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The summer of 2005 without Pietersen? Imagining World Test finals of the past
The summer of 2005 without Pietersen? Imagining World Test finals of the past

The Guardian

time28-05-2025

  • Business
  • The Guardian

The summer of 2005 without Pietersen? Imagining World Test finals of the past

This, dear reader, is the 1,126th edition of The Spin. For the past 23 years it has been a weekly source of news, views and automated data about the unread message count in the deleted items folder. As such it is hard to find new journalistic frontiers. But, in the face of some molten competition, this week's Spin stands alone as the nerdiest, the most anal, the one grounded furthest from reality. We say this not to boast, only to flag that it may not be for everyone, and that we feel for those unfortunates whose neurological disposition means they have precisely no interest in imagining what a World Test Championship final might have looked like in May 1989. Yep, with South Africa facing Australia in an actual World Test Championship decider next month, we've calculated what the finals would have been had a forward-thinking International Cricket Council introduced the concept in the 20th century. We stuck as closely as possible to the current regulations, which means one-off Tests don't count, each cycle begins with the first Test of an English summer and teams need to reach a certain level of performance before they join the imaginary points table. In the Editor's Notes for this year's Wisden Almanack, Lawrence Booth – AKA Original Spin – described the WTC as 'a shambles masquerading as a showpiece'. If you're reading, Lawrence, we hope you'll agree there's no masquerade here. We went back as far as 1973-75, primarily for two reasons. In our head that's where modern cricket begins, with Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson trying to knock St George off his 'orse in 1974-75. And 50 years of counterfactuals feels like quite enough for now. Many of the findings (!) are as you'd expect. West Indies would have been in every final from 1979 to 1993, Australia from 1997 to 2009. (We'll get to 1995.) England would have made only three: 1979, AKA the Packer Years, 2005 and 2011. And they would have finished bottom twice: not in 1999, when they were unofficially the worst team in the world, but 1981 (back-to-back series against West Indies will do that to you) and 1989. In that cycle England played 18 Tests, winning only one, and even that wouldn't have counted as it was a one-off against Sri Lanka. The 2005 final would have been played at the start of that mind-altering summer, probably without Kevin Pietersen as it was before the astonishing innings at Bristol that made the selectors forget everything they thought they knew. Whatever the result, a WTC final would have subtly altered the context of the epochal Ashes series that followed. Australia became unofficial world champions a decade earlier when they ended West Indies' 15-year unbeaten run in an even more epochal series. Yet the WTC final that year – the same month, in fact, because the series ended at the start of May – would have been between Pakistan and India. The reason was one of the WTC's biggest problems, an unequal schedule. India played only three series, two against a relatively weak Sri Lanka, and three of Pakistan's five series were against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. West Indies v Australia would have been the final in the two cycles prior to 1995, with the 1991 final taking place almost immediately after an extremely fractious series in the Caribbean that West Indies won 2-1. Imaginary popcorn please! It's no surprise that Australia are the most dominant team overall; they would have appeared in 15 finals from 1975-2025. No other side has reached double figures. The West Indies team of 1983-85, whose cycle included a 3-0 win in India, a 5-0 in England and a 6-1 aggregate evisceration of Australia, are the only team whose percentage of available points (75) was more than double any of the other teams. West Indies' opponents in their decade of dominance would have been India (1981), New Zealand (1987) and Pakistan (1983, 1985, 1989). Imran Khan's side have a strong case for being the most underrated team in cricket history. Their win percentage is too low for them to be among the very best – in the 1987-89 cycle, for example, they drew 11 out of 16 – but they lost only two Test series in an eight-year period and consistently matched the West Indies at a time when most other teams were being smashed to smithereens. The three 1-1 draws played between 1986 and 1990 are the subject of the best cricket book never written. Pakistan's final against West Indies in 1989 is the one that stirred the most excitement in our inner child. A year on from an epic draw in the Caribbean, 18 months before another in Pakistan, except this time a draw wasn't on the table. We spent an hour working out what the teams would have been, specifically whether Pakistan's last pick would have been Shahid Saeed, Ijaz Ahmed, Mudassar Nazar, Saleem Jaffar or Naved Anjum, and what the implications were for the role of utility man Aamer Malik. In the end we went for Mudassar, with a Test debut (only a few months ahead of real life) for the 17-year-old sensation Waqar Younis. The West Indies team picked itself, with an emerging Ian Bishop completing a frightening pace attack. West Indies Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Richie Richardson, Keith Arthurton, Viv Richards (c), Gus Logie, Jeff