Updates from the third day’s play at the Oval Day two report | Sign up for the Spin | Mail JamesToday is A Day for Thorpey at the Oval. You can find out all about it here.What a player. Much missed.Thorpe’s in” or “Thorpe’s still in” were words that always provided some solace in the back seats. Thorpe was a headbanded and hard-bitten nugget of hope. A zinc-lipped beacon. A “Kookaburra Bubble” stickered mast on which to cling as England found themselves taking on wave after wave of all-time great bowlers. Be it night or day, seam or spin, lost cause, dead rubber or soul stirring victory – Graham Thorpe was batting.Against a rolling backdrop of Cornhill Insurance, npower girls, spindly gasometers, snow-capped mountains and Tetley Beer hoardings – Graham Thorpe was batting. Against Australia, West Indies, South Africa, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the dinosaurs of Jurassic Park and the aliens of Independence Day – Graham Thorpe was batting. During Labour landslides, Knebworth singalongs, through BSE, foot and mouth and Millennium Bugs. Somehow, Graham Thorpe was batting the entirety of the decade.” Continue reading...
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2026/jun/19/england-v-new-zealand-second-mens-test-day-three-live
