made those
choices do you do that or do you do it
with a group around it.
Speaker 5 (21:16):
I mean, the buck still stops with me I mean
I do discuss with my Wisdom colleagues. I get them
to give me their five come sort of end of September,
which is roughly when the English summer ends, and I
just check I haven't missed anyone, obvious there's a bit
of debate, but yes, essentially it's it's the editor's gift
in a way.
Speaker 4 (21:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
And you have other awards of course that you make
and Book of the Year photograph. Are they done by
a group or do you have a sit person responsible
for doing those?
Speaker 5 (21:49):
No, I mean the sort of playing awards are done
by Again, the editor makes the choice, but in consultation
with colleagues and another colleagues outside in the within the
press box whose opinion you trust that the book of
the year is done by the reviewer. So it's a
bit but generally it's a kind of wiz and centric
(22:09):
that the Wisdom editorial team will will make those big
calls at Mitchell Stark as the leading men's cricketer in
the world. Dipty Sharma, India's all round was a leading woman.
We have a Wisdom Trophy now which we give to
the best individual performance in a Test match men or
women in the calendar year and they went to Shugman
Gill for the match I just mentioned at Edgebuston really
(22:30):
got a double and a single. Of that he scored
more runs in a Test match than any player other
than Graham Gooch against India in nineteen ninety when he
scored four hundred and fifty six runs. I think Gil
was only about twenty runs off incredible effort. And Abish
Eksham was our T twenty cricket, leading Tea twenty cricket
in the world. So yeah, an Indian theme there a bit,
really yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
I mean the Player of the Year situation is a
prestigious award. It's something that's looked at and wisdom has
made changes over the year. Is it likely to have
to be a change in the background event that if
you've heard it once ten years ago with along, you
can't win it again.
Speaker 5 (23:11):
Well, so in case listeners aren't aware that the leading
cricket in the world you can win it more than once, right,
unlike the five crickets where he can't. So the leading
cricket is very much who would be the first name
on your team sheet, and I think that still works
for us as a concept. So if you know vera
COLEI won it two or three years in a row.
Ben Stokes at the height of his career, won it
(23:32):
two years in a row. You're kind of naming if
you're picking a team to play a Mars Mars eleven,
who's the first guy on your lineup? And for us,
for me last year was Mitchell Stark. I mean he
was just he led Australia's attack. He carried them in
the ashes when Cummins and hazel Wood weren't there, rose
to the challenge and he's just become an all round
(23:55):
master with his left arm swing and red or pink
ball or white. He's just super.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Yeah and deeply Shama interesting because there's a bar in
a game that I think betters generally dominate the women's game,
don't they.
Speaker 5 (24:08):
Yeah, I mean she's you know she. I think she'd
probably argue she's an all round her and she's been
there or thereabouts for that award for a while. And
then she had a terrific year for India. Of course,
they had this very emotional victory in to win the
World Cup in front of their home fans, and in
the final itself she scored a fifty and took five wickets,
So you know, in the Crutch, the clutch game of
(24:29):
the year, she rose the occasion, so she was quite
an easy one to give in the end.
Speaker 2 (24:34):
Well, hopefully a new Zealander will appear next year after
the current World Tea Twitty competition. You've got a very
very good array of contributors. One of my favorite writers,
Gidion Hay, traces the history of Indo Pakistani relations. Boy,
(24:55):
that's a tough subject to get into it, and I
imagine Gideon's probably the best man to do that, doesn't he.
Speaker 5 (25:01):
Well, it was a tricky ones so I thought, I
can't commission an Indian writer or a Pakistan writer for
this because the other side will accuse the piece of
being biased. So I had to choose a neutral and
I thought, who better really than Gideon, who's all over
the history of the game. And it was a piece
that kind of the main lesson I think that you
could draw from it was that Indian Pakistan used to
use crickets as a bridge for peace. It was something
(25:24):
that brought them together, that unified them, and that was
that idea was sparked really by what been going on
last year, which started with India refusing to shake Pakistan's
hands at the Asia Cup, and that then spiraled into
all kinds of political ramifications, with Pakistan then threatening to
pull out of their World Cup game against India in Colombo.
