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Q: Did you know that before T20's inception in 2003, New Zealand Cricket invented a new format of the game back in 1996 called 'Cricket Max'.
It was the brainchild of Martin Crowe who claimed "I Invented and designed Cricket Max because I felt it was time to provide to our spectators and TV viewers a game of cricket that was short in duration, very colourful, kept some old traditions and highlighted the best skills in the game."
Rules of the format;
The format of the game involved two teams playing two innings of ten-overs each. It was played on traditional grounds but with one subtle difference. Both sides of the ground had a special ‘Super-Max’ carved out covering the region between long-off and long-on. Basically, every shot that the batter would hit in the Max-zone, they were rewarded with double-returns. If they hit a four in the Max zone, it was considered as ‘eight’ or if they had stroked a six, it was considered as ‘twelve’.
https://www.cricconnect.com/profile/838/stuart-cope/blog/2257/before-t20-it-was-cricket-max-in-new-zealand
blog post
Did you know that before T20's inception in 2003, New Zealand Cricket invented a new format of the game back in 1996 call ...
question
Q: On Saturday I took a little drive into Birmingham to pick out a new cricket bat for the season (the 20 mile drive took me nearly two hours!) and it got me thinking......
I'm just a club cricketer but I'm very picky. I couldn't care less about the brand, all I'm bothered about is the feel of the bat, the way it picks up, is the sweet spot generous and slightly low on the blade as we tend to play on slow decks in Warwickshire.
I went to three different bat makers in Birmingham, the first place only had 10 bats to look at, none felt right, so onto the next place. It said it was open, but I turned up and it was shut, so third time was the charm. I met Abid at A7 Cricket, and I was with him for nearly two hours, I picked up at least 50 blades before falling in love with one particular bit of wood.
When I was younger and a better player I would get bats for free but now I'm older and sh*tter, I don't have that luxury. If I'm to spend £300+ on willow, I'm not doing this online and risk getting something that doesn't feel right.
In February, March & April why don't bat makers go on the road in a van and book appointments with clubs and players? If a bat maker booked in an appointment at my club (Kenilworth CC) at preseason training they would have access to 40 senior players and over 100 junior players, I have no doubt they would sell a good number of blades in one hit. Go one step further, could appointments be booked in for at home visits and the van is essentially a showroom? The batmaker could do visits in the evenings and weekends when customers are actually available..
Maker&Son do this with sofa's coming directly to your door and it works.
This is hardly the most innovative idea but I've never heard of a bat maker doing this, yes there would be overheads but if you used a free booking software tool such as Calendly or Square then plugged it into your website and socials you're off. The bat maker then just needs to market effectively to their local audience and do outbound calls/emails with local clubs, you could even offer the club a group discount if they purchase a minimum order of bats.
Anyways, this is a ramble but for all the cricket badgers out there, would you use this type of service....... 🤔
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Q: I've just been reading the story of Shamar Joseph and it's incredible
Shamar just debuted for the West Indies against Australia, picking up five wickets and getting Steve Smith out with his first ball.
He hails from a small village in Guyana, to reach Baracara, one has to take a boat trip of around 225 km up the Canje River. It would take almost two days for a person to reach the remote rural area in the Caribbean. Baracara did not have proper telephone or internet network until 2018.
Baracara's population is 350, but Joseph has five brothers and three sisters. He would play tape-ball cricket and sometimes use lemons and guava to play impromptu matches. He only played an official cricket match five years ago!
https://www.cricconnect.com/profile/838/stuart-cope/blog/1941/the-story-of-shamar-joseph-is-incredible
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I've just been reading the story of Shamar Joseph and it's incredible Shamar just debuted for the West Indies agai ...
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Q: At Uni, I worked for Yorkshire CCC, I managed the cricket centre at Headingley a few times a week, coached various county age group teams and worked within local schools. I played in the Bradford League and Airedale and Wharfedale league, where I conversed with all stakeholders from grassroots to the higher echelons of the game. My experience of the sport then was that it polarized people, there was a complete lack of empathy and understanding of different cultures and their struggles.
It was a bold ask to write a dissertation regarding my employers but in all fairness to Yorkshire CCC they opened the doors to interview all key stakeholders from the CEO, players, coaches, ex-players and club cricketers.
https://www.cricconnect.com/profile/838/stuart-cope/blog/1229/be-curious-and-change-the-inequality-in-cricket
blog post
It's a dark day for cricket and tough reading the ICEC review. I've been sat on my thoughts about inequality within cricket for a long time and simply been too scared to ...
