Test Match Special - No Balls: The Cricket Podcast - What a WAshes Weekend!

Episode Date: July 10, 2023

England bowler Kate Cross and Alex Hartley talk through the memorable T20 series win over Australia that keeps England in the WAshes. There's also loads of MAshes chat, too!

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Listen on BBC Sounds. BBC Sounds, music, radio podcasts. Hi everyone. The BBC have told us that we've got to issue a warning. We swear too much. Henry does beep it out for us because he's a good man. It is actually so that your family can all listen. Your kids can listen.

But we will say. Okay. Sugar. That's not a way of it. I nearly said a really bad one. Cross. Come to turn round the wicket. Boulder.

Boulder. Laving a ball alone. Litchfield. I think it's the wobble ball. It just nips back. It jags back. It's the nipbacker. That is a beauty from Kate Cross.

An absolute C. That is a beautiful cross. Hello and welcome back to No Balls and Cricket podcast with me Kate Cross and a smile, Alex Hartley. Hello Al. I think it's a fake smile, Crossie, but that's okay. No, there's no fake smiles today, Al, because the ashes, the washes, the washes are truly alive. Oh my word, what a couple of days. Crossie, T20 champions, baby. Who saw that coming?

series win, you'll have all these mega stats and you always do this when, because you've been in the comments box, obviously, I'm not on social media during the games, so you'll fire them out. But the first time that anybody has been Australia in a series win since 2017. Yep. And that was the T20 series in the last ashes out in Australia when Wyatt got that 100 in that chase. Australia haven't lost a series since then. That was not the last ashes. That was like four ashes ago, Al. Yeah, sorry, I meant the last one time it was like over there. No, it wasn't, it was the time before that.

It was the time before that. It was when you were playing. Yeah, but that's how long ago it was, Crossie. Yeah. It was when I was playing. I mean, there's just so much to unpick. Congratulations. Thank you.

Let's just, let's start how we always start. How are you? Yes, I am good. I am tired because I've been up and down the country. like a yo-yo. But I think I've got a bit of adrenaline, so I'm all right.

Perfect. I'm smiling. I'm having a good time. You're back home. We've got bonus day at home. Bonus day at home. Thank you, Ben Stokes and your troops. How are you?

I'm okay, thank you. I'm a bit tired also today. That's because you absolutely sent it last night. We had a nice night together as a team, winning a series against Australia. And on it, right, you better have celebrated properly, or I'll be disappointed. Well, you know I'm not going to go into the nitty-gritty of it, but we did not let you down, Al. Okay, perfect.

Proud of you. You had your mum staying last night. Yeah. Yeah, bless her. Said to her, hotels were really expensive in London because Billy Joel was on, Wimbledon, on England women are playing in T20 series Deciders at Lords So she was like

Do you mind if I share your room with you So I was like I don't mind But if we win the series It might be a chance we'll go out So she's like it's not a problem with me Yeah poor poor woman She won't have slept till you got home You know what mum's like

I know I know But no good night Great vibes Been really good vibes The whole ashes so far To be honest though Obviously winning helps

Because you've been so close to win it until you've started winning, if that makes sense. Yeah, I think there's just this, like, freedom in the group now that people just really want to enjoy what they're doing. And I think there was so much, or so many times when it was just crap in those COVID bubbles. I think now we're really like, right, that happens, so make sure we enjoy this bit because we know we can.

Yeah. Let's unpick it then. So T20 champions, you lost the first game, but it was a last ball thriller. Yeah. You won the second by three runs. Yep. And you won last night by five wickets. Also, what was the mood in the camp last night at Lords

when you needed 119 from 14 overs? Because I thought that was pretty stiff. Really? I thought that DLS equation gave us... It normally does give you the advantage if you're back in second, doesn't it? But I looked at that and I was like, that's a lot of runs taken off the total.

Oh, see, I thought that was stiff. So what did we need? We needed 118 off 14 overs. 119 off 14. Right. So, I mean... So the run rate was something like 8.7 from the start. I mean, I was in a yellow bib, so I wasn't feeling any pressure.

