81 All Out

In episode 151 of the 81allout podcast we review the first Test between India and Australia in Nagpur. India outclassed Australia in all departments and their superior depth in both batting and bowling propelled them to an innings victory. Support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points: Rohit Sharma's exceptional ability to suss up the conditions and bat accordingly Ravindra Jadeja's mesmeric control on the first morning The outrage over the selective watering of the pitch Which team doesn't doctor its pitches to give the home side an advantage? The Smith-Labuschagne partnership on Day 1 Todd Murphy's impressive debut - speed, control, and accuracy The Pujara sweep - and how rare it was for him to get out that way Nathan Lyon's problem on slow Indian pitches The Jadeja ointment - and the connection with Sandpaper-gate Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) Ashoka (ABVan) * Buy War Minus the Shooting by Mike Marqusee | Buy Crick

In episode 150 of the 81allout podcast we preview India's upcoming Test series against Australia - the latest chapter in a storied rivalry. Australia sure have the team to pull off a series win but the panel agrees that they will still need to be at their best to hand India their first home-series defeat in nearly a decade. Support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points: Australia's attitude towards cricket in India over the years: from apathy to obeisance The role played by Allan Border, Steve Waugh, Mike Coward and a few others in embracing India and her passion for cricket The 2017 India v Australia series, and the gripping Bangalore Test Can Pat Cummins replicate Glenn McGrath's success in India? The current Australian bowling attack v the 2004 attack that won in India India's fast bowling potency in home conditions (even without Jasprit Bumrah) Ashwin v Smith: a rivarly with a layer of deep technical insight Are we about the see the new new Virat Kohli? Can Australia's batters (especially the le

In the latest episode of the podcast we look back on Australia's tour to India in 2004-05 - when Adam Gilchrist led the visitors to their first series win in India in 35 years. Australia have won just one Test in India since - and will hoping to improve that record in the upcoming four-Test series. Support us via Ko-Fi Talking Points: How 2004 was in many ways the sequel to 2001 If McGrath won't get you, Gillespie must Shane Warne's finest hour in India The emergence of Michael Clarke - and a special Bangalore hundred Adam Gilchrist's measured brutality Damien Martyn's expertise against spin When Kumble rocked Australia on day 1 in Chennai Virender Sehwag's unforgettable 155 - and the match that promised so much A curious case of 'greenwicketitis' in Nagpur Was Nagpur really an outlier pitch? Or was it just magnificent bowling? The most exciting Test of that series - on a raging turning in Mumbai Murali Kartik's moment, and the liberating Tendulkar-Laxman partnership Do the current Au

In the latest episode of the podcast we chat with journalist Annesha Ghosh about the Indian Women cricket team - their journey in 2022 and how much there is to look forward to in 2023. Support 81allout on Ko-Fi Talking Points: 2022: a momentous year for Indian women's cricket both on and off the field Mithali Raj: colossus nonpareil Jhulan Goswami: a torchbearer who inspired a generation The physiological challenges for a woman to bowl fast How Kolkata toasted Jhulan during her last match The lack of transparency with the Indian selectors Shikha Pandey's comeback - and her ingenious practice videos India's march to Commonwealth Games final - and the eventual heartbreak The sizzling Harmanpreet-Jemima partnership at the final How does any team beat Australia? What is the secret sauce The allround options in the Indian lower order Deepti Sharma's running out Charlie Dean at the non-striker's end The incredible potential of the women's IPL The BCCI's historical apathy towards women's c

In the latest episode of the podcast we chat about the challenge of being a modern umpire - and how excess scrutiny and knee-jerk reactions from pundits have combined to create a toxic environment. Talking Points: The challenge for modern umpires - with ball-by-ball social media scrutiny How TV replays can fool us into thinking that umpiring is an easy task Has DRS accelerated the erosion of the umpire's authority? The frequent grumbling around the soft-signal  - is it even needed? The issue with Sachin Tendulkar's reservation about umpire's call The value of umpiring judgement, and why the on-field umpire's decision is vital Ben Stokes' misunderstanding of the soft-signal Do umpires' performance change based on the match situation? Will cricket go the way of American football with video replays? Support 81allout via Ko-FI Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) | Cricketingview Substack Ashoka (@ABVan) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) * Buy War Minus

In the latest episode of the podcast we discuss India's 2-0 win in the Test series in Bangladesh. Talking Points: India's close escape in the second Test in Mirpur Are Kohli and Rahul going through a bad patch or are they on the wane? Batting against spin with the new ball v old ball The challenges of playing fastish finger spin in the DRS era Axar Patel's deadly round-arm action - and why it is invaluable on these pitches Where R Ashwin stands v Kapil Dev in the allrounder stakes The non-selection of Kuldeep Yadav for the second Test - was it really shocking? Support 81allout on ko-fi Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) Ashoka (@ABVan) * Buy War Minus the Shooting | Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar Related: Is the DRS a good thing? Yes if you're a fingerspinner, no if you're a left-hand batsman - Kartikeya Date - ESPNcricinfo Training the Hawk-Eye on Axar Patel: Angular, Anomalous - Himanish Ganjoo - Substack 'Phenomenal' Shreyas Iyer calms the pan

