Plenty of players bid farewell to the game in 2013 - an unusual number of great ones among them

Quiet, unassuming, polite and humble, Hashim Amla remains a terrific role model

The tourists have no excuses for their poor showing. They have simply not been good enough against quality bowling on lively pitches

Players insist that what's said on the field doesn't affect them, but then why do it at all? And why go up in arms when someone seemingly crosses the line?

Michael Clarke has gained praise in some quarters for showing mongrel by sledging. What sort of message does that send?

A Brisbane newspaper's campaign to vilify Stuart Broad has backfired spectacularly, and deservedly, as it wrongly portrays Australian fans as churlish and immature

Is his image a carefully constructed bubble that will one day be pricked? Everyone I have asked emphatically disagrees

A certain famous legspinner has shown he does not quite get leadership - in contrast to the two captains in the upcoming Ashes series

Scoring at more than six runs per over no longer comes fraught with huge risk and considerable damage

Do kids as young as eight need the protection, or do helmets just hamper their batting technique?

Where are the bowlers who consistently land balls in the blockhole at decent pace?

Aka the cricket stroke that can move medical professionals to poetry

Is it worth forking out the equivalent of a month's mortgage for your ten-year-old to play for a representative team?

Both sides are similarly matched in batting and bowling, so it may come down to who can stand up on the field longer

Umpires and referees make mistakes, but challenging them legally in the name of professionalism would be taking things a step too far

Going by the number of spinners in a recent U-11 trial in Brisbane, it looks like Australia's attack might come to be dominated by slow bowlers in the future

An amateur stats analysis of the recent series, and a look at what we could expect Down Under at the end of the year

If you're like Lehmann, you could swear, be comical, and not worry about having to think before you speak

Snarls and frowns can never guarantee success. Only the right combination of players can. So why criticise a captain for being gracious?

Despite all the criticism that has been turned on them, the on-field officials are doing a decent job