The Reverse Sweep

Top 20 Cricket Blogs: 2 - cricket with balls / @cricketwballs

The first cricket blog we came across outside the mainstream media was Jarrod Kimber’s cricket with balls.

We lived to tell the tale.

Just.

Cricket with balls most definitely falls into the terrorist category of cricket blogs and is a no-holds barred, full-frontal assault on the game once played by gentlemen.

Appealing to (and I quote) “hermaphrodites, perverts, cricket fans, and anyone not related to a cricketer we hate”, cricket with balls has long been one of the most popular (and downright dirty) blogs available.

Indeed, the site has nearly as many followers as the Church of Scientology and perhaps therefore appropriately has even started its own religion – Sehwagology.

Cricket with balls has catapulted JRod from outside (as in on the other side of the world outside) the mainstream cricket media into a position today when it sometimes feels that he is the cricket media – editing Spin Cricket, appearing as one-half of The Two Chucks, writing articles for the Wisden Almanack and being one of Test Match Sofa’s crack commentary team.

That Jarrod has done all this without any sign of compromise (ok Spin Cricket maybe doesn’t have quite as much swearing as cricket with balls) is a tribute to his much mimicked but never bettered style.

Jarrod’s success particularly in 2011 has probably had a bit of a detrimental effect on cricket with balls as he clearly now doesn’t have the time to devote to it that he used to.

That said, whilst the quantity has dropped off the quality hasn’t and Jarrod was splendidly vitriolic on the Ireland/Associate/World Cup issue and also recently on the DRS mess.

Finally, Jarrod would probably (no, try definitely) want us to finish by reminding you that you can buy his three books at your friendly, local Amazon book store.

Follow JRod on Twitter @cricketwballs - be warned, if you are easily offended you may want to avert your eyes.

Where next?

Don't miss a thing - Subscribe to and read about all of the Top 20 Cricket Blogs here

Read all our County Cricket coverage

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

PS: Whilst the Reverse Sweep is busy packing up and moving back to Surrey from the South of France, we'll be counting down our Top 20 cricket blogs whilst we are away (so to speak)...

Top 20 Cricket Blogs: 12 - Test Match Sofa / @testmatchsofa

 
The “alternative cricket commentary” isn’t strictly speaking a blog (it would be in the top 2 for cricket commentaries though!), although it does contain the musings of Dan Norcross - Test Match Sofa’s very own answer to Jonathan Agnew – on the Sofa’s blog pages.

However, as we’ve written before Test Match Sofa actually saved our lives when we were desperately scrabbling around to hear commentary of the momentous Newlands Test of 2010, so it would be wrong not to include the Sofa here.

The popularity of the Sofa has soared since its inception in the 2009 Ashes series and we’re not surprised given that it is a worthy alternative to the more austere Test Match Special, which of course is practically an institution.

Unlike, some of the Sofa’s listeners, we’re also big fans of the ‘other TMS’ and the fact that we share our loyalty between the two is perhaps the biggest statement of our appreciation of the Sofa.

The blog itself, which although not updated quite as often as we would like, is just like Dan’s commentary – articulate, amusing, sometimes controversial and intrinsically English.

Follow the madness on Twitter @testmatchsofa as well as some of the gang on @sofa_dan, @la_sophista, @HENDOTMS, @sofa_tom

Where next?

Don't miss a thing - Subscribe to and read about all of the Top 20 Cricket Blogs here

Cricket Heroes: Test Match Sofa

Read all our County Cricket coverage

Check out all our Reverse Sweep cricket heroes and zeroes

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

PS: Whilst the Reverse Sweep is busy packing up and moving back to Surrey from the South of France, we'll be counting down our Top 20 cricket blogs whilst we are away (so to speak)...

Happy 1st Birthday

The Reverse Sweep is one year old today.

Some (ok no-one) likened the arrival of the Reverse Sweep as the Second Coming, but as you can see we were premature by two days - unlike Alastair Cook who was born on Christmas Day and had fooled us into thinking he was the Second Coming of Wally Hammond in Brisbane and Adelaide.

