Cathedralists,
Well, well, well.
What to make of MJ Clarke being undefeated in Test series since becoming Strayan Skipper?
The word on the street is that he has scored five tons, two of them very heavy, since assuming the top job, including the well documented triple in Sydney, backed up with the double on a six-lane highway masquerading as a pitch against a dispirited attack in Adelbrain, that was there for all to see.
All the shots, the trademark strokes.
Never mind the 27 boundaries and the elegant cover driving and the straight hitting, you'd have to wonder if there has been a better exponent of such stylish leg side play in the modern game?
Seems to have largely put the pull and the cut shots away, as he doesn't need them, which is a pity, as anything he hits through point is invariably pretty to watch.
Don't see it as much these days.
But MJ Clarke, still, has a credibility problem, despite scoring 594 test runs in not much more than a fortnight of cricket, and captaining the team in an exemplary fashion, which has been widely commented on by purists.
Why is it so?
Surely he can now be forgiven for being a precociously talented idiot buffoon in his yoof?
How long does that take for people to forget about it?
Let's face it, when the deposed Captain was asked before the last test about his relationship with the current Captain, Punter replied "I think we are both grown-ups".
You'd hope that the general public would realise this at some some stage of proceedings.
You only have to take the Siddler on the Roof picking up the Man of the Match Award for taking six wickets in the match and scoring two runs in Flat City; never mind Pup's 210, and the fact that Cockhead's 221 was quite likely a better knock altogether on the whole.
What the???
They begrudgingly gave Pup the Man of the Series Award, which was reportedly a small cream cake that you could barely cut into 12 pieces.
Big whoop.
My spy at the ground - who seemed to spend much of his time in the finest bar in world cricket - the salubrious air-conditioned Col Egar Bar [named after the late, good local Malvern boy, who became a famous test umpire and a legendary massive pisstank] - right down there at the River Torrens End with a perfect view of the ground through port-hole windows almost right behind the bowler's arm - was taken with some big-time Curry Munchers' fan who appeared at the ground dressed in the full Indian ODI kit, with "Match Fixer" in the name space on the back.
Nice touch.
Disturbingly, it appears the Col Egar is earmarked for demolition, in another appalling error of judgement.
If it's not broke, why fix it?
Everyday, some underpinning slips away...
Not here to say that the Indians were weak & feeble.
They had plenty of excuses; comprehensively outplayed for starters, the chai was obviously all wrong, and served in inappropriate china, the curried egg sandwiches at lunch just didn't cut the mustard, they weren't being taken to the right restaurants, the girls were fat and ugly, and they liked to whinge about each other behind each other's backs etc.
Not to mention the fact that they probably decided amongst themselves to throw the series completely from the outset and take the narrow margins on a Strayan clean-sweep on offer at the books.
However it was done, at 4-nil, 4-nil, 4-nil, 4-nil, some gloating is in order, especially after the Ashes Disaster a mere 12 months ago.
Pulled the tickertape off of the last cable that chattered in on the bush telegraph in the corner of the loungeroom from the sceret agent at the Oval, and it read: "STOP PRESS: Indian team seeks political asylum in Australia. Tendulkar honoured to drive your cab, when next in Adelaide".
