Just in

Articles by Douglas Heath

Avatar photo
About Douglas Heath

Douglas Heath began his lifelong love affair with cricket as an 8 year-old schoolboy playing OWZAT? Whilst listening to a 160s Ashes series on the radio. He later became half-decent at doing John Arlott impressions and is a member of Middlesex County Cricket Club. He holds no truck at all with the T20 version on the game. More Posts

TMS is back

For those of us who wake up a few hours earlier than we might wish the return of Test Match Special to cover the first test of Sri Lanka v England at Galle is a great boon. The commentators are not actually there. Jonathan Agnew is in his attic, Ebony Raynsford Brent in her front room, Andy [...]

January 15, 2021 // 0 Comments

Newlands nostalgia

Watching England’s victory in the T20 yesterday brought back memories of my five trips to the Cape. I first went in 1995, the tour  Mike Atherton captained. It’s remembered for his stoic effort at Joburg’s Wanderers in the second Test when he stood up to a peppering from AA Donald and a [...]

November 28, 2020 // 0 Comments

England white ball – top of the world

In the 50-odd years I have been following and covering sport the England international side has let itself and supporters down competitively. In international football tournaments we fail to beat the big boys, often as not losing in the quarter finals on penalties. In Rugby World Cups we produce [...]

September 14, 2020 // 0 Comments

T20 reassessed

Whisper it softly but I’m coming round to T20. There is no cricket to spectate so needs must. But it goes beyond that. Without spectators I am no longer irritated by the loud disco music, the flares and the general ambience of a drunken night out for the lads. Of course you still see grotesque [...]

September 7, 2020 // 0 Comments

When will we learn ?

In 1968 when t was at school one of my best pals – then and now – had a father involved in cricket and one of his charges were the International Cavaliers, a troupe of international cricketers like the Harlem Globe Trotters, sponsored by cigarette company Rothmans. They had come to [...]

August 29, 2020 // 0 Comments

First Test – some thoughts

Although  this Test did not achieve the climax of the 1963 Test v West Indies at Lords nor v Australia at Trent Bridge in 2005 it shared with them a continuity of gripping excitement every day. As at Headingly last year England chased down successfully a difficult total. At 117-5 this seemed [...]

August 9, 2020 // 0 Comments

Thoughts on the Third Test

England won the Wisden Trophy to be renamed the Botham/Richards trophy notwithstanding the enormous differential in achievement between the two. What lessons do we learn from the series  ? The weather Hopefully it will now register with the powers-that-be that you cannot trust an English summer. [...]

July 29, 2020 // 0 Comments

Second Test – assessed

Like the Wisden trophy which has gone to a decider there is much to be resolved in England’s performance. The media storm accompanying Stuart Broad’s omission in the first Test did not abate with his bowling spell to break the Windies in their first innings. In an excellent article in [...]

July 22, 2020 // 0 Comments

Thoughts on the First Test

The two major talking points of this Test did not happen in play. The first was the decision of Ben Stokes to bat upon winning the toss and the second the Stuart Broad interview. No less an authority than the owner of Hampshire and the Ageas Bowl – Rod Bromsgrove – asserted that it is [...]

July 12, 2020 // 0 Comments

One who made it and one who never did

For a fascinating piece on an all-time English cricketing great – and also a New Zealander who toured represented his country at both cricket and rugby, albeit without playing a Test match in either – Rusters interested in sport should follow my link below to Simon Burnton’s [...]

June 24, 2020 // 0 Comments

1 … 6 7 8 9 10 … 22

Copyright © 2026 The National Rust | Design by Premonition