Test Match Special - CWC Day 15: England await explosive West Indies

Episode Date: June 13, 2019

Alastair Cook chats England's task against the West Indies, whether or not Jason Roy could feature in the Ashes, the sleepless nights he had when leading England, and is joined by old friend Graeme Swann to reminisce about their days in the slip cordon.Plus, we check in with Eoin Morgan to ask if there's been a whip round for Moeen and his wife after the birth of their child.And as the quest for a listener in every country in the world hots up, we do our best to pronounce some of the lesser-known towns and cities from where you've been emailing in.

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Bring more gear, carry more passengers, face greater challenges. Welcome to the world of Defender, with seating up to eight, ample cargo space and legendary off-road capability. It's built to make the most of every adventure. Learn more at landrover.ca. BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts. Hello, I'm Owen Morgan. Welcome to the TMS podcast at the Cricket World Cup. Is that question mark meant to be there?

There's a mix-up. Oh, there could be a runner. There will be a runner. The Thai, Australia is in the final. Kevin O'Brien from nowhere has scored the fastest hundred in World Cup history. He's moving. That's it. The West Indies have retained the title.

And India have caused one of the greatest upsets in the history of all sports. And straight towards Stokes, it takes an incredible, one-handed catch. Welcome to the TMS podcast at the Cricket World Cup where India and New Zealand have suffered the tournament's third washout without a ball being bowled in less than a week. So no cricket, but we do have Alecester Cook and Graham Swan to chat coping with rain delays and Jason Roy's Ashes' prospects and we'll hear from Owen Morgan as England gear up

for the challenge of Chris Gail, Andre Russell, and the West Indies at Southampton. From BBC Radio 5 Live, this is the TMS podcast at the So disappointing today, one point each for New Zealand and for India. That just makes the table look like this. For New Zealand consolidate their position actually at the top now, played four with seven points. India, of course, move up therefore to, they've got five points now from their three games. So still Australia, second, India third, and then a bunch, including England, on four points behind them. Of course, that'll be separated with the West Indies match tomorrow.

tomorrow. So lots of things going on, Alistair. I don't know. Would you have expected New Zealand to be sitting clear at this stage, I wonder? I suppose if you looked at their fixtures to start with, this is no disrespect to the teams they've played, but they're to target those three games as they desperately needed to get six points out of them if they wanted to progress. And then... They've got tough stuff to come, but they have tough stuff to come, but actually it is amazing. You know, New Zealand are a really good side. But if they'd have played a few tough games and lost them early, you know, they're confidence out of a group and suddenly you're like, geez, we've got to start winning now, but actually New Zealand will feel

right into this tournament and they can afford a couple of slip-ups against, say, so-called better teams and still be in the sniff of the semi-finals. So, you know, they're right in this tournament. Yeah. It's a shame with these ring points, isn't it, given here. I mean, Sri Lanka, I'm not sure they deserve this. They were to be up on level with England and so on because they've had two washouts. Of course, they've not played particularly good cricket, but you just don't know, do you? When these games do get washed out,

the impact that it does have. And, well, thankfully, the forecast is better for England against the West Indies, and that will at least separate that little bunch out that little bit more. So we're heading down to Southampton later, as England take on the West Indies. Full commentary on Five Live Sports Extra from 9.30. You can listen when you're out and about

by the BBC Sounds app on the BBC Sports. app and that's where you can also watch highlights during the match. Joss Butler should be fine to play as well Moen Alley, whose wife has just given birth. But Mark Wood is going to have a late fitness test on the morning of the match as he's got an ankle injury. England Captain Owen Morgan has been speaking to Eleanor Aldroyd. Well, Owen, welcome to the TMS podcast.

First of all, let me ask you about Mark Wood. What's the situation with him? Yeah, Mark's pulled up a little bit sore from the Bangladesh game in Cardiff and we would have liked to test him or let him bowl in the last two days but obviously weather has dictated that we haven't done a lot of training outside so we're prolonging his selection until tomorrow morning he's going to do a fitness test tomorrow morning to see if he's available for selection.

