The Club Cricket Conference Yearbook 2020

QUOTE CCC2020 TO SAVE UP TO 33% SUBSCRIBE, SAVE, SIT BACK... and enjoy words of Wisden all year round! ORDER NOW QUOTING CCC2020 0129 331 2094 wisdensubs.com THE I NDEPENDENT VO I CE OF CR I CKET 30 WISDENCRICKETMONTHLY | MAY 2020 www.wisden.com 31 T henationwasgripped. Hundredsof thousands tuning in to followoneof the greatTestmatches reach itsfinal,unforgettable crescendo.Only this time everybodyknew theresult and themanwhomade it possiblewascommentating onhisownmasterpiece. OnEasterSaturday,350,000watchedSky’srerunofthe second ‘MiracleofHeadingley’,includingBenStokesand threeofhisEnglandteammateswhodialledinviavideolink togivetheirrecollectionsofthatotherworldlyday. TheBeebhadstarted theirowncoverage threedays earlier,replayingeveryballof thematchon theBBC SportswebsiteandRadio5LiveSportsExtra.For the finalday’splay, thewebpageholding theaudiowas the fourthmostvisitedacross thewholeBBC(including news,sportand iPlayer),with212,000accessing the commentaryonlineover thecourseof thematch,and manymore listeningon theradio. Admittedly, therewasn’tawhole lotelse todoas the UKstruggled tocome to termswith its fourthweekend under lockdown.But,evenso, itwasawelcomereminder of theuniquedrawofTestcricket,ata timewhenwestill don’tknowwhen thenextmatchwillbeplayed. Ofcourse,Testmatches like lastsummer’sat Headingley,playedout in frontofpackedhouses,ebbing andflowing towardsanunmissableconclusion,only reveala fractionof theoverall landscape. “We’re luckyasEnglandcricketers,”saysChris Woakes later in thesepages.“Weget travelling fans,we getpackedhousesathome,whetherweplaySriLanka orBangladeshorAustralia.PlayingTestcricket for England isstillan incrediblyexciting feelingandI think thepublicwho follow thegame feel thesameway.” Elsewhere, theoutlook isnotalwayssorosy.In severalotherTestnationsplayersareperformingat the supposedpinnacleof thegame in frontofhalf-empty,or worse,stadiums.SouthAfrica,a traditionalpowerhouse of thegame,continues tohaemorrhageplayerswho feel their futuresarebetterserved incountycricket.In the WestIndies, the format theyutterlydominatednotso very longago isnow inmanycases littlemore thanan afterthought,withplayers in thrall to theopportunities thatT20cricketcanprovide.Andgiven thepotential richesono—er,whocanblame them? In the2015documentary DeathofaGentleman , the writerGideonHaighasked:“Doescricketmakemoney toexist,ordoes itexist tomakemoney?”Itcontinues to bean inescapablequestionwhenconsidering the future ofTestcricket,and liesrightat theveryheartof the articleswhich followhere. Thepresentand futureof the game’sgreatest survivor JOHARMAN WisdenCricket Monthly magazine editor @Jo_Wisden EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW CRICKET MONTHLY ISSUE30 APRIL2020 T H E I N D E P E N D E N T V O I C E O F C R I C K E T www.wisden.com MAKHAYA NTINI ‘IWANT TO BE REMEMBERED ASA BOWLERWHO EARNED HIS LEGACY’ ENGLAND’S MARK WOOD FASTEST EVER NEW SEASON SPECIAL Can thecountygame survive lockdown? ‘EVEN FOR COUNTY CRICKET’S DIE HARDS, THE HUNDRED IS SURELY BETTER THAN THE NONE’ ANDREWMILLERONAWORLD WITHOUT CRICKET ‘IT’S ABOUT THE PLAYERS YOU PRODUCE, NOT THE SIZE OF YOUR CHANGING ROOM’ ESSEX SKIPPER TOMWESTLEYON BUILDINGADYNASTY GRIPPING IT AND RIPPING IT RASHID KHANON BOWLING LEGSPIN THE SILENT ACHIEVER GRAHAM THORPE EXCLUSIVE OURGLOBALPANELPICK THEIR ALL-STARXIs FOR2019 ISSUE30 APRIL2020 £4.95 17/03/2020 16:27