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December 2009

The good the bad the ugly of 2009

It's almost as terrifying as the prospect of a Bros comeback tour, but here, back after an eleven-and-a-half year absence and for one night only, I give you The Good, The Bad and The Ugly of Cricket in 2009.

The top 10 cricket stories of 2009

An intermittently annual tradition for me since about 1996, has been my list of what I regard as the top ten news stories about cricket for the calendar year. I now present my 2009 edition. There's a little bit of overlap among some stories, and some are not single events but rather a collection of events over time. Sadly and tragically, Number One on this year's list picks itself, but some of the others required a bit of thought. If you can think of anything major that has happened since 1 January 2009 that I have missed, please leave a comment.

The good the bad the ugly October 1996 - April 1998

The following is a compilation of a monthly column that I wrote which originally appeared in Cricinfo in 1996, 1997, 1998. It was done as a not-too-serious companion piece to a Player of the Month selection that I was also doing for Cricinfo over the same period of time. I have modified some of the links in this version for clarity. Note also that these awards pre-date another certain Google.

WACA Test wrap: 2-0, but nothing to jump up and down about.

The Frank Worrell Trophy is settled for 2009. Australia 2, West Indies 0, with one draw. Sounds decisive on the surface of it, but the truth is that, for the two latter Tests at least, the Windies surpassed expectations. Australia played like a team hovering between third and fourth-best in the world.

WACA Day One: Failing in the last furlong

Michael Clarke, co-star with Tiger Woods in many an Aussie version of the Gillette ads, made less runs than Woods has paramours, but with the West Indian eleven lacking Chanderpaul and Barath, it is going to be hard to see them matching the eventual Australian score.

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