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Follow UsWondering how 2024 rolled out in cricket? Here’s how.
Shamar Joseph breaks the Gabbatoir
“Toota hai Gabba ka gamand” x2.
Over the last two years, Gabba has gone from Australia’s fortress to their nightmare. After India breached the fortress, Shamar Joseph led the Windies to their greatest victories in modern-day cricket.
Broken toe? It's more like he will break your dreams, as Australian batters learnt firsthand. 7/68, a visual that will always be etched in the minds of cricket fans, shows Shamar running around the Gabba with a lot of pain in his toes.
Test cricket couldn’t quite get a better tribute than that.
Saurabh Netravalkar’s Oracle miracle stings Pakistan
“Out of Office till June 17”
Not after that heroics, Saurabh Netravalkar. Not after what you did against Pakistan; Oracle might be willing to give you leaves whenever cricket is around. USA’s poster boy Netravalkar did the unimaginable when he bowled the country to a super over win against PAKISTAN!!
LET THAT SINK IN!
Uganda are here to play cricket
What started as a joke was the biggest blessing of the new T20 World Cup format. It allowed a fairytale to blossom, it allowed an entire nation to celebrate their maiden World Cup win on a night that never ended.
Uganda aren’t here to make up the numbers, they are here to PLAY CRICKET AND WIN GAMES!! Think about a 43-year-old Frank Nsubuga, who has brought glory to the nation.
Long-off, long-off, Suryakumar Yadav, what a catch!!!
The headline might do here. It will be a day that will never be forgotten, and the piece of commentary will do its rounds every year on June 29. One sublime piece of fielding, a few words reverberating in our ears, and a memory for a lifetime!
Bow down like RoKo
Your last game in the shortest format is a title match. Do you see how high the stakes are? That’s how they sealed a legacy for themselves. A T20 World Cup title for the first time in 17 years, it finally rained in a drought-struck country for nearly the last two decades.
Last dance? RoKo it.
Kamindu is Don Bradman's reincarnation
"We've got Mendis. Kamindu Mendis. I just don't think you'll understand. He’s hungered; he will hit a hundred and leave you thundered.”
Sri Lankan fans, you might have a new chant for Kamindu Mendis. Such starts rarely are seen in Test cricketing history, and Mendis thoroughly blew the minds with his class, with 1100 runs in just 10 Tests. Let that sink in. He’s a star.
Chamari Akka and Sri Lanka cricket on the rise
July 28, 2024, one of Sri Lanka women’s biggest wins, beating India in the final in front of their home fans. The tournament saw Chamari Athapaththu establish herself as one of the biggest names in Sri Lanka. Harshitha Samarawickrama elevated her standards to put on a match-winning display in the final.
Dambulla was decorated with gold.
End of England’s favourite son, Anderson
Seldom do careers end on a high. But James Anderson certainly can say he walked out of his international career on a high at Lord’s, in front of a jam-packed crowd that cheered him as he chugged down a beer standing on the Lord’s balcony.
There are dreams, there are farewells, and then there is the dream farewell that Anderson got. You teared up, not me.
There starts a Gus Atkinson tale
“One window closing opens up another”.
Anderson’s retirement brought out a monstrous Atkinson. God, oh god, wasn’t he brutal at the Lord’s. 34 wickets in 6 Tests, an average of 20, and multiple five-fers, it was quite the Summer of 24 for Atkinson.
But the best was when he removed his helmet and pointed his bat at the Lord’s changing room — a century to remember.
Bangladesh and a date with history against Pakistan
First-ever Test win against Pakistan ✅
First-ever Test series win against Pakistan ✅
In ten days, Bangladesh completed an unbelievable feat, bringing Pakistan’s cricketing future to the headlines (for all the wrong reasons). It was only fitting that Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim stood there when the battle was won.
Three grandmas and a maiden T20 World Cup title
Just three grandmas chillin, with a T20 World Cup title. Sophie Devine, Suzie Bates, and Lea Tahuhu over and out.
They entered the tournament on the back of a ten-match losing streak and exited it with the silverware.
Once in 12 years or once in eternity?
What started once in 12 years was the first of its kind as the BlackCaps whitewashed India 3-0 in their backyard. In terms of achievements, none of the above ones is comparable (maybe the WT20 WC title is), but you get the drift.
Tom Latham, Will Young, Mitchell Santner, William O’Rourke, Rachin Ravindra, you all have a tale to tell in the future.
Harry Brook takes England to 823 in Pakistan
That’s how Pakistan might have felt when he wielded his bat like a sword on a flat wicket in Multan. Second-fastest triple century in Test history, a sizzling run continues in Pakistan, Harry Brook’s onslaught will stand out as one of the memories of cricket’s 2024.
England 823/7d, Brook 317, history was made in Pakistan.