But the batters obviously didn't really feel it. They just went out. And do you know what, Danny and Dunks, we obviously speak about games after we've played and have a little chat in the dress room. and Louis pointed out like how Dunks and Danny really set the tone for us and without them doing what they do and going kind of putting pressure on Australian bowlers from ball one

like we couldn't chase that down and allow Capsi to go in and do what she did and then allow Nat to go in and do what she did etc so yeah they probably deserve a lot of the credit well yeah they do they set the tone and Wyatt took apart Megan shoot second game in a row as well yeah yeah second game in a row

and then they both got out. We were on top. We lost a couple of wickets. It got a bit hairy. Nat was struggling. She couldn't find the boundary. She couldn't get a bat on ball. And then we were like, oh no, what is happening?

And then Capsie, 46 off 23 balls. Thank you very much. Good night. Game done. She loves loads that gal. Loves it. Apparently she got a really good record there. Well, that's where she got that first 50 in the 100 that kind of got her name recognized and mentioned everywhere. I felt sorry for Nat a bit, actually, because of the good bits of fielding that Australia did last night,

Nat was on the receiving end of all of them. So all those specky stops, like sliding on the boundary all seem to come off Nat's bat. So I think that just goes to show, doesn't it? T20 cricket on any other day, she could be 30 off 20, flying, feeling a lot better. Yeah. What was the mood in the camp? Like, how was everyone? How is everyone today?

Well, we've, I've not seen anyone today, actually. So Lauren Bell at breakfast, she was on good form. But mood in camp was, we've tried to really break it down, I think in the past with Ashes series like this, especially when you lose the test match and you're 4-0 down. I think sometimes it can be a really daunting prospect to win the rest of every game, basically. So what we did do was just try to focus on each T20 game as it came.

And then Heather spoke, we all had a little huddle at Lords at training the day before. and she just spoke about the opportunity to win a series and that was all we wanted to do. So we've kind of taken the ashes out of it at the minute. Yeah, yeah. Mini-series. Yeah, which is what it is.

And obviously, if we do go on to win the ashes, amazing. If we don't, we still come away with a great achievement of beating the best team in the world in a T20 series, which no one's been able to say they've done for a long time. They were all sour well, weren't they? I didn't really notice, I must admit. I was trying to take in the atmosphere.

because, oh my God, these crowds have been unbelievable. Can't move for not touched on it. Record crowd at Edgebaston. Record crowd at the Oval. Record crowd at Lords. And apparently, so we'd sold something like maybe 12 or 13,000 for the Oval. And then once the Edgebasting game happened, there was like 7,000 tickets sold within a day of people that are called,

apparently they're called inventors or some big eventors, something like that. So they see things that are going on, jump on the bandwagon and like come and watch, which is amazing. But I knew then that Lords would outsell the Oval because of the series decider and the series is alive and we've beat Australia, etc. But they're all really different crowds. I don't know how you felt about them or whether you kind of got the full feeling in the comms box. But Edgebaston was unreal. Yeah. Unreal.

And then the Oval was like a hum, like a hum. Like a hmm. People chatting, people chatting, people chatting. and Wicked fell and they were like, way! Yeah, okay. And then Lords was just epic. Lords, they were clapping singles, Crossie. They were cheering, full-blown cheering singles.

I know. Love it. Love it. It was so good. It was so good. Like, it's just so good. And then all the ODIs are sold out, all of them. Crazy. I mean, obviously we're not playing as bigger venues, so it's not going to be 20,000 people there. But, like, to have, if we're going into a series, I've never ever gone into a series where everything's sold out.

No. I've never heard of it. Well, it's never happened, I don't think. It's happened now, baby. I know. Me and Heather did the radio on Thursday morning, and we were saying how crap it would have been if we'd lost that game the night before the Oval because the ashes would have gone then.

Yeah. And I was trying to, I can't remember which radio station it was, but I was trying to explain to someone that in 2019, we sold 32,000 tickets for our entire ashes. Well, do you know what? The first two 2019 Ashes games, the first two ODIs were midweek at Leicester. I know. It's crazy, isn't it? It's like, if you market a team and you do it properly, people come and watch.

The ECB can't not market it again. No, they won't do. Naturally, there's more of a pull because it's an Ashes. Like, I know that. We're probably not going to get as bigger crowds for Sri Lanka at the end of the summer. but the desire and the aspiration to try and fill out stadiums now should be the goal every single time we play cricket. Yeah, right, right, because it can happen.