Optimistic or not? Yeah, normally I am, yeah. Simply the fact that it's just soreness and it's actually not an injury. but with all fast bowlers you do have to manage them throughout the tournament we've seen so far throughout the tournament how valuable fast bowlers have been so to have somebody like Mark Wood not feeling quite himself I think we'll have to manage that if that's the case in the morning I think there are quite a lot of people speculating that this could be the case where you fight fire with fire

you know that the West Indies have got some brilliant quicks but then so have England as well is that slightly thinking well that was plan A we're now going to have to think about plan B Yeah, I think inevitably both sides will play the way that they do That'll probably be both sides, plan A It's the telling and the changing in the game Actually might be when that doesn't go right How you react and how you adapt Certainly maybe to the pitch or the opposition's performance

I think looking at the weather the way it's been Certainly the last 24 hours with the Wicked being undercover You'd suggest that the pitch might not be as good As possibly the ones that we've played on in the past good piece of news is that Moeen's back with the squad today we had a little baby girl a couple of days ago most colleagues would kind of whip together and have a little bit of a kitty and get him a present for the baby

is that something that you've done? We haven't done that yet so he's not done any of the hard work it's been his wife so if we were buying anything for the Ali family it'll be for his wife and certainly not Moen I think the men always take the credit at the back of it when they would come back into the team environment or to change the room

but no, he's on nothing. Yeah, what are the guys had to say to him? They had a chat with him and patted him on the back? Yeah, huge congratulations. It's obviously an exciting time for them as a family, but a very proud moment as a parent. Does that mean that we may well see Rash and Mo back together again tomorrow? Yeah, there's a chance.

Simply a decision will be made on how the wicket looks. And, you know, the guys play well and bowl well in tandem together. They're a fantastic partner. They've been brilliant for us over the last four years. So we'll have to wait and see what the wicket looks like. How important are they to each other? Does one miss the other when the other one's not there? So does Rash miss Moe, for example, last weekend in Cardiff?

I think we all miss Mo. He's a big part of our change room. He contributes a huge amount off the field. And when he's on the field, he's a brilliant all-rounder and has been for an extremely long time. But everybody misses his humour and his character around the change room. As far as the game is concerned,

you've obviously got various elements in your bowling, but Joffre Archer is, there's going to be lots of focus on him inevitably tomorrow playing against the country where he was born. Have you had to have a word with him about it? Have you talked to him about it? Have you used your personal experiences

of playing against the country of your birth with him? I haven't yet. If I feel the need to, I will. but Joffre has been outstanding for us since he's come in. Tomorrow might feel a little bit different for him but it doesn't make it more difficult or any easier

it's still an international game of cricket where you have to go out and perform like you have been doing and Joffre is extremely interesting because everything we've challenged him with or he's been confronted with particularly out on the field he's overcome and he's still learning

he's very young he has a lot of talent so that's great for us to have two or three guys that can bowl 90 mile an hour is incredible Ben Stokes is now bowling 90 mile an hour he did in Cardiff and Mark Wood

touched 94 and to have Joffra doing the same thing it all adds strength and value to your bowling unit Is there any danger that Joffra might get overexited at all or is he not that kind of personality No he's extremely chilled and I think over the space of the 100 overs he will make some sort of contribution

because he is that type of player and I think as a captain managing that as well is a good challenge to have I mean he's not going to come on and take wickets with his first five balls it'll take time for everybody to get into the game like it does in every game sitting looking at the rain falling at the Hampshire bowl it feels a very long way away from the West Indies but what did you learn from that series out there back at the start of the year?

Yeah, a huge amount. It was a big challenge for us. We're used to high-scoring games, but probably not being as close. So it asked some questions over our bowling unit, identifying areas and different plans that we can use at different periods of the game.

And coinciding that with what we already know works at the AGS ball. It's one of those instances where we go back to when we play the West Indies previously at home, how have we bowled at them? And so combining those two plans and identifying which will work throughout their innings

will be a challenge, but one we're looking forward. And that's an interesting thing about a World Cup, isn't it, that you've got this here against the West Indies is so different from Cardiff against Bangladesh. So have you completely redrawn, you know, set, right, that's in the past, now reset, think about the challenges of the West Indies. And if you have thought about that, what are the challenges of the West Indies? Yeah, we have, and I think it's important to do that. I think that's part of taking advantage of the space in between games.

Two days away, as a group guys were told to go home or go and enjoy yourself, get away from the tournament and then come back feeling refreshed and ready for the challenge that the West Indies pose. I think as a bowling unit, the West Indies are probably a little bit more taller. Their seamers are taller, so they more hit the deck bowlers, and they predominantly only play with one spinner. that's the combination they've gone with for a long time and with the bat they do come very hard

so being aware that they might deal in boundaries for a long period of time and then there might be a quiet period and getting yourself used to the rhythm of the game as part of the challenge of playing against that was Ellen Roldroyd talking to England's captain Owen Morgan Alister Cook's alongside me to look ahead to this game

and the forecast is good thankfully cookie it should be a really cracking game this I mean it's got so many unknowns in a way England third at the moment, played three, one, two. They have lost that one game. As soon as they've had a washout, of course, they've really done the same thing, played one, lost one, but with that washout, so they're just behind one point behind.

