Mark Butcher, Phil Walker, Jo Harman and Yas Rana react to England's latest victory under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, a thrilling seven-wicket win at Edgbaston. They discuss Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow's form, the logic behind McCullum's philosophy and where India went wrong in Birmingham. There's also discussion on England women's drawn Test at Taunton last week where a number of new faces in the England Test side impressed. The panel also assess the ECB's treatment of the T20 Blast ahead ...
Jul 06, 2022•1 hr 22 min•Transcript available on Metacast Phil Walker, Ben Gardner and Mark Butcher dissect England's latest ridiculous Test win, which featured 10 wickets for Jack Leach and an extraordinary counterpunch from Jonny Bairstow and Jamie Overton. NZ Herald sports reporter Andrew Alderson joins the show to give the Kiwi perspective on the result, discuss what's next for Kane Williamson and wonder where the Black Caps go from here. They also look at what changes England could make for the India Test at Edgbaston, how the tourists will cope i...
Jun 27, 2022•1 hr 15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Butcher, Phil Walker, Ben Gardner and Yas Rana react to England's dominance in the opening two ODIs of their series in the Netherlands. They also look forward to Jamie Overton's Test debut at Leeds and discuss what to expect from the Surrey speedster. There's plenty of chat on the T20 Blast, England women's upcoming Test against South Africa, Chris Silverwood's initial success with Sri Lanka and more. Ben, Yas and Phil also respond to your questions, including one about getting into the gam...
Jun 22, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Butcher, Jo Harman, Phil Walker, Ben Gardner and Yas Rana do their best to make sense of England's extraordinary win at Trent Bridge, one that saw them bounce back from conceding 553 in the first innings and needing 160 from the final session to make it two wins from two in the new Brendon McCullum-Ben Stokes era. You can get 20 per cent off at Charles Tyrwhitt either in store or online with the code WISDENPOD. The latest issue of Wisden Cricket Monthly – which features Felix White's exclus...
Jun 15, 2022•1 hr 26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Matt Parkinson joins the show to tell us all about his Test debut at Lord's, one that saw him go from readying himself for a day trip to the Lake District to padding up at Lord's over the course of a few hours (we apologise for the audio quality for that part of the episode). Another England spinner – Charlie Dean – joins us later in the show ahead of the Charlotte Edwards Cup finals day to talk about her meteoric rise over the past 18 months. Elsewhere, cricket writer Jim Wallace joins Ben Gard...
Jun 10, 2022•1 hr 21 min•Transcript available on Metacast England beat New Zealand at Lord's to give Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes a winning start to their leadership of the Test side after Joe Root's fourth innings hundred helped them chase down 277 at the Home of Cricket. The panel of Jo Harman, Yas Rana and The Telegraph's Tim Wigmore react to the Test and talk about some of the questions that are explored in Tim's new book – Crickonomics: The Anatomy of Modern Cricket – that he co-authored with Stefan Szymanski, such as, why do New Zealand play s...
Jun 06, 2022•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast Phil Walker, Taha Hashim and Yas Rana preview the first Test of the England-New Zealand series that gets under way later this week. Mark Butcher also joins the show to give his views on the upcoming series as well as the County Select XI's victory over New Zealand at Chelmsford. The panel also talk about Eoin Morgan's future as England white-ball captain, the opening rounds of the T20 Blast, the IPL play-offs and the Women's T20 Challenge in India. For the month of June we're offering our listen...
May 30, 2022•1 hr 24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Butcher, Jo Harman, Phil Walker and Yas Rana look back at the biggest talking points from the latest round of County Championship action and reflect on the opening block of the competition as a whole. They also preview the T20 Blast that gets under way this week. The panel talk about the IPL, Charlotte Edwards Cup and the ongoing Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Test series as well as their favourite stats on the game. This episode also includes Yas' interview with new England quick Matty Potts that wa...
May 24, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Butcher, Jo Harman, Phil Walker and Yas Rana discuss the announcement of England's 13-man squad for the first two Tests of the summer against New Zealand. James Anderson and Stuart Broad are back, Matty Potts and Harry Brook are two new faces in a group that is otherwise similar to those selected over the winter. The panel also react to the appointments of England's two new head coaches, Brendon McCullum and Matthew Mott as well as Tom Harrison's departure from the ECB. Mark and Jo share th...
May 18, 2022•1 hr 24 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel of Phil Walker, Jo Harman and Yas Rana round up all the latest County Championship action and have a stab at selecting the England XI for the opening Test of the summer. Phil tells us about his recent conversations with Mark Waugh and Marnus Labuschagne, Jo reflects on his interview with in-form Kent batter Daniel Bell-Drummond and Yas gets excited about young Durham quick Matty Potts. Mark Butcher joins over Zoom to add to the selection chat while George Heath joins from Dubai to upda...
