Author: Bill Ricquier

  • India's wrist-spinner, and the rarest of arts

    6 November 2023
    The Men’s Cricket World Cup has been great fun to watch. I say this despite having made some public predictions…
  • The graceful conscience of Indian spin

    24 October 2023
    Of the Indians who have played county cricket since the easing of the qualification rules in 1968, only Farokh Engineer…
  • A confident prediction meets its comeuppance

    23 October 2023
    “ Litotes?”, a friend said in response to my WhatsApp message that my prediction regarding the Men’s Cricket World Cup…
  • No sporting empire lasts forever

    27 September 2023
    [External link] Empires come and go. Sporting ascendancy is equally, and inevitably, ephemeral. Few sporting giants, however, can have been…
  • A series limited-overs cricket could never match

    13 August 2023
    The 2023 Ashes was an outstanding series, providing the sort of ever-changing narrative that limited-overs cricket simply cannot deliver. Four…
  • One duck, one dismissal, and a moral storm

    8 July 2023
    Jonny Bairstow faced up to the final ball of Cameron Green’s eighth over. It was predictably short and Bairstow ducked…
  • Lord's, and another test of nerve and leadership

    7 July 2023
    The second Ashes Test, at Lord’s, was in many ways as remarkable as the first. England made the running for…
  • Edgbaston sets the tone with a thrilling gamble

    26 June 2023
    The 2023 Ashes got off to a terrific start at Edgbaston. It grabbed attention from the first ball, sent flashing…
  • Forty years of quiet service to the game

    11 June 2023
    Ranjan Madugalle has been actively involved in international cricket for over forty years. That is a remarkable achievement. And there…
  • Fifty years since Hampshire last held the title

    4 June 2023
    It is fifty years since Hampshire last won the County Championship. In the period between then and now some of…