Writograph

@MarkJoseWil @ABsay_ek @Werries_ Good idea!

@ABsay_ek I never heard of him: "Colin Bland is regarded as one of the greatest fielders in the history of Test cricket". Wow! Should there be an ICC Annual Award: "Colin Bland Fielding Award"? @Werries_

Remembering Colin Bland on his birth anniversary : The man who made fielding sexy before anyone cared Cricket was never kind to its third skill. Batting got the statues, bowling got the glory. Fielding was what you did while waiting for tea. Then arrived this mad Rhodesian who turned chasing leather into an act of obsession, Or maybe love. Canterbury, 1965. The pitch looked like a swimming pool & no play was possible. Colin Cowdrey walked across to the South African dressing room with a bizarre request. Could Bland entertain the freezing crowd? What followed was a magical act with deadly precision. Bland sprinted 15 times. 15 throws at the stumps. He hit 12. From cover, from mid-wicket, from square leg. The spectators forgot their numb fingers. When someone praised his accuracy against three stumps, Bland laughed loud. "They spoiled me," he said. "I practice with one." Every morning before play, locals watched him try to hit a solitary stick for 30 minutes. If he missed, it was treated as breaking news. Same tour at Lord's. Ken Barrington was batting beautifully on 91. He pushed to mid-wicket. Easy single, he thought. Bland ran like someone had set fire to his boots, picked up one-handed on the run & threw down the stumps. Barrington stood frozen in the middle of the pitch. Later he admitted something honest. "A batsman always knows where Bland is. He has to know, to live." Jim Parks suffered worse. Bland ran him out by throwing the ball through Parks's legs to hit the stumps. Through his actual legs. The Daily Mail called Bland the Bradman of fielding. They were not exaggerating. John Reid at Wanderers walked off clapping his own dismissal after a diving catch, Australian writer R.S. Whitington called it the Catch of the Century. Bland had made fielders into heroes. He averaged 49 with the bat. Better than many specialists who played twice as long. But we only talk about the knee. 1966, Johannesburg. He was just 28 years old. Chasing another hopeless ball, he collided with the picket fence & his career over. Just like that. Fielding never got its statues. It got Bland for a brief while & then it went back to waiting until another South African blonde flied in 1992 World Cup. But those who saw him remember something else. They remember that for a few years, the man in the covers mattered as much as the man with the bat. That the third skill could make you hold your breath.

@FreyaWoods8 Good on you, that's what grudges are for.

I’ll never forgive England cricket for sidelining Jimmy and depriving us of him got the last two years. My solemn vow is that I will hold this grudge for as long as I live.

@tds122 @RickSanchezDJ I am not sure statistics ate particularly helpful yet in terms of fielding. Watching Foakes live, I see a man who every movement is fine tuned to the job he does and whose quality is evident. I suppose youd need to have played at a decent level to judge.

@RickSanchezDJ He was statistically worse than Bairstow as an England keeper

Foakes glovework for England was far from perfect . Fan boys & girls choose to forget that . Was actually more taken with his batting , which was decent without quite being what teams strive for in Tests . But the second coming of Jack Russell behind the stumps was well wide of the mark . I'd look away from Surrey for England's Test keeper

@DThompsonEsq @WG_RumblePants Room to spit your teeth (or nose) out, too.

@WG_RumblePants With the plastic face shield you can feed a small sandwich through.

White cricket helmets are cool. They will always be cool. Bring them back.

@WG_RumblePants Gooch - worth ten points more as an opener anyway, played match-winning innings under pressure, and averaged about 60 when captain. A superb icon of English cricket.

@herotimeszero Slimey

If Trump was one of the seven dwarfs, what would be his name?

@lady_valor_07 Gay.

He's? Be honest

@Matt_Pinner He approves.

When you see a woman wearing a nose ring, what is your first thought ??

@BoyceTim @WG_RumblePants 💯

@WG_RumblePants Proudest day of my life. Big opinions and a thin skin don’t mix.

I’ve been critical of Michael Vaughan chasing headlines and trying to manufacture clickbait quotes. I think he’s tarnished his 2005 legacy a bit by doing that. I’m one of many fans that he’s blocked. But, having said all that, credit where it’s due. Having listened to him on the TMS podcast and his own pod today, he sounds a lot more competent and capable than Rob Key. He clearly has a vision for England. He is a proven performer. I don’t think he would take any crap. He might even knock a few heads together. Would you like to see him take over from Key?

@shahidtrimzi @WG_RumblePants Nicholas was a very strong captain, has a beautiful commentary voice, but is far too busy at his manicurist and hairdresser to do any administration.

@WG_RumblePants Yeah he is a good option but Key is still there….Mark Nicholas may be the good option too…

@casscj70 @WG_RumblePants I cannot see Vaughn coping with adversity very well personally. He takes it all too personally.

@WG_RumblePants Only if he parked his ego. Given the criticism Key has received, I’m not sure Vaughan is ready for that.

@ChezvegasRoyal @WG_RumblePants Stewart is a man doing something transferable now, so he would pick the role up fast. Plus he's a proven leader and has the background at Test level. He'd be my choice if Key quits. Doubt anybody will remove Key proactively, however.

@WG_RumblePants Nahh…I rather enjoy watching Derbyshire!! He is deffo from the ‘less is more’ counties viewpoint. In an ideal world, I’d hand it to Alec Stewart on a plate. If not, I’d ask Mark Butcher (and not just because of the surname…)

@WG_RumblePants Good to see Boycs still dividing opinion all these years later!

A marmite character to some — legends of the game often are — but it’s difficult to deny that he was a bloody fine batsman.

@HugmikeL @WG_RumblePants That's overdoing it, Mike. Paint drying can be very interesting.

@WG_RumblePants He would bat all day for 20 runs. Occupying the crease is a legitimate tactic but as fine a batsman as he was watching him was like watching paint dry.

@Chester8Rob @WG_RumblePants I've always felt openers are worth an extra few runs on top of their average.

@WG_RumblePants Impossible to deny that. Anyone with 47+ test average over such a long career is world class. And I'm a Lancastrian :)

@Dravidict @amittalwalkar I remember it well, but thought it was a bit rubbish, although a good idea in principle.

@amittalwalkar This was 1984 Silk Cut challenge at Somerset.. To decide the world's best alrounder. Imran missed out in competing as he was injured. And the winner was Clive Rice

A staircase to cricketing heaven. Generations of skill in one frame. They didn't just play the game; they defined an era.

@Amelia558rs Audrey.

Mirror mirror on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?

@Hoot_eye_owl @fesshole For six months? For good!

@fesshole Maybe he used the front page to delay his climax? Just imagine if it had a picture of Anne Widdicombe on it? That would stop an ejaculation for six months.

I used to watch a porn actress but unsubscribed from her channel years ago because at the start of one of her videos she was reading The Daily Telegraph before the man arrives and they start bonking. Daily Telegraph can go hang.

@ESPNcricinfo Ludicrously over complicated. This happens to statisticians. He didn't factor in the size of the pitch, the number of pigeons, or, actually something I've said for years: openers are worth an extra five to ten runs per innings than middle order players.

A ranking of the best Test batters of all time using a comprehensive set of parameters 👉 srkl.in/6009BAfopc

@henil91 @ESPNcricinfo Best way to validate that perspective would simply be to compare their away records. Not sure how that shakes down, but would be interesting to know.

@ESPNcricinfo Sachin was far more superior than Sangakkara. If Sachin had played 30-40 tests on just one ground like Sangakkara on SSC, he would have scored way more runs. Please factor in number of grounds and conditions Tendulkar played.