May 11, 2022•2 hr 33 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Butcher gives his view on the decisions made by Ben Stokes in his first week as England's full-time Test captain, while Ben Gardner and Yas Rana are joined by CricViz analyst Ben Jones to round up the latest County Championship and IPL action. CricViz Ben also provides an analytical view on the major selection debates around England's top seven heading into the first Test of the summer. Georgie Heath joins the show towards the end of this episode to talk about the FairBreak Invitational, a ...
May 04, 2022•2 hr 31 min•Transcript available on Metacast It's been a busy first week in the job for England's new managing director of men's cricket Rob Key. Multiple outlets are reporting that Ben Stokes is set to be named England Test skipper and Key has already outlined that the head coach role will be split in two. The panel of Mark Butcher, Jo Harman, Phil Walker and Yas Rana react to those developments and round-up all the latest action from the County Championship. Later in the show, there's an interview with Kent's in-form opener Ben Compton a...
Apr 27, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel of Mark Butcher, Lawrence Booth, Phil Walker and Yas Rana react to a massive week in English cricket, one that saw Joe Root call time on his reign as Test captain and Rob Key appointed to the role of managing director of men's cricket at the ECB. How should Root's captaincy be remembered? What should we expect from Key at the helm? At the 44:30 mark, Wisden Almanack editor Lawrence Booth reveals who this year's Five Wisden Cricketers of the Year are. You can order the Wisden Almanack a...
Apr 20, 2022•1 hr 15 min•Transcript available on Metacast On this week's show, the studio panel of Phil Walker, Jo Harman, Ben Gardner and Yas Rana look back at a run-filled opening round of the County Championship and discuss Rob Key's status as the frontrunner for the vacant England men's director of cricket job. At the end of the show, they pick their 'Uncapped County Championship XI of the Century'. They also celebrate Anya Shrubsole's career after England's 2017 World Cup final hero announced her retirement from the international game at the age o...
Apr 14, 2022•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel discuss Australia's dominance in women's cricket and how England and the rest of the world can possibly catch up, after Meg Lanning's side won their third consecutive world title. Mark Butcher brands the domestic schedule "horrendous", explains why producing quality pitches is so hard, and gives his take on the race to be the ECB's managing director of England men's cricket. There's a bumper County Championship preview, featuring an interview with Rory Burns, and title and promotion pr...
Apr 05, 2022•1 hr 27 min•Transcript available on Metacast After England's heavy defeat at Grenada extended their winless run, Mark Butcher, Phil Walker, Ben Gardner and Yas Rana ponder what comes next for England and specifically Joe Root's tenure as Test captain. They run through the possible candidates to replace Root should he leave the role. There's also discussion on what went right for West Indies and the women's World Cup after India's dramatic exit from the competition. Taha Hashim joins the show over Zoom to give his thoughts on the final Paki...
Mar 28, 2022•2 hr 32 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week's show comes directly from Barbados. Mark Butcher talks to Yas Rana to give his immediate thoughts on the game from the ground before a panel of Yas, Ben Gardner and freelance journalist Cameron Ponsonby go over the Test, discussing a particular encouraging debut from Saqib Mahmood, Kraigg Brathwaite and Jack Leach's pair of record-breaking displays of endurance, the future of Chris Woakes, a return to form for Ben Stokes and much more. Ben provides an update on the women's World Cup a...
Mar 21, 2022•56 min•Transcript available on Metacast Ben Gardner and Yas Rana review the first Test of the West Indies-England series, one that saw Jonny Bairstow score his second Test hundred of 2022 and Zak Crawley register his second Test century of his career.. Yas is joined by Taha Hashim later in the show who looks back at the five days in Rawalpindi that were worth celebrating even if the cricket didn't always thrill. Ben and Yas also talk about the women's World Cup, India-Sri Lanka and the latest updates to the Laws of the game. Learn mor...
Mar 14, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel pay tribute to the life of Shane Warne, who died suddenly at the age of 52 late last week. Warne's former Australia and Hampshire teammate Simon Katich joins the show from the 15:36 mark to share his memories of one of the all-time greats, while Mark Butcher tells us what it was like to face and share a commentary box with Warne from 33:20. From 49:12, we read out some of the many touching tributes we've been sent over the last few days. RIP, Shane Warne Learn more about your ad choice...
Mar 07, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Transcript available on Metacast Carlos Brathwaite joins the show to help preview the West Indies-England Test series that's about to get underway. Carlos also gives a fascinating insight on the health of the game in the Caribbean using insights from his own career that has taken him all over the world. Mark Butcher tells us how he's hoping England will change in the West Indies while pod regulars Phil Walker, Jo Harman and Yas Rana get involved with it all, as well as rounding up all the latest news from the international game...