Dujon (wk), Malcolm Marshall, Curtly Ambrose, Ian Bishop, Courtney Walsh. Pakistan Mudassar Nazar, Ramiz Raja, Shoaib Mohammad, Javed Miandad, Salim Malik, Imran Khan (c), Aamer Malik, Saleem Yousuf (wk), Wasim Akram, Abdul Qadir, Waqar Younis. We stopped short of replaying the game in the garden, at least for now. For those of us on the cricket spectrum, the real fun is in recalling and researching the state of each team and each player when the matches would have been played. Each final becomes a snapshot of a moment in time – in their lives and ours. In the unlikely event that you'd like to see the full list of finals, or the probable XIs for some of the games, email The Spin. The selection of cricket teams needs a new metaphor. The trusty analogy of cabs off the rank, patiently waiting in line for their turn, doesn't reflect a time in which players miss international matches for myriad reasons: franchise leagues, workload management, paternity leave. While this isn't completely new – Sir Ian Botham missed half of England's New Zealand tour in 1991-92 to star in Jack and the Beanstalk at the Bournemouth Pavilion – the idea of a first XI, carved in stone, has never been more distant. These days selection is more of a multi-lane free-for-all: horns blaring, passersby shouting which cab you should get in and why. And there has been a helluva lot of noise in the past week. When England start their Test series against India, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope and Jacob Bethell will be competing for two places in the top three. A week ago Bethell felt nailed on to play, even if it meant he'd have to open for the first time in his first-class career. But rightly or wrongly, it feels like Crawley and Pope have overtaken him with their centuries against Zimbabwe. Bethell spent the Zimbabwe Test watching on from the sidelines at Royal Challengers Bengaluru. That's not a criticism – for a young batter, two months in a dressing room with Virat Kohli is about as powerful as osmosis gets – but it may be that, in the short term, one bit of bench-warming begets another. The palaver over Ben Stokes's pre-match comments, interpreted as confirmation that Bethell would start against India, may also work in Pope's favour. While the Bazball brains trust can be deceptively ruthless, The Spin's instinct is that most of that comes from Brendon McCullum and Rob Key, and that Stokes – though single-minded – drops long-serving players with a heavier heart. You can't be a miracle of empathy such as Stokes and turn into Michael Corleone when needed. Sign up to The Spin Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week's action after newsletter promotion While it feels unlikely that Crawley or Pope will miss the start of the series against India, scoring a century doesn't always guarantee selection for the next Test. Ken Barrington and Geoff Boycott were both dropped for slow scoring in the 1960s. And in consecutive years at the start of the 1980s, the New South Wales batter Dirk Wellham was left out immediately after scoring his maiden centuries in both first-class and Test cricket. It wasn't the outrage it seems: Wellham had been covering for Doug Walters and Greg Chappell respectively, so when they were available he returned to the head of the cab rank. The Spin has been smitten with Bethell since his mythical 10 on Test debut at Christchurch, but even we wouldn't put him in their company. Yet. I walk into this England team and I feel 10ft tall. I'm well backed in county cricket as well, but I feel like England cricket is my happy place – After months of wicketless misery, Shoaib Bashir returned to form with nine wickets in England's win over Zimbabwe. When the Australian legspinner Arthur Mailey gave advice to England's Ian Peebles during the 1930 Ashes tour, he was criticised for helping the opposition by the Australian team manager, William Kelly. 'Spin bowling is an art, Mr Kelly,' said Mailey, 'and art is international.' Wrist-spin and wicketkeeping are among cricket's greatest arts. At the end of the 1990-91 Ashes – the 'fart competing with thunder' series that Australia won 3-0 – Jack Russell and Ian Healy found a quiet corner of a dressing room to talk about their art. Both were less than three years into their Test careers but would become recognised as two of the world's best keepers throughout the 1990s – in Russell's case even when he couldn't get in the England side. In the third Test at Sydney, Russell – standing up to the seamer Gladstone Small – dismissed Dean Jones with a remarkable legside stumping. At this stage most of Healy's work was done standing back to the seamers, but within a year he would keep to Shane Warne for the first time. Their partnership was career-defining for Healy, who enhanced Warne's greatness with his soft-handed brilliance – and occasionally his mouth. In 2015, they reunited for a delightful masterclass on Sky Sports, another reminder that, in cricket, art will always be international. Roland Butcher, Barbados-born England batter of the 1980s, talks to Simon Burnton about being jettisoned as a West Indies selector, the risks of their new cricket structure and his thwarted football dreams. Sir Jimmy Anderson got out of bed in instalments after his return to action with Lancashire. But, as he tells Andy Bull, he can't wait to do it again. Nottinghamshire lead Division One of the County Championship going into the mid-season break. Gary Naylor reviews another cracking round of fixtures. … by writing to To subscribe to The Spin, just visit this page and follow the instructions.