Yeah, it's been amazing. And it literally has been our 12th person. Like, we've literally felt the crowd. Every time there's a drop catch, like there's pressure on the Aussies. The Aussies have rattled. They all rattled. Do you reckon? So Henry Moran interviewed Alyssa Healy after the game and said,

So, how are you feeling? and she just went, ouch. Oh. Yeah. Oh, okay. Ouch, that's it. Well, they're not used to losing, are they? Like, literally all they do is win.

And I saw Healy's quote in the press saying they're allowed to lose games of cricket. Of course they are. Like, that sport. Yeah, that sport. But they don't. They don't know how, they don't probably know how to deal with the emotion of it. They didn't. Well, yeah.

Yeah. I mean, obviously, we don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves. We've got a couple of days off now. and then the ODIs start on Wednesday at Bristol. Oh, so, right, how are you feeling about the ODIs? Because you've obviously John Terryed it and got the medal. John Terry did. This is, you'll be proud of me.

This is the first time I've not given away my T20 series winners medal for not playing a game because I thought I'm going to want to keep this one. Yes. Oh, I am proud of you because I was worried. I was like, oh, if she gives it away, she might regret it because you've just been in Australia for the first time ever. I did think about it, but there was too many young kids in the crowd last night and I couldn't just single out one of them.

So I thought, I'll keep this one. Yeah, please keep that one. But yeah, full John Terry did it. But really enjoyed it. A lot of the time when I don't play in the T20s, I find it really difficult. And I did, don't get me wrong, I wanted to play. You want to play in front of those crowds.

You want to prove you worth in T20 cricket. But I still loved it as a fan, and I still loved it for the team knowing what we talk about in training and then what we talk about pregame to then go and execute. and I still don't actually think we've played our best cricket. Does that show where you are as a team?

So like the girls that are on the bench aren't, I guess, bitter, sour. They're like, you're all, because you were on about John Ball and this new we want to entertain and play the best we can. And I guess, does that, you enjoying it? And do you know what I'm trying to say? Does that show where you are as a team? Yeah, probably. And again, doing this, we did this radio stuff and I was with Heather on the Thursday morning,

And one of the questions I got when I find out about the team, so I jokingly was that, oh, whenever Heather text me and tells me that I'm playing or not playing, like obviously just joking with Heather. But then I actually said, I feel like the squad is in such a good place that anyone on that bench could go in and do a job. And everyone's kind of got their unique role,

but everyone's got a part to play in it. And that is what is so special about Ash's series for us because, you know, people who play in the test match might not feature again for the rest of the series or people who only play T-20s might not get to be there at the end, but it is such a squad thing to do and to try and win it. Yeah, it's odd, isn't it? It is, it's good, it's so good.

It's so good to see everyone. And do you know what really, like, sticks out for me? It's like, when I come pitch side at the start of a game, people, like, you all come over and say hi, and it's because you relax, you're confident, you're just going to play the game as it is, and there's no nervous playing Australia. There's none of that.

Yeah, it's really not felt that. And I think it's quite hard to fake that as well, isn't it? Like, you pick up on people's vibes and you can see if people are nervous or they've got that kind of energy about them. I've got the coaches coming over being like, you're right, ow! I'm like, this is so nice. Yeah, and that probably really does truly reflect what the dresser room's like. And that's probably the closest that you'll be able to see

to how relaxed it is in there and how clear and calm everyone is when they're going out and playing cricket now. So good. I'm buzzing for you. The ashes are alive. Yes, Australia only need to win one. We need to win three. There's a washed out game.

We only need to win two. So maybe pray for rain. Who knows? But it's six four. Like, it's so close. Exactly. And probably when you say you've got to win three games, that sounds a lot.

But if we win on Wednesday, it's six all in an Ashes series with two games to play. Like, that's so exciting. And, Crossy, that's a win in itself. If you don't go on to win the ashes, that is still a win in itself. because last time you won that T20 at the back end of the series in 2019,

last time it was here, and the Australians, that was the only game you won the whole series. Yeah, and even when we were over there, we had two washed-out T-20s, lost one T-20, drew the test, lost all the ODIs. Yeah, I'm excited. So we've already improved massively from where we were, so yeah, so good. Also, more Ash's news. Yeah. Just off the back of another little England win over Australia.

