Published: 2025-08-02 10:48:38 | Views: 16
Key events
Nasser Hussain and Stuart Broad are wandering around the England dressing room at The Oval. Ollie Pope has 14 bats in his locker. There’s also an ice bath and sauna. The biggest bat throwers of their different eras? YJB and Stokes and Nasser himself and Ramprakash.
Time for a quick coffee, back shortly.
An email! “Good morning Tanya! Hello there, Allan MacDonald.
”Looking forward to seeing how they manage to stretch *this* Test to the 5th day…
”Will be solely relying on your own excellent updates until after the Rugby’s over.
”In some ways think it’s probably time for this grumpy series to end, great though it’s been. But will miss the companionship of you and your colleagues!”
Thank you! We will miss it too. For all the issues, good and bad, of the Hundred, the disappearance of Test cricket in August has been the hardest to digest. Though having said that, next year Pakistan’s men come over and play two Tests in August.
Sky are showing England’s three drops yesterday evening. Alas, poor Liam Dawson. Letting Jaiswal slip through the fingers twice is certainly sub-optimal.
Michael Atherton is very exercised by Akash Deep putting his arm around Duckett after dismissing him – “cricket is a non-contact sport and should stay that way.”
And Barney’s rhapsody to Gus Atkinson – I’m very keen on his description of Duckett’s Hedgehog Sweep. Incidentally, he mentions Sonny Baker, who took three wickets at pace yesterday as Hampshire pressed Worcestershire at New Road.
This was Ali’s take on a memorable day two:
Good morning! After the fiery furnace of day two, we roll into day three - which could be the crucial one in the series. And yes, we have been here before. The pitch is spicy, the players tetchy, the house full – and the weather promises to behave – barring the odd light shower.
India have a 52 run lead, eight wickets left, and Jaiswal, whose series has drifted, will have his eyes on three figures and beyond. England’s stand-in fast bowers, Atkinson excepted, will want to perform with more bells and fewer whistles second time around. Play starts at 11am, don’t miss a ball of the last Test Saturday of the summer.
