Different Strokes

This series for the D'Oliveira Trophy seems to have been written by John le Carre

Better read than watched

What’s best about Test cricket played on this sort of pitch between two relatively evenly-matched teams is that it has provided a platform for every type of cricketer to be villain and hero

Why Test cricket isn't dead

Some of the players are hardly household names either and yet, their performances thus far have endeared themselves to the home crowds.

Imports swell Australia's cricket economy

My theory is that Broad has somehow acquired the ability to make things temporarily invisible to specific people.

How Broad bamboozled the South Africans

Pakistan fast bowlers have a tradition of first unveiling their menacing intent in Australia

Aamer sings the tunes of Imran and Wasim

When a spinner is on and there are four or five fielders crouched round the batsman, you can feel the steam building up in the pressure-cooker - and these last few weeks, we have had gratifyingly extended views of batsmen being boiled like sponge

The return of the fingerspinner

Every country has their own culprits but the theme is universal; refer to national pride, passion, honour, competitiveness etc and that buys you immunity from good manners

Honour as an excuse for sledging

The spirit of Christmas and the Spirit of Cricket: two abstract concepts that are more about misty-eyed, mushy sentimentalism than about anything you can actually see and touch and feel

The true spirit of cricket

The legacy of idolising Boycs is an enduring appreciation for the stonewaller in his various guises, though it has to be said that he does not always make for riveting viewing

The slowcoaches

Thirty-three is a fair old age to be embarking on a gruelling county career playing more cricket than he has ever done in his life

Goodbye and hello to Iain O'Brien

Kaneria’s assets include a highly effective googly, an accurate stock ball, and the will to strike back after coming in for some stick

The Kaneria conundrum

Because of Strauss's leadership, England are now playing optimistic one-day cricket: they have no idea whether they are going to win the next game but they will give it a decent shot because – at last – they believe in themselves.

Can Strauss perform the impossible?

If there is anything this team needs, it is an opener with a steady bat, and Malik has one

Why is Shoaib Malik not opening the batting?

Do we really think that umpires are biased towards their own country

Out with the neutral umpire

If anyone chooses not to come to the Gabba these next five days because there is a limit on alcohol or beach balls or whistles or Mexican Waves, the policy would have achieved its main aim – keeping cricket sacrosanct for those who actually prefer

Two firsts at the Gabba

What will be interesting to see is whether the funding is truly directed to the grassroots of the sport or whether it ends up being siphoned towards the elite end of the pyramid.

The age of innocence and marketing

On many levels, cricket seems to be full of contradictions and confusion right now

Flat foot stooges

I want to see more England batsmen playing like Bangladeshis, hitting out as often as possible even if they get out while doing it

Wanted: More aggression from England

Mohammad Yousuf has had ample experience in making mistakes while running between the wickets, but the only mastery he has shown is in refusing to learn from them

Why Mohammad Yousuf never learns