That's so good, so good. You were there? Yes. I was there. You were there? I was there to see Mark Wood, Chris Wokes, take us over the line. It was so good. The atmosphere was, I'm going to say a really horrible word, mint. It was mint. Proper northern word, it was mint. It sounded amazing on day one, but Headingley's always got that knack. A of producing these magical, memorable games that are going to go down in the history of test cricket, but also the crowd is always epic. It was so, it was so. I went and sat in the Western Terrace cross here for a little bit.

Love it. I'm going to tell the story on the pod because I told it on the radio, but I'm going to tell it properly on the podcast because there's no filter here. So I'm sat on the back row, the Western Terrace, and there's beach balls going around, there's pints being thrown, then all of a sudden there's a giant blow-up puss

that's erected in the middle of the crowd. Yeah. And someone throws it up, it back and it slapped me in the face. What a day, what a treat. Yeah, so I was like, oh, so I battered it off and patted it back to the next person down below me. And then this giant f*** is going everywhere. It's being battered everywhere.

And I was like, only in the Western Terrace can I be slapped in the face by a giant ****. Yeah. Do you know what, Al? I love Chris Wokes. I think Chris Wokes is amazing. but I love Mark Wood. Mark Wood is my favourite cricketer ever to exist

and he will be until the end of time. You supported CSK because of Mark Wood. I did and he's just unbelievable. He's not been able to play. Him and Wokes, even Moeen, to come in and impact the game the way all three of them did. Do you know Moeen went to Baz yesterday and said, I want a bat three.

I want a bat three. And Stoke said it didn't work but it did. Because although he didn't get runs, it meant that middle order stayed the same. Yeah. So Louis said something to us a while ago because obviously he's been in that environment with Baz and Bass. I don't know who he is to call him Baz.

It's my mate, Baz. Yeah, is he coming on the pod, by the way? I saw a picture of you together. Yeah, he ran over. He gave me a big hug and I was like, Baz, nice to see you. Do you want to call on the pod? Yeah, he ignored your text.

I also didn't ask him about the podcast because he's kind of busy right now. We can't fall into the Joe Roots. with Brendan McCullum again. We can't have this blue-tick era where it's okay. I think we're just going to have to let it slide. All right. It's a tough one.

You know, I struggle with stuff like that. Yeah, maybe when they're, you know, playing not in an Ashes series. Yeah. But then he did say it'd come on before the... Anyway, let it slide. Crossley, let it slide. What was I just saying?

Mowing batted at three. Mowin, with his bucket hat on and his son he's on today, looked a bit like he was going to go and play some jazz flute somewhere? Look like he was going to Glastonbury. Yeah, love it. You were talking about John Lewis. John, sorry.

So John made a point to us at some point. We were watching the men's test. I think it was on in the dress room. And he said, whatever you are least expecting Ben and Brendan to do, they will do. So the Aussies are not expecting Moe and Alley to walk out at three this morning

and then he walks out at three. Like it's just making things happen, isn't it? And making people think differently. And I love it. I do. I do. I love it. I've fallen in love with cricket.

I mean, I've never not been in love with cricket. But both the washes, the mashes, they're alive. Right, we need to move on. Crossie, both Ashley's series are alive. I believe we can do it. Both men and women. What have you got your sticky note? Okay, I've got quite a lot.

Yes. I've got, number one, we've not done a podcast since the Bear Stowe dismissal. And I know it's boring and I know it's old news, but should we talk about it? It's out. It was out. It was very out.

I watched it and I was just like, that's out. Yeah, I don't know why it was a big thing. I think it's carelessness from Best, though. Yeah, it's out. It was a pattern as well, wasn't it? They'd seen that he was kind of wandering around. And in my opinion, there's nothing, like, if the keeper's stood up to the stumps, there's no way that as soon as the ball hits the keeper's gloves that the umpire would shout over.