In the latest episode we talk to author and journalist Gideon Haigh about his recent collaboration with Wasim Akram on his memoir Sultan. We talk about the process of writing the book and the challenges that Gideon had to overcome to ensure he told the story in Wasim's voice. Talking Points: The process Gideon followed and the contrast with On Warne The conversations Gideon had with Imran, Dravid, Shastri, and plenty of others Settling on a voice for the book - how people imagine Wasim will speak like Wasim's ability to praise and slam his team-mates - often in the same paragraph Wasim's evolving relationship with Waqar - their partnership and falling out The physical and emotional hurdles Wasim had to overcome through his career The challenge of writing the chapter on match-fixing Was Wasim the greatest bowler of all time? Revisiting the great spells via YouTube Participants: Gideon Haigh Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) * Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar and War Minus the Shooting (both books

In the latest episode of the podcast, we discuss the idea of greatness in cricket. What do we mean when we say a player is 'great', how does one compare across eras, and what are the pitfalls we fall into when discussing greatness. Talking Points: Greatness as a measurement of a player's performance against their peers The habit of putting down one player as one elevates another The need for a transcendent moment for a player to be anointed 'great' The fallacy of the match-winning innings Lillee v Cummins: the complexity of comparing two great bowlers The power of nostalgia in talking about greatness - the Andy Roberts problem Great batsmen in weak teams and great bowlers in strong teams The problem with recency bias when judging greatness Is this South African team better than the teams from the 1990s and 2000s? The high benchmark for subcontinental players in foreign conditions Support 81allout on Ko-fi Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Mahesh Sethuraman (@cornerd) Kartikeya Da

In the latest episode of the podcast we speak to two pioneers from the early days of the internet: Simon King, the founder of Cricinfo, and Vishal Misra, an early volunteer who was instrumental in the building of the database and streamlining live scoring. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy); Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy); USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy); Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: The difficulty of getting cricket updates in the early 1990s Chatrooms, IRC, and begging for score updates The aggregation of cricket fans across North American universities The idea for building a database that would store all cricket information The early pioneers such as KS Rao and Murari Venkatraman The evolution of the Cricinfo scorecard Sending live updates from Malaysia, Kenya, and Bangladesh Travis Basevi - the man who built a wonder-tool called statsguru Vishal's

In the latest episode of the podcast we discuss the recently concluded T20 World Cup in Australia - where England were crowned champions. We focus on some of the themes of the tournament - upsets, teams assessing a variety of conditions, exploiting ground dimensions, and the overall calibre of strokeplay - and wonder how some of the great bowlers are largely nullified by the format. [podcast_subscribe id="1595"] Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy)Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy)USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy)UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy)Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy)  Buy Mike Marqusee's classic cricket book War Minus The Shooting on Flipkart and Amazon. Talking Points: A World Cup full of memorable upsets Navigating the conditions across Australia - and the effect it had on teams Batting against length v batting against the field Why some great batters are misfits in the format India's problem at the top -

In the latest episode we talk to author and journalist Nicholas Brookes about his recent book An Island's XI: The Story of Sri Lankan Cricket. We talk about Nicholas' journey in learning about different aspects of Sri Lankan cricket and touch upon some of the key themes in the book - the early 'whistle-stop tours', yearning for Test status, the massive victory against India in 1979, the aura of Satha, Opatha and the rebel tourists, Arjuna, Aravinda, Sanath, Murali - and the politics that has never been too far from the game in Sri Lanka. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy); Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy); USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy); Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: The class structure in Sri Lankan cricket and how school's cricket is so fundamental to cricket on the island Grace, Hobbs, Bradman, Sobers, Worrell - just some of the illustrious early visitors to Ceylo

In the latest episode we talk to historian and author Duncan Stone about his recent book 'Different Class: The Untold Story of English Cricket'. The conversation delves into the nebulous 'Spirit of the Game' and how it is emblematic of the fetishization of English cricket - which has turned a people's game into a seemingly noble pursuit accessible mostly to a privileged class. You can order the book here. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy); Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy); USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy); Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: The Spirit of the Game and why English cricket is its own enemy The pivotal decision to take cricket off free-to-air television in 2005 What the Azeem Rafiq revelations teach us Outlawing of competitive cricket in the south of England for several years in the early 1900s Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee); Duncan Stone (

In the latest episode we discuss ways in which data is upending the way teams approach the sport - and also question why there is so much resistance to the idea that smart use of data helps everyone understand the game better. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout): India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy); Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy); USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy);  For the rest - please check your country-specific Amazon pages. Talking Points: The importance of data in the T20 era - with teams looking for more efficiencies and for ways to exploit match-ups The 'anti-data constituency' and why data is such a polarizing topic The false-opposition to data: and why observation and experience are data too The age-old cliche: 'Numbers don't tell the full story' The terminological baggage around terms like 'luck', 'fluke' and 'randomness' The difference between descriptive dat

