Welcome back to the central commentary position...

I’m a cricket tragic. Word that Richie Benaud is continuing on with Channel 9 in hosting/commentating duties was wonderful as he is as big a part of the rich history that is cricket on Nine, as is Kerry Packer getting limited overs cricket up & making it a success, as are the other voices I’ve grown up hearing teaching me about the finer points of fielding at Long-On. Nine’s press release states:

Nine will continue its distinguished history of live cricket broadcasting this summer with 43 days of action
scheduled on Wide World of Sports.

The KFC Twenty20 International between Australia and Sri Lanka in Perth opens the Australian international
cricket season on Sunday, October 31. The Commonwealth Bank Series gets underway on November 3 in
Melbourne. Australia A plays a one-off tour match against England in Hobart on November 17 and the Johnnie
Walker All Star Twenty20 is scheduled for November 21 in Brisbane. Four days later, on November 25, the
Vodafone Ashes Series begins in Brisbane. And the Women’s Twenty20 Match against England will also go
LIVE on Nine from January 12.

Hotspot, “Snicko”, Slo Mo Extreme cameras, ball-tracking, speed-gun and Gator Tracker will all return to give
viewers a front-row, first-rate experience as Australia hosts England and Sri Lanka.
With Wide World of Sports at the forefront of cricket broadcasting for decades, Nine is planning to roll out more
world-first innovations for viewers this summer.

The top names in the game will present Nine’s summer of cricket, led once again by the legendary Richie
Benaud. The expert team joining him in the commentary box comprises Bill Lawry, Tony Greig, Ian
Chappell, Mark Taylor, Ian Healy, Michael Slater, Mark Nicholas, James Brayshaw and Shane Warne.
Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist will be a special guest commentator throughout the season.
Simon O’Donnell will again host The Cricket Show during the Ashes Series lunch break and he will be joined
by Nine’s expert commentary team throughout the season. Regular segments on The Cricket Show include
player profiles, The Lunchtime Grill, international and domestic updates, first session recaps, viewer emails
and live coaching clinics.

It's just not cricket

As part of Nine’s multi-platform offering, the Wide World of Sports website is the ultimate online destination for
cricket lovers throughout the Vodafone Ashes Series. With regular breaking news, live scores, in-depth
statistics and expert opinion from the cricket commentary team, it is the perfect complement to Nine’s live
broadcast.

Some of the key elements of the website wideworldofsports.com.au include:

• Latest cricket news and features.
• Live scores and a comprehensive stats centre.
• Eclusive column with Michael Slater – In Bat with Slats.
• Video updates from all Nine News sport bulletins.
• Special features from The Cricket Show.
• The Ashes Vault – video archive featuring a selection of greatest Ashes moments.

The sad part is the start of the season with a delayed “live” broadcast of the the first Twenty20 match due to Channel 9’s 4 Nations rugby league broadcast commitments. Talk about poor timing.

It’ll be a long, hot summer, punctuated with shouts of “HOWZAT!?” & “GOT ‘IM!! GORNE!!” from our house.

Image Sources: DeccanChronicle.com; News Limited