What do you think? Where's your instinct, first of all, and how this game's going to go? Well, my instinct would say that England will go into this game as favourites. The way they've handled themselves so far in this tournament, certainly that first game under huge pressure to play like that. Play like they did was so encouraging. obviously they didn't play great against Pakistan

and ultimately they didn't feel very well but there's still only 10 runs in it where Pakistan played incredibly well for them so England are confident the one thing obviously about West Indies they are a seriously dangerous side to play against it's not one of those sides where you turn up and you know what's going to happen

they can get you on your day we've got a batting line up which includes Chris Gale Puran and Hetmae who we saw in the winter you know they've got a dangerous batting line up Jason Holder with this double hundred he is now world world class all round us so they're a dangerous side I suppose and the one thing which England would have had to prepare for on a batting front and Owen Morgan spoke about it was they hit the pitch

bowlers yeah you know they've come in and they kind of gone back to the West Indies in the 1780s and I'm going to try and hit you in the head and even I saw Jason Holder bowling here at Trent Bridge where I mean the speed gun said 87 miles now and I don't mean any disrespect for Jason Holder I don't think he was bowling 87 miles now because when I faced him, he isn't, he doesn't bowl that pace, but even he was bowling a lot of bounces. Very tall. Yeah, he's tall and awkward, and his natural length cause of his height gets the bounce, but he was bowling as two and over. O'Shaun Thomas, who we saw, but in the warm-up, in the test match warming up all the time bowling at luncheon tea, he's bowling a lot

of bounces, so England have to be prepared for that. And it's a good, honest tactic, and actually the one thing about Southampton was such a big pitch and such a wide pitch. there is legitimate time to bowl your two because there's a batter you can't leave the two because there's two dot balls and England batters don't will be taking it on

but it's a big hit consistently to hit it all the time I was going to ask you about that because that's where it has become a sort of fascinating tactic two points A actually is a bit harder to bowl it than it looks and you've got to get it in the right place

and the wide's for height and the West Indies actually didn't get it quite right against Australia they're a bit off but from the batten perspective I mean you kind of do have to take it on I suppose yeah the absolute difference

between one day and test cricket. Yeah. And test cricket, if you don't play the ball shot, but you constantly get out of the way of it comfortably. You're not going to get many here. But if in a one day cricket, you can't afford, unless you're an unbelievable player, that you can afford two dot balls and over such a big margin

in it for error of the bowler from kind of chest to head. If you can bowl there and the batter doesn't play it, then it's, you know, it's tough. So I think the English guys have had a few days off that a lot of them will be thinking about how they're going to play. But the one thing, I suppose, Now West Indies have to be concerned with is the amount of weather they've been around for four days. The pitch, I doubt's going to have too much pace on it.

I mean, I wouldn't be surprised, but actually the fuller length in general in English conditions when there has been moisture around is the lengths to find. You now actually courage and be able to nick off from drive balls. So that would be a really interesting tactic to whether West Indies surprise us all. And don't bowl the bang in the bag in, but you can actually go searching for the fuller length, which obviously when I'm sitting here in Trembridge is very difficult. different to see in the wicket in Southampton and seeing, but that'll be an interesting tactic to see how that evolves over the 50 overs down there. If you're not a natural hooker, you know, as a bats, is there simply no, you know, you can simply not play or, I mean, have you got to learn how to play or do you try something?

No, clearly in one decade, the other option is, is the kind of the upper cut, the fine, upper cut, the ramp or, you know, just letting it and getting it fine between third man. So I imagine bowling machines would be on, would have been on for that. And, you know, for England to practice that? You've got to be prepared for that, but I hope West Indies don't just keep doing it all the time because there's certain pitches. These Trent Bridge pitch, when they played a couple of games, has flown through.

It's been a lot quicker than I've played here or seen. So, interesting to see how West Indies do cope with the changing conditions. So England's options in, Alistair, we've got Mark Wood, again, needing his fitness test, I suppose, with Mowing back, if Wood doesn't play, that sort of settles that issue of Mowing coming back in again but and I remember about a week

or so ago saying Mark Wood just let's wrap him up let's go and say come back for the come back for the ashes which is kind of tempting but yeah what do you think are they they could keep persevering I suppose they're going to keep persevering because we saw kind of what I was hoping the breakthrough for Mark Wood

and his body was that test match where he got his five wickets where he bowed quickly he bowed consistently quickly in that second test I remember now second or third St Lucia, yeah. It was the second one, wasn't it? Or he got his third one he got his.