In the latest episode we discuss ideas of loyalty and fandom - with respect to both teams and individual athletes - and dissect various strands of 'belonging' to an imagined community. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy); Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy); USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy); Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: The schizophrenic nature of fandom in the franchise age Do you cheer for Kohli when he plays for India and wish for him to fail for RCB? The idea of imagined communities and the spread of nationalism Why does bandwagoning have a bad reputation? Supporting a team versus an individual - and how the first appears more noble The sacred space of fandom - watching as a community v watching alone The live experience v the TV experience - and the vast difference between them The loss of hope in 2000 - when Azhar and Cronje were embroiled in scandal Pa

In the latest episode we discuss popular terms used to describe a cricketing contest - and why these are often lazy alternatives with no standard definition. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy); Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy);  USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy); UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy); Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: The category error in sports - when stories are used to describe contests The narrative around 'big moments' and how some phases are assumed to 'decide' contests The rampant discourse around 'pressure situations' The belief that some players are superior at the finish than at the start Jordan and Robert Horry - and the spread of the clutch narrative Australia v South Africa, Edgbaston, 1999: a narrative gold The future of cricket discourse - and ways to describe the entire contest  Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee); Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview

In the latest episode of the podcast we discuss a fundamental question that underpins a T20 contest: does batting have a place in T20? Are elite batters like Virat Kohli, Babar Azam and Steve Smith good fits in the T20 format - and what metrics  tell us how good a batter or hitter is. [podcast_subscribe id="1595"] Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout) India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy) Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy) USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy) UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) For the rest - please check your country-specific Amazon pages. Talking Points: The intrinsic logic of T20 - a resource-heavy format with limited time Who is better? A batter who averages 50 and scores at a strike rate of 150 or one who averages 35 and also scores at a strike rate of 150? The evolution of T20 - from a game that resembled cricket to a different sport The problem with picking hitters from an ecosystem that encourages battin

In the latest episode of the podcast we discuss the recent fourth-innings run-chases in Tests around the world. Since the start of 2021, there have been 58 instances of teams batting in the fourth innings - of which 27 have ended in victories. England, West Indies, India, and Pakistan have chased tall targets and we explore whether there has been a significant shift in how teams approach the run-chase. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout)India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy)Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy)USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy)UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy)Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: The recent increase in teams achieving the target in the fourth-innings The high preparedness of bowlers before matches - and the predictable drop in intensity as Tests runs their course Rewind to the 2000s - when more teams chased targets The difficulty of bowling negative in this era - against batsmen with great range The T20 effect on Test

In the latest episode of the podcast we chat with Hemant Buch, who is a broadcast consultant with over 25 years' experience as an executive producer, director, and producer. Hemant guides us through the responsibilities of a live TV broadcast director. He also talks about his recent assignment in Sri Lanka - where Australia and Pakistan played cricket series in a time of intense political and economic strife. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar (recently republished by 81allout)India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy)Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy)USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy)UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy)Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Talking Points: Hemant's journey into the world of journalism and broadcasting A TV director and producer - and how they need to complement each other Watching a match from 20 different angles and choosing the best view The challenges of directing a Test match versus shorter forms of the game The predominance of Indian and South African camerapersons

We talk to legendary Australian captain and batsman Allan Border about his experience of touring the subcontinent in the 1980s -  taking in the tied Test in 1986, the World Cup win in 1987, and the controversial tour of Pakistan in 1988. Joining Border is veteran journalist Mike Coward, whose classic book - Cricket Beyond the Bazaar - we recently republished via 81allout Publishing. Buy Cricket Beyond the Bazaar: India (hardback) | India (paperback, e-copy) Australia (hardback, paperback, e-copy) USA (hardback, paperback, e-copy) UK (hardback, paperback, e-copy) Canada (hardback, paperback, e-copy) For the rest - please check your country-specific Amazon pages. Talking Points: The cultural shock in the subcontinent for Australians of Border's generation Coming to grips with the heat, the noise, and the way of life in India The pressure that Border was under in the lead-up to the tied Test Dean Jones' epic innings and the role Border had in it The final day of the tied Test - when players and ump

We review the England-India Test at Edgbaston, which see-sawed till day four - before England defied the odds. Note: Readers in India can now buy Mike Marqusee's classic cricket book War Minus The Shooting on Flipkart and Amazon. Readers outside India, can buy the book on Amazon. Talking Points: A fitting end to a high quality series Bazball: a marketing gimmick or viable cricketing strategy? England making the most of their ODI strengths in Tests Bairstow's purplest patch Joe Root the invincible - a 360-degree master Rishabh Pant's command over the bowling Balls that refused to swing after the 30th over Did India misread the pitch when choosing Shardul over Ashwin? India's third-innings collapses - a trend over the last two years The future of England's attacking approach Participants: Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee) Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) Ashoka (@ABVan) Related: England post a record against India - Kartikeya Date - A Cricketing View  India's fourth-innings fumble: