Tim Hartshorn
@timhartshorn.bsky.social
Bizarre and frankly erroneous comment wrt the women given their multiple World Cup successes and the fact that it’s up there with basketball and perhaps tennis in terms of popularity. The rapid growth trajectory of the WNBA, in existence for but a short period of time, shows what’s possible.
October 31, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Bizarre and frankly erroneous comment wrt the women given their multiple World Cup successes and the fact that it’s up there with basketball and perhaps tennis in terms of popularity. The rapid growth trajectory of the WNBA, in existence for but a short period of time, shows what’s possible.
Thanks for this, hope she’s OK, possibly may explain the somewhat puzzling comms. we’ve seen in recent weeks/months. Speaking for myself, I hate to feel I’m being gaslighted, I originate from the East Midlands so gravitate towards the Blaze - so not to be able to put out the best team is galling
July 28, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Thanks for this, hope she’s OK, possibly may explain the somewhat puzzling comms. we’ve seen in recent weeks/months. Speaking for myself, I hate to feel I’m being gaslighted, I originate from the East Midlands so gravitate towards the Blaze - so not to be able to put out the best team is galling
Emily Liles is England women communications mgr. Another interviewee for you!! I’m actually very disappointed in Jones’ indifference to county/regional cricket this and indeed previous seasons. Are players on two year contracts more ‘protected’? Yes she plays a demanding fielding position but…
July 27, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Emily Liles is England women communications mgr. Another interviewee for you!! I’m actually very disappointed in Jones’ indifference to county/regional cricket this and indeed previous seasons. Are players on two year contracts more ‘protected’? Yes she plays a demanding fielding position but…
Well NSB was at the Oasis Wembley gig on Friday so she probably needed time to recover from that. For sure it’s an incredibly poor look, especially given the frankly plummeting popularity of the England team.
July 27, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Well NSB was at the Oasis Wembley gig on Friday so she probably needed time to recover from that. For sure it’s an incredibly poor look, especially given the frankly plummeting popularity of the England team.
Why don’t you ask the “always astute” Beth Barrett Wild why this was the case? FWIW I agree with the sentiment.
July 27, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Why don’t you ask the “always astute” Beth Barrett Wild why this was the case? FWIW I agree with the sentiment.
I heard that too. Whatever the reason, most likely rest, you don’t need to look far to understand why England have an increasing likeability issue….
July 27, 2025 at 11:55 AM
I heard that too. Whatever the reason, most likely rest, you don’t need to look far to understand why England have an increasing likeability issue….
The YouTube commentary for both of today’s games and especially Blaze has been very good. Balance of knowledgeable men and women has worked well. Shout out to Lucy Higham who has been thoughtful and impartial in her commentary, unlike some of the other female commentators I’ve previously heard tbh
June 6, 2025 at 4:38 PM
The YouTube commentary for both of today’s games and especially Blaze has been very good. Balance of knowledgeable men and women has worked well. Shout out to Lucy Higham who has been thoughtful and impartial in her commentary, unlike some of the other female commentators I’ve previously heard tbh
Agree with the sentiment here. I’m curious that many articles refer to the generic ECB regarding perceived issues in the women’s domestic game. Isn’t it really Beth Barrett Wild’s responsibility? Never gets called out…Also black on red graphics don’t work for the protanopic colour blind like me!
May 29, 2025 at 11:53 AM
Agree with the sentiment here. I’m curious that many articles refer to the generic ECB regarding perceived issues in the women’s domestic game. Isn’t it really Beth Barrett Wild’s responsibility? Never gets called out…Also black on red graphics don’t work for the protanopic colour blind like me!
For me it’s too long a tournament for me to sustain interest, notwithstanding this years circumstance. The Olympics (2 weeks), Tour de France (3 weeks) are non cricket examples that sustain my interest throughout. This years WPL did too, around 3 weeks.
