BUY ISSUE 82

"Brendon’s attitude brought a breath of fresh air which worked in a short space of time, simply because things previous to that were so bad, they’d almost hit rock bottom,” says Eoin Morgan of his friend and former teammate’s impact as England Test coach. "It made his period of transition almost immediate because not only was he the right person for the job, but he picked the right type of players to execute the template of how he wanted them to play.”

Elsewhere, we review the 2024 county season across 26 pages which include Cameron Ponsonby on how Surrey put the building blocks in place to achieve their historic three peat, Sam Dalling on Gloucestershire’s Blast triumph, Toby Radford on the intriguing dominance of left-handed batters, and Katya Witney on an unsettling final summer for the women’s regional set-up. Meanwhile, John Stern takes us back to 1999, the final year of the two-division Championship, before considering what the future holds for domestic red-ball cricket.

We have Rob Smyth on Test cricket’s most spectacular starts in the wake of Kamindu Mendis’ Bradman-esque streak, Phil Walker reveals the secrets of a ghostwriter, Bumble tells Mel Farrell the Blast isn’t the same without him, and Phil DeFreitas recalls drinking one too many Fantas at the 1987 World Cup.

As for our columnists, Mark Ramprakash hails the contrasting brilliance of Joe Root and Harry Brook, Andrew Miller examines England’s failure at the Women’s T20 World Cup, Lawrence Booth reports on Hampshire’s takeover, and Tawhid Qureshi dives into the latest chapter in the unmissable Shakib Al Hasan soap opera.

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10 standout quotes from the new issue:

"I like to go away from the word coach, because he’s not a coach, he’s a great man-manager and a great people person. He has an ability to instill confidence in people and empower them to find confidence in their own decision-making."
Eoin Morgan on Brendon McCullum

"In a sport which is analysed in granular detail, perhaps more so than any other, it’s an unnervingly simple mantra, and it’s easy to see why players find it so appealing. But is this fun-focused approach too simple, too idealistic, and how sustainable will it be if England’s results don’t stack up, particularly with McCullum taking on the additional responsibility of regenerating the white-ball sides from January?"
Jo Harman considers the sustainability of Bazball

"I wouldn’t really like to be involved now, except with the Blast. I’m 77 but I feel about 30. And I’m going to say this: I think the Blast needs me. I’ve listened to them, and they’re doing fine, but there’s something missing, and I could provide that something."
David Lloyd speaks to Mel Farrell about his life after Sky

"I think we’ve got to view it as a positive. The facilities of those schools are amazing. Everyone has this thing about cricket being the richest people playing it – load of nonsense. Most of our lads come from normal beginnings and they get scholarships to these amazing schools."
Gareth Batty on the private-school pathway to Surrey CCC

"Joe has developed into a wonderful cricketer and role model, a titan for England. The likes of Stokes, Buttler, Bairstow, Moeen Ali and Woakes are also outstanding role models, but I would put Joe at the top of tree. His personality has drip fed through to those other guys, there’s no question about it."
Mark Ramprakash hails Joe Root's impact on and off the field

"So why are left-handers seemingly finding it easier to post hundreds? Why are eight of the 12 leading run-scorers lefties, and why are 83 per cent of teams taking longer to dismiss them? Why have 90 per cent of the highest opening partnerships in county cricket since 2022 involved a left-hander?"
Toby Radford, Kent’s batting coach, investigates the dominance of left-handers in the County Championship

"The day before we absolutely had to send the final manuscript to the printers, Brian Charles Lara called to tell me that he’d written a new chapter overnight, just like that. OK, I said. Send it over, Brian, old son. And I put the phone down. Some time after I’d stopped swearing, I started to read it. It was unforgivably good."
Phil Walker, co-author of Brian Lara's autobiography, on the secrets of being a ghostwriter

"To lose so gruesomely to West Indies, a team that England had beaten in 13 consecutive matches since 2018, was bad enough, let alone in a tournament that should have been at their mercy given what was happening to India and Australia on the other side of the draw."
Andrew Miller reacts to England's botched T20 World Cup campaign

"Of the 10 bowlers with the best match figures on debut, only Clarrie Grimmett played even 20 Tests, although Prabath Jayasuriya and Gus Atkinson should join him at some stage. And none of the seven double-centurions on debut have reached 50 Tests."
Rob Smyth examines the most spectacular starts to a Test career, and how sustainable they were

"I love my curries and I always thought the ones in Pakistan and India were incredible – the hotter the better. I’d had a really spicy curry and instead of washing it down with water I decided to have a couple of Fantas. Big mistake."
Phil DeFreitas on his error of judgment at the 1987 World Cup

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