Inside the spaceship

A few times in the lead-up to the second Test, sitting in the spaceship which doubles as the media centre, I was consumed by typing or talking and forgot briefly where I was. Looking up from the screen snapped me back, with the imposing and magical pavilion staring straight back. It is the most majestic place to watch cricket, a treat I once had when Middlesex played Nottinghamshire in a Championship game, and is as high as the neighbouring stands.

It’s hard to think of sixes rattling into the base of the pavilion, which sits behind an already long straight boundary, but a few men have managed to bump it near the top. Only Albert Trott, who played for both Australia and England, has managed to clear it, and it’s unlikely anyone will aim for glory in this match. (If there’s a betting market on it Mitchell Johnson is my tip.)

Kim Hughes and Keith Miller have smashed the top of the building, with Miller commentating when Hughes sent a Chris Old delivery 125 metres during the Centenary Test of 1980. “Those in the vicinity maintain the ball was rising still as it struck the top deck of the pavilion,” wrote Chris Ryan in Golden Boy.

In the commentary box Miller, who peppered the structure during the Dominion Tests, was asked if he’d seen a bigger six at the ground. “Well, I hit a couple there myself, oddly enough,” he said. “But not many have. That is one of the biggest hits I’ve seen for many, many a year. On top of the balcony.”

All former Australian players who had appeared in an Ashes Test were invited back for that match and Kerry O’Keeffe, the straight-breaking legspinner, spent a bit of time in the Father Time Bar, where one of his drinking partners was Mick Jagger. O’Keeffe plans to park there again as part of his tour-leading duties over the next five days. Any member of the Rolling Stones who turns up is allowed to join the shout.