They played in the end, but that shone a light
(25:45):
on the fragility of the global ecosystem if you like
people going well. If India don't play Pakistan at the
World Cup, the game's finances are in serious trouble. So
I wanted a piece that sort of didn't take sides,
but just told in a very matter of fat historical
way the story and it hasn't always been a bad story,
and Gideon of course did it brilliantly.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
But it leads a course to another issue that you
cover as well from your notes previous to the sending
this out lament the game's increasing politicization, which is a
tough way to say for anybody, but we can spell
it properly. But I mean that is an issue that
the game faces, and Wisdom obviously deals with it.
Speaker 5 (26:33):
Yeah, we've been on the case for a few years now.
Get accused of sort of obsessing about it, but I
actually think it's one of the most crucial storylines in
the game at the moment. As long as the bj
neuendrum odes BJP is in power in India, cricket will
continue to be politicized. They've cottoned on to the fact
that cricket can be used as a tool to sort
of fan nationalism if you like. Jaysha who's now the
(26:55):
head of the ICC, previously Honorable Secretary of the BCCI
here is the son of the second most powerful politician
in India and it all stems from that. So it's
not just India that's politicized. And Pakistan cricket is heavily politicized.
The Interior Minister of Pakistan government is the head of
the PCB. Slankan cricket's always been heavily politicized. The teams
(27:17):
often picked by the sports ministry. And we saw during
the World Cup that the politicians all came together to
save that tournament. Essentially, you know, when push came to shove,
it was it wasn't the ICC that saved the Pakistan,
Indi came. It was the politicians of various stripes. So
we've got to be careful about where we go. We've
got to be careful that doesn't spill over too far
into the field. I accept that sport and politics do mix,
(27:39):
but if politics starts to dictate sport, then I think
we've got a problem.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
Yes, but you also have to address the issue too,
don't you. And that's a significant part of it as well,
because I think there's some article and I've lost Oh, yes,
the incarceration of Imran Khan, which is one of crickets
great players, you know, doing a political job, but you
(28:05):
know he's behind bars.
Speaker 5 (28:08):
Yeah. I mean that's almost a sort of separate thread,
isn't it. It's the it's Pakistan's internal politics, which has
always been a messy business. Let's be honest about fourteen
X Test stars and people who played against them with
him and signed a letter earlier this year to the
Pakistan government to urge his release because he's been in
(28:29):
very poor health. As you'd expect, he's been in isolation
in prison. It gets great figures and here he is
languishing in a cell. It's an incredibly sad story and
well told in our book by Osmond Sammy Uddin.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
The photo of the Year. You must have plenty of
opportunities to decide that one, and you've got. I think
Petrick Ega is one of your judges, Well they couldn't
be a bit of chals and Patrick Eger could be
this year's winner.
Speaker 5 (28:57):
This year's winner was a terrific shot of Harmon PreK Corps,
the Indian captain. She was about to sort of catching
a ball in the World Cup final. In the background
or a lot of the fans of got their lights
on on their phone. You know they do this thing
now where they get the lights on it. It creates this
kind of it looks like the night sky effectively. So
you got this ball about to land in a hand
(29:18):
with this was terrific backdrop. And so that was a
lovely one to award.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
Yeah, and the other one's a Book of the Year.
There are pretty of chances for that one too. I've
read a couple of cricket books, but I certainly didn't
read Simon Wilde's book. I think he won it this year.
I haven't read it yet.
Speaker 5 (29:38):
Yeah, Simon wrote about and this is a very sort
of English centric subject really. But in nineteen oh two
the Ashes Test at the Oval, Gilbert Jessup scored one
hundred against Australia to help set up a one wicket
win India for England. And there's been some debate down
the years about how many balls he actually faced for it.
(29:59):
Historically people have said it's seventy six, and that has
remained in England's fastest test one hundred in terms of balls.
Simon goes back to the original sources, reads various newspa reports,
pieces together everything, and he reckons it's probably seventy three. Now,
whether we sort of incorporate that into wisdom is another matter.
At the moment, the official figure still seventy six. He
(30:21):
spends a book kind of explaining that actually get suchessup
scored one hundred and three balls. Fear and Steven Moss,
who reviewed the books, thought this was the winner, and
it's a terrific read by Simon. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (30:31):
Of course, the scoring system these days are totally different
to the scoring systems in those days, aren't they.
Speaker 5 (30:37):
Yeah, I mean, you know, they didn't always do ball
by ball. It might just be the runs that dot
balls didn't necessarily get covered. So he had to piece
together everything he possibly could to work out that the
correct picture. But even seventy three, I think even Simon
would admit, is not absolutely definite.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Yeah, there's so much in this, As I said fifteen
hundred pages. There's also some unusual occurrences and one that
took my mind. Four wickets in three balls. I don't
know how that occurred.