Yeah, yeah, it's a lucia. Where he got his five wickets. And I thought, you know, that was him actually finally showing how good he can be at international stage. I remember reading a quote from him saying he never felt like he had shown the world how good he was until that moment. I actually don't agree with him because, you know, I faced the nets when he could swing it both ways. He bowls quickly. So it was encouraging signs. You know, the one thing about rapping on cotton wood,

He hasn't played much cricket at all, actually. He left that tour injured, almost, and he hadn't played for Durham, and he needs to bowl, unfortunately. He's just body, he's just not allowing him to do that. I imagine it's must be so frustrating as a cricketer where you're wanting to play, you're mentally ready to go, but your ankle's not allowing him to do it. So there's the other option, I mean, if he is fit and they play him, it comes down to, I suppose, plunk it all wokes.

I'm looking at the sort of the figures of both are quite interesting actually and that Plunkett of course didn't play in the game here against Pakistan but actually his economy rate was Chris Wokes has taken a bit of a hammering in the three games he's played out

getting on for eight and over Plunkett under five and over so it comes straight down to that I mean has Wokes, I know you haven't seen every game but has Wokes with a new ball has that done it for you Well it's you know Chris Wokes has been the shoe in

doesn't he been the outstanding performer at the top of the order for england and it's interesting how a change of side and the change of dynamic makes it very because joffra's obviously come in and he bowls a lot quicker you know he's not all about pace but he bowls quickly and he bowls consistently a yard or so quicker than chris wokes so if you're a batter in that first ten overs you know joffra's bowling really well you're going to target the other bloke just naturally and probably chris wokes hasn't had that because actually he's probably been the slightly quicker of the ball. If David Willie has been bowling at the other end, swinging at a different style of bowl as Joffra, you know, actually he, he might have been able to get through the

radar. The other bats think, well, I'm just going to sit on Chris Vokes and because he's an outstanding bowler at Chris Wokes. You know, he's, you might not have so far had the best three games, but you know, his overall record over the last three or four years of when he's being kind of felt settled in the one day side. It's been outstanding. That he's now kind of the bowler saying, well, I can't target Archer as much, so I'm going to target him. And that's kind of changed his role a little bit. He's probably not bowling quite as well as he would have liked from what I'm seeing. From seeing, he was a bit short of cricket as well with his knee.

You know, he seemed to play one game, miss a couple of games. And hopefully he's just, they're getting him right. But it's a bit of a concern that he hasn't managed to play a lot of cricket. I suppose for me on selection, you know, Liam Plunkett, when the talk of that World Cup, before the World Cup, he didn't start very well with Surrey. but I think he's found his confidence again and found some rhythm which is fantastic

but if there is if it is a bit more moisture around whether they will only play one seamer one spinner sorry and play four seamers so and obviously very hard to discuss from here what would West Indies rather face you know on a on a on a could be could be I'll keep saying could be

because you know the groundsman probably had that cover you know that wicket ready a few days ago when you know before this rain came because he knowing you weren't going to get much time it might be fine but you know you must say there's some moisture around it might be a case we're going to play four four seamers and just bowl normally and bowl normally and if it does spin a bit you've got joe roots off spin instead of moe i mean it's unlikely because how much success moan rash have had but that is a possibility

that england might be might be mulling over yeah it is it is interesting isn't it here we are and england went through a sort of phase of not changing the team very settled and everything but actually the odds well the odds are almost certainly they're going to go into a fourth game with the fourth different team it's it is extraordinary how it happens isn't it and it's um but i the one thing england i suppose have done a bit differently to what i mean i would have thought is that they they've used the last few series as real like warm-ups the world cup that makes it they've changed their side a lot they've given people like tom car and you know the opportunity to push their name forward for selection in the in the 15-man squad because there was probably 16 17 18

players who you know who could have been in that school and they gave the people opportunities rather than just saying this is our best side and we're going to play, play, play. And that side in that series, certainly against Pakistan where they kept changing, Josh Butler was rested, they throw it out. I would have, in my kind of like almost blinkered vision, I would have said, nope, we're going to play our best side, we're going to get everyone in there. And actually, I think they've done it really well that sense. So this is, I don't think by changing the side four times will actually affect them

because actually if you really look back now recently, they have been changing their side quite a lot, trying to find different combinations and given people exposure to the pressure. with Chris Gale, shall we? I don't know. He makes me laugh. He's actually always deliberately making everyone laugh at the moment, isn't he?