Like most one year olds, we are still learning to walk, talk and familiarise ourselves with the world, but unlike many other cricket blogs we have made it to our first birthday, which is pretty good considering the infant mortality rate of bloggers.

So whilst we blow out the candles on our cup cake and drink our tea on this chilly morn, here are an XI of our highlights (or maybe low-lights?) of an eventful first year out of the womb.

1. Finding that there are similar like minded cricket addicts with warped minds and acerbic tongues via several excellent cricket blogs, Test Match Sofa and Twitter (where we have incredibly amassed over 600 followers)
2. Being named one of the 50 leading cricket web sites in the world by The Times and getting over 120,000 hits in our first year
3. Getting a shout in Dawn for our piece on Pakistan's flirtation with Hollywood during the Headingley Test against the Aussies
4. Being paid to write about cricket - it was great whilst it lasted until said site suddenly stopped paying its contributors - you know who you are
5. Getting published in the first three editions of Cricket Sadist
6. Discovering Test Match Sofa - which has literally saved our lives when work and broadcasting restrictions have meant that Sky and Test Match Special were not available
7. Getting a reply from Graham Onions on Twitter when we suggested Gary Sobers, Keith Miller and Imran Khan as alternatives to his assertion that Jacques Kallis was the best all-rounder ever
8. Witnessing the continued resurgence of the England cricket team, which has taken in a World T20 win, vastly improved ODI performances and a near two year unbeaten record in Test series - a win at the MCG over the next few days will be the icing on the cake
9. Launching our most popular features including Heroes & Zeroes and the labour of love that was the Ashes 100 day countdown - the latter a collaberation with our good friends at World Cricket Watch
10. Reading the brilliant biography of Harold Larwood by Duncan Hamilton - the best cricket book we've ever read and the perfect appetiser for the Ashes
11. Finally, but most importantly, the birth of Miss Reverse Sweep Junior, which with Master Reverse Sweep coming just two years before completes the best (and only) double hundred we've ever scored

Happy birthday Sweep - with love from Sooty and Sue.

Where next?

Check out all our Reverse Sweep heroes and zeroes

See our Ashes 100 day countdown

Heroes: Test Match Sofa

If you like this, follow us on Twitter @thereversesweep

Heroes: Test Match Sofa

 
We've had some pretty amazing heroes in the last few months at the Reverse Sweep - including Douglas Jardine, David Gower, Dennis Lillee, Hedley Verity and even Justin Langer (yes, we were surprised too), but none of these actually saved our life. Test Match Sofa did.

Being an ex-pat living in the South of France, broadcasting restrictions prevent us from listening to Test Match Special at work. So, having managed to wangle being at home for the Centurion and Durban South Africa vs England tests last year, we were at our wits end what to do about the Cape Town Test, which would be concluded whilst we were sitting behind the desk in our boring IT Sales job.

And then Google came to the rescue and our Test Match Sofa initiation began. And what an initiation given the thrilling climax to that particular match where Colly, Bell and Onions saved England's bacon - see Heroes of Newlands.

At first we were suspicious about what is essentially some cricket fans watching Sky and commentating live on the Internet whilst reading out Tweets and emails from listeners. But despite being a life long fan of the other TMS, we became immediate converts to the Sofa - sorryAggers and Bloers.

Since then we've tuned in when we can find time between a busy job, two babies and weekend chores and thoroughly enjoyed "the alternative cricket commentary". And with a raft of business trips lined up during the Ashes to non-UK destinations, Test Match Sofa will actually save us from the utter desolation that would be missing the action.

The biggest compliment we can give the Sofa is that it stands on an equal footing to TMS. Dan is the Sofa's Agnew - erudite, amusing and the backbone of the team - and even better he shares our worship of Douglas Jardine and belief that Percy Chapman's 1928/29 side that won the Ashes 4-1 in Australia is England's greatest ever. That excuses the ridiculous socialist nonsense he is prone to spout!

