Cricket DVDs

[GIMH]

The missus just rang me, and, out of the goodness of her heart said she would pay for the DVD I was going to pay for when my wages come in tomorrow. So I shall shortly receive "Freddie's Heroes - England's victory in Mumbai" from cricshop, and, because I'm so great, she's also throwing in "English Summer of Cricket 2006." Yes, as an England fan, there were some dire moments, but I can't wait to see the OT test, day 5 at Headingley, KP's 142 V Murali etc. I eagerly await the delivery of these two DVDs.

What Cricket DVDs do y'all own? My collection is not great, tbh I haven't been buying DVDs for long. All I have IIRC are the following:

Botham's Ashes - The Miracle of Headingley 81
The Greatest Test - England's Victory at Edgbaston
The Greatest Series - Ashes 05
Cape Crusaders - South Africa 1 England 2 (with bonus disc of ODI series, which is dire except for KP's tons)

Er, I reckon that's it. Loadsa stuff I need to get, including my desperate desire for India V Australia 01. So, what are the best DVDs out there, not just as an England fan, but as a Cricket fan, and do you lot bother with them much?

 

[Barney Rubble]

Only own England's tour to SA in '05 and the subsequent Ashes series TBH, but I really want the DVD of the Johannesburg Miracle last year, if there is one.

 

[Craig]

For a long time I have been meaning to a DVD of when Nathan Astle went the tonk and carted all of Enlgand's bowler's around Jade Stadium, despite only needing 550-odd to win

Would have been funny if he got a little bit more support and with the runs from Cairns and was able to pull it off.

Nasser Hussain would have been more safer being a politican in Medelin (Colombia) then the roasting he would have got.

 

[Richard]

The interesting thing was Hussain said he was never worried so long as they were playing big shots.

And let's face it - had they won the thing, no-one in England could have been blamed. I've said it several times, but I've never, ever seen the ball hit like Astle did that day. Never seen anyone come close, in fact.

Man, what I'd give for that innings on DVD... that match, in fact (highlights, obviously).

 

[GIMH]

Great Thorpe innings, as well

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

The one DVD I'd really like to get is Australia's 1995 tour of the West Indies. Haven't seen that series since I watched it live, and I'd love to watch it again. Never seen it available anywhere, though.

 

[Richard]

The missus just rang me, and, out of the goodness of her heart said she would pay for the DVD I was going to pay for when my wages come in tomorrow. So I shall shortly receive "Freddie's Heroes - England's victory in Mumbai" from cricshop, and, because I'm so great, she's also throwing in "English Summer of Cricket 2006." Yes, as an England fan, there were some dire moments, but I can't wait to see the OT test, day 5 at Headingley, KP's 142 V Murali etc. I eagerly await the delivery of these two DVDs.

What Cricket DVDs do y'all own? My collection is not great, tbh I haven't been buying DVDs for long. All I have IIRC are the following:

Botham's Ashes - The Miracle of Headingley 81
The Greatest Test - England's Victory at Edgbaston
The Greatest Series - Ashes 05
Cape Crusaders - South Africa 1 England 2 (with bonus disc of ODI series, which is dire except for KP's tons)

Er, I reckon that's it. Loadsa stuff I need to get, including my desperate desire for India V Australia 01. So, what are the best DVDs out there, not just as an England fan, but as a Cricket fan, and do you lot bother with them much?

The stuff I find most interesting is the more general stuff - my two fave DVDs (well, actually they're VCRs, I've had 'em for a while) are a History Of Cricket and, best of all, a History Of The Ashes, featuring famous series (1932\33, 1953, 1956, 1981) and more middle-of-road ones (1930, 1934, 1961, 1964, 1972, 1975, 1977, 1985, 1989).

I mean, it really annoys me when you see yet another product being advertised featuring Bodyline, Botham's Series and 2005. Great, the three series that we all know virtually by heart. How about some more stuff with the less-well-known series?

I also have the SA tour in 2004\05 (Cape Crusaders), and really I think a montage of all Eng-SA series since readmission would be a good one for someone to do. Eng-SA has been consistently the most entertaining match-up in World cricket since 1994 when it resumed.

And, of course, I have The Greatest ODI - England-India at Lord's in 2002. In time I'm sure I'll also have The Most Impossible - SA-Aus at The Wanderers in 2004\05.

I have, to boot, countless match-highlights which I've taped or Dad taped 22 years ago.

 

[Richard]

Great Thorpe innings, as well

Well... it was from 4 to 200*.

 

[Richard]

The one DVD I'd really like to get is Australia's 1995 tour of the West Indies. Haven't seen that series since I watched it live, and I'd love to watch it again. Never seen it available anywhere, though.

That's certainly one of the ones I'd love, too.

The ultimate pendulum-creaking series.

 

[pasag]

Bodyline (1984)
Fight For The Ashes - Compete 2005 Test Series
Ashes Glory - 2006/07 Ashes

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

That's certainly one of the ones I'd love, too.

The ultimate pendulum-creaking series.

Yeah. Steve Waugh's finest hour as well, and the emergence of McGrath. A signature series for a number of reasons, and unlike the other Australia-West Indies series in the 1990s, I've not seen it since.

 

[Richard]

Bodyline (1984)

Is there really a DVD of the 1984 Blackwash?