He's rather taking the Mickey out of himself as being almost geriatric character. But, yeah, is he still a game changer for you? Of course he is. I mean, you only have to look in that last one-day series against England, the amount of six is he hit the power he's got. And the threat of him getting 150,

there's not many players in the world of cricket who can single-handedly win you're 50 over. of a game. You know, they can win you a 2020 game, but he could win you a 50 over game. If he bats 40, 45 overs, and he's on, and he's playing well, you know, he gets that 160, 170, which takes the game away from. So England will want to get him out early. That's a very obvious thing to say. And the battle with him and Archer, the one thing, Chris Gale, you know, I suppose, as you get a bit older, the genuine pace. You know, you saw a little bit against the West, against Australia, Stark, and he didn't look quite as comfortable.

Rough him up a bit. A little bit. But I say, England has still got to, to be careful they play their way, not just because West Indies have been bowling bounces, they've got a bowl back, but certainly if you can at that pace, at 92, 93 miles an hour with the heavy back Chris Gail uses, is obviously an opportunity. I think you saw it a little bit with Australia. Cook, you say there in a minute, we'll get more from you in a moment, but here's what the former England coach Paul Farbrace says will be England's plan for Chris Gale. Most teams in World Cricket look to go very aggressively at him, you know, sort of

tuck him up under the armpit or to bowl it at the hill of his... of his feet that's where you're looking to bowl at him and again he's someone that he's not going to come in and blasts and ball one you know he does hit a lot of boundaries but he takes his time to get in he allows himself balls to get in the danger is someone like him is you can get drawn into bowling too wide at him so he looks to bowl wide so that he um he has to reach for the ball but actually when you allow him to have his arms and allow him to swing his arms that's when he's it's most dangerous if you can bowl straight at him take his arms out the game that's when you give yourself a much better chance,

one, keeping him quiet and two actually forcing him to make a mistake, a mistake to get himself out then. Again, once he gets going, though, what's the plan? Well, some grounds are not big enough, are they? And we saw that in the Caribbean in the last one-day series. You know, one or two of the England bowlers came or scratching their heads saying, goodness me,

if we don't get him early, he really is dangerous. I thought that one-day series that England just played against the West Indies and the Caribbean, that's the most consistent I've seen in play in a series. and I thought that as I said he took his time to get in once he got in we know that he's strong

mid on, straight mid-wicket that's where he hits the ball and that's the case then of making sure that you may have to go to Yorkers, you may have to go to slower balls you've got to make sure

that you use the dimensions of the ground against someone like him you don't want to... somewhere here at Cardiff you wouldn't want him to bowl too full at him because he just keep dropping you in the river so you've got to make sure

you're bowling shorter at him hit the pitch hard either go very heavy hard lengths into him with the seamers or the spinners have got a bowler heavier length into the pitch and make sure that your square men and you deep mid wickets I was far back as they possibly can and you use the long boundaries to your advantage from BBC Radio 5 live this is the TMS podcast at the cricket world cup so for this episode of the podcast we asked for your questions for Graham Swan and Alistair Cook I've got a lengthy list of them in front of me and we'll

kick off with this one from Paul Derbyshire do you think Jason Roy could convert his game to playing in the ashes this summer. Stop everybody thinking automatically because you're a good one-day player because things going well that you're a shoe in for the one-day player. I used to sit here, I don't know how many times I said, don't think that Adil Rashid is a test-match bowler because of how he performs in 50 over cricket with five men on the boundary, with a white ball in the stand he's happy with, with the captain who backs him.

But people think, no, Cookie, that's not having to go at you, I just saw you look at. Adil Rashid didn't want to play Red Bull cricket he didn't enjoy it he was a nervous wreck he didn't he couldn't ball teams out he couldn't pin people down this is my my view of it anyway he didn't have the same body language the same experience he did with the white ball and yet there was a clamoring when he did well for a year in whiteball cricket to get him in the test time

he's the automatic pick now whereas Moeem was playing really good cricket and had to keep playing Jason Roy is the same if Jason Roy is the best option in counter cricket or against red ball and if one day the World Cup gives you an insight

into his personality that may succeed in the ashes then yes I can understand it but not pick him because he's smashing it everywhere with the white ball we saw a bit with Alex Hales

didn't we when they tried opening with him and it was kind of the same sort of one day situation in which the runs out of a third man in one day cricket actually ended up in second slipped hands in test cricket what do you think Alice