Manny is the grumpy sod of the Sofa, but like that other moaner Boycott most of what he says is both incisive and interesting. Jarrod is the archetypal Aussie - loud, brash and full of expletives but invariably picks a chink in a new batsman's technique far quicker than the so-called experts do on Sky. And we also particularly like Gary's commentary style despite him being a fan of the wrong football team in Liverpool.

It's probably unfair to pick out these four - we should also mention Tom, Sophia and Aatif - as all the regular commentators are worth a listen. It's hard to pick any fault with the Sofa, although the increasing references to bets can grate at times - but that is only a small criticism.

For saving us from the abomination of missing some of the Ashes and the likely hari-kiri that would ensue, Test Match Sofa is undoubtedly a Reverse Sweep hero.

Where next?

Check out all our other Reverse Sweep heroes and zeroes

Ashes Squads: Player Profiles - England and Australia

The 25 Greatest Ashes Tests of them all: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3

Ashes 100-1: 25 - 10 things NOT to look forward to in the Ashes

 
With the England team en route to Perth and the 1st Test at Brisbane now less than four weeks away, the Ashes suddenly seems so much closer. The excitement is certainly starting to build and like all cricket fans we at the Reverse Sweep cannot wait for the action to begin.

But there are many aspects of the Ashes not to look forward to. Here are ten:

1. The Channel 9 Commentary team

Australia may have provided some of the best cricketers in history, but it has also produced some of the worst commentators. Richie Benaud apart and let's face it he should stick to the Sanatogen at his age, the team consists of the token Pom - Mark Nicholas and then the Australian cheerleading squad of Healy, Taylor, Lawry and Slater. One can only hope that the likes of Atherton and Hussain will be employed to provide some more articulate words. If not there is always Test Match Sofa.

2. Michael Clarke's Press Conferences

Let's be honest, the vast majority of modern day cricketers spout utter banalities at the plethora of press conferences they have to attend. Graeme Swann and the old guffaw from Kevin Pietersen apart, listening to the others is like sticking pins in your eyes. But the worst culprit has to be Michael 'I only speak in the third person' Clarke. The reason why there will never be a big screen at Beachy Head is because anyone watching and listening to Clarke would consider suicide a better option.

3. Blanket advertising

Australian television is not quite as bad the US for mindless advertising, but it isn't far off. If it wasn't bad enough having to listen to the Channel 9 idiots, the regular plugs for the KFC Classic Catch, the Cricket Australia Travel Agency and worst of all the Gatorade Heart Monitor will have you pressing for the mute button and the pins for your Michael Slater doll.

4. Zombies

For those of us watching the action in the UK (or France, in our case) through the night, the Ashes will lead to an increase in the number of sleep deprived zombies on the streets, which can't be a good thing as far as road traffic accidents and work productivity in a (near) recession are concerned.

5. John Buchanan

For some inexplicable reason, England have hired the former Australian coach as a 'consultant' for the series. So far he seems more akin to a double-agent with his unhelpful comments about Kevin Pietersen. Indeed, we're with KP on this - Buchanan is a 'nobody' and anyone (even Peter Moores) could have coached the Australian side during his era at the helm. Faced with a choice of listening to Michael Clarke or Buchanan spouting crap, we'd opt for Clarke every time.

6. Adelaide

The Adelaide Oval is one of the best and most picturesque cricket grounds in the World. However, for any England supporter who witnessed the events of the final day at Adelaide in the 2006/07 series, even the merest mention is likely to bring on heart palpitations and three-month long nightmares.

7. Mitchell's Mother

Some cricketers have to cope with publicity hungry girlfriends and wives - just ask Michael Clarke. But poor old Mitchell has to cope with his mother, who makes that complete waste of space Jordan seem mild in comparison. Expect to see Mrs Johnson with her rolling pin and apron waiting at the boundary edge throughout the series to give the wayward Mitchell a piece of her mind.