Speaker 5 (31:11):
Well, we want readers to turn to the page and
find out. So what happened there was it was a
Pakistan domestic match, and so the first two wickets fall
in conventional fashion, but because of because the chaos that
has ensued in the dressing room as people are looking
for their pads and gloves. The next guy, who was
sud shakiel Test batsman, didn't get out in time, so
(31:33):
he was timed out. So that's three wickets in two balls.
And then the next guy comes and he's out to
the hat trick ball. So so the three balls have
been bold, but four wickets have fallen. It's you know,
it may never happen again, and we thought it was
worth recording.
Speaker 2 (31:48):
Yeah. I don't know whether you've seen something that I
just picked up from Zimbabwe about a club called the
Scorpion Cricket Club scored eight hundred and twenty two in
a fifty over game. They won by siven four runs.
That'll feature in Wisdom when.
Speaker 5 (32:05):
I reckon that'll get a mention. Yeah, they just squeak
over the line by the odd seven hundred runs.
Speaker 2 (32:10):
So yeah, yes, an interesting one. I must say. I
enjoy your forthright approach to issues, and in the England
the Ashes series brought out not only forthright views from you,
but many other journalists and followers of the game. And
I picked up one little line in the game's long history,
(32:33):
it's hard to think of a privilege so carelessly squandered,
a chance so blithely spurned, which I think a lot
of people look at that and wonder why England haven't
made greater changes, Why they weren't aware of those issues
because they were talked about right throughout the Eshes series,
(32:55):
weren't they?
Speaker 5 (32:58):
They were, And I think it's a fair question. I mean,
England have reacted. England have made all the points after
the Ashes that most people were making before it, such
as no proper preparation. You know, they went to New
Zealand for a white ball series in totally different conditions
from what they're about to face in the first Test
in Perth, and then had a lousy three day warm
up game against the England second string team, the Lions
(33:19):
at Lilac Hill, which is a kind of Genteel club
ground again nothing to do with sixty thousand screaming Australians
at the Perth Stadium on day one. So the preparation
was poor and they stuck with the wrong players who
they've a couple of them. They finally dropped Dolly Pope
and Zach Crawley. But you're you're right that nothing has
changed in the hierarchy. Ben Stokes is still captain, Brenda
(33:40):
McCullum is still head coach, Rob Key is still managing director.
So they've left themselves with little wriggle rooum. If things
go wrong in this English summer which is about to
start a course with a three Test series against New Zealand,
and people will be very quick to jump on their
backs and say you had a chance to make changes,
you didn't take it, and here we are again. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
One hreline I saw earlier in the summer was no
change is all change as ecv OP for the rints
and repeat cycle. I think that was krick and though
wrote that. But they have no change. They've picked some
new players for the series against New Zealand, and I
guess some of them may well have been forced. I'm
(34:19):
just lost in the fact that the only player punished
for the er series is zech Crawley. I mean he
didn't deserve to stay, but is he the only one
that deserves to be punished.
Speaker 5 (34:31):
I think when you look at England's top seven, I think,
despite what happened in Australia, I think Crawley is the
only one who you could really say had to go.
I mean, look, Duckett had a poor series, but he'd
been averaging forty up to that point. Bethel finished a
series with one hundred and fifty at Sydney, and look
the goods Rutenbrook obviously aren't moving Stokes as a captain,
and Smith, despite not a great series, I think is
(34:53):
still worth a crack at number seven. So I didn't
have a massive problem with that.
Speaker 4 (34:57):
Some of that.
Speaker 5 (34:57):
There might be changes in the bowling line up. Clearly
they've Rayhan Armid, the leg spin who hasn't played a
home Test yet. He's come into the fifteen and will
probably play the first Test at Lord's Ollie Robinson's and
he's returned after two years in the wilderness. That of course,
he had a very good Test tabue against New Zealand
at Lord's five years ago. He's a good bowler and
a lot of people have been pushing for him to
(35:19):
come back. But you're right. I mean at the moment
Crawley looks like a bit of a scapegoat. But I
don't think even he would say he should have stayed on.
