Ashes 1926: Jack Hobbs and Herbert Sutcliffe perform miracle on an Oval gluepot

August 17, 1926. After a storm had raged across South London, turning The Oval pitch into a pudding, Jack Hobbs and Herbert Sutcliffe scripted one of the most remarkable opening partnerships in the history of the game. Arunabha Sengupta looks back at the Ashes win for England with Wilfred Rhodes and Harold Larwood, two inspired selections at the twilight and dawn of their respective careers, firing the Australians out on the fourth day.

Read More

Ashes 1911-12: England beat a raging bushfire and then finish off the Australians

January 14, 1912. In between their superlative performance to overcome the Australians at Adelaide, the England players fought a bushfire to save the residence of the Governor-General of South Australia. Arunabha Sengupta revisits the brilliance of Jack Hobbs, Frank Foster and Sydney Barnes on the field and the bravery of the English cricketers off it.

Read More

Ashes 1907-08: Australian tail clinches thriller at Sydney

December 19, 1907. A tale of suspense, tension and swinging fortunes at Sydney ended in a riveting two-wicket win for Australia, as Tibby Cotter and Gerry Hazlitt held their nerves at the death. Arunabha Sengupta looks back at the nerve racking first Test of the 1907-08 Ashes, one of the two timeless classics the series produced that have become almost lost to our remembrances.

Read More

Ashes 1882: The Birth

August 29, 1882. The on-field gamesmanship of WG Grace so incensed Fred Spofforth that it produced a bowling spell that scorched The Oval. As the English batting was cremated in the fire, The Ashes came into being. Arunabha Sengupta looks back at the day that gave birth to the most famous and enduring of all cricketing rivalries.

Read More

Ashes 1921: Old Archie MacLaren's amateurs defeat Warwick Armstrong's mighty men

Many an armchair fan may have examined the performance of a national side and boasted “my team could beat them”, safe in the knowledge that they’ll never be required to prove it. Michael Jones looks back to August 30, 1921, when the former England captain Archie MacLaren claimed that he could pick a team to defeat the all-conquering Australian side — and did so.

Read More

Ashes 1905: Bosanquet helps win a race against time and light

England won the race against time and light in a finish laced with excitement and pathos. Arunabha Sengupta writes about the game that saw the best innings of Archie MacLaren, one of the pioneering spells of match-winning googly bowling by Bernard Bosanquet and the desperate attempt by Victor Trumper to get to the crease.

Read More