You've got the chance to stump someone. So, yeah, out in my opinion. Well, it was out. One on yours, which I'm going to steal. There's no West Indies in the World Cup. yeah the qualifiers are going on it is old news but it's also new news on this podcast yeah so no West Indies and lucky can they still go to like the super sixes and qualifiers that literally it they're not going to play they are out oh wow yeah it's a bit worrying actually

that worry yeah i was just going to say that worries me and especially i think with countries like that the women's obviously from my point of view the women's cricket is the priority because I play women's cricket, and you don't want to see the women's team not getting the funding because the men's team aren't doing well, if that makes sense? Yeah, yeah. So West Indies, pull your act together, hopefully see you at the next one. They'll be at the T20 World Cup because it's in the West Indies. And they'll probably win that.

They've got the knack of doing stuff like that, haven't they? I had a really cool experience this week, Al. Go on. So me, Danny Gibson, Lauren Winfield Hill, Sophie Ackleston, Sophia Duncly, and Heather Knight, or went to a restaurant in London, which is for you to experience what blind people experience daily. Oh, wow, okay. So it's pitch black?

Pitch black, yeah. So you get in there, you order your food. You don't know what you've ordered, though. It's like either meat or vegan, basically. So you've got a three-course meal, but you don't know what you're eating. When I say it's pitch black, I didn't know it could be, like it was darker than when I've got my eyes shut. But, right, okay, look, what an experience, but one, how do you know where your knife and fork are?

Because you feel, where's your food? How do you know when you've eaten all your food? Yeah, see, right, so everyone that works in there is either fully blind or partially sighted. So you're literally being talked through it, I guess, like, tutored by these people, because obviously this is what their lived experiences. So we had this lady who took us to our seat. That was the worst bit. you had to like caterpillar each other so you had your hand on someone's shoulder in front of you and you're like a little train going through to find the table and then you're like literally just got a feel for your chair and then like right sit down and then right I know Sophie's on my right

so I can feel Sophie's leg right there's my knife and fork right there's water in the so we're like doing this like knocking water over Heather's trying to pour water and pass it on to everyone but it just made you have to really communicate so go on I was just going to The lady would then, like, tap you on the shoulder and she, she learnt all our names in order of where we were sat. So she's like, Kate, I'm on your right shoulder. Your food's here now. So she passed me the plate. So I put the plate down.

And then I, weirdly, ate with my hands. Yeah, that's what right. This is, yeah, okay. Because how, with a knife and fork, how do you know where it is and how to put it in your mouth? Well, that was my logic. So I was like, I'm just going to feel for my food. And, like, you'd be like, oh, that's a tomato. Right.

Okay, I can eat that. And, oh, there's a bit of rocket there. Right. But then the first thing was like a really fishy dish and I don't know, I'm not keen on fish. And it turns out it was macro. And I was like, it's not for me. But the second course was delicious. It was like this lamb Sunday dinner basically. But there was like potato puree on the plate. And I'm eating it with my hands. It was wild. But it was amazing. So what did you do? What did you do with your hands afterwards? How do you go to the toilet and things like that? So you just had to tell, you just had to shout the lady and be like, Kate needs to go to the toilet. And she would then. help you get out and then the toilets weren't in the dark like she didn't you know you weren't guessing that bit but how but like how do they know where to take the plates and things like i'm just so many questions this is i obviously don't know the ins and answer of it but this is what they deal with every and it's not just in that room obviously that's their life like they're they have to be like that all the time so you've learned if you were blind you would always eat me

hands well unless maybe if i knew what i was eating probably not but because we didn't know but then the dessert was like this chocolate taught thing and it had sorbet on top of it and I'm eating sorbet with my fingers like and then Luz it was so funny Did anyone else eat with their hands? Yeah, only Heather ate with a knife and fork which was weird

but everyone else ate with the hands and then Dunks is like is anyone else licking their plate we're like, no Dux no we're not animals You'll lick your plate you pour gravy down your top basically but loz is eating this dessert and she's she knew that she'd put some

sorbet on top of this chocolate bit and she puts it in a map and it's not cold she's like guys i don't know where my sorbet's gone and then sophie's like why is my foot cold she dropped it on so all in all really amazing experience like really would recommend anyone to do it it's a restaurant called danzlin noir so i think that means french for like in the in the dark or noir black in the black in the Well, Pino Noir is red wine. It's definitely not red wine, but you could have red wine if you want to. But yeah, yeah, wicked experience.

