Cricket commentary: Has its standard gone down?

[BoyBrumby]

Have to say Sky's team is really pretty bloody ****-on. Athers, Nass, Lord Gah, Mikey Holding and Bumble all good value to greater or lesser extents. Ward, Coney & RGDW on the domestic stuff are better than other channels' test comm teams as well.

Beefy's a trenchant buffoon, but the one bad apple doesn't spoil the barrel.

 

[Furball]

Its 100% dire really. ch 9 have been bad ever since pat tv arrived in this country, and fans could see overseas broadcasts and see what the standard is like everywhere else. Commentary is very busy now, 3 guys on at a time, its just not necessary. The whole feel is totally different to even 15 years ago.

I swear C9's commentary team are contractually obliged to speak a certain number of words per minute. Occasionally they'll say something worth listening to but the amount of drivel that they talk is so annoying. Just shut up and watch the cricket ffs.

 

[silentstriker]

Off all the commentaries I've listened to Sky is so far ahead of the pack that it's quite embarassing for the rest of the world. Their production quality is fantastic too - close to what you'd expect in an American sport whereas some of the subcontinental feeds are so ameturish that you feel that a high school club can do better - they spend hundreds of millions of dollars on getting the rights...you'd think they'd spend some money on polishing the product itself.

 

[Cabinet96]

Sky are definitely ahead of the rest of the pack. One of the commentators in the 3rd ODI between India and West Indies claimed the batsmen had again cut the ball, this time on the leg side it's called a pull shot for ****s sake.

 

[hazsa19]

Test Match Special set the standard imo. Aggers, Blowers, CMJ and Tuffers are first class. They're Informative, pretty impartial, and joyful lovers of cricket. Vaughan is crap however.

C9 is bloody awful. Slater is the worse, he almost celebrates when Australia take a wicket.

Sky are way ahead of C9, but they need to get rid of Bumble.

 

[KiWiNiNjA]

C9 is bloody awful. Slater is the worse, he almost celebrates when Australia take a wicket.

Almost? Only Slater?

 

[howardj]

Have to say Sky's team is really pretty bloody ****-on. Athers, Nass, Lord Gah, Mikey Holding and Bumble all good value to greater or lesser extents. Ward, Coney & RGDW on the domestic stuff are better than other channels' test comm teams as well.

Beefy's a trenchant buffoon, but the one bad apple doesn't spoil the barrel.

Yeah, the Sky team are great. They are analytical, and really add to the pictures.

A real contrast with the Channel Nine team who seem largely to go through the motions and not offer much in the way of analysis (Lawry, Greig in particular).

And, for goodness sake, it's time for Richie to go.

How come he did the right thing by English viewers in 2005, but we Aussies still have to suffer his inane quips and general bunkum.

 

[robelinda]

Yeah, the Sky team are great. They are analytical, and really add to the pictures.

A real contrast with the Channel Nine team who seem largely to go through the motions and not offer much in the way of analysis (Lawry, Greig in particular).

And, for goodness sake, it's time for Richie to go.

How come he did the right thing by English viewers in 2005, but we Aussies still have to suffer his inane quips and general bunkum.

Richie isn't always there anyway, wasn't at the Gabba, and his health is poor right now, he might not be there for any test this summer. Last I heard he was struggling.

 

[Jono]

I guess the problem is that people have access to so much information on cricketers these days, that the learned fans know most things about most players in the world, so when a commentator (shock horror) doesn't know something about a player from another country everyone has a cry.

At the end of the day, commentators are there for the greater number. And most people who watch cricket don't follow international cricket close enough to know every little thing about every player. Gets tiresome when posters on here in particular get pwn thirsty and sweat on every little mistake a commentator will make.

Healy is a chump and needs to go though ftr.

There's not knowing every little thing, and then there's not knowing anything.

 

[benchmark00]

There's not knowing every little thing, and then there's not knowing anything.

So why do you enjoy Test Match Sofa, which is made up of people who know nothing about playing the game?

 

[Jono]

Haven't listened to them in about a year so don't know what their current quality level of commentary is. I liked interacting with them over Twitter for discussions the same way I come to discuss cricket here with people who haven't played.