He's averaging less than twenty for Kent in five matches
at the start of this season, so he's got to
go back and score runs to get back in.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
Yeah, the borrowing resources I suppose have been attacked by
IPL and other forms of competition. Joffre Atcher might be
a first choice pick normally, but he's playing white ball
cricket and won't have gone through the hard yards needed
for Test match.
Speaker 4 (35:50):
Would he.
Speaker 5 (35:51):
That's right. I mean Rob Key, the managing director, was
asked about this when they had a Zoom call with
him yesterday and he basically said, look, that's the way
the world works now. I mean, ideally the best players
will put Test cricket first, but Joffre has wanted to
cash in at the IPL. In a sense, you can't
necessarily blame it, but it you know, when you've you've
got a Test series in which England are trying to
(36:12):
rebuild after the Ashes, ideally you'd want your best eleven
out there. In England don't feel they can pick Archer
on the back of just bowling four overs at a
time with the white ball. They want to see some
red ballovers in his legs. I suspect we'll see him
later in probably later in the New Zealand series. England
have got three Tests against Pakistan later in the in
the northern summer. I suspect he'll play second or third
(36:32):
Test against New Zealand once he's got some overs in
his legs.
Speaker 2 (36:36):
Yeah, you say Rayan Ahmad might play in the first
Test match. Is it because he's the best spinner or
because he can better?
Speaker 5 (36:41):
But I would say more of the latter. Look, English
spin bowling is a low eb at the moment, so
they have to make pragmatic choices where they're not expecting
their spinner to bowl teams out, but to take ten
wickets or even five in the fourth innings. So what
they're doing is looking for someone who can hold up
an end in the in the first innings, take a
couple of weeks in the second and meanwhile strengthen the batting.
(37:02):
You know, he's called five first class hundreds for Leicestershire
last season. He often thinks of himself as a batting
all round A lot of people think he's a bowling
all around it. But again I think it says more
than anything about the lack of depth in English spin
bowling at the moment, which has been the case really
since Graham Swan retired.
Speaker 2 (37:19):
I've just taken a bet by rob Key calling Oli
Robinson the best, one of the best bowlers in the world.
So where's he been for the last two years? I mean,
he may well be right. Robinson is a good performer,
but fitness and attitude I think has probably got on
the way, isn't it.
Speaker 5 (37:38):
Yeah, I mean he did say in fairness to him
that when Robinson's at his best, he is one of
the best bowlers in the world. And he's got seventy
three wickets at twenty two in his Test career so far,
which are pretty good figures. He's I mean, I saw
him bowl on some very flat decks in Pakistan and
he was making the ball move both ways. He bowled
barber as him twice in one Test in Moultanan. It
(37:59):
was a great performance. But you're right, but fitness and
attitude have been the problem, and that's why he's been
he's been sent to the wilderness for two years. He
upset a lot of people with his attitude on the
tour of India in early twenty twenty four. He still
doesn't seem to understand why, which is slightly worrying, but
Stokes and McCullum were very much like, well, we've given
this guy lots of chances. He's talented, but we can't
(38:20):
have this kind of drain on the energy in the
dressing room. So look, it's going to be fascinating to
see how he slots in again. It's an SOS call
from England really, it's saying we recognize you're probably the
best seemer in county cricket. You've been a pain in
the backside for a long time, but now show us
what you can do and we'll give you another chance.
Speaker 2 (38:39):
What do you see as McCollum's future then, is this
the last chance saloon for him?
Speaker 5 (38:45):
Well, his contract goes through to next year. There's an
ashes in a World Cup and when he signed his
original contract, that was the that was the plan. Look,
the only way he'll not see out his contract is
of England have a shocker. This summer. You know, if
they if they lose either of the seer is probably
or draw on and lose the other or that that
(39:05):
could be, that could be trouble for him. But then
then you're running into a situation and where England don't
have many tests left before the twenty twenty seven home ashes.
You know, after this summer they got a three test
tour of South Africa, two in Bangladesh, the one hundred
and fiftieth Anniversary Test in Melbourne and then the home
summer again. So the ECP don't want to be in
a position where they're sacking Brenda McCullum with less than
a year to go, so basically they put everything on red.
(39:28):
They've said, look, you've got to turn it around this summer.
We're backing you to take England all the way through
to the next ashes.
Speaker 2 (39:34):
We'll bypass that test in Mobern being a day night game.
That's part of the Wisden Almanac. And I see from
your reaction you probably feel much the same way as
I do about it. But time is going against us
and we're quite proud of what New Zealand is sending
to play a three Test series against England. What's been
(39:58):
the attitude to the selection of the New Zealand side
to take battle that series.
