99.94 The Strauss Tapes Part XX

tootingtrumpet — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:25:09 +0000

Defying Sarf Larnden’s never-ending postal disruptions, a small packet arrived at the Trumpet’s door this morning which, on opening, revealed a cassette, the contents of which are transcribed below. Click Sit down will you Colly. Right lads come to order. Kevin! Trotty! Can you put the phones down – and haven’t I told you not to talk in [...]

Team India: The Fun of Failure

nestaquin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:37:54 +0000

A recent and new visitor to 99.94, Shrawan Raja, has a very illuminating montage of images at his blog of several members of Team India enjoying the delights of flesh and stimulant after their loss in Hyderabad earlier this month.

Depth & Desire

nestaquin — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 04:47:50 +0000

The last six weeks cricket in India has been a very rewarding experience for Australian cricket. Initially, New South Wales dominated the domestic Champions League and then the national side, absent many of their first choice regulars, swept a strong India aside with a match to spare in the seven match series.

Champions League 2009: The Vanquished

nestaquin — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 01:17:45 +0000

As we enter the next phase of the inaugural Champions League four teams are packing their bags and heading home and below is a summary of their misfortunes.

Champions League 2009: Sense and Semantics

nestaquin — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:43:15 +0000

It is difficult to judge Indian domestic cricket using the IPL teams as a mirror due to the overwhelming number of imports and slightly less so the English representatives due to their multicultural nature, which is at least a facsimile of their international team's make-up, but many of the best performed teams - Victoria, the Cape Cobras, NSW and Trinidad - are comprised of players brought up and educated from the same cricketing system. For the time being at least, this familiarity with each other, both from a cricketing and cultural perspective, has served them very well indeed.

Champions League 2009: Rupees & Representation

nestaquin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:21:19 +0000

The inaugural domestic Champions League begins later tonight in Bangalore with the home team led by Anil Kumble pitting their skills against South African T20 champions the Cape Cobras from the Western Province region in Southern Africa.

Champions Trophy 2009: The Last Word

nestaquin — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 01:56:29 +0000

Before turning attention from South Africa to India for the Champions League a few final thoughts on the Champions Trophy from an Australian and Tasmanian perspective.

Marvellous Shot, That!

nestaquin — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 02:14:41 +0000

Handing out white, cream, ivory and bone coats to the victorious Champions Trophy winners has garnered some criticism from some of the more cynical commentators on the Web but I for one applaud the ICC for their efforts in recognising the wit, humility and legend of Australia's most loved former captain, Richie Benaud.

Champions Trophy 2009: The Final Preview

nestaquin — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 04:25:19 +0000

Seldom does an ICC tournament come to a close without some controversy or criticism yet this version of the Champions Trophy has had neither from an administrative point of view. Originally scheduled in Pakistan, the South Africans have put on a wonderful show that delivered exactly what the Champions Trophy was intended; to showcase 50 over cricket to the world.

Champions Trophy – England Report Card

tootingtrumpet — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 07:54:01 +0000

At full strength, England would win one in three matches vs Australia; shorn of KP and Flintoff, one in four; after an Ashes win, one in eight – and so it turned out as Australia crushed England to remove them from a tournament in which Strauss’ men over-achieved, but only because expectations were so [...]