BUMBLE AT THE TEST

AN ALE IN MAIDA VALE

PASTURES new for me with a visit to Maida Vale. I found a great pub called The Prince Albert, which was full of little rooms with low ceilings dating to Victorian times. They frowned on drinking back then, so wanted to make the place discreet. I followed it up with a pizza. I give the area six out of 10.

BEN’S BOUNCE DOES JOB

PAKISTAN played proper Test est match cricket, wearing England down in a very watchful manner while taking responsibility for their team. Interestingly, there had been five overs of Mark Wood bowling short stuff to no avail before ore the natural bounce of Ben Stokes (above) got the breakthrough. It took Stokes to be the enforcer for England to make an impact.

WHAT AN IDENTITY CRISIS

ON MY way out of the ground I was asked for a selfie. I’m not overly keen. It was the usual thing. The bloke had the camera the wrong way round, then he didn’t know how to change it. But of course I was polite and obliged. His parting words were ‘thanks Geoffrey’. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry…

SERIOUS SLIP-UP BY BESS

YOUNG off-spinner Dom Bess ess bowled very straight and I would have expected a senior player to advise him to aim more outside off-stump. That way England could have brought slip into play. But if Bess (right) is bowling over ver the wicket at middle stump, slip li is out of the game. He needs to look at how Graeme Swann did it.

THE WRONG TROUSERS

THERE has been an epidemic of red trousers in recent years, usually worn by slightly overweight people with their sweater round their shoulders and their collar up. But at Lord’s we are seeing variations. There’s salmon pink, lime green, turquoise and even orange. I’m starting to pine for the old red jobs.