Climbing the social ladder

The ECB's latest sponsorship deal with Jaguar is a reflection of cricket's upward social mobility, writes ED Smith in the Times.

In the Eighties and Nineties, cricketers had to beg their local dealership for whatever was going spare — perhaps a nice white Ford Sierra with a tail fin and electric sunroof. In return, the car was plastered with the player’s name and cricketing CV. Yes, you got the Sierra, but it came at a heavy social price. Not every player, of course, viewed driving a car embossed with his own name and accomplishments as an embarrassment. Some went straight back to the garage to ask for bigger print.