If so, that'd be a fascinating one. Though 1980 and 1981 would be even better.

 

[wpdavid]

The stuff I find most interesting is the more general stuff - my two fave DVDs (well, actually they're VCRs, I've had 'em for a while) are a History Of Cricket and, best of all, a History Of The Ashes, featuring famous series (1932\33, 1953, 1956, 1981) and more middle-of-road ones (1930, 1934, 1961, 1964, 1972, 1975, 1977, 1985, 1989).

I mean, it really annoys me when you see yet another product being advertised featuring Bodyline, Botham's Series and 2005. Great, the three series that we all know virtually by heart. How about some more stuff with the less-well-known series?

Trouble is, a lot of the old stuff was never kept. I remember Amiss being interviewed recently about his 260 against WI in 1973/4, and apparently it was impossible to find footage nowadays.

I'd love to see footage of some of the great 70's series when Lillee & Thomson were at their peak (OK, not 1974/5 ), the great WI players were emerging, and Imran got amongst the Australians to unexpectedly level a series there. Tyson's series in 1954/5 would be great to own too.

 

[wpdavid]

Is there really a DVD of the 1984 Blackwash?

If so, that'd be a fascinating one. Though 1980 and 1981 would be even better.

It must exist. 1980 would be fascinating to see *that* attack, which was superior to the 1984 lineup. 1981 would be interesting too - Holding's over to Boycott, Gower & Gooch's great innings - but it's kind of overshadowed by Barrington's death & the jckman affair.

 

[Richard]

Trouble is, a lot of the old stuff was never kept. I remember Amiss being interviewed recently about his 260 against WI in 1973/4, and apparently it was impossible to find footage nowadays.

Wasn't the 260 in 1976? At The Oval, in Holding's Test?

That's a series I've got a good deal of stuff from - it's, of course, one of the most famous of all, because it's when West Indies' victory machine came to The World's notice (and certainly to this country's).

Anything in England has been kept from ages ago, I think... but in WI television coverage is a pretty recent thing and I'm sure there was virtually nothing of the 1974 or 1981 series' (seen the Holding over to Boycott, but nothing else - even the Kallicherran-Greig instance).

Which gives me an idea for a thread...

 

[Richard]

It must exist. 1980 would be fascinating to see *that* attack, which was superior to the 1984 lineup.

It does truly amaze me that the 1984 line-up is often considered above the 1980 and 1983\84 one... Baptiste and Harper were hardly top-tree bowlers.

Yet in 1980 we had Roberts, Holding, Garner, Croft (Marshall IIRR wasn't yet even a first-choice and only played when injuries happened) and in 1983\84 we had (briefly) a first-choice of Roberts, Holding, Garner, Marshall.

 

[GIMH]

Is there really a DVD of the 1984 Blackwash?

If so, that'd be a fascinating one. Though 1980 and 1981 would be even better.

I think he means the film, Bodyline. He made a thread about it recently.

 

[wpdavid]

Wasn't the 260 in 1976? At The Oval, in Holding's Test?

That's a series I've got a good deal of stuff from - it's, of course, one of the most famous of all, because it's when West Indies' victory machine came to The World's notice (and certainly to this country's).

Anything in England has been kept from ages ago, I think... but in WI television coverage is a pretty recent thing and I'm sure there was virtually nothing of the 1974 or 1981 series' (seen the Holding over to Boycott, but nothing else - even the Kallicherran-Greig instance).

Which gives me an idea for a thread...

Amiss made a double hundred in 1973/4 too, to save the second test. You'll have to forgive me if it wasn't 260 though. Possibly 262?

1976 must make great viewing, especially those wonderful innings by Viv & Greenidge. And the crowds were great too, although possibly better to watch on TV than sat next to them. Dunno that I'd want to watch Edrich & Close cop it at OT though.

 

[Richard]

262* and 203, it was.

EDIT: ain't it astonishing in hindsight that, at pace-friendly Sabina Park, that great wristspinner of renown Arthur Barrett was picked ahead of Andy Roberts.

It's amazing how many different accounts you hear of the Old Trafford Roberts-Holding bombardment. It was a disgraceful piece of unsportsmanlike behaviour; it typified West Indies' win-at-all-costs mentality which was to serve them so well and was commendible; it was a brilliant piece of defiance from two old men who loved a scrap (they did, after all, survive the bombardment that evening); etc. etc.

Wasn't Close simply chesting them down, centre-back style, at one point?

 

[wpdavid]

262* and 203, it was.

It's amazing how many different accounts you hear of the Old Trafford Roberts-Holding bombardment. It was a disgraceful piece of unsportsmanlike behaviour; it typified West Indies' win-at-all-costs mentality which was to serve them so well and was commendible; it was a brilliant piece of defiance from two old men who loved a scrap (they did, after all, survive the bombardment that evening); etc. etc.

Wasn't Close simply chesting them down, centre-back style, at one point?

I don't know: wouldn't put it past the old nutter.

I don't know that it was unsportsmanlike as such - they did rather better when they pitched it up next day - but it wasn't impressive to see the primary objective being to knock their unprotected heads off. Of course, any Indians watching would only have been surprised that they didn't send down a few beamers too, of reports of their series in WI are to be believed. I do think the ages of the batsmen were irrelevant though.