I mean it seems to be watching Jason Roy. He's playing straighter this year, it seems to me anyway. Well, I think first and foremost, Jason Roy is a fantastic talent. There's no doubt about it. He plays shots, you know, that what I've seen of him in whiteball

cricket, which is fantastic. He's got a very, very simple technique. You know, he's up and down the straight ball very well. He plays very straight, hits the ball very hard, and can put the pressure back on the bowler very well. He

it is a very different game going back to Alex Hales just for one split second actually he you know his strike you're going to talk about Alex Hale being a really aggressive fantastic one day player

but actually his strike rate in test cricket was slower the mind you know he he probably found the balance of what to attack what to defend hard to work out you know he again I could just be making that stat up like I apparently made the Devon

the Devon Smith stat up no you're right you're actually right I'm glad of the Oracle told me that I'm right So the question for me I think we know he can handle the big stage Jason Royal. He can handle the pressure of playing international cricket. He's done that for one decade. Is whether his technique can stand up to the moving ball.

Yes. So talking off-thump, just outside and how hard the hands are? Yeah, with the white ball it doesn't move as much. So you're dealing with straight lines and with the red ball it does more. So how he handles that you know the big thing i'll have about jason wrong he hasn't opened the batting much in red ball cricket if at all and it is so it is different and it is very different so can he handle it yes is he the best option however it might be the case that he is the best option compared to what

we've got around the country would i be skeptical of it i would be just because it's it is a unique art to open the batting in red ball cricket and also if he comes in and wax it as well, then it makes me look rubbish. They might take 10,000 of those runs up. Could he not be our Virinda Seward? Yeah, it could be. Ferenda Seward did it in Red Bull Cricket and Whiteball Cricket. He was sort of...

And I'm not questioning Jason Boye playing, by the way. I hope it is. One of my other bug bears on this sort of point of selection is Joss Butler. Joss Butler is being used to show that Whiteball Cricket can be transferred. When Joss has picked, and I'm not having to go at Joss here, I love the fact that he's in the test team, He's done brilliantly well, but he's done it as a traditional test number seven. He was brought in the team by Ed Smith and James Taylor to turn games on the knife edge.

So games that were almost written off, Joss would come in play an absolutely revolutionary one-day game as he does in one-day cricket, 150 from nowhere, both of them, Zash's 81 sort of thing. And he's not done that at all. I'm not having to go at Joss. He's secured himself in the test team and he's getting good runs, but he's not been able to transfer that white ball game into Red Bull cricket. So my fear, if Jason Roy was picked

and people say, well, no, you're our Saywag, you'll get 100 before lunch. You go out and play that way. I think that's a very, very tricky thing to do, like Cookie said, because the ball does move all over the football. Red ball, Red Duke's ball, first two hours especially, moves all over the place. And you cannot go out. I've not seen hardly

anyone ever go out and just successfully do it in England. So you two stood next to each other at Slip well, all day sometimes, isn't you? I mean, John says, what do you talk about all day? And how difficult was it concentrating? Hmm.

So different-ish characters. I mean, maybe Graham, I suspect, has talked non-stop. Isn't that how it was? Well, luckily, we only played four bowlers a lot of the time when Swanee played. So at least 25 of the overs of Swanee bowling. So at least I've got a bit of peace and quiet. Right, I had to take all the wickets at one end. Do you talk cricket all the time?

No, not really. Actually, I'm much preferred standing with Cookie than a lot of other people because Cookie doesn't, even though, I mean, people see Alistair Cook and think, oh, look at him, he's like a robot, no personality, just cricket, cricket, cricket, farming, farming. He's not like that, he's got more to him. He's got a wicked. That's almost the nicest thing he's ever said to me. I'm going to admit this now. Comes up with some of the best quips in one-liners ever, but he's never had the balls to say it out loud in the changing room.

So he whispers them to me. and I steal them I said what I'll say it and I come out with it everyone goes oh ha ha Graham you're the funniest man we've ever played with etc etc and I used to say to mate

you could be so much more but he didn't want to he's happy to you know just sit in the background get his nighthood and do whatever but at Slip no cookie so we talk about you know what you had for restaurant or something funny that happened last night

generally how grumpy Jimmy is is this the grumpiest we've ever seen him imagine how funny if Tammi McBall hits him over extra again you've got this thing about him and Tammy Mick Honestly, I can't explain how angry Tammy McMill made Jimmy Anderson at Lord's and Old Chafford once, 2010-ish, if you remember, Cookie. Well, it badly, brilliant, didn't he?