Shall we do five minutes of questions? Yes, yes, we absolutely should. Enjoy even more of the ashes with BBC sounds. It means everything as a kid. It's a pinnacle of test cricket. Find out what it takes to lift the famous urn in how to win the ashes. I'd already decided how I was going to go about it. If I was going to get out, it was going to take a great ball or a great catch.

And the tail enders boys are back. Let's talk about your Ashes memories, Jimmy. Talk us through your debut in Brisbane in 2006. Yeah, we got battered. Take the Ayesha's with you this summer on Radio 5 Sports Extra. And BBC Sounds. Hi, Alex and Kate. First time, no, long time listener, first time.

Long time listener and first time washes buyer. Oh, also that reminds me. I was on the train down from Headingley to Lords and there was two men and they were talking about the ashes and one of them went, oh, I put the girls game on yesterday. It was actually quite good. Oh, I mean, I love that, but also don't be patronising.

Yeah. Hi, Kate and Alex, or Alex and Kate. I just want to say how proud I am of you both. I listen to TMS and then watch the highlights of the washes test on BBC each day. I'm gutted for UK that you didn't get the win, but you both made me beam with pride to be a female cricket fan, so onwards and upwards, we'll get them next time. We got them already. We've got them twice.

A question for you both. When you both look back on your careers, hopefully a long way off retirement for both of you, do you think you'll be more proud of your cricket achievements on the field or the impact your podcast has made on people's lives, especially people's mental health? You can count me as one of those people whose lives you have touched in such a positive way.

Naomi. Do you know what? Even now, obviously cricket is cricket and I'm proud of things that I've done on the cricket pitch. But the more that we get to meet people who listen to the podcast, the more proud I am of what we're doing with this than I am with cricket. But without cricket, we wouldn't have this. So, you know, chicken an egg.

Do you know what? I am incredibly proud of the career. I've had, I don't know what I'm proud. Like, I think I'm just proud that I've fulfilled my kid's dream. Yeah. I don't have kids, but me being a kid. Yeah, no, I got that. I understood that. Imagine if you just feel like my kid's dreams.

Like, you've got kids. We've not told anyone. No, I've got a seven-year-old. I've got a seven-year-old. You, like, you are my seven-year-old. Yeah, baby. Hi, Alex and Kate, or Kate and Alex. long-time listener, first-time emailer. I think it was in an LBW a few weeks ago when you were asking why fielders shout catch it

when a ball is hit in the air. It made me think of when I used to play football and I used to shout, shot at the top of my voice to let the keeper know that an opposition player had shot to make sure that they were paying attention. Is the shout catch it just to draw the attention of a fielder who might not have realised the ball is heading their way? Thank you for keeping things real

and I always make a point to ask people, no really, how are you? That's from Dave. Oh, good on you, Dave. I don't know, it's just a reaction, isn't it? You just go, catch it! And then actually, I find it puts me off. Yeah, well, did you hear Johnny Burstow shouting Catch It to Brooke for the Mowing Alley Labashane Wicket?

Yeah. He's like, catch that, catch that, catch that. And Harry Brooke actually ran the wrong way and then put it, good catch. I think when you're playing in front of crowds like you did yesterday, you don't actually hear it anyway. No. It's just, yeah, it's just instinct to shout, catch it because it's gone in the air. Yeah. Alex and Kate

I've listened to your podcast for over two years now at first I was a little sceptical but I've grown to really enjoy it I think this is a backhanded compliment it's informative and funny and the way you've both put your health issues into the public domain has been very helpful

good luck Kate and the washes and good luck to both of you for the rest of the season thanks for your podcast on a personal level it's helped me enormously as I've recently had some issues with my own to deal with thanks and that's Don you're welcome thank you all right legends, hope you're all good. Love the cricket, therefore love the pod. Now, Alex is the

ultimate prow at it, but my question is all about those instant reaction commentary terms. You get a cracking wicket like Crossies in the Washes. Alex called it an absolute seed. Then we had Strousie using snortering the mashes. You have also used more common terms like Jaffer and Peach. Are there backstories for these, or do you just use any random word? Word. We, perhaps. I can't speak today. Bean, it doesn't even say weed.