Speaker 5 (40:03):
Well, I think when people do analyze it properly, instead
of just being Anglo centric and saying England need to
win put the ashes behind them, they will see that
New Zealand are sending one of their strongest teams ever
to England. That's my view anyway. I mean that bowling
lineup with Jamison back, willow' rourke who was outstanding against England,
unlucky but outstanding when England toured eighteen months ago, and
(40:25):
of course Matt Henry, who will be sorry that Zach
Crawley isn't featuring this time. That is a three man
attack that is better than anything England will be able
to put out. And they've got a course of batting
lineup that is strong and experienced. You know Mitchell and Blundell,
who were Wisdom cricketers a year in twenty twenty four
(40:46):
for their performances in England at the previous summer sorry
twenty three for they were superb scored hundreds but ended
up losing three and nil, which seemed a very harsh
sort of reflection of that series. So look They're going
to be a tough team to be. If people in
England are expecting them to roll over and help with
(41:06):
England's rebuild after the Ashes, they probably got another thing coming.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
Yeah, exciting looking forward to that series. And you know,
hopefully New Zealand are able to deal to England. It's
I know it's the last thing on your mind that
England could take a loss because they're fighting back from
difficult times. But thank you very much Lareens for joining
(41:31):
us and keeping us up to date with Wisdom. It's
just another book that I'm going to have to spend
a lot of time reading. I'm finding so many of
these books that are being written now. I've got a
lot of pages and they take up a lot of time,
don't they. And you must read most of Wisdom anyway
because of your job as editor.
Speaker 5 (41:52):
Oh I've probably read it two or three times. I don't.
I don't pick it up in case I see a
mistake we missed first time round. But happy reading. Don't
read it all at once once. That's my only advice.
Speaker 2 (42:02):
Okay, thanks very much, and thanks very much for your time,
and hopefully we will be able to read some of
your copy out of the England series coming up in June.
Speaker 5 (42:13):
Thanks having me on to really appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (42:14):
Brian Wannold, Jeremy Cony on the front foot.
Speaker 2 (42:20):
Here's been for you guys. I don't know whether you
look closely at places on Facebook, but they've got a
site called Vintage Cricket and yesterday they had a score
from a fifty over game featuring the Scorpions Cricket club
in Zimbabwe, who batted their fifty overs and scored apparently
(42:45):
eight hundred and twenty two for four. Opener Takunda Medembo
scored three hundred and two off one hundred and forty
three balls before he retired. The other opener Winfed Matendo
two hundred and three from seventy five balls. The captain
praised Mcaza faced five balls and got two. Abriel Jaya
(43:09):
got one hundred and ten from forty nine and there
are one hundred and eight extras, seventy nine of them wide,
twenty eight of them no balls. I wonder what the
opposition was like. Was there an opposition?
Speaker 3 (43:26):
Were they playing the Scorpions versus who?
Speaker 2 (43:29):
It didn't say I'll be trying to eight hundred and
twenty two for four that's got to be a world
record for fifty over game, doesn't.
Speaker 3 (43:38):
It was the reply, we don't know that either.
Speaker 2 (43:43):
No, no, I'm searching for that. I'll try and find
it and bring it out next week. Okay, let's pay
tribute to the Scorpions Cricket Club and congratulate them on
their eight hundred and twenty two for four and have
some sympathy for the captain. Praise Makasa who only phase
five balls and got worried.
Speaker 4 (44:03):
About the opposition to fix the ball all the time.
Speaker 2 (44:07):
I you know, I'm more worried about their mental state
now that they can see the eight hundred and two.
Enjoy your trip, Moose, and well Jerry, you'll still be
with us before you head off to far Climbs to
watch the Test match in London. Thanks for joining us,
and fly safely.
Speaker 4 (44:26):
And I and I'm I'm I've decided I'm going to
push out my return to here and and I'll hang
around for the first couple of days with the Lord's
Test mess.
Speaker 2 (44:38):
You can smell that happening last week, Yeah, I can
smell that happening.
Speaker 3 (44:43):
The best to get you a ticket to another ground, front.
Speaker 2 (44:51):
Up front, up and pretend to be me Moost.
Speaker 4 (44:58):
You've got thanks guys, Thank you.
Speaker 2 (45:09):
Using do
Speaker 1 (45:16):
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