Not only did they show the decisive fourth day of the 2019 Headingley Ashes Test and the World Cup Final in full, the last two hours of both broadcasts boasted a novel invention, the Sky Easter Watchalong, with Sky pundits and some of the key players involved, including Ben Stokes, Joe Root, Jofra Archer, and Jos Buttler, giving their take on the action as it unfolded. Here are six takeaways from the special TV event:

No good deed goes unpunished

The early stages of Saturday seemed only to serve as an example of the adage ‘no good deed goes unpunished’. Sky had already won praise for their initial decision to replay Headingley Day 4 on their TV channel, and when they announced the action would also be shown in full on their YouTube channel, giving those without a subscription the chance to watch the whole of Stokes’ incredible innings for the first time.

His balance and neutrality was made all the more impressive by the fact that he was working as a coach for the Australians before play started, feeding them balls in the nets and offering tips, as noted by Nasser Hussain. That the only criticism they could find was the over-excited and hugely uncool “Wowee” that slipped out after yet another outrageous Stokes shot speaks volumes.

We miss live cricket even more than we thought

While rewatching the games was good, what was unanticipated was that this would be a proper reliving, with all the emotions coming rushing back, even though we all knew how it ended. It felt like a communal experience, with everyone on social media talking about the same thing – one of the forgotten casualties of the lack of live sport.

Headingley > Lord’s

Perhaps the World Cup final meant more, coming after 40 years of hurt and four years planning, with the free-to-air access and the Channel 4 screening only adding to its impact. The World Cup final could inspire a generation; the Headingley win didn’t even inspire an Ashes reclaiming.

But as a pure piece of sporting theatre, Headingley stands tall, and not because of the sanctimonious arguments of the pre-eminence of Test cricket. Key’s anecdote that Murali left halfway through the World Cup final was amusing, but also a reminder that the showpiece was something of a dirge until the closing stages. If you were a fan of stolen singles, canny medium pace, and shrewd captaincy there was pleasure to be found. But for high-octane thrills it’s the Headingley Test, in its entirety, that wins out.

Rob Key: “I was sitting with Murali for the start [of the World Cup Final] because he was watching it in a box. And he just said ‘Keysy, this is so boring, I’m going’. And he left!”

Murali probably regrets this decision… pic.twitter.com/jZV3T8xHSD

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) April 12, 2020

Even on the first day, you had a new-ball burst cancelled out by a Labuschagne-Warner counter-punch. Then England were bundled out for 67, after which Stokes bowled forever, and bowled brilliantly. Even in the fourth innings before Stokes’ onslaught there were swings aplenty. Joe Root staying calm with his feet held to the fire, Joe Denly with a valedictory fifty that became so much more, and Jonny Bairstow’s new-ball counterattack. It was a game that grabbed your attention throughout, not just at the climax.