'Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer singles and boundaries of outrageous fortune'

Reader: 2929paul

The greatness of Chanderpaul is shown by the high esteem in which he was held by his opponents. Once Lara had retired he was one of the most prized wickets in world cricket, let alone the WI team. Regrettably for a succession of sides that have boasted numerous multi talented individuals, none of his teammates understood that his success wasn't an accident of talent but a result of dedication, hard work and a refusal to sell his wicket cheaply. Technically, his open stance was just a starting point from where his movements took him into the right position. It opened out more and more as he got older, presumably because he found it easier to time the movement around into position at release. Other batsmen use different triggers to time their movements. I don't think it would be coached, although some might develop their own version of it over time. I think two eyed stance is a misnomer, as everyone turns their neck to face the bowler with both eyes. It's better to call it open chested.

Reader: Samper

Another in a series of brilliant articles by Cricinfo to pay tribute to Shiv. One can be forgiven for believing that the author is Guyanese, such is his reverence in this article to the son of a fisherman from Unity Village, who rose from the depths of poverty to become the world class batsman that he was for such a long period. Shiv's contribution to the wider Guyana and West Indies societies is beyond cricket. He was a unifying force throughout the region; fans of all races and nationalities loved him wherever he played. He was even made an honorary citizen of Dominica (where he scored his 10,000th run). I am grateful to have watched him play (the only time I did so live) against England at the Providence Stadium in 2009, when he scored 26 runs in one over against Steve Harmison in the ODI on the Friday, and then an unbeaten century on the Sunday. Thanks for the memories, Shiv and God bless(from a compatriot now living in Toronto).

Reader: Johnthekiwi

Two things really get on my goat as it relates to expanding cricket. The first is the pipe dream that a few million ex-pats wandering around the US constitutes a core for the games expansion. NO IT DOESN'T! Nothing will supplant baseball from the summer consciousness up here. Just stop it. The second is the 'Olympic dream'. Unless you are living in denial you would know that every Olympics is a financial disaster for the host nation and the games already have dozens of hanger on sports that don't belong there. You might also consider that the world economy is slipping into the abyss and the costs of staging a proper cricket match are astronomical. How about just focusing on making what we have better? Why not make an affiliate team comprised of the best of the R.O.T.W players and give them touring/international status for all their games? You don't think that would build the game in those places? India sounds like it is going to get ripped off. I'm a capitalist and that is BS.

Reader: Bernard Carney

To bowl or not to bowl? that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer singles and boundaries of outrageous fortune, or to take the wicket of the unsuspecting non-striker!

I've been evoluting over this for a while now.

Reader: GeoffreysMother

Nice article. Nice juxtaposition of the men at the running end in both of these landmark innings. Stokes is portrayed as a bit of a 'do first, think second ' man but this showed a lot of understanding and sympathy. One of the things I like about this current lot of English players is they do seem very unselfish. On this occasion Buttler was on his feet cheering loudly at Bairstow's century, yesterday Bairstow was in the middle of a similar crowd of English players cheering Buttler's.

Reader: Panki2706

Thats the most striking thing about Kohli's batting: Control. He is always controlling the pace of the game whenever he is in the middle, and that too only playing regular orthodox cricket shots. Its actually quite staggering when you come to think of it, he is not really a big hitter of the ball and he does not need to be. He is someone who is perhaps a freak when it comes to stacking up the runs. ABs and Smiths of the worlds are quite adventurous and have to resort to unorthodox methods to keep the runs coming whereas this champion is just putting the runs up as if he is having a net session. Have been watching some videos of kane williamson as well on youtube and currently i think these two are the most complete,conventional batsman whose efficiency is quite scary...hats off champions...

Reader: lazarus69

Great to see Ed get recognized for his efforts in spreading this beautiful game. A big Shout out to him from his biggest fans from the Heartland Cricket League in Iowa & Nebraska. Having played a few times at Foxfire and enjoyed the hospitality of Ed and his family, I can state that this is probably one of the few Cricket venues in the USA where you feel civilized! Ed is doing God's work down in Kansas :-) ...If you build it, they will come!

Reader: Philip Ayres

For me that Vaughan and Trescothick opening pair was one of the best England have had since I started watching the game in 1989. That chase in the third SL test where they came out an knocked off 50 at a run a ball with 6 overs remaining was fabulous stuff. Then when Vaughan got going during the winter vs Australia .... I can still hear the crack off his bat as he laid into the Aussie bowling.

It could have all started a bit sooner to: It was obvious to me Vaughan was going to be a better bet opening in India than Ramprakash.

And, just like my other favourite opening partnership, Atherton and Stewart, it was broken up far too soon.

Reader: InsideHedge

Lovely, article. Thank you VR, please keep them coming. I had a brief chat with David Gower 3-4 yrs back and the first thing you notice is his courteous personality. He's a very modest man too as well as the noted self deprecating wit. I mentioned to David how as a very young man, I attended the Edgbaston Test of 1979 eager to see Chandra & Bedi only for David to carve them to pieces during his majestic double ton - referenced by VR in the article above. Not surprisingly, David played down his effort as having benefited from a friendly pitch and spin greats that were past their best. It's typical of his modesty - no airs, graces, pomposity & swagger that's lauded by the media.

David Gower is one of those unique cricketers that's loved by the fans of all cricketing nations, not just his home country. He shouldn't be surprised at all by his fan following. As Richie would say, marvellous!

Reader: cloudmess

Wonderful batsman but less keen on his captaincy. There is a difference between actively empowering your players and completely neglecting them. Gower tended to do the latter, believing his chief responsibility was on-field tactics. He tended to do better when Gatting - more hands on with man-management - was his second in command. But when Gatting was absent, as he was for much of the 2 WI series and 89 Ashes, Gower's teams could descend into total chaos - 11 players competing for their places with little sense of unity or common purpose.