Yeah. But Andrew Strauss at Slip would be very much more, how are we going to get this chap out? Was it? A bit more serious. Strauss is much more cricket-orientated, and a very good man for the head of English cricket, and I wish him all the best, old Straussie, but he was a bit dull compared to Cookie. Mattie Pryor was good fun as well, wouldn't he cookie? It was always good to talk to.

And on a serious sign, I mean, you do have to kind of break your concentration a bit, don't you? I mean, if you just stood there all the time. I mean, when you were batting, presumably, Alice, are you between balls? Did you switch off? Yeah, I mean, the art of concentrating that actually isn't actually concentrating. Because you can't do seven hours straight. You do have to kind of have the ability to switch on for, obviously, the important bit, which is kind of that four or five seconds when the bowler starts has run up to you playing your shot,

to then being able to relax and almost let everything else go to, You don't relax totally, but you're not at full intensity. And then to go back up again, you kind of wave throughout the over and throughout the day. But at slip, you know, the hard thing is, is staying relaxed but then concentrated because, you know, that chance which could come, you know, after having nothing all day, that sudden panic when that ball's coming when you've not expected it, not where you're not expecting it at all.

You haven't had anything to suddenly then grab it is a real skill. And actually, you know, that was probably, I think we could all catch. but it's a skill of fielding in the slips and a lot of people I'm a really good catcher but it's a different skill being a become a slip catcher to it is just catching a ball off a ramp the skill of not being able to do anything anything

anything, anything, it's suddenly been into action but without the electric hands. That panic of seeing and hearing the nick and suddenly your body tense out and if you do that you get hard hands and 50% of the time it bangs out and you drop that chance and you think I saw it, I was doing everything right but you just tensed up to be able to stay relaxed

after seeing the nick after not doing anything thing for a long period. And it's such a reflex action too, isn't it? I mean, there are very few occasions I still at slip. I remember thinking you can take a catch and you're not quite sure how you did it. It's all happened so fast. Yeah, and it's very hard to practice that. I always say it's weird in a test match because I loved field and the slip. It was the only bit of field and I naturally enjoyed. I detested any other bit of field in. I wasn't quick enough to run around in the field. I had one of the better throws in the team, but I didn't like feeling on the boundary. Self-opposed one of the better throw.

No, one of the better throws. It still have, actually. So, Cookie can't throw them all 20 yards. That's why I throw this in. He's got a dreadful throw, bless him. I think he's actually left arm. But at Slip, I remember one specific catch. We played the Ashes game here,

and Cookie talked about, like, the first day of the Ashes being somewhat heightened in sort of anticipation, expectation, everything. We got bowled out about 200 here, 2013. It was swinging round corners. And we went out and got three or four wickets that night. It was the night when Jimmy bowled Michael Clark with the best ball.

ever but I caught off Finnie first put Ed Caron came out and he'd been here all day and he was like a shot and I saw him walking to the crease and he played here at Knox he's a mate of mine lovely fella and I had the feeling

as he was as he was walking to about I thought he's going to chase one and this is slightly why he'll chase this there's a chance to nick it but sometimes everything happens do you expect which is the worst possible thing because you suddenly question

is this really happening sort of thing and I remember it was quick from Finn and he nicked it and it was a shin height catch dead easy and I caught it And it was as if I hadn't taken part in that bit of cricket whatsoever. I just watched it happen. And I predicted it in my head, and it happened exactly how. And I thought, I can't tell anyone that I predicted that

because I'll think it might get taken back sort of thing. It was really bizarre, but everything goes quiet. You hear the nick. You don't hear a stitch in the ground. It's like a computer game that suddenly focuses in. You almost hear your heartbeat in your head. Doodoo! And you just watch it in. Somehow the hands are there.

And then after you catch it, there's a split second where there's no noise whatsoever in the ground. and then it erupts. It's a wonderful, wonderful feeling. It's the closest thing to taking a wicket. From BBC Radio 5 Live, this is the TMS podcast at the Cricket World Cup. Now, as regular subscribers to this podcast will know, we're trying to find a listener in every country in the world. They have to be a full UN member state.

And I'm pleased to say that as a result of Andy Zaltzman, reading all the countries where we've had listeners from on yesterday's pod, he must have been desperate. But we're now up to 97 countries, but there are 193 full UN member states. So we are at least over halfway there. So, Alistair, I'm going to test some of your pronunciations here, some of your geographical knowledge, because we've got our next lot to go from. Why don't you start with Mr. Peters?

