Sun, sand and cricket

The sun was out this weekend for a change and I managed to escape the city and head towards the south of England to catch some of that sun, sand and sea at sunny Bournemouth. It was my first time there and it must rank as one of the best seaside resorts in the country. There was some beach football being played but no sign of beach cricket.

I managed to catch very brief news of the one day decider between England and the Windies at Trent Bridge and it seemed like that the rejuvenated Windies were putting in another strong display at the tail end of their tour. I could sense at the half way mark that England would loose as they still have a long way to go in this form of the game. The Windies always looked like a good one day side as they seem to be able to concentrate and focus better for the shorter versions of the game. They loose interest for the longer version resulting in inconsistent performances. If they can improve on this, they have the makings of a good side.

The Indian team were playing a warm up match against Sussex, another coastal county not too far away from me. They must be glad to escape the cold and damp of Ireland and Scotland to the slightly warmer climate in England.It looked like the Indians were continuing their good batting form and were getting some valuable match practice ahead of the Test series.

I visited the lovely Rosebowl, home of Hampshire cricket the next day, with the sun continuing to shine. It is a very scenic and impressive ground and has great views of the cricket all round the ground. Hampshire were playing Warwickshire in a County Championship match. As I walked around the ground, I could not miss the the sound of a certain Shane Warne, chirping away,with some of that famous aussie sledging, willing his side on. He has made a big impact on the team and has not lost any of his enthusiasm and energy. He was certainly a very active captain on the field, with constant field and bowling changes and was first out on the field after the breaks eager to resume. Warwickshire put on a solid batting display and were well on their way to a big total at the end of play.

I caught some of the action from the men's final at Wimbledon between Ferderer and Nadal on one of the screens inside, in what proved to be a classic five set final. It was a shame that someone had to loose as both were worthy winners and Federer's reaction at the end showed just how much winning for a straight fifth time meant to him.

I made my way back to the city in the evening, just as the clouds started getting darker and spots of rain started to fall. Well it would not be England without the rain but for once it had not interrupted the sporting action around the country. I could still smell that fresh sea air as I headed back to the metropolis.