The Buzz
Brendon McCullum goes back to rugby
Back in the day, Brendon McCullum was very good at rugby. Now, at 36, he's trying his hand at it once again
ESPNcricinfo staff
04-Jun-2018
A young Brendon McCullum once famously kept out future All Blacks star Dan Carter from a South Island secondary schools rugby team. He was that good at the sport. Then, he chose cricket. Now, after much success in playing for and captaining his country's cricket team and retiring from the game, he's back to trying his hand at rugby.
First game of Rugby for 18 years today for the United Matamata B team in the local derby. Loved it! Unfort we went down but had a lot of fun with the boys.
— Brendon McCullum (@Bazmccullum) June 2, 2018
McCullum, who played for King's High School first XV back in the day, made a comeback on Sunday, aged 36, at fullback for United Matamata Sports B. The club was playing a local derby against Hinuera B. "It was meant to be a bit of a soft entry from a contact point of view, but that was never going to happen given it was a local derby," McCullum reportedly told Radio Live. "I had to get through that first tackle and it may have been a little bit late, but it wasn't too bad."
Full postMaking the gloves a 'mattress'
How South Africa worked on extra padding for their batsmen on a difficult Wanderers track
ESPNcricinfo staff
01-Feb-2018
South Africa needed creative methods to protect their fingers at the Wanderers, where variable bounce resulted in several batsmen taking blows to the body and hands. On the fourth morning, Hashim Amla was seen wearing what Herschelle Gibbs called "a mattress" on Twitter, essentially a heavily padded glove which was reinforced by splinting material.
South Africa's physiotherapist Craig Govender roped in opening batsmen Aiden Markram, who was dismissed early, to help. The pair used different coloured Kineso-tape to add some "flair," in Govender's words, to the gloves. Hashim Amla, Vernon Philander and Dean Elgar were among the worst affected on a pitch that the ICC rated as poor.
Full postRahul Dravid, back in blue
The "Bangalore boy" has been named brand ambassador by the ISL team from the city, Bengaluru FC
ESPNcricinfo staff
14-Nov-2017
Former India captain Rahul Dravid is officially back in blue, this time in the colours of Bengaluru FC, the Bengaluru-based Indian Super League (ISL) team which unveiled him as its brand ambassador ahead of its first season in the league.
Dravid won't be the first cricketing stalwart to show up in the league, which already boasts of names like Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni as co-owners of various franchises.
"It's great to be an ambassador for Bengaluru FC, a team who I have been tracking across the last four seasons. Also, the connect is instant given I am a Bangalore boy," Dravid said of the association. "The way the city has responded to BFC has been tremendous and the club has some of the most passionate fans. The ISL will be a new chapter in the club's history and I'm looking forward to being part of it in my capacity with BFC."
Full postGoing postal over Pakistan's Champions Trophy triumph
Three months since Sarfraz Ahmed's men produced Pakistan's biggest ODI triumph in 25 years, the nation's postal service commemorates the achievement
ESPNcricinfo staff
02-Nov-2017
Just over three months since Pakistan's extraordinary win in the Champions Trophy, the nation's postal service has issued a set of commemorative stamps and souvenir sheets to mark the achievement.
The stamps, priced at Rs 10 and available for purchase at post offices across the country starting today, show Pakistan's cricketers celebrating with the trophy at the Oval, apart from a separate set with shots of the trophy and a list of nations that took part in the tournament.
Pakistan's win in the Champions Trophy was their biggest global ODI tournament victory since the 1992 World Cup, when Imran Khan's side lifted the trophy in Australia. Incidentally, Pakistan Post had issued a set of stamps to mark that achievement, widely described as the nation's greatest moment in cricket history.
Full postThe Kotla gets a Virender Sehwag gate
And Karun Nair gets overlooked...
Srinath Sripath
31-Oct-2017
On the eve of the first T20 international between India and New Zealand at Feroz Shah Kotla, the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) honoured Virender Sehwag by renaming the stadium's Gate 2 after the former Delhi and India batsman.
Addressing the media at the DDCA event to unveil the gate, Sehwag said naming gates, dressing rooms, stands and areas in the stadium after former cricketers like him would serve as great motivators for aspiring cricketers. When asked about his thoughts on his former India and Delhi team-mate Ashish Nehra playing his final international game at the stadium the following day, Sehwag quipped, "We will talk about it tomorrow. Today is my day."
The gate itself contains, among other things, a cut-out of Sehwag, with the line "Legends are forever", and a panel recounting statistics and achievements from his remarkable international career spanning 14 years.
