The Final Word Cricket Podcast

Season 14, Episode 10: Who needs to play tour matches before a major Test engagement, anyway? Its not like Australia's most recent tour was affected by a team taking time to adjust. Time to play other sports instead. On another note, it was a major week in the women's game with two of the game's iconic fast bowlers, Katherine Sciver-Brunt and Shabmim Ismail, retiring from international duty. India...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, let's begin with the apocryphal contributions of Olivia Newton-John, and work our way down to the coastal town of Warrnambool for what could and should be the greatest collaboration of all between Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. With a little more Warwick Armstrong Style for those who celebrate. Your...

Season 14, Episode 9: When it comes to the second half of the 20th century, few figures had a bigger influence on English cricket than Dennis Amiss. But those born in recent decades might not know much of him, as a player and a personality defined by understatement even with the height of his achievements. Aggressively opening the batting when possible, resolutely defending when necessary, and goi...

Season 14, Episode 8: Nick Hoult from the Telegraph leads this show, after a huge news week in England that includes suggestions from the top of the ECB of abandoning the new format and league that they have spent the last few years arguing for. Other stories include England players becoming likely to refuse national contracts in favour of T20 franchises, and a masterful week of needling from Stua...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, with a coronation coming up, let's go back to the last time one was necessary. In step with that, we have England's most ineffective captain, Australia's selectors trolling Wally Hammond, another rare record for Vinoo Mankad, another appearance for Henry Olonga, and the end of our search for a bo...

Season 14, Episode 7: Victorian captain, back in the Test side for India, then not in the Ashes squad, Peter Handscomb's cricket career is still the proverbial rollercoaster. These days he is learning to take the ride. Now in a stint playing for Leicestershire, Handscomb sits down with The Final Word for a long and frank conversation about the hard winning of self-belief, the role of anxiety, the...

Season 14, Episode 6: After our initial conversation last week about Saudi Arabia wanting to buy Indian cricket, it's time to talk to Daniel Brettig, who did some substantial reporting for The Age. Also this week, Ireland bat big in Sri Lanka, New Zealand level a ridiculous T20 series in Pakistan, Glenn Maxwell and David Warner roll on in the IPL, Jimmy Anderson hunts another target in the County...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a very unusual Story Time. It's not the weekend. It's a Monday. But it's not just any Monday, or any 24th of April. It's not just Damien Fleming's birthday. It's not just 25 years since the Sandstorm century in Sharjah. It is Sachin Tendulkar's 50th birthday. And after years of making sport with...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a Story Time double is coming your way, so for the entree we have a round of revisits to finish off some answers that we previously got wrong. So many stories to breeze through here, but the only tempter you really need is to know that Andy Caddick broke the internet. Your Nerd Pledge revisits th...

Season 14, Episode 5: Cricket farewelled someone truly special this week, Faith Thomas, who played a Test match in 1953 as Faith Coulthard when she became the first Indigenous woman to represent Australia in any sport. Her friend and biographer Tyson Baird joins the show to talk about her personality and legacy. Also this week, the Australian men's Ashes squad is announced, and a Saudi Arabia T20...

Season 14, Episode 4: Four years ago, we sat with Lawrence Booth, the editor of cricket's bible, to discuss his most recent edition on the night that Geoff won the gong as Wisden's book of the year. Four years and a pandemic later, Adam is with the same guest on the same couch in the MCC Library at Lord's to discuss edition number 160, and it's a belter. International cricket needs advocates like...

Season 14, Ep 3: We're lucky to work on a lot of cricket around the world each year and never take that for granted. But what I (Adam here) didn't have on my radar until last year was a tournament with origins dating back before the women's professional era - the FairBreak Invitational. It takes some getting your head around at first, but bringing players together from more than 30 countries is pr...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, Bharat Sundaresan makes his suggestion for most iconic commentary duo, we find out about Test hat-tricks on debut and about pioneering blasters, we look at the life of a very early legend, the worst good days in the field, and the worst worst efforts second with the bat. Also, stay away from Thom...