May 29, 2025 at 11:40 AM
For me it’s too long a tournament for me to sustain interest, notwithstanding this years circumstance. The Olympics (2 weeks), Tour de France (3 weeks) are non cricket examples that sustain my interest throughout. This years WPL did too, around 3 weeks.
Agree. There was significant discussion (and still is) around the future roles of Lewis and Knight post Ashes debacle but I’ve seen nothing about Finch’s future. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him interviewed.
March 9, 2025 at 1:16 AM
Agree. There was significant discussion (and still is) around the future roles of Lewis and Knight post Ashes debacle but I’ve seen nothing about Finch’s future. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him interviewed.
Very curious to know whether England W communications mgt told him to say this in some sort of face saving exercise and indeed whether they also instructed Amy Jones to spread the love for Alex Hartley. Not exactly a life crisis mgt situation but if not what really is the role of the comms manager?
January 26, 2025 at 1:49 AM
Very curious to know whether England W communications mgt told him to say this in some sort of face saving exercise and indeed whether they also instructed Amy Jones to spread the love for Alex Hartley. Not exactly a life crisis mgt situation but if not what really is the role of the comms manager?
I agree somewhat with this - England does do team building efforts, eg Lake District etc, though it’s also evident from SM and You Tube the same small groups do hang together. TBH it’s not a major issue for me, rather as folk such as Michael Vaughan have mentioned more savviness in use of SM needed
January 26, 2025 at 1:23 AM
I agree somewhat with this - England does do team building efforts, eg Lake District etc, though it’s also evident from SM and You Tube the same small groups do hang together. TBH it’s not a major issue for me, rather as folk such as Michael Vaughan have mentioned more savviness in use of SM needed
Having said the above, there is no doubt that superior athleticism especially in the field can be an important factor in close games. I wish, for example that DWHs fielding prowess both today and over the years could have been quantified in terms of runs saved.
January 26, 2025 at 1:07 AM
Having said the above, there is no doubt that superior athleticism especially in the field can be an important factor in close games. I wish, for example that DWHs fielding prowess both today and over the years could have been quantified in terms of runs saved.
For me game awareness aligned with good decision making and sound technique is a bigger issue. Mooney had this in spades today. Her extraordinary athleticism enabled her to score maybe an extra 10-15 runs or so. Important in iT20 for sure but her shot selection enabled the bulk of her runs
January 26, 2025 at 12:14 AM
For me game awareness aligned with good decision making and sound technique is a bigger issue. Mooney had this in spades today. Her extraordinary athleticism enabled her to score maybe an extra 10-15 runs or so. Important in iT20 for sure but her shot selection enabled the bulk of her runs
Agree! Though she normally goes for about 3.5 in ODIs…she was taken down in one of the ODIs. I think what Australia have shown is good technique combined with sound shot selection - not filthy hacks across the line - can yield results against the best.
January 24, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Agree! Though she normally goes for about 3.5 in ODIs…she was taken down in one of the ODIs. I think what Australia have shown is good technique combined with sound shot selection - not filthy hacks across the line - can yield results against the best.
Worth digging out Luke Williams’ comments from last year as to why RCB went with Georgia Wareham vs other available leggies….but agree with your sentiment. Worth pointing out that Ecclestone has also come in for some tap this series.
January 24, 2025 at 12:41 PM
Worth digging out Luke Williams’ comments from last year as to why RCB went with Georgia Wareham vs other available leggies….but agree with your sentiment. Worth pointing out that Ecclestone has also come in for some tap this series.
Agree with this. For me the turning point was Jon Lewis’s evisceration of Alex Hartley’s ‘fitness’ comments after the iT20 World Cup and a tacit admission he’d not talked to her about it. Moreover, it does feel the team has become cliquey - I wonder what Gaur, Gibson, Heath, L Smith are thinking….
January 24, 2025 at 12:18 PM
Agree with this. For me the turning point was Jon Lewis’s evisceration of Alex Hartley’s ‘fitness’ comments after the iT20 World Cup and a tacit admission he’d not talked to her about it. Moreover, it does feel the team has become cliquey - I wonder what Gaur, Gibson, Heath, L Smith are thinking….