8. History

Those of us that follow England are probably more confident about this Ashes series down under than any since 1986/87 - and even then England were labelled as the team that 'can't bat, can't bowl and can't field' early on that tour. But a quick look at the history books will quickly tell us that England have only won four series in Australia since World War II and one of those in 1978/79 was against an Australian side weakened by several defections to World Series Cricket. History is clearly not on England's side.

9. Shane Watson

Even most of the Australian fans don't like the preening excuse for a man that is Watson. However, he seems to have transformed from an all-rounder made of glass into an opening batsman who keeps inexplicably scoring buckets of runs. If James Anderson proves to be as ineffectual with the kookaburra as feared, expect Watson to fill his boots. Losing would be hard enough, but seeing Watson do well would probably be too much.

10. 5-0 references

If Australians were understandably amused by the English media conveniently forgetting about the 2006/07 series when the Ashes were at stake in England last summer, expect the reverse this time. Don't be surprised if 2009 becomes Australia's Afghanistan - the 'forgotten war' as the heat rises before Brisbane. And if Australia win there...

Where next?

REVEALED: New Pakistan Player Code of Conduct

Zeroes: Shane Watson, John Buchanan

EXCLUSIVE: Kevin Pietersen's Ashes Diary

Ashes 100-1: 50 - Who will win? Have your say in our poll...

With 50 days until The Ashes kick off at The Gabba, this seems like an appropriate time to launch an Ashes poll (see left hand side bar). This marks the chance for you to have your say before The Ashes kick off. We’re teaming up with some other fine cricket websites on this one to try and gauge the opinion of the public. You can also see the poll featured at: World Cricket Watch | Test Match Sofa

Will these burning questions be answered in the England-Pakistan test series?

Hopefully, by the end of the England-Pakistan test series, which begins today at Trent Bridge, we will have the answer to these questions - some serious and others less so.

1. Will Jimmy Anderson rediscover the art of taking wickets with the new ball or is he in danger of losing his place in the side (to Ajmal Shahzad)?
2. Will Kevin Pietersen score his 17th test century? It is 12 tests and counting since his 16th (102 vs West Indies in Trinidad in March 2009).
3. Can Eoin Morgan prove himself as a test match batsman and pip Ian Bell to the number six slot for the Ashes?
4. Will the England selectors notice that a certain young leg-spinning all-rounder keeps taking five fors and scoring runs for Yorkshire?
5. Will Umar Akmal play a proper test innings rather than a series of outrageous shots at wholly inappropriate times?
6. If Pakistan lose the first two test matches, will they send for the cavalry in the shape of Mohammad 'retired' Yousuf and/or Younis Khan?
7. Will we still be talking about Pakistan's trio of quicks as the best and most varied pace attack currently operating in test cricket at the end of the series?
8. Will Salman Butt survive as captain until the end of the Oval test, or is Shoaib "Machiavelli' Malik already plotting and conspiring against him?
9. Will the UDRS work better than it did in South Africa, or is Daryl Harper waiting in the wings with his sound turned down having forgotten to go to his appointment with Specsavers?
10. Will we find out why Test Match Sofa plays 'Turning Japanese' by The Vapors as the jingle for Mohammad Asif (or Aamer - we can't remember which one)?   

Answers on a postcard please and let the feast of cricket begin.

Love cricket, but live abroad?

Love cricket but live aboard and can't get Sky or Test Match Special? Listen to live commentary here instead, courtesy of Test Match Sofa, a new online radio station covering all England Twenty20, ODI and test matches at home and abroad. It may be sacreligious to day it, but it is arguably better than Test Match Special too for those of you that live in the UK.

 

Heroes of Newlands

Anyone who says that test cricket is boring should be forced to watch a re-run of the final day's play of the 3rd Test yesterday at Newlands (and indeed the final day of the Sydney test between Pakistan and Australia for that matter).

It was absolutely riveting stuff and like many others I was glued to the commentary on Test Match Sofa (or Sky or TMS) and as per cricket tradition did not move from my seat for the whole day's play.