Full postFound: India's dossier on Sri Lanka
India did their homework on Sri Lanka - there's more evidence than the tour's scoreline to prove it
Andrew Fidel Fernando
15-Sep-2017
Attention Pakistan: if you are presently in the process of scouting Sri Lanka's batsmen and formulating bowling plans for the forthcoming Test series in the UAE, India has given you a head start on your homework.
A rundown of India's bowling plans was found attached to the dressing room door at Galle International Stadium, seven weeks after India's match against Sri Lanka had ended there. A photo of the plans and scouting summary for each batsman is presently doing the rounds on social media:
.@andrewffernando Not sure this was supposed to be left lying around post-Test Galle Intl @officialslc @BCCI #slvIND #redbullcampuscricket pic.twitter.com/BDtmTz0Xy8
— Hugo Lewis (@Hugo_555) September 15, 2017
Angelo Mathews, for example, is "uncomfortable against right-arm offspin" while a backward or forward short leg is in place, India's coaches and analysts thought. Despite Mathews' seeming proficiency with the pull shot, India's coaching staff advised their bowlers that the "short ball is a good option".
Full postWilliamson stumped by young fan's question
Remember the thriller at Eden Park? Kane Williamson doesn't
ESPNcricinfo staff
13-Sep-2017
Do you remember the thrilling finish of the Chappell-Hadlee ODI at Eden Park in Auckland earlier this year? If not, you have Kane Williamson for company.
"At the Chappell-Hadlee series last season at Eden Park, how do you remember the finish?," Jimi Samuels, a seven-year old, asked Williamson at an event. The New Zealand captain's stunning run-out of Josh Hazlewood from short mid-on had prevented Marcus Stoinis from pulling off a heist.
Shoeless in Chittagong?
The Australia batsman's Eid festivities took an amusing turn
Adam Collins and Mohammad Isam
02-Sep-2017
Usman Khawaja's festivities took an amusing turn in Chittagong when he lost his shoes at a mosque while participating in morning prayers for Eid.
The Australian No. 3 attended the Eid prayers on Saturday at the Dampara Police Line Mosque, along with Bangladesh players Sabbir Rahman and Mominul Haque.
He was flanked by an extensive security detail that has followed both the Australian and Bangladesh teams wherever they have travelled since Australia arrived in the country.
Full postDuckett v Ashwin sequel will have to wait
Ben Duckett's struggles against R Ashwin are well known, and the left-hander cheekily regretted not having to face the offspinner in more familiar conditions
ESPNcricinfo staff
16-Aug-2017
Ben Duckett, whose Twitter timeline is a constant stream of banter, and musings on British dating reality show Love Island, turned his attention to county cricket's latest recruit, R Ashwin. Ashwin has signed for Worcestershire following India's Test series win in Sri Lanka, and his side play in the second division of the County Championship, where his bunny Duckett plies his trade for Northamptonshire.
In a nod to his struggles during England's tour of India last year, where Ashwin dismissed him three times for a grand total of 18 runs, Duckett offered the Indian offspinner a cheeky welcome to county cricket.
Shame we've already played Worcester twice https://t.co/ZyLURZPQAF
— Ben Duckett (@BenDuckett1) August 15, 2017
Pranking Geoffrey Boycott
Jonathan Agnew and his colleagues leave Geoff Boycott in a state of trepidation with a well-executed prank
ESPNcricinfo staff
14-Aug-2017
Long before Sachin Tendulkar got to his 100th hundred - 35 years to be precise - Geoff Boycott got to his own milestone in front of his home crowd at Headingley in an Ashes Test. In his case, it was 100 first-class centuries, and would turn out to be his last in a career spanning 24 years. The occasion is now nearing its 40th anniversary, which the Boycott family is commemorating with a charity dinner at his house on August 11.
Boycott, currently covering the series between England and South Africa for BBC's iconic Test Match Special was wound up by his co-commentator Jonathan Agnew, who executed a well-prepared, perfectly-timed prank on the Yorkshireman.
When @Aggerscricket received a 'press release', @GeoffreyBoycott wasn't expecting what was to follow...#bbccricket pic.twitter.com/4poNOfQRlN
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) July 31, 2017
Agnew referred to one of Boycott's 100 hundreds, in a game at The Oval against a Rest of the World side, which was demoted from a Test to a first-class game, and read off a "press release". One meticulously crafted detail led to another, and soon, Boycott was left fuming, calling it "a load of tripe" and "absolutely ridiculous".
Full post