On this topic I'm talking about the quality of commentary for Sky vs. the Ind vs. WI series or recent C9 commentary which are clueless on various changes in the game and recent results.

 

[benchmark00]

Haven't listened to them in about a year so don't know what their current quality level of commentary is. I liked interacting with them over Twitter for discussions the same way I come to discuss cricket here with people who haven't played.

On this topic I'm talking about the quality of commentary for Sky vs. the Ind vs. WI series or recent C9 commentary which are clueless on various changes in the game and recent results.

 

[Jono]

Would love to get twitter discussions going with this guy

 

[benchmark00]

Nothing stopping you, ****:

https://twitter.com/#!/drewmorphett

 

[Burgey]

Haven't listened to them in about a year so don't know what their current quality level of commentary is. I liked interacting with them over Twitter for discussions the same way I come to discuss cricket here with people who haven't played.

On this topic I'm talking about the quality of commentary for Sky vs. the Ind vs. WI series or recent C9 commentary which are clueless on various changes in the game and recent results.

I don't know why everyone does loads over Sky's coverage tbh. I think they may be one of the better outfits compared with a squalid field, but Botham and Lloyd are respectively boorish and jovial cheer leaders; Willis (when he has been on with them in the past - haven't heard him in a while) sucks on a lemon all day and Hussain is awfully smug as an analyst for a bloke whose claim to fame as a skipper is sending Australia in and watching us rack up 2-360 at stumps on day one in Brisbane. Atherton is all right, but having met him in the nets at the SCG in the 90-91 series and had a chat, I can confirm he has questionable personal hygeine tstl. Holding is good, though and I think Gower is a good conversationalist as the intro guy. Reckon he'd be a great raconteur tbh.

 

[benchmark00]

I don't know why everyone does loads over Sky's coverage tbh. I think they may be one of the better outfits compared with a squalid field, but Botham and Lloyd are respectively boorish and jovial cheer leaders; Willis (when he has been on with them in the past - haven't heard him in a while) sucks on a lemon all day and Hussain is awfully smug as an analyst for a bloke whose claim to fame as a skipper is sending Australia in and watching us rack up 2-360 at stumps on day one in Brisbane. Atherton is all right, but having met him in the nets at the SCG in the 90-91 series and had a chat, I can confirm he has questionable personal hygeine tstl. Holding is good, though and I think Gower is a good conversationalist as the intro guy. Reckon he'd be a great raconteur tbh.

I'd agree with all that, except I'm a Nasser fan, and not a fan of Holding at all.

Yeah, he has a cool voice, but he doesn't actually say anything interesting.

 

[Pothas]

Have to say Sky's team is really pretty bloody ****-on. Athers, Nass, Lord Gah, Mikey Holding and Bumble all good value to greater or lesser extents. Ward, Coney & RGDW on the domestic stuff are better than other channels' test comm teams as well.

Beefy's a trenchant buffoon, but the one bad apple doesn't spoil the barrel.

Yeah and it also so so so much better than the generally dire football coverage that we get shoved down our throats.

TMS is still bloody good although don't get to listen to it much these days, far poorer for not having Mike Selvey anymore though and Vaughan is bloody anoying.

I actually quite enjoy Ch9 but only for the similar reasons that I used to quite enjoy Neighbours.

 

[Pothas]

Oh and a major failing of Sky that has not been mentioned, Nick ****ing Knight. Nice enough guy but Jesus he is ridiculously irritating.

 

[Burgey]

I'd agree with all that, except I'm a Nasser fan, and not a fan of Holding at all.

Yeah, he has a cool voice, but he doesn't actually say anything interesting.

Much like yourself.

Now leave me to this Amarone at Intermezzo, will you?

 

[sreeku7]

Have to say Sky's team is really pretty bloody ****-on.
.

Off all the commentaries I've listened to Sky is so far ahead of the pack

Sky are definitely ahead of the rest of the pack.

Yes,a bit of vintage BBC Test Match Special remaining there.But,alas, there is no trace of vintage ABC anywhere