Speaking for myself, I think expectations were much higher this time around after a competitive 2023 series with largely the same players and after Australia’s failure to win the 2024 iT20 World Cup. Worth remembering also that it’s really hard to win a series away from home…
January 24, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Speaking for myself, I think expectations were much higher this time around after a competitive 2023 series with largely the same players and after Australia’s failure to win the 2024 iT20 World Cup. Worth remembering also that it’s really hard to win a series away from home…
Agree with this. I do want Capsey to ultimately succeed. Charles Dagnall mentioned during a commentary stint back in the summer that we have seen glimpses of what she’s capable of at the international level. That’s where I am.
December 13, 2024 at 4:18 PM
Agree with this. I do want Capsey to ultimately succeed. Charles Dagnall mentioned during a commentary stint back in the summer that we have seen glimpses of what she’s capable of at the international level. That’s where I am.
My assumption (you would have to ask Clare Connor) is that those awarded 2 year contracts are considered key all format players. That makes sense to me - my personal gripe is that Tammy isn’t a shoe in for iT20. Capsey has yet to demonstrate longer format prowess, notwithstanding low ODI ranking
December 13, 2024 at 4:09 PM
My assumption (you would have to ask Clare Connor) is that those awarded 2 year contracts are considered key all format players. That makes sense to me - my personal gripe is that Tammy isn’t a shoe in for iT20. Capsey has yet to demonstrate longer format prowess, notwithstanding low ODI ranking
IMO Lisa is correct though challenging to do so cost effectively in an increasingly fractured (social) media environment. Consider also that Aussies enjoy an active outdoor lifestyle especially sport. They consistently punch above their population weight at Olympics etc. They like to play
December 8, 2024 at 8:26 PM
IMO Lisa is correct though challenging to do so cost effectively in an increasingly fractured (social) media environment. Consider also that Aussies enjoy an active outdoor lifestyle especially sport. They consistently punch above their population weight at Olympics etc. They like to play
Fully agree. Folk seem to forget that it’s really hard to be a professional athlete at the elite level. Worth reading Kate Cross’s paper (based on her masters dissertation) around performance expectations. Given her dataset was taken from 2021/2022 couldn’t help but think about Capsey’s situation
December 5, 2024 at 12:08 PM
Fully agree. Folk seem to forget that it’s really hard to be a professional athlete at the elite level. Worth reading Kate Cross’s paper (based on her masters dissertation) around performance expectations. Given her dataset was taken from 2021/2022 couldn’t help but think about Capsey’s situation
Moreover worth digging out Kate Cross’s recent paper (yes she’s an author) on performance expectations-data collected from 2021/2022 and how that translates to what we see today
December 5, 2024 at 11:36 AM
Moreover worth digging out Kate Cross’s recent paper (yes she’s an author) on performance expectations-data collected from 2021/2022 and how that translates to what we see today
Other general comment I’ll make is just how hard it is to be a high performing professional athlete especially at international level. Worth digging out the England under 19 squad that won the World Cup almost 2 years ago to see how those players have progressed. Compare Smale vs Heap for example…
December 5, 2024 at 11:33 AM
Other general comment I’ll make is just how hard it is to be a high performing professional athlete especially at international level. Worth digging out the England under 19 squad that won the World Cup almost 2 years ago to see how those players have progressed. Compare Smale vs Heap for example…
Not sure I agree about conservative approach tbh. Bray in iT20, Voll in ODI (latter selection albeit injury driven) seemed pretty bold choices to me! Some folk have questioned Australias depth but they consistently demonstrate how robust their pipeline is
December 5, 2024 at 11:21 AM
Not sure I agree about conservative approach tbh. Bray in iT20, Voll in ODI (latter selection albeit injury driven) seemed pretty bold choices to me! Some folk have questioned Australias depth but they consistently demonstrate how robust their pipeline is