Ben Jones casts his eye over who needs what in Sunday's draft. Trent Rockets Draft Position: 1st Red Ball Player: Joe Root Local Icons: Alex Hales, Harry Gurney Coach: Stephen Fleming Priorities: Middle order batsmen, Powerplay bowlers, spin bowlers The clue is in the name for the Trent Rockets - their home...
Patrick Noone looks ahead to Sunday's draft and picks out the key factors that will determine how the eight teams look to build their squads. The importance of Kolpaks With only three overseas players per side allowed, the presence of a number of Kolpak players could make for tempting selections...
Patrick Noone looks at how England's opener adjusted his approach to succeed on Day 3 at The Oval. To say Joe Denly got into the England Test team through the back door would be something of an understatement. This time two years ago, it appeared that the nine...
Patrick Noone analyses a superb display of fast bowling on Day 2 at The Oval. It seems to remarkable to think that it is still two days short of a month since Jofra Archer bowled his first ball in Test match cricket. He’s packed quite a lot into...
Patrick Noone looks at the England captain's 57 as his conversion woes continued on Day 1 at The Oval. Joe Root in full flow remains one of the most aesthetically pleasing sights in cricket. Those back foot punches as he rides the bounce, sweetly timed to the boundary...
Ben Jones analyses how to dismiss the Australian legend. It's the question on the lips of a nation. How on earth do England get Steve Smith out? This is a man who averages more than any batsman in history barring the undisputed greatest, and frustratingly for English...
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...
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...
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...
Ben Jones analyses an innings of curiously good fortune, and remarkable character. Rory Burns’ first Test century was impressive in all the ways we assumed it would be. Gritty. Resolute. Obstructive. It was everything he’s been in the last five years for Surrey, churning out runs...