Reverse Swept Radio - a cricket podcast

Reverse Swept Radio 151: remembering Warne, the most expensive over in first class cricket, and Frith on Archie Jackson

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: how best to remember Shane Warne, and a cricket-inspired name for a new member of the Reverse Swept Radio family

"In 40 years time they'll say that he was named after three West Indian greats, and then defined the name Chadd as the finest English opener the 21st century has seen."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (8'30): The most expensive over ever bowled in first-class cricket 

"After all, the whole thing was a complete waste of time: they could have played out the draw and still won the title."

THE REVIEW (18'25): Archie Jackson: Cricket's Tragic Genius by David Frith

"There is reference to the late cut as his classy trademark shot, while often with stylish cricketers we go straight for the drive."

Recorded on 15 March 2022

RSR150: The new Warne documentary, the most consecutive Test maidens, and Marnus’ homemade spin kit

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Marnus Labuschagne prepares for the subcontinent, and Toby takes a rare catch as keeper

"I remember a player reverse sweeping in a village game, and the keeper was so offended by the reverse sweep that he gave the batsman an uncharacteristic send off."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (8'50): The most consecutive test maidens ever 

"Many of the team were suffering from what The Times rather wonderfully described as 'internal misfortunes'."

THE REVIEW (17'15): Shane: The King of Spin

"If you have never heard of Shane Warne, we would heartily recommend this film."

Recorded on 22 February 2022

Reverse Swept Radio 149 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: The county fixture list is published, and falling back in love with cricket thanks to the women's Ashes

"In the next episode of Reverse Swept Radio, we'll be providing advice on the best way to cook a cricket ball."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (8'30): When Alastair Cook and James Anderson played darts 

"Maybe this moment at Ally Pally can be credited with rescuing the career of one of England's greatest ever batsman."

THE REVIEW (18'45): Who Only Cricket Know by David Woodhouse

"We read lots of books that we enjoy, but this is a book that matters: what it says about cricket, about the politics and history of the time, and about writing."

Recorded on 1 February 2022

Reverse Swept Radio 148 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy reviews his highlights of 2021, and enjoying Iceland on Twitter.

"The memory of sitting in the sun, at the top of the Radcliffe Road stand, stuffing my face with Scotch Eggs, will be one to keep me going through the winter months."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (7'45): Chris Martin, the King of Tailenders

"Seeing a tailender desperately backing away to leg is perhaps the only thing that we can all relate to in test cricket. So thank you Chris Martin and Alan Mullally for giving us that."

THE REVIEW (18'05): Project Ashes (BBC podcast)

"The problem is encapsulated in the title of the podcast itself. We shouldn't have a Project Ashes, after all."

Recorded on 11 January 2022

Reverse Swept Radio 147 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Listening to TalkSport's coverage of India vs New Zealand from a covid sickbed, and Tom Latham's remarkable innings.

"You often think that you have to reinvent yourself to do well in the subcontinent. Latham's great skill was to do less."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (8'30): Betty Wilson: the first test cricketer to score a century and take ten wickets in the same game

"Her father was a cobbler, so it was only natural that he should make her a pair of cricket shoes."

THE REVIEW (17'30): The Cricket Match by Hugh de Sélincourt

""'The seats bore the strain very well, awaiting without impatience the quiet, steady contract of elderly posteriors.' Whatever your views on flowery language, your tolerance has to be considerable to think that's an acceptable way to describe sitting on a bench."

Recorded on 3 December 2021

Reverse Swept Radio 146 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Tim Murtagh returns for another year, and Australia's plan to return to Pakistan

"The England and New Zealand cancellations seemed to reinforce the idea of the haves of the game treating the have-nots with disdain."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (7'45): The First Six in Test Cricket

"Get Joe Darling into the same team with Graham Onions and you'd have a headline-writer's dream."

THE REVIEW (16'30): Sport's Strangest Crimes: Allen Stanford, the Man who Bought Cricket

"The parties, the yacht, building a castle in Florida which he then pulled down: there are big themes in this podcast, but there are plenty of salacious anecdotes as well."

Recorded on 14 November 2021

Reverse Swept Radio 145 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: The retirement of Gareth Batty, and Shikha Pandey's wonderball

"There's a lingering attitude that large swing is vulgar, somehow."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (8'15): Cricket at the Olympics: Paris, 1900

"The British team was a bunch of amateurs on a jolly to the Continent, and they ended up playing in the Olympics purely by accident."

THE REVIEW (17'30): Cricket on the Continent by Tim Brooks

"If I was the president of the Vanuatu cricket association, I'd sit down with this book and use it as a blue-print."

Recorded on 15 October 2021

Reverse Swept Radio 144 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy finally makes his Trent Bridge debut, and Toby enjoys a flight of fancy about a rule change.

"I was wondering whether it was Sherwood Forest in the distance. Which may be completely geographically inaccurate."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (6'45): The cricket career of Lord Byron

"His captain wrote 'Byron should never have been in the XI had my counsel been taken'."

THE REVIEW (14'00): One Test Wonders podcast, hosted by Brian Murgatroyd

"Tony Pigott comes up with the wonderful assertion that if he had been playing in the previous test, England would have won."

Recorded on 21 September 2021

Reverse Swept Radio 143 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Back at Lord's post-pandemic, and rediscovering the joy of net sessions in lockdown

"It's the grabbing by the scruff of the neck that I particularly like. It feels like exactly the right way for an MCC member to express their disgust."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (8'00): Cricket and excuses

"The match reports talk about the excellence of the bowling, not the fact that none of the batsmen could lift their arms because their shirts were too tight."

THE REVIEW (19'05): Cape Summer and the Australians in England by Alan Ross 

"Describing the pitch, Ross reaches for an unexpected metaphor: 'perhaps as for tired businessmen who like a night out, a single frolic sufficed for a long time'."

Recorded on 30 August 2021

Reverse Swept Radio 142 - A Cricket Podcast

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Watching The Hundred, the changing language of cricket, and marking the death of John Woodcock 

"Would I go again? I would go if asked by people I wanted to spend the evening drinking with."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (9'10): The history of Vigoro

"If you're a fervent cricket or a fervent tennis fan, perhaps it was hard to see how this new hybrid fitted into your life, and quite why you need it."

THE REVIEW (17'25): Spinwash '93 (Sky Sports, available on YouTube) 

"If you want to know how you can eat a creme caramel in one gulp, it's worth watching this."

Recorded 7 August 2021