Unbelievably England performed their version of The Great Escape for the second time in this series and the third time in their last eight tests. Cape Town now joins its counterparts of Centurion and Cardiff in the Great Escape trilogy and in the annuls of England's most memorable test matches.

Four heroes and two further unlikely ones emerged from the final day. Without further ado here is the roll of honour:

The Heroes

Paul Collingwood- Collingwood has been the central figure and inspiration of all three rearguards and never mind the MBE, he should arguably be knighted for his heroism. Once again Collingwood arrived at the crease with England in a desperate position and once again he coolly set about his work. The doomsayers who were calling for his head after Headingley look rather stupid now. In the Great Escape trilogy his stats are 140 runs, 532 balls (88.4 overs) and 779 minutes (1 minute short of 13 hours) at the crease for twice out (like Cardiff he even got out near the end yesterday to make it interesting!). Incredible.

Ian Bell- If Collingwood was the undoubted foundation of yesterday's heroics, England wouldn't have escaped if others hadn't also stood steadfast. Step forward the unlikely figure of Ian Bell. Despite having all the talent in the World, Bell does not have the reputation of someone you can rely on in a crisis. Indeed, all of his test centuries have come when at least one other colleague has also made a ton. But he was magnificent yesterday and hopefully this will be the inspiration he needs to go on and justify his talent. Arguably, he is the most talented of all of England's batsmen but before yesterday also the mentally weakest.

Graham Onions- Lightning does strike twice. And just as at Centurion, Onions played out the final over with aplomb despite unbelievable pressure and tension. Once again Onions reduced the South Africans to tears with his bravery. Never in the history of cricket conflict has so much been achieved by such small knocks as Onions' 1 not out and 0 not out at Centurion and Cape Town respectively. Graeme Swann also deserves plaudits but on this occasion his achievements rank below those of Colly, Bell and Onions.

Dale Steyn - There was a South African hero too yesterday. Steyn bowled his heart out all day and his new ball battle with Collingwood evoked memories of the famous tussle between Allan Donald and Mike Atherton at Trent Bridge in 1998. I'm not a big fan of the ICC rankings system, but Steyn really did show why he is ranked as the top test bowler in the World even if he was unlucky and unrewarded on this occasion.

The unlikely heroes

Umpire Decision Review System - Now those that read my post yesterday will know that like many I am not a supporter of the UDRS. And I am not the only one. As I exclusively revealed the ICC had unfurled a desperate scheme to justify the UDRS in this test match in the shape of Daryl Harper. But the UDRS saved England when Collingwood facing his first ball was given out to a catch at slip by Kallis off Harris. Collingwood immediately called for the review, which showed that the deflection had come off his hip. Without UDRS, Collingwood would have gone and with it England's chances of saving the test. Maybe, just maybe, I am beginning to see the merits of the system now!

Paul Harris & the SA selectors - Maybe I am being a bit unfair, but never have I seen a test spinner who turns and spins the ball less (even Nathan Hauritz looks good in comparison). For the most part Bell and Collingwood were able to play him with consummate ease and Harris was even overshadowed by J.P Duminy, who is supposedly a part-time bowler. Maybe the South Africans will learn from this and Centurion that having a good spinner in your ranks is crucial to bowling out sides in the fourth innings of a match.

The Reverse Sweep is an irreverent take on the wonderful game of cricket. Follow posts from the Reverse Sweep here. 

Saved by the (test match) sofa

Depressed by the thought of going back to work yesterday.

Especially given that I would miss the cricket.

Living in the South of France means I cannot listen to Test Match Special online.

Something to do with some bollocks called broadcasting rights.

Fruitless searches on Google to find free commentary elsewhere.

And then a shining light appeared from nowhere.

A novel idea called Test Match Sofa.

A bunch of guys (and a girl) sitting on a sofa and giving on alternative take.

And actually better than TMS to boot.

There's swearing, jingles and no Geoff Boycott in sight.

So I can now sit at work and enjoy listening to England's march to victory in Cape Town.

Ok the last line may not come true.

But check out Test Match Sofa anyway and enjoy...