Former England cricketer Graham Thorpe's wife shares heartbreaking account of his mental health battle and challenges suicide stigma
Former England cricketer Graham Thorpe's wife shares heartbreaking account of his mental health battle and challenges suicide stigma

Time of India

time21-04-2025

  • Health
  • Time of India

Former England cricketer Graham Thorpe's wife shares heartbreaking account of his mental health battle and challenges suicide stigma

The cricketing world continues to mourn the loss of Graham Thorpe , the esteemed former England and Surrey batsman who passed away in August 2024 at the age of 55. Thorpe, who represented England in 100 Test matches and crafted 16 centuries with an impressive average of 45, had been facing challenges with his mental health for a long time. In a deeply personal and moving contribution to the 2025 edition of the Wisden Almanack , which is being released next week and has been previewed in the UK's Sunday Times , Thorpe's wife, Amanda, offers a poignant insight into his struggles. 5 5 Next Stay Playback speed 1x Normal Back 0.25x 0.5x 1x Normal 1.5x 2x 5 5 / Skip Ads by by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Remember Him? Sit Down Before You See What He Looks Like Now Old Money Style Undo She bravely shares her perspective on his long battle with depression and anxiety, highlighting the immense effort he put into overcoming these difficulties through various therapies and medications. Amanda Thorpe eloquently describes her belief that her husband's challenges stemmed from a fundamental shift in his brain chemistry, a physical illness that held him in its grip. Live Events She emphasizes the absence of shame that should be associated with such suffering and passionately advocates for increased awareness and understanding of mental health conditions. Addressing the often-held view of suicide as selfish, Amanda expresses profound compassion for what Graham endured, stating unequivocally that he, and indeed no one, deserves to experience such profound pain. Beyond his stellar playing career, Thorpe transitioned into coaching, notably serving as England's batting coach and becoming a valued mentor to Joe Root, one of the nation's most prolific run-scorers. Amanda suggests that the demanding conditions of working within the strict 'biosecure bubbles' during the pandemic may have contributed to a decline in his mental well-being. She notes that the subsequent loss of his England coaching role following the 2021-22 Ashes series in Australia coincided with a vulnerable period for him. While his appointment as coach of Afghanistan followed, his struggles with anxiety and depression unfortunately intensified. Amanda Thorpe's courageous words serve as a powerful reminder of the profound impact of mental health challenges and underscore the importance of empathy, understanding, and open dialogue surrounding these issues within the sporting community and beyond. Her willingness to share her experience will undoubtedly contribute to greater awareness and support for those facing similar battles. In times of distress, it's crucial to remember that you are not alone and that help is readily available. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide or experiencing a mental health crisis, reaching out is a sign of strength, not weakness. Numerous resources are dedicated to providing immediate support and guidance. Here's where you can find help in New Zealand: Lifeline: Offering 24/7 support, you can call 0800 543 354 or text 4357 (HELP) to connect with a trained professional. Suicide Crisis Helpline: Available around the clock, call 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO) for immediate assistance during a crisis. Youth Services: For young individuals needing support, reach out at (06) 3555 906. Youthline: Providing confidential support, you can call 0800 376 633 or text 234. What's Up: Offering support for children and young people, call 0800 942 8787 (available 11 am to 11 pm) or access their webchat service (11 am to 10:30 pm). Depression Helpline: If you're struggling with depression, support is available 24/7. Call 0800 111 757 or text 4202. Helpline: For anyone needing to talk, you can call or text 1737 at any time. Aoake te Rā (Bereaved by Suicide Service): Offering support for those who have lost someone to suicide, call 0800 000 053. In an emergency, where you feel that you or someone else is in immediate danger, please do not hesitate to call 111.

