We don’t discuss cricket nearly enough here on C&F.
England just won another splendid victory, putting them 2-1 up in the Series vs South Africa.
We’ve won 11 out of our last 12 tests. (It’s always we when we are winning, and they when we are losing).
Having grown up during the decades of English Cricket Doldrums, I think a polite ripple of applause, a cup of tea and and almond slice would go down nicely.
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slurp
scrunch munch mmmh lovely.
Go England!
I’m confused by the word “test” in your sentence. I would consider a test being a precursor to the real thing.
The “test” is of ones patience as you sit for hours wondering if anything exciting will happen.
My sixteen year old son is a fanatic so I get to see a whole lot of nothing a whole lot of the time… :roll:
Slan,
D.
We call them Test Matches in the context of a trial of strength. Same in Rugby.
In essence, you’re right, because if a team lose a test match, it’s not the end. They go away, practise, maybe change players, and try again in the next Test.
What can you expect from a game that lasts five days, stops for rain, bad light, streakers, and regular meal and tea breaks?
I must admit, it’s rather embarrassing for an Englishman for our team to be winning against our former colonies. As a rule we support the underdogs, which is usually us. No doubt this is why the news is very quiet about our successes, and we have headlines like
“South Africa Come Second - Give them a cheer”
Yes it was splendid, though there were moments when I feared the worst.
Ah, but this is a test in the true and olde worlde sense of the word. A veritable trial, something to be endured over five long days. And none of yer slug-eating lobsters-down-yer-undies Japanese TV endurance nonsense, I should say not. But a real test.
Congratulations England. Jolly good show, what!
England’s real test will come later this year, I think. 
Any predictions, Martin?
Careful there Wombat. We don’t really want to have to explain to the Americans just what the prize is for winning the 25 day battle between England and Australia. They’d never believe it.
BTW, I doubt that many people here would appreciate how big cricket is in quite a large slice of the world.
Last monday, there was a hastily arranged match for tsunami relief played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground between an Asian team and a Rest of the World team. Although the ground is currently under reconstruction, a capacity crowd of 80,000 attended with supporter groups from all over the region affected and the rest of the world happily intermingling. Some of the banners from Asians present were touching in their gratitude, to put it mildly. The game was televised live to 122 countries with an estimated viewing audience of a billion. (If that seems excessive, remember that cricket is the most popular sport in India which has a population of one billion.) The proceeds in Australia from that day alone were $A14,500,000 +.
True enough. Have you ever seen the true size of that urn?
Ah, yes, we are playing Bangladesh in a two Test series. 
Then we get slaughtered… unless it rains for three months straight.
Martin Milner, you are a defeatist and should be ashamed of yourself. :roll:
I am, without question, ALWAYS ashamed of myself, JB!
Actually, the pundits are predicting it will be very close this time round, and if we can’t nab back a small urn containing the ashes of a burnt pair of bails, we might as well, er, insist that the real trophy resides at Lords Cricket Ground, and give the Aussies only a small replica which we got out of a Christmas Cracker.
As my birthday falls during the Third Test, I may be able to persuade Beth to sit and watch a whole day’s play on TV, or maybe even get tickets to go up to a game at Lords or the Oval. If they haven’t sold out already.
So you are expecting rain for 3 months? Will the ashes series be played in Bangladesh during the monsoon season.
Actually I’m expecting the closest contest in about 15 years. Just how close is another matter. Clearly England has its best team in ages.
Take a whistle with you Martin. There must be a goodly selection of cricketing tunes you can play. 
(Practice Waltzing Matilda just in case. 
)
Which reminds me, The Positively Testcard did a great rendition of the Test Match TV Theme Tune (can’t recall the proper name, is it Soul Limbo?, but you know the tune I mean), on their mini-album “The Indestructible Beat of South Norwood”, so we managed to drag this thread on topic!
I’ve been playing ‘Cm’on Aussie, Cm’on’ for years on low D.
Uh oh. Can I bring my Gameboy?
Here’s an underdog for you Brit-types: http://www.usaca.org/
Well, I was mildly surprised at Englands fight back, and very disappointed that the weather did not spoil the day. Don’t forget England still have a test to play in SA and “we” the south Africans, will be trying to regain a bit of honour by leveling the series. I have been fortunate in having a tv in the office to watch the games. The Barmy Army really is a hoot. i think some of you brits should join them with a whistle or two. that trumpeter is getting a little tired me thinks. Perhaps I could drum up a a bunch of kwela players to start a SA support team for the next game. I saw a game against the West Indies a few seasons back that had a tin drum band (what do you call that jamaican drum?)during the tests. It was great and added some real carribean flavour to the long 5 days in the sun.
Ian
That’s no way to describe Mr Milner. 
Well John, if you press my buttons right…
I was just telling Beth about the last time I tried (with my father) to see an England-Australia Test at Lords.
Ten minutes before the match was due to start, the heavens opened, SPLOOSH, it poured cats & dogs for half an hour, then the next half hour we watched the water hogs drying the pitch.
Just as the hogs left the pitch, the heavens opened, SPLOOSH, it poured cats & dogs for half an hour, then the next half hour we watched the water hogs trying to dry the pitch.
The pitch was not quite dry again, when the heavens opened, SPLOOSH, it poured cats & dogs for half an hour, then the next half hour we watched the water hogs trying to dry the pitch, until one of them broke its sponge roller.
Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, the heavens opened, SPLOOSH, it poured cats & dogs for half an hour, then the next half hour we watched the water hogs, with increasing desperation, trying unsuccessfully to dry the pitch.
To make matters worse, the radio commentary had not come on air, so we had no chat about pigeons, buses, and cake to distract us from our increasingly damp misery.
We wandered round the shop, the pavilion museum, and the practise nets. Eventually, around 4pm, we gave up and headed home. There was about 1/2 an hour of play right at the end of the day, which we caught on TV at home. We did get a partial refund, but we really wanted to see some live Aussie cricket!
So, yes, Gameboys are required kit, plus knitting, a good novel, warm clothing, waterproofs, and sandwiches and a thermos of soup.
They might not allow concertinas and fiddles, but then again…