Brett Lee the Mafia enforcer

Brett Lee got his Test break after breaking a player’s arm, Memon and Broacha on IND in the 80s, & the last specialist cricket book seller in the world!

Lee’s the breaks

Brett Lee the Mafia enforcer

Brett Lee got his Test break after breaking a player’s arm, Konstas is the next man up, & Boland’s indigenous roots.

• Fox Sports’ Courtney Walsh & Nic Savage remember the Boxing Day debut of another Aussie 25 years ago, and how Brett Lee had everyone in Australia drooling over his potential before the game.

• ESPNcricinfo’s Andrew McGlashan asks if Sam Konstas can finally settle Australia’s opener question, while Cricket.com’s Anirudh Suresh believes Nathan McSweeney’s only fault was that he had to face Jasprit Bumrah.

• Indian Express’ Sriram Veera reports on how Scott Boland discovered his indigenous roots.

• ESPNcricinfo’s Alagappan Muthu first writes about India’s dependence on Jasprit Bumrah’s era spanning excellence, then says Shubman Gill needs to prove his mettle on foreign soil.

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Mandhana can’t stop scoring runs

Mandhana’s prolific 2024, SA’s first ODI whitewash at home, & cricket is the biggest loser from the CT ‘resolution’.

• India Women beat West Indies by 211 runs. ESPNcricinfo’s Namooh Shah has the stats on their huge win, and Smriti Mandhana’s record-breaking 2024.

• Pakistan beat South Africa by 36 runs to inflict a first ever ODI series whitewash at home for the Proteas.

• India’s Champions Trophy games will be played in the UAE, & ESPNcricinfo’s Osman Samiuddin tears into claims that this resolution is a win for anyone.

• Bangladesh has introduced 30 new national contracts for Women’s players, soon after their newest domestic red ball tournament kicked off. Crossbatted’s Eman T laments that the world is leaving behind the Pakistan Women’s red ball team.

When has making 300 been pointless?

The most important triple centuries, Ashwin’s one-of-a-kind mind, & the last specialist cricket book seller in the world!

• ESPNcricinfo’s Anantha Narayanan has a statistical analysis of the most (and least) impactful triple centuries in cricket.

• Lines on the Grass’ Sarthak Dev has a last minute tribute to the unique mind of Ravichandran Ashwin, while ESPNcricinfo’s Abhinav Mukund writes about playing with the unassuming Ashwin at the youth level.

• The Guardian’s Tom Hawking writes about the soothing sounds of cricket on the radio, & Indian Express’ Sriram Veera talks to the last specialist cricket book seller in the world.

• Cricbuzz’s Atif Azam praises Bangladesh’s rising all-format star, Jaker Ali, while Murali End’s Dominic Machado wants you to end the year remembering how great Muttiah Muralitharan was.

India’s awesome eighties

Memon and Broacha on IND in the 80s, & Head v/s Bumrah.

• IVM’s Cyrus Broacha & Ayaz Memon have a fun look back at India’s changing fortunes in the 1980s.

• Good Areas’ Jarrod Kimber analyses the Border-Gavaskar Trophy battle between Jasprit Bumrah and Travis Head.

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