Stumped

Alison Mitchell is joined by Clint Wheeldon and Sunil Gupta to reflect on an exhilarating Ashes series across both the men’s and women’s game, with more thrills still to come. England looked down and out in the women’s multi-format series after losing the one-off Test at Trent Bridge, but they have rallied and inflicted three consecutive defeats on the reigning world champions Australia. One win from the remaining two one-day internationals would be enough for the tourists to retain the urn, but England have the momentum.Meanwhile, the men’s Test series is delicately poised. A win for the hosts at Old Trafford would level the scores at 2-2 going into the fifth and final match at the Oval, but similarly to their female counterparts, Australia only need to draw the series to ensure that they won’t be relinquishing the Ashes. The team give their predictions on which way it will go.Plus, Teja Nidamanuru joins us after helping the Netherlands qualify for their first 50-over World Cup in 12 years. The occasion will mean more than most for the middle-order batter as the tournament is being hosted in the country of his birth, India. He tells us about moving to New Zealand as a six-year-old, playing in England and working a full-time job to support his cricket career.Image: England players Mark Wood (r) and Chris Woakes celebrate victory after day four of the 3rd LV= Ashes Test Match at Headingley on July 09, 2023 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Where has it all gone wrong for West Indies? Charu Sharma, Jim Maxwell and Nikesh Rughani discuss the decline of a once-great cricketing nation as they failed to reach the World Cup in India later this year. The two-time champions were beaten by Scotland, Netherlands and Zimbabwe in qualifying matches and won’t appear at a men’s 50-over World Cup for the first time ever. The third Ashes Test between England and Australia is under way at Headlingley but the controversy of Jonny Bairstow’s dismissal in the second Test at Lord’s continues to linger. Jim gives his view on UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s claim that the visitors went against the spirit of cricket.Plus, we pay tribute to Steve Smith as the Australian plays his 100th Test match having just become one of the quickest batters to reach 9000 Test runs.Image: HARARE, ZIMBABWE - JULY 01: Shamarh Brooks of West Indies makes their way off after being dismissed during the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier Zimbabwe 2023 Super 6 match between Scotland and West Indies at Harare Sports Club on July 01, 2023 in Harare, Zimbabwe. (Photo by Alex Davidson-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)

Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Charu Sharma all react to the landmark review into cricket in England and Wales, which says racism, sexism, classism and elitism are "widespread" throughout the sport.We also ask, how England can find a way back against a dominant Australian team in the Women's Ashes.With the second Test coming from the Home of Cricket at Lords, Alison Mitchell speaks to Australian legend Merv Hughes and former England pace bowler Angus Fraser on their favourite Ashes memoriesAnd, the creator of the children's cartoon programme Bluey, Joe Brumm joins us to discuss why they included cricket into one of their episodes and how the sport is inspiring young children.Picture - Bluey (Credit ABC)

Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Charu Sharma discuss the drama of the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston - from Ben Stokes’ shock first-innings declaration, to Pat Cummins’ match winning performance with the bat to what’s next for England’s bowlers.Plus Australia’s Usman Khawaja tells Alison Mitchell just what it was like being in the away dressing room when Cummins’ scored the winning run.And with the Women's Ashes series underway, we hear from former England cricketer Katherine Sciver Brunt on what the sporting rivalry means to her and she calls for a worldwide effort to ensure international cricket thrives.(Photo: Australia batsmen Nathan Lyon (l) and Pat Cummins celebrates after winning the match during day five of the LV= Insurance Ashes 1st Test Match between England and Australia at Edgbaston on June 20, 2023 in Birmingham, England. Credit: Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Sunil Gupta meet at Lord’s to look back on the World Test Championship final and preview the upcoming Ashes series. We’re joined at the home of cricket by former Australia opener and coach Justin Langer, who reveals the player he thinks will be the key in the men’s Ashes, what it’s like facing the very first ball of the series, and how he’s finding life after coaching.Plus, ex England captain Clare Connor discusses her experience of being the first female president of the Marylebone Cricket Club, and tells us about the work that the club’s charitable arm is doing to improve lives all over the world.

