Wisden Cricket Monthly

Wisden Cricket Monthly is ‘the independent voice of cricket’. Read the best writers, exclusive interviews, and the most comprehensive coverage of both the professional and amateur game every month.

A tale of two series

EDITOR’S LIST

THE Top Six

Bazball lays down gauntlet to the county game • Following England’s confronting Test series defeat in India, Andrew Miller considers the sustainability of their ultra-aggressive approach and how it may impact the outlook of the first-class counties

Team of the Month • Jo Harman picks a team of the month’s best performers featuring a quartet of Aussies and our first-ever Namibian representative

The incomparable James Anderson • Returning columnist Mark Ramprakash pays tribute to England’s record-shattering seamer after the 41-year-old snared his 700th Test wicket

Mike Procter: A giant whose greatness was matched only by the generosity of his spirit • Stephen Chalke pays tribute to the legendary talents of Mike Procter, who died in February aged 77

Savvy Surrey primed for historic hat-trick • In a rapidly changing landscape the oldest trophy still matters most to Surrey as they chase a third consecutive County Championship title, writes Lawrence Booth

NEWS CYCLE • Ben Gardner has plenty of time for timed-out shenanigans

SHAN MASOOD • The Pakistan and Yorkshire captain opens up on the unique challenges of his career and how he keeps his sanity amid the madness

The India Question

RE:VIEW • Three writers predict who will come out on top in the 2024 County Championship

The Game’s GONE • James Wallace (and his alter-ego) lament the loss of the witty one-liner. Maybe it’s the way they tell ’em?

Mailbox • In association with Chapel Down, the letter of the month receives a bottle of awardwinning English sparkling wine – Chapel Down Brut. Based in Kent, Chapel Down is England’s leading wine producer and the official sparkling wine of the ECB.

Beyond the spin • England’s new spinners were derided as no-hopers when they arrived in India. But between them they showed glimpses of a positive and progressive future, and not just with the ball

On Bazball… • We asked our readers and podcast listeners for their thoughts on Bazball, two years since its invention

The wild mercury brilliance of Zak Crawley

THE WISDEN CRICKET MONTHLY BREAKOUT XI • To begin our preview of the new county season, our writers select a team who we fancy to go particularly well in 2024. Some of our XI may be on the cusp of higher honours, while others slip into the ‘ talented but unproven’ bracket. One thing unites them: they ’ll all be great to watch

County Championship preview • Jo Harman gives the lowdown on each of the 18 counties ahead of the 2024 season

Mining for Gold • Next in our series exploring data from the CricViz archive, Rob Smyth forensically compares the records of three all-time greats who dominated the final decade of the 20th century

375 The making of a masterpiece • Thirty years ago this month, a 24-year-old left-hander from Trinidad changed the face of cricket forever. James Wallace looks back at an innings that was heard all around the world

The whole world in their hands • The IPL returns for its 17th edition bigger, brasher and, as the secondmost lucrative sports league in the world, richer than ever. The Indian writer Aadya Sharma, who has grown up with the IPL as a constant in his cricket-watching life, considers what the tournament has come to symbolise, and what it could yet morph into

Eight to go

TEST UPSETS • It’s been a winter of shocks, from Hyderabad to Brisbane, so here are seven of the most memorably improbable Test match results

The mad magic of Murali • England v Sri Lanka...