I have been a England Cricket fan for many years. I'm a proper fan too - I always feel the need to state that up front - I am a female cricket fan who has a genuine love of the game, not just for Jimmy Anderson's outrageously pert posterior. So when the Ashes started down under I was like an over-excited schoolgirl. I can't compare the feeling with anything; loving sport and feeling connected to it, feeling like you are part of it, believing it matters, immersing yourself in it, is like nothing else and is difficult to describe. All I'll say is there was quite a lot of jumping up and down, quick hand clapping and saying "oh god its so exciting!" to my long suffering husband.
I should, at this point, mention my long-suffering husband. I've enjoyed cricket for longer than I've known him, but it was only after a couple of years that I revealed the level of my adoration for the game. In the days before children and responsibility I used to make him sit through at least the weekend days of test matches. As a non-cricket fan, at first he found it dull. But, as a sports fan, he eventually started to ask pertinent questions. Just as I'd taught him the complexities of rugby, I began to explain the in and outs (literally) of cricket. Explaining rugby took a good few matches - its a complicated game. Seven or so years on and I'm still explaining the nuances of cricket. This is why I love it so.
And so, you can imagine my excitement at the prospect of an Ashes tour in Australia with perhaps the best team that I personally have seen play, and with our best chance to win there in 24 years. I won't describe every day of every test match; the truth is I didn't stay up every night of every match. I have a four year old daughter and an 18 month old son. They wake at six and are RELENTLESS from that point onwards. I did stay up for crucial days though, and had updates on my mobile phone for every wicket. I listened to TMS in bed on many occasions, and feel that Jonathan Agnew's voice is now implanted in my sub-conscious.
I, like thousands, possibly millions of cricket fans around the country was on tenterhooks for several weeks. Brisbane started badly. I couldn't help feeling "here we go again, England falter under high expectations". I kept the faith and stayed up to watch as much of the bowling as I could before sleep took me. I fell asleep before England woke up, and the match, if we're honest, was looking lost. Day three was worse....
I should mention now that I rarely watch England bat live. I find it extremely stressful and really not very enjoyable at all. The way I explain it is this: when you watch your team bowl, you know that eventually a good thing will happen, that release of tension, a wicket. When you watch your team bat... well, just replace the word "good" with "bad". You get my meaning. Plus if I'm100% honest I don't really fancy any of the batters so there's no great incentive.
Of course, in this case I really should have watched. Bar Strauss getting out after a masterful captain's innings, the bad thing DIDN'T happen. It just didn't. I was convinced we would be 1-0 down after day three, and here we were, thanks to Strauss, Cook and Trott, on the verge of a rather spectacular draw. Amazing. I even watched us bat on day five, but gave in when the draw became inevitable and before we declared. I was glad, in the end, that I didn't see the bowlers toil for that one rather pointless wicket.
So, on to the second test with confidence high. And oh, how justified that was. I have never been so glad to be up too late and sober. Trott's run out was fantastic and hilarious, the delectable Jimmy getting Punter out first ball was stunning and equally hilarious, and then he got Clarke with some really rather gorgeous bowling. Fantastic, stunning, hilarious. And all for 3 runs. 3 runs. Suffice to stay I stayed up a lot during this test, and the title of this blog came true. And of course, we won it. And won it well - I mean REALLY well.
In the interests of denial, and with half an eye on my readers patience. I will simply not talk about the the third test, other than to say that at the end of it, I was distinctly worried that Australia just might have decided to turn up.
But it was fine. By the time we got to Melbourne, the Aussies had decided it was all too much effort, and England played so brilliantly and so deserved to retain the Ashes that by day two we knew it would be so. The bowlers were magnificent, the batters stubborn and resolute. Bowling Australia out for 98 on the first day was another first for England; for anyone. And one of the wonderful things about England on this tour was demonstrated here - everyone contributed during this test. Whether in the field, with the bat (Trott and Cook were magnificent) or with the ball every-one showed their metal and ground Australia into the earth. And I LOVED it!
The following morning, bleary eyed and yawning, I described the moment to my long-suffering hubby, who smiled and nodded and asked a few questions in the right places, hoping that eventually I would shut up. I explained that I was sure that we would now go on to Sydney and win the series. We had to. It would be an anti-climax not to - retaining that little urn was not enough, we were good enough to win it!!
Of course in truth I was a little concerned that England might be, well, not to put too fine a point on it, knackered and a bit laid back about it. Of course, we all know I needn't have worried. Sydney was much of the same really. Again, the bowlers were patient, calm, brilliant, intimidating and altogether world class. Again, the batters excelled, ensuring the match could not be lost and setting our magnificent bowlers up to bring in another innings victory. The fact that it took them til the fifth day to complete that victory was fine by me - sleep had won the night before, and unlike some I was relieved to see we still needed three wickets so that I could watch it to its conclusion. I am running out of words to describe how happy I was - suffice to say that it was more than the icing on the cake. It was the right result, no England supporter, no matter what they may say, would have been happy with a draw in that final match.
My only regret about this series is that Australia didn't play better. I truly believe that this England team could have beaten them, even at their best, and it was a shame that they couldn't prove that on the pitch. Australia have a lot of work to do to get back to their glory days but I'm sure they will; you can say what you want about the Aussies, but quitters they are not. So, onto the T20s and the ODIs, with momentum with them and confidence high. They should do it, I'm pretty sure they will.