On this week's Stumped, Jim Maxwell and Alex Hartley are at The Oval where the ICC World Test Championship Final is taking place between Australia and India. They are joined by Charu Sharma and reflect on a dominant batting display from Australia including an unbeaten 146 from Travis Head. They also debate the decision made by India to drop Ravichandran Ashwin and whether it was the right one.The team react to the return of Moeen Ali to Test cricket for the Ashes after Jack Leach was ruled out due to a back stress fracture. Plus, how much of an advantage could Australia have in the Ashes, with former England head coach Andy Flower now among the visitors ranks in a consultancy role?And we are joined by Kuwait's Maryam Omar who is one step closer to fulfilling her dream of playing in the Women’s Big Bash. This year she lined up alongside Sana Mir, Shabnim Ismail and Katherine Sciver-Brunt for the Sapphires squad at the Fairbreak Invitational tournament and tells us how her journey began.Photo: Travis Head of Australia interacts with Steve Smith as he reaches his century during day one of the ICC World Test Championship Final between Australia and India at The Oval on June 07, 2023 in London, England. (Credit: ICC via Getty Images)

Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Charu Sharma reflect on arguably the greatest Indian Premier League final ever and ask whether MS Dhoni should retire now after winning his fifth title with Chennai Super Kings? The final spanned three days after heavy rain on Sunday meant the final was held on Monday which was the reserve day. It finished at 1:35 on Tuesday morning. Plus after Alison Mitchell’s trip to Uganda we are joined by Consy Aweko who captains the Uganda women's team to hear how cricket was established in the country and the challenges that they face. She also tells us how successful the team have been recently and their maternity policies.Jim Maxwell shares his thoughts on how big a loss it will be for Australia in the upcoming Women’s Ashes without their captain Meg Lanning. Lanning will remain in Australia because of medical reasons. Photo: Captain MS Dhoni of the Chennai Super Kings after their victory against Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League final at the Narendra Modi Stadium on May 29, 2023 in Ahmedabad, India. (Credit: Getty Images)

On this week's Stumped we are joined by one of the fastest bowlers in the women's game, Shabnim Ismail who has just retired from international cricket. South Africa made it to the 2023 World Cup Final at home in Cape Town but were narrowly beaten by Australia.In a revealing interview Ismail says that if players like Lizelle Lee, Mignon Du Preez, Trisha Chetty and Dane Van Niekerk were playing in the final, then they could have won the World Cup. All four of the players have retired from international cricket in the last twelve months.We look ahead to the final of the Indian Premier League, ask whether Chennai Super Kings can win the title for the fifth time and discuss Gujarat Titan's star player Shubman Gill. And the team debate whether Australian bowler Michael Neser should be in the Ashes squad.Photo: Photo: Shabnim Ismail of South Africa celebrates taking the wicket of Shamima Sultana of Bangladesh during the ICC Women's T20 World Cup match between South Africa and Bangladesh at Newlands Cricket Ground on February 21, 2023 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Credit: Getty Images)

Jim Maxwell catches up with Marcus Harris, who has been named in Australia’s squads for the World Test Championship final against India and the upcoming men’s Ashes series in England. Harris discusses competing with David Warner and Usman Khawaja for an opportunity to open the batting, explains why Steve Smith’s stint in the County Championship is of benefit to England just as much as it is to Australia, and rebuffs Stuart Broad’s claim that Australia’s win in the 2021 series is “void”.We also get Harris’ thoughts on England dropping wicketkeeper Ben Foakes from their Test squad to face Ireland at the start of June to make room for the return of Jonny Bairstow. Plus, Scotland’s Lorna Jack joins Jim, Charu Sharma and Nikesh Rughani to discuss becoming one of the first female cricketers in the country to receive a professional contract. Jack’s played almost 150 times for Scotland over a 16-year career. Away from cricket, she’s a police officer in Glasgow.Image: Marcus Harris of Australia poses before an Australian Nets Session at Adelaide Oval on December 15, 2020 in Adelaide, Australia. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Following crunch talks in the United Arab Emirates, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, Najam Sethi tells Alison Mitchell that there is still hope of holding the Asia Cup in Pakistan.The location of the Asia Cup has been in doubt for some time. Pakistan are due to host the tournament in September, but last year the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Jay Shah said that it would need to be held in a neutral venue, stating “we can't go there and they can't come here.”Sethi says he has presented a hybrid model to Asian Cricket Council members, which guarantees that India would not need to play any matches in Pakistan with even the final being played in a neutral venue. Sethi says that if an agreement cannot be reached there is “a very distinct possibility” that Pakistan’s government will prevent the national team from travelling to India for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in October.Sethi, who is currently chairman on an interim basis, says he expects to continue in the role for a three-year term and one of his plans is to launch a women’s league. He says he’s already in the process of sanctioning almost one billion rupees for the development of women’s cricket in Pakistan.Also on Stumped, Jim Maxwell and Sunil Gupta pay tribute to the careers of England’s Katherine Sciver-Brunt and South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail, as the fast bowlers both announced their retirement from international cricket.Plus, we’re re-joined by former cricket journalist Jenny Thompson, who is travelling around the world to experience women’s cricket in as many different countries as she can. Since we last spoke with her in March, she has ticked off Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, South Korea and Papua New Guinea.