In one area, at least, English cricket leads the world: its supporters. While most other nations struggle to attract an audience for their...
In one area, at least, English cricket leads the world: its supporters. While most other nations struggle to attract an audience for their home Tests, England not only play in front of good crowds in England but take thousands of travelling supporters away with them. It is a remarkable phenomenon. It costs a fortune to fl y to many of the destinations where Tests are held hotel prices in Barbados in recent weeks have been extraordinarily high – and some supporters use their entire year’s holiday entitlement to be there.
And there is no guarantee of success. Far from it. Recent years have seen whitewashes in Australia and the UAE as well as a heavy defeat in India. It takes an admirable level of commitment to sit through an Ashes series in Australia seeing your team pulverised. It is hot, it is expensive and the home supporters will not, for a moment, let you forget who is on top.
But it is not just the volume of travelling spectators that England have which is admirable. It is the way that, even on the darkest of days, they remain unequivocally supportive while remaining appreciative of good performances from opposition players. Well, opposition players other than David Warner, anyway. You suspect he is in for a tough summer.
This was brought home on a Caribbean tour a few years ago. By the time Jonathan Trott walked off at the end of his second innings in the Barbados Test of 2015, everyone knew his international career was over. He had shown great resilience to make a comeback to that level but it had ended in failure: three Tests in that series had garnered only one double-fi gure score and three ducks.
Just for a moment, as he walked towards the pavilion for the last time, you feared he might leave the pitch in silence: a sad end to a fi ne career. But then the England supporters, led by the much-maligned Barmy Army, rose to give him sustained and warm applause in recognition of performances long ago and far away. In doing so, they ensured he could go into retirement knowing his good performances in the past had not been forgotten. There were several examples on England’s recent tour of the Caribbean too. In the second innings at Barbados, for example, James Anderson who had bowled 30 overs in the first innings in claiming five wickets found himself strapping on the boots once again just a couple of hours later after his colleagues had been bowled out for 77. There were moments in that second innings when Anderson, aged 36 and well past 40 overs for the match, looked close to exhaustion. He was unable to claim a wicket or stop Jason Holder’s double-century taking West Indies to a match-controlling position. But every time he went to long leg between overs, he was given warm applause by supporters who appreciated his efforts.
And, at a time when it seems opposition supporters in most sports no longer acknowledge the achievements of their rivals, it was heart-warming to see Kemar Roach given a standing ovation by England fans after his own five-wicket haul had helped bowl England out for 77.
They have a sense of humour, too. When it emerged that Shannon Gabriel had made a silly remark to Joe Root which could have been construed as homophobic, England supporters did not resort to abuse or booing. They simply sang a medley of gay anthems ‘Y.M.C.A.’, for example when Gabriel came out to bat, thereby making their views on the episode clear but in a humorous and non-offensive way.
Yet so familiar has it become to see overseas grounds full of England supporters that it has started to breed, if not contempt, perhaps a level of complacency. There has been the odd sniffy article complaining about the behaviour of such supporters in general, it is immaculate, but if you put 10,000 people together, you will always find one or two idiots and complaints that local spectators are being outnumbered. As if that is the England supporters’ fault. The England players, on the whole, are admirably respectful of this support. Often, after ‘Jerusalem’ is sung during the opening over of a day, you will see the players applaud in acknowledgement. And, generally though a little less often of late – the entire team applauds spectators at the end of each game to thank them for coming.
They deserve that respect. Not just because of the money they pump into the game and the local economy wherever they travel, but because without them Test cricket in some places would be played in something approaching silent, empty grounds. If they disappear and it may well be relevant that the next generation is unlikely to have the final salary pension schemes that some enjoy today the attraction for some places to host Test cricket may disappear with them. Nowhere has a disrespectful attitude to supporters been demonstrated more than in the introduction of The Hundred. To have made such sweeping changes to the game without meaningful consultation with cricket supporters seems both arrogant and foolish. The whole episode is often compared to Brexit and, in terms of divisiveness, there may be similarities. But at least with Brexit we were given a vote. The Hundred has been imposed upon us.
