The Surfer

Seven years or so ago, not long after Jimmy Anderson burst so ebulliently on to the international scene with a seam position to die for and a host of wickets as he swung the ball round corners, it was clear he had a flaw in his action, in the sense that it was not textbook. Yet it produced. Fast forward a few years, some tinkering behind him, and what worked was broken, literally in the case of his back, which sustained stress fractures that sidelined him for most of the 2006 season. It has taken years of hard work, disappointment, inconsistency and a total rebuilding of confidence to get him back to where he started.

Indeed, the IPL was, and may well be again, a magnificent success, bold in its conception, brilliant in its inception and dramatic throughout, a testament to the innovation, drive and financial muscle that sums up modern-day India. Twenty20, the best players in the world and Bollywood proved to be an alluring mix. But the IPL is not a gift to the game as a whole. Nobody, except the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the franchise investors and the players, makes a bean out of the IPL. It is, put simply, a private commercial enterprise, an utterly ruthless one at that, and, because there can be only one of its kind, owing to the crowded nature of the international fixture list, it is in competition with every other member nation of the ICC.

Australia found out that they didn't need so many old hands to remain successful, that in fact their domestic cricket was strong, certainly with regards batsmen and fast bowlers, and that they will continue to be close to, if not at, the top of the Test tree for the foreseeable future ... South Africa will know that to dominate the way Australia did for a decade is not easy. After winning in Australia, it was felt that with a side with so many young players in so many important positions - Hashim Amla at three, JP Duminy and AB de Villiers in the middle order, and Dale Steyn and Morné Morkel as fast bowlers, they could start to define their own era of dominance.

In some parts of the cricketing world, both Dyson and Khan would have been looking for jobs the following day. But West Indian fans have grown so used to the self-generated, off-field distractions from within the administrative ranks of the West Indies Cricket Board that it is no surprise that neither was called to account for their shortcomings in calculation. This, coming on the heels of the abandoned Test match in Antigua, was another well-directed bouncer at West Indies cricket which clearly struck the target. Such indiscretions continue the blunders of the current and past regimes of West Indies cricket and provide major challenges to the game in these parts.

Money is being pumped into English cricket like never before. The back-room staff could form an XI of their own and still have men left over to make and serve the drinks. Central contracts briefly coincided with an upturn in the fortunes of the Test team, although hindsight makes you wonder whether that had more to do with Duncan Fletcher and the partnerships he formed with Nasser Hussain and Michael Vaughan. Yet the one-day team continues to blunder its way round the world like a bunch of accidental tourists, losing six games out of 10 against meaningful opposition and forever tripping at the first hurdle of a World Cup.

IPL's second season has become clouded in other issues like political equations, security logistics, a tussle of ego and territory but eventually a pragmatic, economic reason has sent it to another place where it will simply be less hassle to do business. It is a gamble, but the entire event was a gamble based on the Indian audience's appetite for instant cricket. So now, overseas Indians may well find their way to what is nowbeing called the NRI-PL but more importantly, satellite television should keep the TV ratings high.

England's 22-year old luminary on that first unbeaten Australian adventure was, happily, to become a friend and neighbour of mine in the last couple of decades of her life. Myrtle Maclagan was both opening bat and demon spin bowler. In the first Test at Brisbane, she scored 72 and took seven for 10. In the second at Sydney she made 119, the first Test century by a woman. England's men had lost their Ashes that summer of 1934, so Myrtle's feats had the Morning Post crowing back home

One of the arguments that comes back from the media is that the interest in women's sport is simply not there. I don't buy this. It's a self-serving argument. There will be no interest if broadcasters do not work to build it. History shows that the British public have the appetite to become absorbed in any sport if it is promoted in the right way. It wasn't long since we were all fascinated by curling. Activity at the grassroots shows there is real interest out there.

India’s last two away series, in Australia and Sri Lanka, saw it lose the first Test. It isn’t a weakness unique to India: despite the unhealthy trend towards homogenisation of conditions (which gladdens broadcasters who benefit from games lasting the distance, but detracts from cricket’s essential appeal), every team on tour takes time settling.

Cranking up the ego war with the Government on the logistics of this IPL season, he [Shashank Manohar, the BCCI President] apologised to the “people of India”, but comforted himself by saying that at least they’d now be able to watch the tournament on television. Really, Mr Manohar? Is this truly what’s behind this effort to start a bidding war between England and South Africa to host the IPL? Because if it is the Indian fan’s benefit that’s on the agenda, the BCCI’s latest announcement amounts to little less than the cricketing equivalent of high treason.

Another pothole is the question of TV rights, with the IPL coinciding with West Indies’ tour to England. Sky has the rights for the exclusive coverage of England internationals and would not welcome the competition from Setanta, which has the IPL rights and feels it was poorly treated over the bidding for England games. The ECB is in no position — or mood — to upset Sky.