Cricket, especially test cricket, the only sport that regularly interests me as a spectator/TV watcher/radio listener, though I did enjoy the football World Cup. Australia’s football seasons (AFL and NFL) are ended and this summer’s international cricket matches are beginning.

In this part of the world, the summer begins with the start of the cricket season and the pleasant ritual of the ABC’s superb coverage of international matches on the web and the radio. The next season bowls into action with the toss for the First Test, Australia v. England. It’s
Utterly inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, and I’ve never played cricket myself, but it’s the only spectator sport I really enjoy. As the game is fairly slow-paced, you can picture it well in your mind from the radio commentary—once you get your head around the specialised vocabulary and the complex scorecards.

Australia’s loss to England in the 2013 "Ashes" series caused much pessimism about the future of Australian cricket. But there is praise for the quality of the games and the sportsmanship of both sides.

The length of a cricket game (one to five days) makes it impossible to watch or listen to all of it on an ordinary work day. But cricket on the radio is a popular national institution!