Perhaps there really is a new audience out there. Perhaps the ECB really will be able to tap into a market that has so far been immune to cricket’s charms. But to treat their core market the loyal supporters who buy county memberships, tickets, this magazine, replica shirts and TV subscriptions so dismissively may risk losing them. For when you bite the hand that feeds, it can easily turn into a fist.
And there is no guarantee of success. Far from it. Recent years have seen whitewashes in Australia and the UAE as well as a heavy defeat in India. It takes an admirable level of commitment to sit through an Ashes series in Australia seeing your team pulverised. It is hot, it is expensive and the home supporters will not, for a moment, let you forget who is on top.
But it is not just the volume of travelling spectators that England have which is admirable. It is the way that, even on the darkest of days, they remain unequivocally supportive while remaining appreciative of good performances from opposition players. Well, opposition players other than David Warner, anyway. You suspect he is in for a tough summer.
This was brought home on a Caribbean tour a few years ago. By the time Jonathan Trott walked off at the end of his second innings in the Barbados Test of 2015, everyone knew his international career was over. He had shown great resilience to make a comeback to that level but it had ended in failure: three Tests in that series had garnered only one double-fi gure score and three ducks.
Just for a moment, as he walked towards the pavilion for the last time, you feared he might leave the pitch in silence: a sad end to a fi ne career. But then the England supporters, led by the much-maligned Barmy Army, rose to give him sustained and warm applause in recognition of performances long ago and far away. In doing so, they ensured he could go into retirement knowing his good performances in the past had not been forgotten. There were several examples on England’s recent tour of the Caribbean too. In the second innings at Barbados, for example, James Anderson who had bowled 30 overs in the first innings in claiming five wickets found himself strapping on the boots once again just a couple of hours later after his colleagues had been bowled out for 77. There were moments in that second innings when Anderson, aged 36 and well past 40 overs for the match, looked close to exhaustion. He was unable to claim a wicket or stop Jason Holder’s double-century taking West Indies to a match-controlling position. But every time he went to long leg between overs, he was given warm applause by supporters who appreciated his efforts.
And, at a time when it seems opposition supporters in most sports no longer acknowledge the achievements of their rivals, it was heart-warming to see Kemar Roach given a standing ovation by England fans after his own five-wicket haul had helped bowl England out for 77.
They have a sense of humour, too. When it emerged that Shannon Gabriel had made a silly remark to Joe Root which could have been construed as homophobic, England supporters did not resort to abuse or booing. They simply sang a medley of gay anthems ‘Y.M.C.A.’, for example when Gabriel came out to bat, thereby making their views on the episode clear but in a humorous and non-offensive way.
Yet so familiar has it become to see overseas grounds full of England supporters that it has started to breed, if not contempt, perhaps a level of complacency. There has been the odd sniffy article complaining about the behaviour of such supporters in general, it is immaculate, but if you put 10,000 people together, you will always find one or two idiots and complaints that local spectators are being outnumbered. As if that is the England supporters’ fault. The England players, on the whole, are admirably respectful of this support. Often, after ‘Jerusalem’ is sung during the opening over of a day, you will see the players applaud in acknowledgement. And, generally though a little less often of late – the entire team applauds spectators at the end of each game to thank them for coming.
They deserve that respect. Not just because of the money they pump into the game and the local economy wherever they travel, but because without them Test cricket in some places would be played in something approaching silent, empty grounds. If they disappear and it may well be relevant that the next generation is unlikely to have the final salary pension schemes that some enjoy today the attraction for some places to host Test cricket may disappear with them. Nowhere has a disrespectful attitude to supporters been demonstrated more than in the introduction of The Hundred. To have made such sweeping changes to the game without meaningful consultation with cricket supporters seems both arrogant and foolish. The whole episode is often compared to Brexit and, in terms of divisiveness, there may be similarities. But at least with Brexit we were given a vote. The Hundred has been imposed upon us.
Perhaps there really is a new audience out there. Perhaps the ECB really will be able to tap into a market that has so far been immune to cricket’s charms. But to treat their core market the loyal supporters who buy county memberships, tickets, this magazine, replica shirts and TV subscriptions so dismissively may risk losing them. For when you bite the hand that feeds, it can easily turn into a fist.
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