Stumped

Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Charu Sharma discuss the volume of short format cricket. While the Indian Premier League continues to flourish, there is speculation that the ECB could be about to axe The Hundred in the UK in favour of a more sustainable T20 competition.Cricket Australia have increased its salary cap in the Big Bash League to lure the top talent to the league, due to a number of overseas players quitting the league mid-season for the T20 tournaments in the UAE and South Africa. So how many competitions is too many?We hear from Australia and Sussex player Steve Smith on playing in the County Championship and whether he will change his style of batting in the Ashes. Plus we are joined by the first female member of ground staff to work at an international venue in England. Meg Lay works for Gloucestershire Cricket Club and tells us about the importance of getting more women involved in the game.Photo: Lewis Gregory and Luke Wood of Trent Rockets celebrates victory during the Hundred Final match between Trent Rockets and Manchester Originals at Lord's Cricket Ground on September 03, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images)

It's been a rollercoaster of a journey for Ireland since securing Test status back in 2017. Ireland have lost all five Tests they have played but this week, made history by posting their highest Test score of 492 against Sri Lanka. Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Sunil Gupta react to this achievement with Ireland's head coach Heinrich Malan.Following Mickey Arthur's appointment of Director of Cricket for Pakistan, we discuss how it will work combined with his current role as coach of Derbyshire in the County Championship and if it is a sign of how coaching will change with dual roles?We also discuss the return of Ajinkya Rahane to India’s Test team for the upcoming World Test Championship final against Australia.Image: Ireland head coach Heinrich Malan before the Men's T20 International match between Ireland and New Zealand at Stormont in Belfast. (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Alison Mitchell, Brett Sprigg and Charu Sharma are joined by Lawrence Booth, the editor of the Wisden Almanack. As the 160th edition is published he discusses the Wisden awards and how the book is still relevant in a digital age.Plus Sachin Tendulkar turns 50 this week. We hear from the man himself on his career highlight and the team share some of their stand-out memories of the Indian legend. His son Arjun Tendulkar made his debut in the Indian Premier League this week meaning that the Tendulkar's are the first father-son duo to play in the IPL. And we pay tribute to Aunty Faith Thomas who has died aged 90. She was the first Indigenous woman to play for Australia in any sport and represented Australia in an Ashes Test.Photo: Sachin Tendulkar is seen during the Indian Premier League Final match between the Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad, India. (Credit: Getty Images)

Charu Sharma, Brett Sprigg and Nikesh Rughani are joined by New Zealand umpire Kim Cotton. Kim became the first female on-field umpire to stand in a men’s international between two full-member nations. She tells us how this historic moment felt, her journey to becoming an umpire and how she is paving the way for the next generation. Plus, with the Indian Premier League in full swing, the team discuss how the tournament has unfolded. And one of Australia’s most influential player agents, Neil Maxwell has said the next phase of the IPL revolution would have players asking for permission from their Indian owners to represent Australia, not the other way around. The team debate their thoughts on whether this will happen.And with two months to go until the men's Ashes begins, Brett Sprigg assesses the mood in Australia. Photo: Match Umpire Kim Cotton signals during the ICC Women's T20 World Cup Final match between Australia and South Africa at Newlands Stadium on February 26, 2023 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Credit: ICC via Getty Images)

We hear from West Indies captain and WPL winner Hayley Matthews. She tells us that playing for her country is still her ‘number one priority’ and she speaks about the Fairbreak Invitational and the calibre of associate players in the competition. We discuss a landmark week in Australia where Cricket Australia have announced an increase in payments for all centrally contracted cricketers, with female players now set to become the nation's highest paid women's athletes in Australian team sport.And is there still a place for the physical booklet in cricket/sport when we are in a digital age? We ask this question to Ian Marshall who is the editor of the Playfair Cricket Annual. And the team debate their different preparation techniques for commentary.Photo: PAARL, SOUTH AFRICA - FEBRUARY 19: Hayley Matthews of West Indies plays a shot during the ICC Women's T20 World Cup group B match between Pakistan and West Indies at Boland Park on February 19, 2023 in Paarl, South Africa. (Photo by Jan Kruger-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)

Please note: This programme contains discussions about mental health and references to suicide. For more support, go to https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1NGvFrTqWChr03LrYlw2Hkk/information-and-support-mental-health-self-harmOn this week’s Stumped, Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Charu Sharma speak with WPL winner and New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr. She tells us why she thinks Mumbai’s success in the inaugural competition is a pivotal moment for the women’s game, and explains why she’s a mental health advocate. Last year Kerr took a seven-month break from the sport to focus on her mental wellbeing and founded the website Out of the Rough to share stories and help others. Kerr explains why it’s important to normalise conversations and remove stigma around the subject. As the IPL gets underway, the team look ahead to the 16th edition of the competition and ask if anyone can challenge the defending champion Gujarat Titans. How will Brian Lara fair as the new Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach? And we discuss the fitness of England Test captain Ben Stokes. Plus, as Stumped turns 400, we take a trip down memory lane to look back at the most memorable moments over the course of the show’s seven years (and counting).Photo: Amelia Kerr of Team New Zealand prepares to bat prior to a T20 match between New Zealand and Sri Lanka on day five of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games at Edgbaston on August 02, 2022 on the Birmingham, England. (Credit: Getty Images)

On this week’s Stumped, our very own Charu Sharma flies out to Mumbai to visit some of the game’s biggest stars as the inaugural Women’s Premier League reaches its finale. First up is Australia captain Meg Lanning, who has just led the Delhi Capitals to the first ever WPL final. She tells us that the competition is “on another level” to anything else she’s experienced, and discusses her five-month break from sport in which she worked in a café.Charu then catches up with India all-rounder Shikha Pandey, who says the introduction of the WPL means “India will probably go on and win that World Cup title”. Pandey spent ten years working as a squadron leader in the Indian Air Force, which she says shaped her as a person. She discusses the “immense pressure” on young girls in the country and hopes that the coverage of the WPL will inspire parents to encourage their daughters to pursue cricket.Image: BBC

We speak to Afghanistan women’s cricketer Firooza Afghan who fled the country following the takeover of the Taliban in 2021 and now resides in Melbourne, Australia. The 18-year-old, says the team have not yet received any support from the International Cricket Council and hopes that they will take action to enable them to represent Afghanistan from their base in Australia.After scoring his first Test century since November 2019, is Virat Kohli finally returning to form? The former India captain has scored over 100 in the main three formats of the game in the last six months, having endured a century drought in the three years prior. Alison Mitchell, Charu Sharma and Jim Maxwell praise his performance in India’s final series match with Australia and look ahead to the World Test Championship final between the two sides in June.Plus, are New Zealand rivalling England to be Test cricket’s great entertainers? Within the last month, New Zealand have beaten England by a single run and edged past Sri Lanka on the last ball of the match, in two of the greatest ever finishes to a Test match.Photo: Afghan girls celebrate after a cricket match at a school in Herat on September 2, 2013.(Credit: AFP via Getty Images)

The Women’s Premier League is finally underway. Sunil Gupta tells us what it is like in India, the stand out stars and the team discuss the tournament so far. Plus will the final Test match between India and Australia is underway. Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was in attendance alongside India’s prime minister Narendra Modi who took part in a series of events before the Test. The team debate the pageantry and whether the World Test Championship is making Test Matches shorter.And we are joined by Jenny Thompson who is a former cricket writer and currently lives in Adelaide. She is about to begin a mammoth journey across the world to experience the impact women's cricket is making in many different countries around the world and the lessons we can all learn.Photo: Tara Norris of Delhi Capitals celebrates the wicket of Heather Knight of Royal Challengers Bangalore during the WPL 2023 match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals. (Credit: Getty Images)

On this week’s episode of Stumped, Jim Maxwell tells us that he believes England would not enforce a follow-on against Australia in the Ashes. England became only the second national side ever to lose a Test match having enforced the follow-on, as New Zealand won by a single run in Wellington to draw the two-match series. Would they Brendon McCullum's side be as bold against their great rivals in an Ashes series?Charu Sharma dismisses Alyssa Healy’s claims that Harmanpreet Kaur’s run-out in India’s Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final loss to Australia was a result of “lazy running”. Australia went on to the win the tournament for a sixth time, beating South Africa in the final. We hear from South Africa’s star batter Laura Wolvaardt about the experience of playing a home World Cup.Plus the head coach of Spain, Corey Rutgers joins us to discuss his side’s dismantling of the Isle of Man. Spain bowled them out for just 10 runs, which is the lowest total ever in a men’s T20 match. They then hit two sixes from the first two legitimate balls they faced to reach their target.Image: England coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes leave the field at the end day five of the Second Test Match between New Zealand and England at Basin Reserve. (Credit: Getty Images)