7. Australian Bullies

Explicit content warning

06/14/23 • 32 min

Australia reinvented the game in the late 1990’s with three aggressive opening batsmen: Matthew Hayden, Michael Slater and Justin Langer.

To compound England’s woes, they were followed by greats Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and adding the coup de grace – Adam Gilchrist, wielding his bat like a Samurai sword.

They intimidated England’s attack, sending them into submission, then Warne and McGrath cleaned up the batsmen. England barely won a match in six series.

Langer and Gilchrist take us inside the Australian dressing room and explain how the ethos they created led to such domination.

England’s Michael Vaughan reveals how intimidating it was to line-up against this 'invincible' side and how he eventually managed to fight back.

Australia reinvented the game in the late 1990’s with three aggressive opening batsmen: Matthew Hayden, Michael Slater and Justin Langer.

To compound England’s woes, they were followed by greats Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and adding the coup de grace – Adam Gilchrist, wielding his bat like a Samurai sword.

They intimidated England’s attack, sending them into submission, then Warne and McGrath cleaned up the batsmen. England barely won a match in six series.

Langer and Gilchrist take us inside the Australian dressing room and explain how the ethos they created led to such domination.

England’s Michael Vaughan reveals how intimidating it was to line-up against this 'invincible' side and how he eventually managed to fight back.

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6. The Ball of the Century

No-one has burst onto the Ashes scene as dramatically as Shane Warne did in 1993. With his first ever delivery in an Ashes contest he dramatically clean bowled Mike Gatting with a ball that turned and bounced ferociously.

It became simply known as “That Ball”. It transformed not just Ashes matches but the way spin was used worldwide.

The tales of Warne’s words and deeds are legion, and in this episode we reveal new insight into his impact and tricks with the people who had to unravel them, including Mike Gatting, Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain. We also hear from those that had the pleasure of sharing a dressing room with him - Adam Gilchrist and Glenn McGrath.

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8. English Conquerors

England planned their 2010/11 campaign in Australia, where they had not won a series for 25 years, with military precision.

The strategy of captain Andrew Strauss and coach Andy Flower was based on patience, stamina, consistency and making mountains of runs.

The Ashes were sealed at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when England bowled Australia out for 98 on Boxing Day in front of 90,000 Australians.

Key participants Andrew Strauss and Graeme Swann explain how it was done and why it had nothing to do with a military-style bootcamp in a German forest shortly before the series started.

We also learn how the team’s signature celebration, the 'sprinkler dance' was born on the dance floor of an Australian nightclub.