Mar 04, 2022•2 hr 37 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel look back at all the major news from the last week in international cricket, including Joe Root's decision to bat at three for England, Rohit Sharma's appointment as India Test captain, the dual dropping of Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, New Zealand's emphatic win over South Africa, a thrilling ODI between Bangladesh and Afghanistan and much more. The panel, joined by women's cricket journalist and historian Raf Nicholson, preview the upcoming women's World Cup from the 18-minut...
Feb 24, 2022•2 hr 43 min•Transcript available on Metacast As well as covering the headlines from the international game over the past week, Phil Walker, Jo Harman and Yas Rana react to Stuart Broad's column in the Daily Mail in which he voiced his frustration at his omission from the England squad for the upcoming tour of the Caribbean. The panel also discuss some of the new/returning faces in that squad and there's a recording of Yas' interview with England newbie Alex Lees from the 31:57 mark. Mark Butcher joins the show from the 47:43 mark to give h...
Feb 17, 2022•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel react to a hectic week in English cricket that saw two of their all-time greats dropped from the Test squad, three senior off-field figures in the men's game lose their jobs, the women's side go winless in the Ashes and their U19 side lose a World Cup final. There's also discussion on Justin Langer's resignation from the Australia men's coach job, India's ODI series against West Indies, Jason Roy's PSL form and much more. Freelance cricket writer Tanya Aldred joins the show from the 1h...
Feb 09, 2022•1 hr 25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Podcast regulars Taha Hashim, Phil Walker and Yas Rana reflect on a classic Ashes Test at Canberra that had it all, the backlash to cricket's most recent DCMS hearing and a host of encouraging performances from English cricketers in franchise leagues around the world. Elsewhere, Mark Butcher gives his thoughts on England's series defeat in the Caribbean, Alec Stewart's rumoured link to the England head coach role and off stump guards. Sportsbreaks.com are offering personalised ticket, travel and...
Feb 02, 2022•1 hr 18 min•Transcript available on Metacast An action-packed episode this week. Mark Butcher shares his views on the first two T20Is between England and West Indies in the Caribbean, before the panel of Jo Harman, Ben Gardner, Phil Walker and Yas Rana discuss the T20I-leg of the women's Ashes and pick an 18-man squad for England's upcoming Test tour to West Indies. There is also an interview with author Duncan Stone about his new book, 'Different Class: The Untold Story of English Cricket.' The selection discussion begins at 35:10 The int...
Jan 24, 2022•2 hr 45 min•Transcript available on Metacast Podcast regulars Mark Butcher, Jo Harman, Ben Gardner, Phil Walker and Yas Rana react to the latest England batting collapse, this time one that gave Australia their 13th win in their last 15 home Ashes Tests. They answer your questions on how England can make improvements both in the short and long term. There is also discussion on Virat Kohli's resignation as India Test captain and India's 2-1 series defeat in South Africa. Head to Charles Tyrwhitt: https://www.charlestyrwhitt.com/uk/home To b...
Jan 17, 2022•2 hr 39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Phil Walker, Taha Hashim and Yas Rana look ahead to the Hobart Test - the fifth and final encounter of the 2021/22 men's Ashes. Taha - after speaking to Kent head coach Matt Walker – gives us the lowdown of what to expect from Sam Billings the red-ball cricketer, Phil looks ahead to the women's Ashes and Yas rounds up everything that's been happening in the international game over the past week or so. The panel also pick their out-of-the-box England captaincy suggestions as well as their all-tim...
Jan 13, 2022•1 hr 27 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mark Butcher, Ben Gardner, Taha Hashim and Yas Rana share their thoughts on the most competitive Test of the series where England battled hard to just about escape from Sydney with a draw. The panel will discuss South Africa's win over India at The Wanderers and Bangladesh's historic win in New Zealand on a bonus episode later this week. Across the course of the Ashes we've been working in partnership with Charles Tyrwhitt. Want to start the year wearing something sharp? Charles Tyrwhitt has a c...
Jan 10, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Transcript available on Metacast The panel of Ben Gardner, Jo Harman and Yas Rana preview the fourth Ashes Test at the SCG, react to Quinton de Kock's unexpected retirement from Test cricket, India's win at Centurion and much more. From the 54-minute mark, a section of Jo's interview with the Parkinson twins is played. You can read the full interview in the next issue of Wisden Cricket Monthly. Use the code Wisden10 at charlestyrwhitt.com to get 10% off anything in their current online sale. Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...
Jan 03, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast Australia retain the Ashes after a pair of calamitous batting performances from England at the MCG. Hometown hero Scott Boland took 6-7 on debut to brutally end England's Ashes hopes by bowling the tourists out for 68. The panel of Mark Butcher, Phil Walker and Yas Rana try to make sense of England's longstanding batting woes and look at what the short term future may hold for the England men's Test side. We apologise for the sound quality on this episode. A combination of a technical fault and ...
Dec 28, 2021•1 hr 19 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
