According to legend, there are three ways to find out the arrival of summer in England. The green lawns on the country-side, the chirp of the birds and the sweet sound of bat hitting ball. Well that tells a lot about the place of cricket in England and English society notwithstanding the huge following for football. Cricket is probably the most English of all games and I have come to admire the pristine setting of the game at its home - England.
As I watched the test match between England and India unfold at Lord's I was amazed by the whole atmosphere. The terracotta pavilion filled to brim, the lush green outfield, the almost deafening silence as the bowler ran into bowl and finally the sweet sound of bat hitting ball. It almost seemed blissfully idyllic. No wonder playing in England is every cricketer's dream I thought. For a cricketer going to England is akin to going on a pilgrimage.
Cricket in England lapses back to the halcyon days of the amateurs when it was a gentleman's game and the trappings of commercialization and business hadn’t maligned it. A time when bowler's applauded when a batman caressed him through cover and the batsman walked when he knew he'd nicked a feather edge. It would be naive to believe anything of that sort will ever happen, but it’s always good to hark back to the past and cricket in England provides an excuse to do so.
As I watched the test match between England and India unfold at Lord's I was amazed by the whole atmosphere. The terracotta pavilion filled to brim, the lush green outfield, the almost deafening silence as the bowler ran into bowl and finally the sweet sound of bat hitting ball. It almost seemed blissfully idyllic. No wonder playing in England is every cricketer's dream I thought. For a cricketer going to England is akin to going on a pilgrimage.
Cricket in England lapses back to the halcyon days of the amateurs when it was a gentleman's game and the trappings of commercialization and business hadn’t maligned it. A time when bowler's applauded when a batman caressed him through cover and the batsman walked when he knew he'd nicked a feather edge. It would be naive to believe anything of that sort will ever happen, but it’s always good to hark back to the past and cricket in England provides an excuse to do so.
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