The Final Word Cricket Podcast

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, the Oz Brothers and their religious persuasion is only missing a founding document - we know what it was, but not where it went. Adam goes back to a personal beginning, we return to a favourite among Final Word faves, and one of the great one-day contests that we nearly got to see. Your Nerd Pled...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 18: With guest host Carlos Braithwaite. A man who knows all about playing with and against India's best runs his eye over yet another masterclass from Virat Kohli, who fell five runs short of matching Sachin Tendulkar's century record. That was after a massive partnership between The Sweatiest Man Alive (Darryl Mitchell) and the new kid on the block Rachin Ravindra. Bumra...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 17.2: England. South Africa. Two sides looking to bounce back after surprise losses to lower-ranked opposition. Although after this result, those lower in the rankings might ask whether they should be rated higher than one of these teams. A ferocious batting onslaught from Heinrich Klaasen, a coming-of-age moment for Marco Jansen, a return from injury for Ben Stokes, a wi...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 17.1: At last, Sri Lanka are on the board in this World Cup. The Dutch gave it a good shake after losing six early wickets batting first, but in the chase, the experienced campaigners got the job done with relative ease. Cam Ponsonby is with Adam in London with Geoff reporting in later today from the England-South Africa clash at Mumbai. Support the show with a Nerd Pledg...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 16: At the Chinnaswamy in Bengaluru without the floodlights from Waverly Park, it was all about massive opening partnerships. David Warner and Mitchell Marsh went ballistic, Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq did it in slightly more restrained style. Two huge scores, two teams needing a win - tune in. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Find out...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 15: India move to four from four with style, easily accounting for Bangladesh in Pune. And better still for fans of the men in blue, victory was raised by a huge Virat Kohli six, which took him to his 48th ODI ton - he really is seeing them beautifully. Cam Ponsonby is with Adam Collins in London while Geoff gets his computer fixed in Bangalore. Support the show with a Ne...

Season 15, Episode 5: Outside the pageantry on the field, there are currents and undercurrents influencing this World Cup beyond the play. Senior journalists Daniel Brettig and Anand Vasu join to talk about recent pieces they’ve written that have packed a punch. Also, more Sheffield Shield, more bad press releases and more success for the Australian women’s team. Support the show with a Nerd Pledg...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 14: Two weeks into this tournament, and only one team has an unblemished record after four games. New Zealand kept on banking points with this result over Afghanistan, though the men in blue and red had their chances to record another win against the odd but let too many slip through their fingers at Chennai. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 13: Two major upsets in three days! It's the Dutch this time, who have had to scrap so hard to make this tournament, doing the business against South Africa at a World Cup for the second time in a row. Their captain Scott Edwards led the way with the bat in a thrilling final thrust before his ever-capable bowlers went to work to deny the Proteas, unbeaten to this point. S...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 12: Two World Cup finals have involved this pairing, and two World Cup campaigns this year depended heavily on this result. Both teams were winless heading into it, and Kusal Perera joined with Pathum Nissanka to give Sri Lanka a dominant start, before Adam Zampa and Mitchell Starc made their presence felt after Pat Cummins and David Warner opened things up. Then it was d...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 11: England rolled into Delhi expecting to keep on rolling after Afghanistan, and it did not quite work out the way they expected. Rahmanullah Gurbaz batted explosively, the usual mid-innings collapse happened via Adil Rashid, then Ikram Alikhil produced something. At which point it was time for Mujeeb and Rashid Khan to do their work alongside some fast-bowling magic. A...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, our many recent tales of crooks and jailbirds add three more notable entries, from plotters to absconders. We try to track down a family connection, look at a family's number, and solve a statistical possibility about the most successful failures. Plus, find out what they inhale on a surf town's...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 10: India and Pakistan! That's the big one. Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique started well. Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan kept it going. Then Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav happened, setting the stage for Rohit Sharma with a higher degree of difficulty than you might have thought. All in front of a full house... well, kinda. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patre...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 9: After missing two games, it was time for Big Daddy Kane Williamson. But don't call it a comeback - he's been here for years. Mahmudullah did himself a mischief, the old firm of Shakib and Mushfiqur Rahim did the job again, Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson bowled wheels, Mitchell Santner finally got a game for Chennai Super Kings, and Darryl Mitchell defended his title as...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 8: Two games in to this World Cup, and the Australians are in trouble. Strange selections being made, players with no backups struggling for effect. Meanwhile for South Africa, Quinton de Kock is flying, Aiden Markram is following him, Lungi Ngidi and Kagiso Rabada are working in tandem. A stunning result at Lucknow. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thef...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 7: It was an important first innings from an Afghanistan team that manged to counter one of its consistent weaknesses. But then it changed abruptly into National Rohit Sharma today, resulting in a statsgasm to rival any we've had. Find out how it all unfolded. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Find out what's fun at Westfield London and Westf...

Season 15, Episode 4: In an effort to spend more time talking about the Sheffield Shield this Australian summer, we have Louis Cameron, one of the best in the business, with us to set up the season. Before that, we’re searching for the joy in this World Cup, celebrating Hayley Matthews and pondering what the future might hold for Jake Fraser-McGurk. Your Nerd Pledge number this week: 2.06 - Tom Sl...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 6.2: Another day of batting purity, with blazing centuries from Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama up against another two from Abdullah Shafique and Mohammed Rizwan. Who wore it better? Plus find out about the most extra rendition of having cramps that the game has seen, plus an illuminating theory lesson from Ian Bishop. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreo...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 6.1: England in the board with a thumping victory over the Tigers, Dawid Malan continuing his absurd run as an ODI opener - that's six tons in 23 hits, the quickest ever to that mark. They didn't go as huge as what they might've hoped in the final ten, but 364 was plenty to turn the screws on Bangladesh, Reece Topley starring upon his return to the side at Dharamshala. Su...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 5: The Battle of the Ns, as the Dutch take on the Kiwis in an alphabetical head to head. The venue is Hyderabad, with just a glimmer of sports betting enthusiasm twinkling here and there, and it's time for Mitchell Santner to shine as the Dutch can't quite work out how to approach their play. Rachin Ravindra, meanwhile, carries on his twinkling start after his World Cup h...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 4: We're going down to Chennai, where the pitch is crusty and slow, the humidity is through the roof, and visitors struggle. Australia faced India and a triple spin intervention, before the visiting fast bowlers had a triple intervention of their own. A ground full of Kohli fans all wearing Kohli shirts watched the denouement. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreo...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, we find that military service is not for everyone, or perhaps some just have a different method of enjoying it. And what's with all the non-Julio Julios? Let's look at one of the great days out, search for anything to match one specific criteria, look at openers who enjoyed doing not much, and he...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 3.2: The most runs ever scored in a World Cup match? Go on, then. A bananas day of cricket at Delhi as the South Africans went full Spirit of AB de Villiers on the Sri Lankans, before Kusal Mendis and Charith Asalanka produced something memorable in return. Featuring maybe the best-stupidest shot that we will see at this tournament, and some very enjoyable numbers. Suppor...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 3.1: In the first of our Saturday double-header, the Tigers are on the board in style with a thumping win over a lacklustre Afghanistan at Dharamshala. Vithushan Ehantharajah joins Adam in his London backyard.  Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Find out what's fun at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City – More extra, less ordinary! h...

World Cup Daily 2023, Day 2: The Dutch were far more in this than the 81-run margin suggests but when it mattered most, Pakistan did as they had to in their tournament opener at Hyderabad. Adam has Cam Ponsonby with him in London. Support the show with a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Find out what's fun at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City – More extra, less ordinary! https:/...