But I'm an old fashioned kind of girl, and much as I like the excitement of the quicker forms of the game, nothing comes close to the kind of thrill, passion, tension and excitement a test match can bring. My jet lag is gone now, but I kind of wish I was still sitting in my living room in the middle of the night, watching England become sporting heroes.
I should, at this point, mention my long-suffering husband. I've enjoyed cricket for longer than I've known him, but it was only after a couple of years that I revealed the level of my adoration for the game. In the days before children and responsibility I used to make him sit through at least the weekend days of test matches. As a non-cricket fan, at first he found it dull. But, as a sports fan, he eventually started to ask pertinent questions. Just as I'd taught him the complexities of rugby, I began to explain the in and outs (literally) of cricket. Explaining rugby took a good few matches - its a complicated game. Seven or so years on and I'm still explaining the nuances of cricket. This is why I love it so.
And so, you can imagine my excitement at the prospect of an Ashes tour in Australia with perhaps the best team that I personally have seen play, and with our best chance to win there in 24 years. I won't describe every day of every test match; the truth is I didn't stay up every night of every match. I have a four year old daughter and an 18 month old son. They wake at six and are RELENTLESS from that point onwards. I did stay up for crucial days though, and had updates on my mobile phone for every wicket. I listened to TMS in bed on many occasions, and feel that Jonathan Agnew's voice is now implanted in my sub-conscious.
I, like thousands, possibly millions of cricket fans around the country was on tenterhooks for several weeks. Brisbane started badly. I couldn't help feeling "here we go again, England falter under high expectations". I kept the faith and stayed up to watch as much of the bowling as I could before sleep took me. I fell asleep before England woke up, and the match, if we're honest, was looking lost. Day three was worse....
I should mention now that I rarely watch England bat live. I find it extremely stressful and really not very enjoyable at all. The way I explain it is this: when you watch your team bowl, you know that eventually a good thing will happen, that release of tension, a wicket. When you watch your team bat... well, just replace the word "good" with "bad". You get my meaning. Plus if I'm100% honest I don't really fancy any of the batters so there's no great incentive.
Of course, in this case I really should have watched. Bar Strauss getting out after a masterful captain's innings, the bad thing DIDN'T happen. It just didn't. I was convinced we would be 1-0 down after day three, and here we were, thanks to Strauss, Cook and Trott, on the verge of a rather spectacular draw. Amazing. I even watched us bat on day five, but gave in when the draw became inevitable and before we declared. I was glad, in the end, that I didn't see the bowlers toil for that one rather pointless wicket.
So, on to the second test with confidence high. And oh, how justified that was. I have never been so glad to be up too late and sober. Trott's run out was fantastic and hilarious, the delectable Jimmy getting Punter out first ball was stunning and equally hilarious, and then he got Clarke with some really rather gorgeous bowling. Fantastic, stunning, hilarious. And all for 3 runs. 3 runs. Suffice to stay I stayed up a lot during this test, and the title of this blog came true. And of course, we won it. And won it well - I mean REALLY well.
In the interests of denial, and with half an eye on my readers patience. I will simply not talk about the the third test, other than to say that at the end of it, I was distinctly worried that Australia just might have decided to turn up.
But it was fine. By the time we got to Melbourne, the Aussies had decided it was all too much effort, and England played so brilliantly and so deserved to retain the Ashes that by day two we knew it would be so. The bowlers were magnificent, the batters stubborn and resolute. Bowling Australia out for 98 on the first day was another first for England; for anyone. And one of the wonderful things about England on this tour was demonstrated here - everyone contributed during this test. Whether in the field, with the bat (Trott and Cook were magnificent) or with the ball every-one showed their metal and ground Australia into the earth. And I LOVED it!
The following morning, bleary eyed and yawning, I described the moment to my long-suffering hubby, who smiled and nodded and asked a few questions in the right places, hoping that eventually I would shut up. I explained that I was sure that we would now go on to Sydney and win the series. We had to. It would be an anti-climax not to - retaining that little urn was not enough, we were good enough to win it!!
Of course in truth I was a little concerned that England might be, well, not to put too fine a point on it, knackered and a bit laid back about it. Of course, we all know I needn't have worried. Sydney was much of the same really. Again, the bowlers were patient, calm, brilliant, intimidating and altogether world class. Again, the batters excelled, ensuring the match could not be lost and setting our magnificent bowlers up to bring in another innings victory. The fact that it took them til the fifth day to complete that victory was fine by me - sleep had won the night before, and unlike some I was relieved to see we still needed three wickets so that I could watch it to its conclusion. I am running out of words to describe how happy I was - suffice to say that it was more than the icing on the cake. It was the right result, no England supporter, no matter what they may say, would have been happy with a draw in that final match.
My only regret about this series is that Australia didn't play better. I truly believe that this England team could have beaten them, even at their best, and it was a shame that they couldn't prove that on the pitch. Australia have a lot of work to do to get back to their glory days but I'm sure they will; you can say what you want about the Aussies, but quitters they are not. So, onto the T20s and the ODIs, with momentum with them and confidence high. They should do it, I'm pretty sure they will.
But I'm an old fashioned kind of girl, and much as I like the excitement of the quicker forms of the game, nothing comes close to the kind of thrill, passion, tension and excitement a test match can bring. My jet lag is gone now, but I kind of wish I was still sitting in my living room in the middle of the night, watching England become sporting heroes.