It says bean. Bean perhaps honker. Keep up a splendid work, Nick or Tamer. So those words are like historically crickety terms. I don't know why or how, but, yeah, I don't, like, why is it a seed? I think you can describe cricket with any word and it works. She's knocked the absolute book of that, book off that. Why can I not speak?

You've just proved. You've just disproved you, boy, you can't use any word. She has just hit their hat off that. It's a bit like, I can't remember which comedian did it, but you can use any word about going out and getting really drunk. Yeah. Was it Michael McIntyre that you can go out and get absolutely gazeboed tonight? Yes, yes.

But yeah, I don't know where they've come from, but they're just a thing, aren't they? Yeah. I don't know. Dick Ait and Alex, long-time listener, first-time emailer. I took my kids to Edgebaston yesterday for the women's T-20 and we had such a great time. On walking into the stadium, my nine-year-old daughter said,

I want to be out there playing. And he's off this afternoon to her third softball tournament of the summer. She also asked me who my favourite England player was and I said, actually, one of those girls carrying the drinks. So we settled on Sophie's office. So he settled on Sophie in the end, although Lauren Bell's hairstyle was her favourite. However, we do feel that the Ragland stand needs to apologise to Annabelle Suverland as she got a massive boo coming out to bat.

The stand was actually booing the ground staff, who at the time were deflating the beach balls that had been passed through the crowd. Good luck for the rest of the summer to Kate and the whole England squad and to Alex, who I'll be listening to on TMS. Thanks for inspiring my daughter to love the game as much as I do, and that's from Fiona. there. Well, Crossey, it could have been you that was a favourite player. It wasn't been. I thought I was in then. Yeah, but how good that we're inspiring people, your inspiring people, like, it just means the world, don't it? So, so cute. Did I tell you

about the little boy that I met at Trent Bridge? No. So, you know, I had that really bad day where I was quite upset and hadn't all very well. I, like, picked myself up, got myself out the dressery and but went to see people and like went to see my family but obviously with that come sign in some signatures and this little boy had a supercharger's top on and asked me for a signature and his mum messaged me on instagram saying that he clutched the signature to his chest the whole journey home to leads and said when he was asked who his favorite thing with signature was it was mine and I was just like that those were the moments where you like you realize why you're going through all that awful pain and trauma of cricket yeah I just those little

moments. I had a realisation moment that women's cricket is just mint at Edgebaston. Mint. So it was coming down the concourse and I was going out onto the field and it was right at the very end where we nearly winning, we nearly won and there was a wicket and there was two lads who were like 14 and 15 and they were jumping up and down and they were like, get in, hugging each other and they were like, quick, let's go watch again and ran out onto the and I was like, that is so good.

Love it. Just so, I'm so on the bandwagon at the minute. Yeah. Hi both. First up, congratulations on the sellout stadium day at Nottingham. We think we need a stadium tour now, please, once you're playing or in commenting careers allow. Second up, I love both your contributions to making the washes test such a great experience. Kate, the jagged back ball was a joy to watch from the bowling end and Alex's Combs was pitch perfect. Good work all round. Question number one. How much did you enjoy the T20s? We've already done that, really.

Question number two, Mashes Controversy. Would you want Amy Jones to do a carry in the final Washes ODI if it meant England could win? Heather got asked this question the other day and you actually don't know what you're going to do in those moments until you're in those moments. I know Ben Stokes said that he wouldn't have done it, but Johnny Berstow was literally trying to run Mabashane out like that two days prior.

So everyone says what they'll do in those moments. but there's so much emotion, so much at stake, like, I thought it was out. Yeah, it would do it. I would do it. It's not like a man cat, is it? It's different. It is different, and I don't know why it's different because it shouldn't be different, but it does feel different. Kay, what do you miss about being with Lanks and what are you enjoying about being with England? Alex, are there any similarities being part of TMS team to the Lank's team?

You love us. What do I miss about being with Thunder? Me. You? I think it's just a, it's obviously a different environment because you're not playing international cricket. But I love the Thunder team. I've got some really good mates in that team.

I obviously get to be at home a lot more, which is really nice. We've been on the road a little bit now. So it's just very different, but I love it all. I love it because I play cricket with my mates and I get to do that at all levels, which I'm very privileged to do. Yeah, I think for me, Like, with the Lanks team, like you, they're all my best mates, get on well with everybody and we are just genuinely friends.

