Patrick Noone looks at how Nathan Lyon spun Australia to victory at Edgbaston. For a spinner, the fourth innings of a Test match is something of a double-edged sword. Particularly in turning conditions, there is an expectation that the spinner will step up and win the game for the team bowling second, using conditions to […]
Patrick Noone looks at how Matthew Wade showed England he’s more than just Australia’s mongrel spirit animal. Matthew Wade’s latest crack at Test cricket has already been more successful than his previous one. Back in 2016, Wade was one of the beneficiaries of the selectorial carnage that followed Australia being bowled out for 85 by […]
Patrick Noone looks at England’s mercurial all-rounder, whose batting reached a new low at Edgbaston on Day three. Moeen Ali’s batting is falling off a cliff. If it hasn’t already fallen as far as it possibly can fall, it can’t have much further to go. Today’s innings was his fourth duck from the eight innings […]
Patrick Noone looks at what Australia were lacking on a day of ‘what might have beens’ for the tourists The selection of Australia’s bowling attack was the subject of much scrutiny before the Ashes began. Pat Cummins, the number one bowler in the world according to the ICC rankings, was always going to play. As […]
It was Steve Smith’s day as the Ashes got underway at Edgbaston, but not before Stuart Broad showed a glimpse of what might have been for England. It seems remarkable to think that there were some calls for Stuart Broad to be dropped for this Test match. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, of course, but […]
Patrick Noone on why we shouldn’t write off Australia, even if the ball is swinging and seaming Australia have not won an away Ashes series since 2001. The reasons for them failing to win in England since have been numerous and varied, but the enduring image from their most recent tour, in 2015, was of […]
Patrick Noone looks at India’s unorthodox talent There are not many batsmen in world cricket whose signature shot is the aerial flick over fine leg. There are not many left-handers who more or less totally eschew the off drive, preferring to play square on the off-side or to shuffle across and work to leg in […]
As the Southern hemisphere rivals go head-to-head in the World Cup once again, Patrick Noone looks back on their last group match encounter: a thriller at Eden Park. When New Zealand took on Australia at Eden Park in Auckland in the group stage of 2015 World Cup, the pre-match discussion was largely centred around the […]
Patrick Noone analyses the six balls that clinched the game for India at Old Trafford Sport is about moments. The moments that define matches, tournaments, even careers. We talk about ‘big game players’ who routinely step up and deliver such moments to seize the initiative, change the course of a match or make the crucial […]
Patrick Noone looks at how the New Zealand captain has quietly gone about his business on his way to successive World Cup centuries. Kane Williamson is not an obvious modern-day batting superstar. He doesn’t possess the power of Andre Russell, the swagger of Virat Kohli or the innovation of Glenn Maxwell. He is an old-fashioned […]