Graham Thorpe's wife: Some say suicide is selfish, but he tried so hard to beat depression
Graham Thorpe's wife: Some say suicide is selfish, but he tried so hard to beat depression

Yahoo

time19-04-2025

  • Health
  • Yahoo

Graham Thorpe's wife: Some say suicide is selfish, but he tried so hard to beat depression

Graham Thorpe's wife, Amanda, says she disagrees with the view that taking one's life is 'selfish' after watching her husband's long battle with his mental health before his death last year. Thorpe, a much-loved cricketer with England and Surrey who retired in 2005, died in August 2024 after being struck by a train. Thorpe, who was 55, had battled with depression and anxiety for many years. Writing in the 2025 edition of the Wisden Almanack, which is out next week and has been serialised in The Sunday Times, Amanda Thorpe wrote: 'He tried many therapies and medications – he tried so hard to beat it. But in the end I feel something became wrong with the way Graham's brain was wired – a chemical imbalance. He also felt immense shame about how he was, but of course there should be no stigma to suffering as he did. 'Having watched it play out, I could see it is a physical illness – and it is real. It felt like he was in the grip of a sickness he just couldn't get out of. I would like to raise awareness and increase understanding of this horrible disease. 'Some people say suicide is selfish. But I have so much compassion for what he went through. He didn't deserve it. No one does.' Thorpe played 100 Tests for England, averaging 45 with the bat and scoring 16 centuries. He later rose to become England's batting coach and was a mentor to Joe Root, the national team's greatest run-scorer. Thorpe worked for England during the pandemic, when the team played under extreme 'biosecure-bubble' conditions, which his wife believes contributed to the decline of his mental health. 'Graham found it really difficult working under Covid restrictions – and it started to take a toll on his mental health,' she wrote. 'So when England were beaten in the Covid Ashes of 2021-22 in Australia, and he lost his coaching job, he wasn't in a great state of mind. Despite his appointment as coach of Afghanistan, his anxiety and depression escalated to a point where he became very unwell.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.

Graham Thorpe's wife: Some say suicide is selfish, but he tried so hard to beat depression
Graham Thorpe's wife: Some say suicide is selfish, but he tried so hard to beat depression

Telegraph

time19-04-2025

  • Health
  • Telegraph

Graham Thorpe's wife: Some say suicide is selfish, but he tried so hard to beat depression

Graham Thorpe's wife, Amanda, says she disagrees with the view that taking one's own life is 'selfish' after watching her husband's long battle with his mental health before his death last year. Thorpe, a much-loved cricketer with England and Surrey who retired in 2005, died in August 2024 after being struck by a train. Thorpe, who was 55, had battled with depression and anxiety for many years. Writing in the 2025 edition of the Wisden Almanack, which is out next week and has been serialised in The Sunday Times, Mrs Thorpe wrote: 'He tried many therapies and medications – he tried so hard to beat it. But in the end I feel something became wrong with the way Graham's brain was wired – a chemical imbalance. He also felt immense shame about how he was, but of course there should be no stigma to suffering as he did. 'Having watched it play out, I could see it is a physical illness – and it is real. It felt like he was in the grip of a sickness he just couldn't get out of. I would like to raise awareness and increase understanding of this horrible disease. 'Some people say suicide is selfish. But I have so much compassion for what he went through. He didn't deserve it. No one does.' Thorpe played 100 Tests for England, averaging 45 with the bat and scoring 16 centuries. He later rose to become England's batting coach and was a mentor to Joe Root, the national team's greatest run-scorer. Thorpe worked for England during the pandemic, when the team played under extreme 'biosecure-bubble' conditions, which his wife believes contributed to the decline of his mental health. 'Graham found it really difficult working under Covid restrictions – and it started to take a toll on his mental health,' she wrote. 'So when England were beaten in the Covid Ashes of 2021-22 in Australia, and he lost his coaching job, he wasn't in a great state of mind. Despite his appointment as coach of Afghanistan, his anxiety and depression escalated to a point where he became very unwell.'

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