Welcome to the 1st episode of Season 3. Today we have a slightly different topic of conversation, one that took roots a while ago when  Dan Weston  and I started contemplating this discussion. Dan Weston has previously worked with Kings XI Punjab, Leicester and B’ham Phoenix, and comes with a noted reputation in cricket as a highly valued analyst and strategist. Today he talks about what goes into the making of a champion team - the building blocks of the team, the players, the analyst, the support staff , the culture and the how to ensure the legacy across subsequent years.  Da ..read more

Welcome everyone to the Seond Anniversary of The Cricket Slouch. As per tradition, we have done a special episode while the IPL is in full swing, and this time we talk about the important milestones - players, events, administrators - in the evolution of Indian Cricket over the past 5 decades, which was a conscious decision for the sake of brevity.  Sandeep, Ajit and Rahul share their valuable input, views and insights towards this discussion that spans India's first win in the Windies and England to the doldrums of the 90s to where they stand now in global cricket. From players like Gava ..read more

Apologies for the delay in pushing this out due to availability of the speakers, but we finally get round to having a detailed discussion about the performance of the Indian cricket team in the recent India-England test series.  Ajit, Shounak and Sandeep give their views and share their observations in this episode. We talk about the name of the series, individual performances if most players, strategies seen, areas for improvement transition of the team, future prospects, DRS and give due credit to the Selectors and the Coaching staff of the team.  The blog article on DRS written in ..read more

In this episode, I talk to Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming and Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake about their record breaking feat and what it is like to be world record holders, to have that spotlight on you, and what this means to the upcoming generation of players in Japan. They also discuss various opponents, budding rivalries, the difference in playing International cricket and Grade Cricket, and future aspirations for the Japan national team.  JCL matches are streamed live on their YouTube channel ..read more

In this episode, I sit with Alan Curr, Head of Operations at Japan Cricket Association and talk about the rise of Cricket there in the past 12 months, astonishing batting feats in the domestic leagues, their emerging talent, Charlie Hinze, improved fan and social engagement, developing strategic partnerships with MKI and Mizuno, and what the Olympics inclusion means for cricket there, and whether there is a possibility of Japanese robots doing mundane administrative tasks and bats made out of Japanese Willow ! We also talk about their upcoming assignments starting with the ACC Challenger Cup i ..read more

In this episode Shounak and I capture the joy and the emotions following West Indies magnificent win at The Gabba and what this could mean for the team and the players. Will ths herald the rejuvenation of West Indian Cricket or will this be another false dawn that follows a typical pattern that we have seen in the past.  We then talk about the difficulties they have had with resources, broadcasting, the financial support for the team and the wider ramifications of this win.  ..read more

Greetings to all listeners. In today's episode, I sit down with Shounak , from Emerging Cricket website, and talk about the rise and growth of cricket in the African region, with special emphasis on its development in Nigeria. We also touch on its decline in Kenya, which is a tragedy in its own right.  Shounak's interview with the Nigerian Cricket Federation president can be found HERE ! A huge thank you to all the listeners for helping The Cricket Slouch cross 3000 unique downloads and for your continued support and patronage over the past couple of years. We truly appreciate it ..read more

Welcome to 2024 dear listeners ! The Cricket Slouch podcast hosts Sandeep (@sportsfan3791) and Hamza in this episode for a round of commiserrations and to explore what are the barriers to India winning a series in SA and Pakistan winning one in Australia.. or even at home for that matter, ha ! And in our usual meandering way, we go on and talk about the politics of cricket, Boards, preparation, financial incentives, individual responsbilities, and finally bow out with a dig at England and their excuses when they lose.  Minor error correction - Rohit Sharma did win the T20 WC in 2007 as a ..read more

As we approach the end of the league phases of the CWC 23, and head into the knock out phase, Sandeep suggested we talk about memorable knock out matches from the ODI World Cups of the past. And to do just that, Sandeep and I are joined by other regular contributors Ajit, of Armchair Cricket and Guerilla Cricket fame, and Shounak, a regular contributor at Emerging Cricket website. Matches discussed - 4:10 - India vs England 1987 WC semi final  18:25 - Pakistan vs New Zealand 1992 WC semi final 31:50 - India vs Pakistan 1996 WC quarter final 47:30 - Australia vs West Indies 1996 WC semi fi ..read more

This one is a bit Anglo-Australian in its theme and focuses more on the fortunes of the Australian and English teams in the World Cup, and for that very purpose I have roped in James and Damien to share their views on the teams’ progress thus far in the tournament. We also talk about the Angelo Matthews' dismissal, Maxwell's golfing accident, Warner's choice of shaving kit, Afghanistan's performances, Pakistan's chances of making it to the semis, and a re-prediction of the semi finalist spots ..read more