I'm going to call him Mr. Peters as well. He's writing from Estonia where he lives in the leafy suburb of Tamin called Nome. That's a not bad start for me. That's right. The weather has been excellent. and therefore eating alfresco almost nightly. The Estonians do play T-20 cricket almost exclusively. See, I didn't know that, did you?

Baz Janzen, a podcast listener from the Netherlands. It's not a very exotic location, I know, but I'd like to think I'm fairly exotic myself, a Dutch cricket fan, with the Netherlands sadly not qualifying for this year's tournament had to resort to supporting England, but I'm hoping I'll be able to support my home country again in a future edition.

I'm sure we also hear here to that, Baz. Yeah, we've got Dan Weymark in Belarus. He says, I loved your attempt to get a listener in every country in the world and I thought I'd often attempt to tick off a very much non-cricotting former Soviet territory off your list. I'm here for work but enjoying Belarusian potato cakes and their excellent lager,

but still making time to listen to the TMS podcast every day. Keep up the good work for the exile cricket team badges out there. And now Clint Bird, I'm an English-born Aussie, currently in Mindanao, in the southern Philippines. I hope that's right. as a long time cricket lover and TMS podcast fan I didn't pick the best of time to visit my wife's family here I picked a bad one here

our house in Tubod is that right is surrounded by rice fields and banana plantations and the internet reception is poor at best I have to hang the USB receiver from a mango tree in the garden every morning to download the latest podcast I do hope I pronounce that love it does sound a lovely place might do

wonder how long that takes to actually download and another one Lee Well I'm really enjoying the podcast of the beaten track here in the beautiful mountain kingdom of Li Suu Two. The Suu, that'll be. Lisu too? Actually, they've written that out for me. And I've still got it wrong.

It's the most amazing country most people have never heard of. I've never heard of it. I'm working here with the government creating an emergency transport solution for pregnant women. The mountain's terrain is amazing, but it's a huge transport and health challenge. The M Mama program is going to save the lives

with lots of others and baby. It does. It's South Africa somewhere, isn't it? Patrick Nicholson is in the Vatican City State. Is it a city or a state? We do have a cricket team and a women's football team. Anyway, that's where I work on humanitarian aid when not following along to the Cricket World Cup through your excellent coverage.

It's not, though, a member of the UN, sadly. Thank you, Patrick. It's heard from Katie Cook in Mozambique, Jameson Mahoney in Sweden, Patrick Gale, also Gary Smith in Ireland, Roger Rupchand, Guyana, Korn Roost in Nairobi, Kenya, Glyn and Barbara Mitchell in Cyprus,

and Hamish Ross in Bermuda. That's a British overseas territory. Unfortunately, it doesn't count. Neither does Jersey or Guernsey. So I'm sorry to those of you who've got in touch from there. So that's 97 countries so far. Can we bring up our century for England against the West Indies? Well, let's hope so.

Now, one last thing before we go, Alistair, you may be aware, all those listening to this podcast know. we've been running a sweepstake for the top scorer in the tournament. There's four left. I've got a bet with Adam, a secret bet that I know which one you're going to choose. What is it? I'm not to say it.

Well, let's test you. I can't have you just saying a secret. Well, I'm going to say that Joe Root is still in that group and you're going to get him. There is actually generally no fix on that. What did I tell you? What did I tell you? Everything you touch turns to go, Phil you were a witness. I said he will pick out Joe Root.

But it's not, I'm not going to say too much. It's a one in four chance. So it's not as if it's that amazing. I knew it. I knew it. You stole my car park place and you've pulled out the Joe Root. That's absolutely typical. I'm saying no more.

Before I go, do you have a car parking spot in Southampton? I'm not going to tell you. Well, I'm going to try and find it. Alison Mitchell's leading with David Warner, by the way, but Joe Root's doing obviously very well. The tournament top scorer is Shackieb has not yet been selected. So there we go. Well, Uncookie.

I knew you're going to get that. That is absolutely ridiculous. We will talk to you tomorrow from South Hampton. and better weather. Hopefully a really good game of cricket in the West Indies. See you then. This is Owen Morgan.

Thanks for listening to the TMS podcast at the Cricket World Cup. There will be a new episode each day throughout the tournament. So make sure you subscribe via your usual podcast app via BBC Sounds where you can also hear commentary

of every ball of the tournament. You can also email the team on TMS at BBC.com. UK, put podcast. in the title.