BS: Anyone for cricket?

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: GUEST,Lord Oval
Date: 20 May 09 - 10:05 AM

Sad news today, Former England cricketer Chris Lewis has been sentenced to 13 years in jail for smuggling cocaine into Britain in his cricket bag.

He had claimed in his defence that he did not even know cocaine could be converted into the liquid form in which it was discovered in his luggage when he arrived at Gatwick Airport in December last year.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 May 09 - 10:53 AM

Prefer this.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: GUEST,Jon
Date: 20 May 09 - 11:24 AM

Yep I've seen it and I agree it is sad. A bbc article here

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: keberoxu
Date: 19 Jun 17 - 05:09 PM

Moving right along:

Picked up a local syndicated daily newspaper for one of the Greater Boston Metro exurbs. And was surprised to find, in the sports section, a little story about amateur cricket teams.

The journalist interviewed the founder of the Ravishing Willows. His competition teams have names like the Hoickers, the Daredevils, the Panthers, and the eClinicalWorks (??); they are members of the NECA, the New England Cricket Association .

Said cricket enthusiast left his native India for the United States to work in computer software. He admitted that of all the cricket players he has played with here, he has never met one who was born in the United States, but "that would be great" if a U.S.-born sportsman would join him and his teammates in playing cricket.

Strictly my opinion, but
I think "Ravishing Willows" sounds like a ragtime piano solo composed by Scott Joplin!

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 07:41 AM

I' not sure I understand this thread got a refresh but I've found a scan interesting.

The first thing that strikes me is that I must have been more caught up with cricket in 2003 than I am now and can't remember some things I commented on. Less free to view tv now???

Also of interest to me was our speculations on Michael Vaughan and Graeme Smith as captains and players.

As for "Ravishing Willows", I don't think I'd have got that as cricket although the willow has a long association.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Teribus
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 07:46 AM

Doubt if the paying American public would appreciate the subtleties of a game played over three or five days that can end in a draw so many ways.

Still remains as being the most demanding, most complete and best team ever devised by man.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Raggytash
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 10:45 AM

Bloody hell Teribus ............ we agree on something !!!!

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Bill D
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 11:18 AM

I sometimes suspect that cricket would not be nearly as fascinating to its fans without its complex 'laws' and the incredible list of jargon that allows insiders to show their knowledge and keeps poor, bewildered Americans from attempting to join the discussion.

I just read the entire thread, and at my advanced age I think I will assume that golfing terms is the limit of what I can cope with.

(I have heard "sticky wicket" used as a term for having a problem situation.... but that's my limit.)

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 05:43 PM

Bloody hell, I agree with Teribus too!

BillD, there has never been an American born who had an attention-span long enough to watch a cricket match, let alone understand it! 😜😎😄

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: keberoxu
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 06:54 PM

It fascinates me that North America would have cricket brought to it by natives of India and Pakistan!

Consider Canada as well as the U. S. because both countries have many Indian / Paki immigrants.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 07:08 PM

Cricket is the most popular sport in both India and Pakistan, k...

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: Bill D
Date: 20 Jun 17 - 09:57 PM

Backwoodsman... so 'attention span' is in our DNA? ☺ Even those of us, like me, with huge lists of ancestors from the UK?

Totally silly to paint several hundred million of us with the same broad brush... but slagging off Americans is almost as popular a hobby as following cricket for some. I can only hope you were just playing the usual 'game'.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: David Carter (UK)
Date: 21 Jun 17 - 03:13 PM

Around the turn of the century (i.e. 1890 - 1910) cricket was very popular in Philadelphia. Sure it was a class ridden structure, but this was even more true of cricket in England at the time. But it wasn't much known in England or Australia. So in 1893, a strong Australian team stopped in Philadelphia on the way back from a tour of England, and arranged a match with the Gentlemen of Philadelphia, no doubt expecting to demonstrate their skills in a light practice match. The Gentlemen of Philadelphia won by an innings and 68 runs. Sure the Australians won a return fixture, but the Gentlemen of Philadelphia were established as a seriously good team. They toured England in 1897, 1903 and 1908, holding their own or more against the strong county sides of England.

Their star was John Barton (Bart) King, probably the finest fast bowler in the world between 1893 and 1909. On the 1908 tour of England he topped the bowling averages for the season, with an average which would not be bettered for 50 years.

Sadly, after WWI, baseball and tennis began to dominate across the USA, and the great cricket clubs of Philadelphia mostly became tennis clubs.

So if South Asian Immigrants can help re-establish the game , then maybe in the not too distant future a strong, maybe more representative American team will once again tour England, play against county sides, and, who, knows, even the England team.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: David Carter (UK)
Date: 21 Jun 17 - 05:10 PM

Also the very first international cricket match was between Canada and the USA in 1844.

Subject: RE: BS: Anyone for cricket?
From: keberoxu
Date: 21 Jun 17 - 06:37 PM

Philadelphia Cricket Clubs. We live and learn.

It makes sense of the premise for the Titanic movie,
in which the rich girl was from the Main Line.