I’ve checked out the recent stats of this blog which have asked the following questions, so I thought I’d answer them here and now!

What is the most expensive cricket bat?
You’ll be after the £1000 Newbury. If this is a bit too much for you, there are lots around the 275 mark – would you spend that much on a bat?

What bat is Stuart Broad using?
Stuart Broad has used the Adidas Libro since his move from Gunn & Moore. But with his place in the test match in jepordy at the moment, do you really want to follow in his footsteps?!

What cricket bat did you use back in the day?
A very personal question for me, thanks! I started off with an “Open Championship” bat (as used by David Gower you know!). From what I remember I then graduated onto a Slazenger V800 that I loved and scored a lot of runs with (even though the first one split and was replaced). Then I went to a Gray-Nicolls Millenium, a lightweight bat that wasn’t my finest hour, and currently I use a Gunn & Moore Catalyst, again that I love!

What cricket players use Slazenger bats?
In the current test squad, quite a few! Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Tim Bresnan and Jimmy Anderson are all Slazenger users.

What weight bat does Alastair Cook use?
Alastair Cook uses a Gray Nicolls of about 2lb 8oz, sometimes edging towards 2lb 9oz. This sort of weight of bat has become quite well used by professionals and amateurs alike in the past few years as you currently get a lot more wood for your weight with the pressing of the bats very different to times gone by!

If someone gave you £1000, many things would come into your head about what to spend it on. A holiday, a car, a 3D Plasma TV, and maybe somewhere down the line you could use a small part of it and treat yourself to a new cricket bat. Well, if you decide to really treat yourself, then you’ll need the whole £1000 just for the cricket bat! That’s right, Newbery have released for 2011 the world’s most expensive cricket bat, costing a whopping £1000!

How on earth do they expect to get away with this then? Well for a start their market is pretty small, they are only going to make 25 of them, and each one will be made specifically to the requirements of the new owner. Of course at this price, you’ll be guaranteed only the top class piece of English willow, and you’ll be invited along to the Newbery workshop to design and specify the weight before watching as it is made. The bat is then individually numbered and the owners name embossed on the back of the bat, and it comes in a protective case more akin to a suitcase!

I’m not sure how I feel about this bat as there are plenty of companies who will build a bespoke cricket bat for you, and for a whole heap of change less than £1000 – and with willow being a natural ‘ingredient’, who is to say it’ll perform any better or won’t break within a season?! It may just be clever marketing from Newbery, getting people (like me!) talking about their brand, and they may find some super rich people vain enough that they want to show off to everyone in the club with their expensive bat, but I can’t help but think that those in the know will think they have way more money than sense.

What is the most you’ve ever spent on a cricket bat? Did you buy it online or would you spend the extra to have it built especially for you?

Lords last week showed a promising start for the slightly new-look England side, defeating the West Indies within 3 days with a strong performance. Yes, it was a shame for all those that had tickets for a Saturday but we often have Wednesday starts these days with all the international cricket that need to be fitted in so I’m not bothered (especially as I saw the best day live!).

There were good performances in particular with the bat from Ravi Bop and Swann, whilst Swann also performed with the ball, as did newcomer, Graham Onions. I was questioning who might be our final bowler the other week and Onions has made it difficult for anyone else to jump in there by showing some good pace and getting the all important wickets. Bresnan didn’t really have a chance in the whole test, which makes you wonder the wisdom of a five man attack when Freddie isn’t around. That’s probably why they’ve bought Bell back into the squad for the next test, it gives them the option of using four bowlers then if they need them, Ravi and Colly can turn their arm over. It’s probably the way I’d go without a standout replacement out there.

The other thing the early finish to the match gave us was Sky Sports re-showing the 2005 Ashes series highlights, brilliant viewing for any England fan and the thing that came across most was that Shane Warne was by far and away the most threatening players the Aussies had back then, even with the likes of McGrath and Lee in the side. Now, with no decent spinner to talk of, I’m feeling more confident that we can do a number on them and claim back those Ashes this summer. Foolhardy thinking maybe but I’m going with it for the moment!!

I was shocked to wake up this morning and hear about the attacks in Lahore in Pakistan and the fact that the Sri Lankan cricket team seemed to be the target of the attack. Tragically, 8 or so police officers and other civilians lost their lives – and according to Kumar Sangakarra the only thing that help the Sri Lankan team was the fact that their coach driver continued to drive through the attack to the ground, an act that probably saved the lives of many more.

I hate the fact that sportsmen are on the end of this attack – they have nothing to do with the politics behind whoever caused this, and are probably just chosen to help them get the biggest world exposure for what they do. No innocent person deserves to be caught up in an attack anyway, and sportmen and women shouldn’t have to worry about being “used” for the exposure they give the attacks.

This all has a big effect on Pakistani cricket going forward as well. The Champions Trophy there was already called off this year, and India, New Zealand and Australia have all refused to tour there for one reason or another, but today’s events will mean a stop on anyone turning up there for a game for a long long time. No-one is going to turn up with the potential for their sportsmen to be the centre of an attack, even if the ICC would let them play. England returned to India after the Mumbai attacks to show that terrorism couldn’t stop sport when it wasn’t the players who were the main focus, but today’s situation is very different.

Pakistan will potentially have little or no home games left, and have to start looking at using neutral venues places such as Dubai and Abu Dahbi as they have done previously which although not ideal is a way to help keep them going. It isn’t the players fault, but they will certainly see their lives affected, but right now they should just be thankful that they are alive. As it was, the game was looking quite a good one, some big runs scored by a good Sri Lankan side that continue to be more of a force in cricket than we are currently!

Going briefly back to England cricket – a dull road served up a dull fourth test, so we turn up for the final test having to get a win out of the game – it will be interesting to see the mentality and team selection knowing that significance!

I’m sorry, it’s not normal for me to get excited about the demise of a team, but seeing Australia battered by South Africa on Australia Day is just a little bit sweet for a pom such as myself. Just two short years ago we were on the receiving end of an Australia Day hammering, but the two years since havn’t been kind to the Aussies, and their team as I’ve mentioned already this month is a pale shadow of that one.

South Africa have been playing some good cricket of that there is no doubt (and you have to, winning both a test and one day series in Aus), but we beat the Saffers in the ODI’s 4-0 so they can’t be that good!

I’m looking forward to the Ashes even more (162 days and counting)!