Wide match ball delivery

Chris Adam's is always an interesting read in The Independent. Today he tells how the match ball didn't quite make it for their Twenty20 match v Essex.

"Before the game the RAF Falcons were planning a parachute jump where they would land on the pitch and deliver the match ball. We had a guy on the mike to talk the crowd through it and he was linked up to one of the eight parachutists.

So down these elite jumpers came and turned into the wind to head for Hove. They were really travelling and it was incredibly gusty and blustery with the clouds ripping across the sky.

Next thing we know, all eight fly past and miss the ground completely: one smacked into the side of an apartment block, one landed in a tree, one in the High Street beside the ground and one rammed into the No 7 bus to Brighton. Thankfully, no one was hurt but it was like something out of a cartoon. You can view it on our Sussex website if you want.

I believe the RAF want to see it again to work out what went wrong! We got the match ball out of the cupboard instead."

Adams goes on to suggest that England will be free to play Panesar in ODI's once Bopara is back from injury to give some more depth to the batting. I agree, but Panesar should play irrelevant of who makes up the other 10 positions in the team.