We focus our attention on England’s hugely anticipated five-Test contest against India in the new issue of Wisden Cricket Monthly, out June 12, as a new-look side under Shubman Gill look to claim a first series win on English soil since 2007.
Wisden India editor Aadya Sharma introduces our preview by examining how the visitors are shaping up before speaking to Nitish Kumar Reddy, an all-action all-rounder who made a splash on his maiden Test tour. As England ponder how to tackle Jasprit Bumrah, Ben Gardner explores what it's like to face the world’s premier fast bowler, and Phil Walker considers what’s at stake for Ben Stokes’ England before taking us back to 1990 and the summer of Gooch and Sachin.
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Elsewhere in the magazine, Katya Witney investigates the human impact of the ECB’s controversial ban on trans women from recreational cricket, Dom Sibley opens up about the highs and lows of his England career, Rob Smyth unravels the mystery of the Trinidadian quick who looked destined for greatness before fading from view, and we speak to James Taylor about the traumatic end to his playing career and his new life as a coach at Leicestershire.
In County Files Sam Dalling speaks to Somerset’s James Rew about an eventful few weeks which included his first Test call-up, Sean Williams describes a landmark month for Zimbabwean cricket in ’The Diary’, Lawrence Booth bids farewell to Virat Kohli, and Andrew Miller considers whether the punishment fits the crime when it comes to drugs in cricket following Kagiso Rabada’s one-month ban.
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10 standout quotes from the new issue:
"For the first time in a long time, India embark on a tour of England with little to lose and a lot to gain. A new WTC cycle, a new captain, a relatively new coach and a number of fresh faces. No huge reputations to safeguard, but many to build."
Aadya Sharma on a revamped Indian side under Shubman Gill's captaincy
"Ben Stokes' greatness as a cricketer may be assured – 2019 alone did that – but how he will be remembered now, as a captain, figurehead, iconoclast, and what kind of shape the English game will be left in when he’s finished with it – these are the tantalisers, the wide ones we still feel compelled to have a go at."
Phil Walker on a series which could define Stokes' captaincy
"He’s got the hyperextension in his elbow, where the extra flexibility creates more whip when he delivers the ball. It affects the flight of the ball. It creates a different trajectory in the air and as it hits the wicket it skids."
Dean Elgar on the unique challenge of facing Jasprit Bumrah
"I just want to be there on top, to be named as a great all-rounder who came from India. That’s the only thing pushing me. In fitness, in recovery, even in my sleep, everything."
Nitish Kumar Reddy, India's all-action all-rounder, is setting his sights high
"It was part of what made him fascinating, this talented ball of fury who could be diplomacy personified and a bit of a prat. Kohli didn’t so much celebrate the wicket of opponents as dance on their grave. On the other hand, he spoke of AB de Villiers in hushed tones, and developed a friendship with Kane Williamson – these were the acts of someone who respected the game."
Lawrence Booth reacts to Virat Kohli's retirement from Test cricket
"When you’re an international cricketer you’re invincible. And that’s probably the hardest thing. It’s the biggest ego dent ever; you’re living the dream, you’ve trained all your life to be the best, but that’s a huge dent because you can’t do that anymore."
James Taylor opens up on the abrupt end to his playing career
"I actually felt very emotional. I’ve been playing for Zimbabwe for 20 years but only played 20 Test matches, and I’d never played an international fixture against England. To play on this stage, it’s a big thing. I’d grown up watching Test cricket in England, and finally I had the opportunity to actually play here. It was a special moment."
Zimbabwe's Sean Williams on achieving a long-held dream
"You come away from it and realise something you’ve worked for your whole life, you don’t enjoy it. The last few Tests I played I was hoping for rain. I just wish I’d woken up and said to myself, ‘I’m playing cricket for England, this is what I’ve dreamt of doing, go and enjoy it’."
Dom Sibley speaks to Jo Harman-McGowan about his England dream went awry
"One of the questions we’ve been getting is, how many people does this affect? The ECB has no idea. We still have no idea. It could be anywhere between 40 and 50 or 500, we haven’t a clue."
Lachlan Smith, founder of Out4Cricket, on the ECB’s decision to ban trans women from recreational cricket
"Tony Gray’s career is one of the game’s unsolved mysteries. He is the only proper bowler in men’s cricket history to average under 20 in both Tests and ODIs. And while the sample size is small (five Tests, 25 ODIs) a first-class record of 451 wickets at 23 hints at one of the great lost fast bowlers."
Rob Smyth on a Trinidadian fast bowler who could have had it all
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