Me too!
Sometimes I wish it wasn't.

Tim Bresnan fined £4,000 plus given a three match suspension in the unlikely event that he plays again.

Looks like the Bears fell a few runs short:
https://live.nvplay.com/ecb/#mdd94d3fd-a09b-408d-b5aa-29e1abe8bc06_~scorecard
Maybe 41 off 39 balls from Rhodes wasn't quite fast enough and shows why he isn't a first team choice in T20.

Seems like an exciting finish at Barnt Green:
https://edgbaston.com/fixtures/second-xi/worcestershire-vs-warwickshire-24-may-2023/#match-match-reports

I agree with Exiled Bear on this.
I'm not very well up on contractual matters; but I thought that ECB regulations didn't allow counties to approach a player still in contract until later in the season.

When I said Woakes not available because Ireland Test starts three days later, I was talking nonsense - it's three days after the Lancs game. But I still think that the ECB may hold him back from playing v Leicestershire.
As for Stirling, my guess is he will play even though Ireland will presumably want him for the Test.

I would have thought that, with the Ireland Test starting only three days later, Chris Woakes is unlikely to be available.
The Hasan injury looked quite bad but maybe ice, rest and physio will have sorted him out. I can't see the Club taking any risks with his long term fitness so my guess is that, if it's marginal, he won't play.
Stirling should definitely be available. Davies did a good job of hiding him in safe places in the field against Yorkshire.

Regarding cities v counties, what ECB Chair Richard Thompson has to say in The Cricketer is interesting:
""Cities are crucial to us because of the huge population in those areas. And also a lot of diverse communities live in cities. So that's where we as a game need to play. So I think it certainly will be reflected in the County Partnership Agreement version two, ensuring that those areas don't get overlooked."

Back to the day - here are my reflections:
https://deepextracover.com/2023/05/blast-off/

BosworthBear wrote:

I always feel a bit alienated in T20 due to the Birmingham Bears shambles.

But delicious to hear Nasser Hussain, Mike Atherton, Shan Masood, Sam Hain and Steven Finn all refer to a great “Warwickshire” victory.

Surely now is the time to correct the historic wrong and play as Warwickshire again? Such an easy win for the Club! That’s our name, our identity and our heritage!

Although it's only a halfway house, it does seem that the Club has dropped the Birmingham title and just refers now to The Bears. Maybe the Warwickshire name will creep back in.

There may be a clue in the second team playing a T20 game against Gloucestershire today at Portland Road:
Yates, Davies*†, Mousley, Benjamin, Bethell, Burgess, Woakes, Hasan Ali, Lintott, Miles, Barnard
The Gloucestershire team looks much more like a genuine second team.
Link here:
https://live.nvplay.com/ecb/#m8a3a6321-b906-41e9-bd33-00ea651fe5ea_~scorecard

It seems that ex-Warwickshire captain Heath Streak is extremely ill:
https://circleofcricket.com/category/Latest_news/84600/zimbabwe-legend-heath-streak-critically-ill-with-stage-4-cancer

Ah, yes, the 1991 allegations were made by Don Topley who played in those matches and was commentating at Edgbaston this week.
Mind you, Topley is allegedly not the brightest bulb in the chandelier. Those who heard Geoff Miller speak at the Cricket Society last winter will recall him telling the story of how Topley was bowling in a match. As he started to walk back to his mark part way through an over, he asked the umpire: "How many balls?" "Three" was the answer. He got back to his mark but, instead of running in, he walked all the way back to the umpire and said: "Is that three gone or three to come?"
Anyway, the allegations were never proved and, 32 years on, we don't hold grudges (well, not too much!)

Andy wrote:

Where can I read more about this Warwick Pool?
Sorry to come late to answering this.
Leslie Duckworth's "The Story of Warwickshire Cricket" (published 1974) has a chapter entitled "Pool of Plenty" which describes this.
He says that, up to the end of 1972, the Pool (started in 1953 and run by the Supporters Association) had raised £2 million for cricket as a whole including £1m on building projects at Edgbaston and £400k given to help other clubs. New Zealander Ray Hitchcock was involved in organising it but the husband and wife team of David Blakemore and Winifred Crook were largely responsible for its success. Winifred was allegedly approached by a famous football manager to run their pool but replied: "Mr ---, I play for Warwickshire."
Also - see the last part of this article:
https://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/152469.html

Here's my report from today:
https://deepextracover.com/2023/05/warwickshire-ccc-vs-essex-cc-day-three-report/

We don't really know the state of Chris Woakes' dodgy knee. I suspect he'll never again be 100% fit for bowling.

Still top of the table now that the other matches are finished:
https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/county-championship-division-one-2023-1347099/points-table-standings
Rob Yates may have been a bit in and out with his batting so far but he seems able to catch anything at first slip.

paulbear wrote:

Please let us take this wicket as hearing Emily Windsor say 'Frew' and 'Fings' instead of 'Through' and 'Things' is driving me mad.

I thought the Windsor family were busy with other events this weekend.
She could have said: "'Fings Ain't What They Used To Be' was a successful musical in the 1960s, according to tennis commentator Frew McMillan."

Sorry to see Barnard missing his hundred but I'm sure he'll make one soon.

Oh, no, you've sussed out who I really am.
I'm off to roll the pitch for Thursday. But there'll be so little bounce that Michael Burgess had better have steel toe-caps on his boots.