The Final Word Cricket Podcast

Season 16, Episode 11: On this episode, as promised, we shift focus to Vanuatu. Specifically, to their extraordinary women’s team, currently in action at the T20 World Cup qualifier in Abu Dhabi. To be one step away from the World Cup with a side that barely existed until a decade ago is a story that, in a way, speaks for itself. Their rise was confirmed when knocking off regional giant PNG to win a spot at a tournament that includes three full member nations. Then last week, they thrashed Zimbabwe to begin this most important competition they’ve ever participated in – a scarcely believable result. Joining us to help tell this great modern tale, Selina Solman, the captain of the team, and Tim Cuttler, an Australian who has been chief executive of Cricket Vanuatu over the last few years, and also happens to be a spinner in their men’s team. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get down to Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City! More extra, less ordinary. westfield.com/united-kingdom/london Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 10: Just what is The 100 worth? It's a question that has vexed English cricket, on various levels, since it was first dreamed up some six years ago. Now, we are up to the inevitable moment for the controversial competition as it is prepared for a day at the market. Will Macpherson, from the Telegraph, joins as this week's co-host to go into depth about a story he's been covering as closely as anyone. It leads our busy agenda, which also includes the announcement of T20 squads on the men's side and upsets at the qualification tournament for the women. Later, it's domestic cricket aplenty and Cricket Australia's new blueprint for the women's game. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get down to Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City! More extra, less ordinary. westfield.com/united-kingdom/london Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Story Time, our walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. Daniel Norcross is back with Adam for a second installment of their doubleheader, recorded beneath the Jardine portrait then later at the former England captain’s home ground. It’s an Australian skipper, Allan Border, who is celebrated for his secondary discipline after we learn all there is to know about the man who was for many decades Lancashire’s finest quick. An astonishing get later in the show, somehow linking Liverpool’s Fab Four and Sri Lanka’s Tremendous Two. We finish on even 100s made in both innings, hitting a variety of Final Word sweet spots along the way. Enjoy! Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 2.52 – James 2.00 – Alex P 7.56 – Steven Westwood 2.00 – Paul Reeve 10.00 – Anna Forsyth revisited Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get down to Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City! More extra, less ordinary. westfield.com/united-kingdom/london Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This is the first of a Story Time weekend doubleheader with Daniel Norcross. Only four numbers, but boy did we go to some places. From the Biggest Vince, to a debut hat-trick to picking Daniel’s clothes on TikTok. What about the chap who played once for England in football and once for England in cricket? Or the Dusty Old Bastard who was sent a fake telegram to turn up for a Test he wasn’t selected for? Later, a beautiful sequence of coincidental numbers gets us to the first Lord’s Test ton. And all capped with a Jeremy Coney voice note about Umpire Dick Short. Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 2.02 - Jason Bennie 2.59 – Daniel Forman 14.80 – Jimit Raja 3.16 – Rizwan Patel Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get down to Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City! More extra, less ordinary. westfield.com/united-kingdom/london Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 8: We've seen her do unreal things before, but this one was the best of the lot. The biggest chase ever in women's cricket, with Chamari ending on 195 not out. Also this week, Meg Lanning's interview about her struggles, the new English women's domestic structure becomes clear, and in men's cricket we have Australian domestic players refusing state contracts, Scott Boland injured out of the county season, Peter Siddle going around yet again, and another hectic week in the run-fest IPL. Your Nerd Pledge number this week: 82.15 - Pat Dempsey Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 7: It's been a rugged month at Cricket Ireland. In a buoyant mood after winning their first men's Test Match in March, the focus has quickly moved to internal affairs, whether that be the postponement of Australia's visit, budgets or company cars. It's the perfect time for another chat with Warren Deutrom, who has been the chief executive at CI head office since 2006. To help frame this detailed conversation, Nathan Johns from the Irish Times also joined Adam in Dublin. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get down to Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City! More extra, less ordinary. westfield.com/united-kingdom/london Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a search for the greatest Welsh all-rounder, and another search for a run out of historical significance. We have a caller on the line sounds weirdly like Steven Finn, an unexpected link from Bradman to Murali, and a song of praise for the most swoon-worthy wrist position of all. Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 10.00 - Anna Forsyth 4.00 - Amelia Vine 4.78 - Ed Barr-Sim 9.51 - Darragh O'Donovan Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 6: One of our staples is to speak with Lawrence Booth, the editor of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, on the day of its release in the Lord’s Library. In this, his 13th edition in charge, no punches are pulled. As he says in his editors’ notes, it’s clear that the future of Test cricket, beyond the wealthiest nations, really is at the crossroads. And as always, there’s so much more celebrating the year that was – forthright and thoughtful, the good book is doing exactly as it should. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 5: Deep into western Victoria, in the land around Harrow and Edenhope, was the home of the great cricketer Unaarrimin, more broadly known as Johnny Mullagh. We've told the story before of his 1868 Aboriginal team that toured England. Last weekend, Geoff headed to Harrow for commemorative matches between the veterans' Indigenous teams of Victoria and New South Wales. It was something special. Also this week, our county cricket updates, some rare multi-day domestic cricket for India's women, and our IPL wrap. Your Nerd Pledge number this week: 7.64 - Satchmo Distel Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ben Bloom - Batting for Time: The Fight to Keep English Cricket Alive Moreso by the year, the future of domestic cricket in England is up for grabs. Operating in a squeezed schedule at the same time franchise tournaments are changing the global landscape, the place of the County Championship and many of its clubs is complicated like never before. In 2023, Ben Bloom explored the underlying issues by interviewing 100 people in the thick of things. The result is this fine and important book, which has made headlines at the start of a new season. He spoke with Adam, appropriately during a county game, at The Oval in London. Get the book: https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/shop/batting-time Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, what is the worst bowl-first decision of all time? And what does it have to do with the Vengaboys and the bravest innings ever played near a giant fruit? Plus the byword for cricket arcania, the portrait that should grace the mantelpiece of Daniel Norcross, and some stories we can tell you about the Stories we can tell you. Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 2.58 - Sam Brown 1008 - Alan Edgar  5.11 - Jeffrey Gabriel 4.50 - Simon Butcher & Andrew West  5.69 - Matt May 3.49 - Matt Near the Gabba Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Greatest Season That Was, Episode 10 – Damien Fleming. By this stage on the re-release of The Greatest Season That Was series on the 1999 Men’s World Cup, we have revisited interviews with players and broadcasters who were front and centre from South Africa, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, England and India. But what about Australia? The story of their staggering semi-final tie was told earlier in the series, but their campaign to that point was already noteworthy. From teetering on the edge of elimination to an internal shake-up to a fateful night of ten-pin bowling, a man in the thick of things throughout was Damien Fleming. The ever-enthusiastic Australian quick takes us back 25 years, but to 1996 as well when they also snuck through the semi only to blow the big one. He explains in this conversation with Shannon Gill (Code Sports), Dan Brettig (The Age) and Adam Collins why history didn’t repeat when the men in the bright gold uniforms made it to Lord’s. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 4: Cricket got underway in England over the last week, with more rain than balls bowled but some bumper days of play nonetheless, not least the one in which Sam Northeast knocked together 335 at Lord's. Will Nathan Lyon's two overs count as a game played? The wait remains. In Australia, Nic Maddinson moves states again. There's a chaotic week of IPL, the Sri Lanka's women's team complete a historic series win in South Africa, Roberta Moretti steps down after seven years as captain of Brazil, and the world lost Papua New Guinea's finest bowler Kaia Arua. Your Nerd Pledge number this week: 2.90 - Shaun Ton Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 3: Made in heaven, Michael Bevan. He was the very best at what he did - finishing 50-over run chases with the onboard computer scanning every option. But he was a lot more than that: a red-ball maestro, a Test spinner, the most prolific player to walk onto the Sydney Cricket Ground. We were lucky enough to spend our Sydney live show in January 2024 together, in an impressively honest conversation about a career's iconic highs, its great frustrations, and the personal lessons he had to learn to reconcile it all. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get a sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, how did Learie Constantine become lord of his domain? Also, the remarkable tale of a pioneering New Zealander, an Adelaide mystery, a triumph that didn’t feel like one, and Geoff’s favourite of all time. Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 1.97 - Tom Stewart 4.00 - Alex Brown 5.69 - Matt May 2.81 - Alex Crampton 3.07 - Andrew Beech Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 2: If asking who has the most interesting story in world cricket right now, a leading candidates would be David Wiese. From the South African national team to England as a Kolpak, until Brexit put a stop to that. Then another door opened into the Namibian national team, getting the chance to represent a second country at multiple World Cups, showing his talent as a matchwinner on the global stage, then hitting the road as a freelancer in his late 30s in just about every T20 league going. His life is the subject of a new podcast series, Hitman for Hire, and he joined Adam (having just finished a T20 International against Oman!) to tell us how the merry-go-round feels to one riding it. Listen to David's podcast, Hitman for Hire, a fellow member of the Sports Social Podcast Network: https://podcast.sport-social.co.uk/podcast/hitman-for-hire-a-year-in-the-life-of-a-franchise-cricketer/ Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Season 16, Episode 1: After two Test caps and about a hundred tours on the bench, Michael Neser has lost his Australian contract and is way down the pecking order. Is it over for the hashtag man? Various South African players are actively dodging contracts, while Jason Gillespie has left South Australia and may be bound for Karachi. Also this week, it's a new season - the English county season will begin with nine matches on opening day. Nathan Lyon will play a reduced part after Cricket Australia clipped his wings. There will be plenty of attention on the use of spinners and the work of wicketkeepers. Bangladesh women struggle against Australia, as do New Zealand against England, but Papua New Guinea’s women had their biggest result. Plus our very tangled IPL wrap. Your Nerd Pledge number this week: 39.70 - Jeremy Brown Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get your 10% discount on top-notch kit from Serious Cricket. Use FINALWORD24 at checkout --> seriouscricket.co.uk Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Run or donate to the 2024 Edinburgh Marathon for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Steve Cannane - First Tests: Great Australian Cricketers and the Backyards That Made Them Steve Cannane has been a journalist for more than 30 years, and the ABC's senior foreign correspondent in Europe since 2021. But aside from his important work, his passion is cricket - for decades, he charged in every Saturday as an opening bowler. And it was with his club side, watching a teammate's unorthodox batting technique, where a question was planted: how much do the childhood backyards of players influence what we eventually see at the top level? The answer was a beautiful and much-loved book, First Tests. Originally published in 2009, but just as relevant now, we revisit these stories as Steve prepares to return to Australia. Appropriately, given how much he's loved hanging out in Soho while living in London, it was in a pub in the heart of town where Adam and Daniel Norcross recorded this most fulfilling interview. Get the book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/First-Tests-Australian-Cricketers-Backyards-ebook/dp/B004JHZ4ZQ Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, disregard all fakes - this involves one of the fastest REAL centuries in first-class cricket. We hunt for a phantom spell via a bowling feat rarer than a double hat-trick, look at some less famed examples to more famed counterparts, and consider the adventures of the Channel Island Over-50s. Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 3.63 - Slim Johns & Damian Sharry 4.00 - Alex Brown 6.04 - Lee Geldard 2.87 - Greg Sykes Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Greatest Season That Was, Episode 9 – Lance Klusener. At the 1999 World Cup, Lance Klusener stole the show. During a golden era for South African one-day cricket, the Proteas men were meant to fulfil their destiny in England by holding up the trophy for the first time. Being seen as the best team in the world was heavily due to their left-handed brute, the man they called Zulu. Across a long conversation, Lance joined Shannon Gill, Dan Brettig and Adam Collins to tell this bittersweet story in his own words. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Get that sweet Nord VPN discount - nordvpn.com/tfw Donate to support our Edinburgh Marathon runners for the Lord's Taverners All links at linktr.ee/thefinalword Find previous episodes at finalwordcricket.com Title track by Urthboy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices