I had a chat with Adithya Vadapalli for an hour on December 19 for The Switch Hit Podcast about a broad range of issues relating to Australian cricket over the years.
Show notes: https://soundsfromthepitch.podbean.com/e/interview-with-rick-eyre/
Don Bradman’s eleventy-first birthday, a thread
On the occasion of the 111th anniversary of Donald George Bradman’s birthday – August 27 2019 – I searched up a number of unusual non-cricketing items about The Don from contemporary newspapers, with thanks to the National Library of Australia’s glorious Trove database:
Happy eleventy-first birthday to Sir Donald Bradman. Being born on August 27 made him a Virgo, as the astrology page of the Australian Women’s Weekly of 14/9/38 reminds us: pic.twitter.com/ajPwN4eVSp
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) August 27, 2019
“Kindly and clever Virgoans are always in danger of developing into exacting tyrants. The remedy is in thejr own hands.”
June Marsden, President of the Astrological Research Society with advice for the future head of the Australian Cricket Board of Control https://t.co/e4QRGywn3M— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) August 27, 2019
They don’t publish high school exam results in the local papers any more. Don Bradman’s Intermediate Certificate exam results reported in the Robertson Advocate of 23/2/23 (source https://t.co/5ypoakaFMm) pic.twitter.com/ycJ391mf7D
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) August 27, 2019
On the 111th anniversary of the birth of Donald George Bradman here is the sheet music for his musical composition “Every Day Is A Rainbow Day For Me”… https://t.co/FYA2CQKJ1X
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) August 27, 2019
and here is “Every Day Is A Rainbow Day For Me” sung by the Don’s granddaughter Greta: https://t.co/L2KfOkMbin
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) August 27, 2019
“The decisive factor was the amazing footwork of Bradman, who has only been playing squash three years. He has been playing a fair amount of golf this season.” https://t.co/hKRcn7Csuc
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) August 27, 2019
Dennis Lillee at 70, a thread
A thread I posted to Twitter to commemorate Dennis Lillee’s 70th birthday on July 18 2019:
In my opinion the most popular figure in Australian cricket since Bradman retired. Happy 70th birthday to Dennis Lillee. Here is the day he took 8/29 against the Rest of the World in 1971: https://t.co/CW3z4Ml3zn
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
One of the greatest exhibitions of hostile fast bowling, in one of the best one-day games of all time. Western Australia’s Dennis Lillee to Queensland’s Vivian Richards: https://t.co/TV5kPOXcCx
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
Dennis Lillee, batsman and unsuccessful innovator: https://t.co/Kq4qAOWd8y
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
More of Dennis Lillee following this word from the NSW Building Society https://t.co/FRYb6yiC7H
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
Dennis Lillee to Viv Richards again. Late on the first day of the 1981 Boxing Day Test: https://t.co/iLTvorXAt9
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
Dennis Lillee’s final Test match, against Pakistan in 1984, and wickets 348 to 355. Today July 18 is his seventieth birthday. https://t.co/zPOD4aY0Gb
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
Tooheys Draught commemorates Dennis Lillee’s retirement (until he played for Tasmania and Northants three years later)https://t.co/T4Y6xN2p7K
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
“When you want carpet, who do you call?” https://t.co/Sl3ECxfgnv
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 17, 2019
“If Steel Blue had made cricket boots instead of work boots, I might have been doing this a bit longer” https://t.co/7BVuqbh36e
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 18, 2019
Dennis Lillee, fast bowling mentor to a generation… but Sachin Tendulkar wasn’t good enough. https://t.co/wLpEiiWgfT
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 18, 2019
Happy seventieth birthday, Dennis Keith Lillee. pic.twitter.com/yJTnwq5Qel
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) July 18, 2019
Sunil Gavaskar at 70, a thread
A thread that I posted to Twitter to commemorate Sunil Gavaskar’s 70th birthday on July 10 2019: Continue reading “Sunil Gavaskar at 70, a thread”
2009 My Test live-tweeting debut
Unlock with PatreonSydney Thunder pre T20 era XI
As part of a debate that developed downstream from a team listing put together by Brad Hodge and tweeted by @7cricket a few days ago (see below), I have assembled a hypothetical Sydney Thunder squad of players from the pre-T20 era.
Criteria for inclusion:
- They must have played for a club (or a predecessor) that competes in the Thunder Conference of the 2018-19 Kingsgrove Sports T20 competition in NSW Premier Cricket (that is: Bankstown, Blacktown, Campbelltown-Camden, Fairfield-Liverpool, Hawkesbury, Northern District, Parramatta, Penrith, Sydney University, Western Suburbs, ACT, Central Coast)
- They must not have played in a major T20 tournament since the birth of the format in 2003. (I have included the ICL in this definition, which disqualifies Michael Bevan)
The Seventh Test Sydney 1971
On Wednesday August 1 2018 at Edgbaston an England team walks on the field to begin a Test match for the 1000th time.
Among the reflections, the listicles and the shallow on-line polls, people have been choosing their greatest and/or favourite Test matches of the previous 999 (actually 1004 if you count washouts and cancellations). Headingley 1981 and Edgbaston 2005 are both, quite rightly, very popular selections. Lack of television footage and eyewitness recollections from The Oval 1882 have prevented it from polling as high.
I’ve chosen a different Test as a personal favourite, an eventful match that occupies a seminal place in England’s Test cricket history. I give you 1970-71’s Seventh Test against Australia.
Yesterday’s Papers Today: the Adelaide Test 1932-33
Third Test, Adelaide, January 13-19 1933: England 341 and 412, Australia 222 and 193. England won by 338 runs.
One of the most infamous Test matches in the history of contests between Australia and England began on Friday the Thirteenth of January 1933. The timeless Test ended the following Thursday in a decisive England victory and the unfolding of an international incident. Continue reading “Yesterday’s Papers Today: the Adelaide Test 1932-33”
Yesterday’s papers today: the Brisbane Test of 1950-51
First Test, Brisbane, December 1-5 1950: Australia 228 & 7/32 dec, England 7/68 dec & 122. Australia won by 70 runs.
But first, an assurance by England captain Freddie Brown that all is well in the touring party: Continue reading “Yesterday’s papers today: the Brisbane Test of 1950-51”
Yesterday’s papers today: Broadcasting the Ashes 1928 1932
Broadcasting the Ashes of 1928-29 and 1932-33 – some clippings from the newspapers of the time as preserved by Trove, the glorious digital archive hosted by the National Library of Australia:
Broadcast arrangements for the Brisbane Test for Melbourne listeners. #Ashes1928 https://t.co/ZXcAC9RiU2
— Rick Eyre on cricket (@rickeyrecricket) November 21, 2017
Continue reading “Yesterday’s papers today: Broadcasting the Ashes 1928 1932”