Edgbaston, England v India 2/8/18

It was our 38th wedding anniversary.

Why wouldn't we go to Edgbaston for a day of cricket?!

We'd had our "honeymoon" at Lords.

 (Well, sort of...we went to support Marchwiel in the Village Knockout at Lords the weekend after our wedding so it was a "sort of" honeymoon)

And I've been involved in cricket all my life.

It was nice to be returning to the ground where 

my brother

 started his cricketing career.

Husb was his usual hilarious self.

"Let's sit HERE."

And promptly spread out over the whole row.

They may have been cricketers but they warmed up with a game of football.

And some catching in the slips.

Heck, it was warm

It was the 1,000th England Men's Test Match and I watched nearly every single ball.

I  enjoyed some great entertainment in my left ear while watching the game. We had running commentary from Tuffers, who was a hoot (it's not really work is it,Tuffers?) and his lunch time interview with David Steele was very amusing.

I was absolutely loving it.

What I hadn't realised was that not all Test matches are like this.

 Tuffers actually said it was in his TOP FIVE all time favourite Test matches he'd ever seen,

The BBC Five Live team were relishing every ball as the game swung this way then that, and they ended their live text commentary with...

You’ll do well to find a more compelling, invigorating, perplexing, inspiring day of sport than that. England bowled brilliantly until they tired, Virat Kohli batted like God’s cooler older brother, and we’ve got three more days of intense pleasure to come. Thanks for your company and comments - join us again tomorrow.

It was Day 2.

 We joined England at 287-9. They were very soon 287 All Out (within minutes) 

What followed was a fantastic afternoon of cricket featuring Anderson, who was bowling out of his skin, and Kohli, who was batting magnificently. The crowd had booed Kohli when he came out to bat but when he walked off again, they gave him a standing ovation. 

Anderson bowled 74 balls to Kohli, who made only 18 runs off them.

But he scored another 131 from the 151 balls he faced from everyone else.

The commentary in my ear went like this..

Kohli chases ... AND THERE IT IS! VIRAT KOHLI HAS PERSONALITIED HIS WAY TO A LUDICROUSLY BRILLIANT HUNDRED! He leaps, he punches, he removes his helmet ... what a champion he is. Four to third man, then to underline, italicise and highlight, he smacks four more wide of mid on. We are privileged

 to be living in his time.

Action replay 

Hobgoblin

The Indian captain's 149 from 225 balls was his first Test hundred on English soil and was wonderful to watch, especially as India had been 100-5. He was so cool and patient and he totally frustrated Anderson. He was eventually caught by Broad, having scored 149 of India's total 274.

WICKET! Kohli c Broad b Rashid 149 (India 274 all out)

Kohli, who never cuts, cuts hard to Broad at point. But really, how good was that? A genius and an icon, lap up every second of him because you’ve never see anything like him before nor will you ever again. He is why we love this game.

                       It was brill and I absolutely loved it.  

All that was needed now was A PLANK.

Where could I plank without being arrested or fined?

And what a bonus. The tea was free.