Season 14, Ep 2: This week, some more exciting corporate nonsense from the cash-chasing division of the ICC, making up both milestones and meanings. All that we're asking for is Michael Bevan Day to be formally recognised. The Australian national contracts are done for men and women, and there's plenty to read in those tea leaves. Bangladesh knocks off Ireland but there's a ton on debut for Lorcan...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a couple of chunky revisits get mixed through the new numbers as we look at why so many Pakistan cricketers ended their lives in England, how Nobby became named Nobby, which 1800s Chunky Boi you would most love to cuddle, who Chappelli rated most of all, and what the difference is between the dif...

Season 14, Ep 1: It's a new season of The Final Word. More importantly, the Australian board has a new pay deal in place with huge significance for the women's game, and the English board has finished its disciplinary investigation into racist behaviour at Yorkshire. Bharat Sundaresan joins Geoff to make an attempt at drawing conclusions. Also this week, the IPL gets underway with Old Man Dhoni st...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a time when Zimbabwe ruled the world and Henry Olonga set it alight. Which of the great players is most undervalued, and why is the answer is Zaheer Abbas? The origin stories for a moustachioed icon and for the best to ever do a certain job. And the way that we answer answers that we can't answer...

Season 13, Ep 29: This week, reporter Annesha Ghosh updates us about the WPL that she has spent the past few weeks watching more closely than anyone, after Harmanpreet Kaur's Mumbai Indians took down Meg Lanning's Delhi Capitals. Also this week, the Afghanistan board claims they received an ICC funding increase, but there is no evidence that it happened. Western Australia continue their dynasty wi...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. It isn't often that we breach the two-hour barrier, but this was worth it. A BUMPER revisits special with 18 numbers – a new record for a single ep. Hop in to learn about the all-round sporting brilliance of Harald Frei, a nagging seamer called Mad Jack, the sad final appearance of Johnny Briggs, and a chap...

Season 13, Ep 28: This week, the MCC gets swarmed by Eton and Harrow fans , and Emma John joins the show to help explain this especially English toff barney. Before we get to that, Australia is still playing in India, Sri Lanka get finished up in New Zealand, the WPL reaches its finals, Victoria stun Western Australia and Queensland in the Mr Sheffield Shield, Aleem Dar and Dane van Niekerk sign o...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a new record for single largest pledge provokes a ridiculous voyage into the obscurities of the past. We have cricketing pilots, an Almanack exploration, Stork Hendry going in to bat for Clarrie Grimmett, and a thorny clue that you might have more luck with than we did. Your Nerd Pledge numbers t...

Season 13, Ep 27: And with that, it was done. Ahmedabad receded into the distance. Mumbai vanished into the night. Those weeks were left behind. So we turn out attention to Bangladesh, where the Tigers have just whitewashed world champions England in a T20 series, and friend of the show Mohammad Isam has been watching as always. Also this week, Temba Bavuma breaks through against West Indies, New...

It's Story Time, our weekly walk through cricket history via your listener quiz challenges. This week, a host of sports betting enthusiasts get involved across a range of matches, there are some Djokovic strategic bathroom breaks, and we uncover the Australian answer to the man who could jump onto a mantelpiece. Your Nerd Pledge numbers this week: 3.00 - Matt Near the Gabba 3.60 - Uzair Khan & Cha...

India v Australia, Ahmedabad Day 5, Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023. The best thing we can say about that is, it is over. Day five was about as tedious as it promised to be, but luckily down in New Zealand they were playing another classic with Sri Lanka for company. Plan your Melbourne moment at www.visitmelbourne.com Send us a Nerd Pledge at patreon.com/thefinalword Learn more about your ad choices....

India vs Australia, Ahmedabad Day 4, Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023. It's The Final Word Daily, and after people talking about it for three years, Kohli made a Test hundred. Not his toughest conditions, not his most perilous position, but the job was done. Also, Axar Patel carried on, Nathan Lyon bowled a marathon, and more. Plan your Melbourne moment at www.visitmelbourne.com Send us a Nerd Pledge a...