The Surfer

Someone needs to take Sreesanth aside and point out to him that since he has enough empirical evidence to quantify what makes for really bad bowling, maybe it is time he shut up and bent his energies to determining what really good bowling is all about; plumping the depths of bad behavior out of a spirit of scientific curiosity is not what he is being paid to do.

Golfer Stephen Ames suggested Tiger Woods’ swing was erratic last year before their world matchplay showdown, and Tiger’s response was a brutal seven birdies in the first nine holes.

When a young player mistakenly sledged Michael Jordan, his coach frantically pulled him off court but it was too late, and Jordan, inflamed, put on a show. Tendulkar is almost never sledged because his response is quietly savage.

The ruling body cannot make a decision that is not compromised. Bowling has been reduced to throwing, umpiring to the art of convenience, racial abuse to a point of view. Player behaviour teeters on the brink of violence.

Through his ceaseless work for Udayan in Kolkata, Waugh also opened their eyes to the good they could do. Hayden, Gilchrist, Ponting and others have been quick to follow suit, and even though the current tour has been played out in a largely acrimonious atmosphere, the Australians have won hearts with their eagerness to promote worthwhile causes.

Cricket Australia must come out from behind its shroud of protocol and publicly support Andrew Symonds in the racism row that has engulfed world cricket. Whatever the fine print may say in the ICC's anti-racism code, Symonds deserves better. CA's silence on the painful issue of racism gives the distinct impression that it is once again kowtowing to India to protect its lucrative relationship with cricket's wealthiest country.

The only specific shopping commission I had was for pashmina shawls, a speciality of the region. Made from cashmere, silk or wool - or a combination of two, or even all three - it was an impossible task [for me, anyway] to work out which were 'the real thing.'

One thing that Head On makes clear is that Botham is next to useless as a role model for aspiring cricketers. Throughout his life, he felt claustrophobic playing in the nets (that's what he claimed) and, as a result, he admits: 'There was probably no one in English professional cricket who practised less than I did.' He disliked watching the sport, apart from his great friend Viv Richards and David Gower, and he never had any interest in analysing statistics or collecting souvenirs. Regular viewers of BBC's A Question of Sport, on which Botham was a long-time captain, will remember just how little interest he appeared to take in his profession.

Only two days after her husband helped Australia win cricket's World Cup in the West Indies in May, Amy Hussey was taken to hospital with serious complications 25 weeks into her pregnancy.

I think the first time I played them, it was a case of me realising that I could play at that level. The next time I played them, I had been out of the game pretty much for two years and I had a point to prove.