But with the TMS team, I also have some genuine friends. And I still have that team environment that I have with cricket, which is why I think when I do retire from cricket, I know that I've still got that sense of team. Yeah, I think that's going to be the hardest thing about retiring, isn't it? Like, you lose your people around you, but you're going to still work for a team. But then saying that, you'll work for a team or you think you'd work for a team wherever you work. Yeah.

That's like in an office or not that you'll go work in an office, but... Well, you never know. You never know. You never know. Do you want to do one more? Okay. Hi Kate and Alex. Long time listener and cringed that Kate's dislocated thumb story in the last pod.

Oh. Thumb update? Yeah. Chipped. You've broken it. Chipped bone. You've broken your thumb. You dislocated it and now you've broken it.

So I said to Amy Jones, I was like, I went. out and batted with a broken thumb for you to protect you. Yeah, nice. She was very thankful. Took me right back to a match I played in a few years ago. Went for a court and bowled, dropped. Looked down to see my thumb had caved in. Knew instantly something was definitely not right. Showed it to the umpire who turned away immediately at looking green. I went straight to hospital in Darlington. She had a quiet A&E department with a wicket keeper who had a broken nose and a random who had been attacked with a baseball bat. Wow. Turned out, I had done the double break and dislocation looked looked at the wall while the nurse sorted out the dislocation

under much local anaesthetic then put in plaster for two weeks so I got told with thumbs you should try and get them back in ASAP because there's a lot going on around there a lot of tendons and stuff and if you can get it in quick then the like swelling can't get into the joint okay so how is your how is your thumb um it's really quite sore obviously um but I found this gel that I and put on it and it numbs the joint so then when cricket balls hit it it doesn't hurt as much but i've just not quite got my claw back yet we've had one from charlotte age 10 it's also about a dislocated thumb so this can be the last one dear kate and alex do you want me to finish the other email or do you want to just start a new one sorry finish it off

add that injury to two knee cartilage jobs and i took it as a sign it was time to retire which i did no regrets question is are there any on-pitch injuries you've seen or suffered which made you look away? Uh, no, no. I quite likes stuff like that. Delisa Kimmence, when I played for the Brisbane Heat in 2016, dislikated her little finger, but the top of it, so if you're looking at your nail on your little finger, the top of it came back and the bone came through the skin.

Oh, nah. And she was like running off with a finger in the air like, dislikated, dislikated. And then she came back on and bowled the next over. I was like, what on earth is this woman made out of? Oh, my word. It's like Nat Brown compound fracture of her. She went, anyone know how to put a compound fracture back in? And then your sister, she's busy.

I was like, you need to go to hospital. She went, no, I've got my shift at Morrison's. I've got to go. She had to go to Morrison to work. Right, yeah. Is that one finish now? Keep doing what you're doing on the pod. My highlight of the week, or whenever you get around to it, best wishes, Andrew.

Thank you, Andrew. Dear Kate and Alex or Alex and Kate, I was so pleased that you read my letter on the first. past pod you asked who dislocates their thumb and i have a friend who has she was trying to pull off a pen lid and manage to dislocate it now she can pop it in and out whenever she wants it's really creepy best wishes charlotte age 10 oh charlotte i hate when people do stuff like that it's like when people crack the neck it really puts me on yeah yeah for next week's pod email us on noblespodcast at BBC.com.

No Bulls podcast at BBC.com. It's so good. They've said it twice. They've said it twice. The mashes, the ashes, the washes are alive. See you next week. See ya. Bye.

Cross. I'm doing round the wicket. Boulder. Lover. Lagerieving a ball alone, Litchfield. I think it's the wobble ball. It just nips back. It jags back.

It's the nipbacker. That is a beauty from Kate Cross. an absolute seed that is a beautiful cross the Albert Park the Albert Park Circuit longitude and latitude

144.9 5-1-035 degrees east 37.8 501 degrees south 3.280 miles in length 14 turns F1

We'll get into the who's and the what-nots later on in the checker flag podcast Get analysis and reaction With the checkered flag podcast Listen on BBC Sounds Listen on BBC Sounds