Bowled over at Lord's
Ten minutes ago I was perched on the balcony outside the home dressing room of Lord's (more or less where the England skipper will be sitting next July, mulling over proceedings of the second Ashes Test against Australia). The ground - scene of some of the most dramatic moments in cricketing history - looked as pretty as a picture, basking in the August sunshine.
Now, however, I'm seeing it through a rain-splattered window. A torrential downpour has arrived out of nowhere and the groundsmen are rushing on to the field with the covers.
"We like to bring you the whole English cricket experience on our tours," jokes Ellie Reed, the green- blazered guide for my behind-the-scenes glimpse of the Home of Cricket, which this year celebrates its 200th anniversary.
When Lord's sprouted on the then-bucolic north London landscape in 1814, there were, Ellie says, "duck ponds on the outfield - and 500 grazing sheep". Situated in the leafy but now built-up suburb of St John's Wood, this was the third ground of the Marylebone Cricket Club, which was founded in nearby Marylebone in 1787. MCC first moved to a patch of St John's Wood in 1811 but when Parliament approved the construction of the Regent's Canal, which would cut straight through its ground, it was forced to move to its present base.
Lord's is named after the Yorkshireman who negotiated these moves. A handy bowler in his day, it was Thomas Lord's shrewd entrepreneurial skills that impressed the noble MCC members, who desired an enclosed playing space - and privacy - away from prying eyes and riff-raff. Framed paintings of Georgian-era cricket, along with a portrait of Lord, stud the walls of a pavilion built in late-Victorian architectural style in 1890.
One of the highlights of the Lord's guided tours is a visit to the pavilion's elegant Long Room. It's quiet and empty in here today but when the big matches come round MCC members, in their striking red and gold blazers, jostle for chairs and a view. They also get a close-up of the players, who must pass through the Long Room on their way on and off the field of play. The pavilion's corridors flaunt other eye-catching works of art, including paintings of famous cricket grounds (like the MCG), quirky caricatures of former England captains Michael Vaughan and Graham Gooch, and portraits of overseas icons such as Sir Viv Richards, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath.
McGrath is one of the Australians to appear on the prestigious Lord's honours boards (which appear in both home and visitors' dressing rooms and commemorate players who scored a century or took five wickets in an innings or 10 in a Test match). McGrath's probing line and length, assisted by the ground's famous slope, made life hell for batsmen and he claimed a trio of five-wicket hauls here.
In contrast, the name of spin-king Warne - who never nabbed a Lord's five-for - is conspicuous by its absence on the boards. He's in good company, though. Dennis Lillee also failed to trouble the Lord's signwriters, though he did get four wickets in an extraordinary Ashes Test against England in 1972. The other 16 were taken by Perth's Bob Massie, whose 16-137 on debut remain Lord's best-ever Test match figures.
Some of the all-time great batsmen, such as Ricky Ponting, Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara, never made a Lord's century. But Victor Trumper, the Waugh brothers, Allan Border, David Boon, Mark Taylor and Michael Clarke are among the Australians to appear on the honours board alongside Sir Donald Bradman. The Don's 254 against England in 1930 was the highest Test knock at Lord's until Gooch's record- shattering 333 for England against India in 1990. The only Australian to appear on both batting and bowling honours boards? Keith Miller, the great Victorian all-rounder.
If the honours boards are a treat for cricket tragics, the MCC Museum is even better. Tracing the story of cricket from its 16th century origins in the south-east English countryside to today's multi-format global appeal, it's sprinkled with cricketing memorabilia. I eye historic bats, balls, stumps, caps, ties, blazers, gloves, coffins (gear bag), Wisden almanacs, vintage pictures, the Laws of Cricket and snippets about the controversies that have dogged the game (notably the 1932-33 "Bodyline" Ashes series, when Douglas Jardine's England bowlers employed ultra-aggressive tactics in a desperate bid to thwart The Don).
One of the museum's newest additions is a signed plaster cast donated by Warne. He wore it after his hand was broken by Brett Lee, his ex-Baggy Greens teammate, during July's MCC v Rest of the World bicentenary match (in which Aussie Aaron Finch struck a sensational 181 not out).
The museum's centrepiece is the iconic Ashes urn, which kind of reminds me of the Mona Lisa. Its tiny stature - 11cm high - belies its huge reputation. The Ashes story dates back to 1882 when, after England lost to Australia at The Oval in south London, the Sporting Times newspaper printed a mock obituary of English cricket, surmising that: "The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia."
England captain Ivo Bligh vowed to bring "the Ashes" home and touring Down Under later that year, he guided his team to a series victory and was given the symbolic terracotta urn as a keepsake at a Christmas Eve gathering at the Rupertswood Estate, near Melbourne.
When Bligh married Florence Murphy, the companion of Lady Janet Clarke, mistress of Rupertswood, two years later, the couple returned to England with the urn and it stayed on the mantelpiece at the Bligh family home in Kent until Ivo's death in 1927. At her late husband's request, Florence bequeathed the urn - which, according to legend, contains the ashes of a burnt cricket bail - to MCC, where it has stayed ever since. Recognising the two teams' wish to compete for an actual trophy, an urn-shaped Waterford Crystal trophy was commissioned in the late 1990s, and first presented to Mark Taylor after Australia clinched the 1998-99 Ashes series. Michael Clarke will be hoping to retain it when he brings his side back to England in July 2015.
While Ashes tickets at Lord's are hard to come by, you can usually snap up seats for one-day international matches, Twenty20 "blasts" and county games (Lord's is also home to the MCCC - Middlesex County Cricket Club, currently skippered by Australian Test opener Chris Rogers). With a capacity of just 29,500, Lord's is an incredibly intimate ground. Even from the highest stands, you get a superb view.
One of the most all- encompassing perspectives is through the giant windows of the JP Morgan Media Centre, which looms like a UFO at the Nursery End of Lord's. Unveiled before the 1999 World Cup, this single-shell aluminium building won the prestigious Stirling Prize for architecture. There's not a soul in here today but I try to imagine the buzz of match days, when it's a hive of journalists and commentators (including Sir Ian Botham, whose name features 10 times on the home dressing room honours boards; a ground record).
Behind the Media Centre is the Nursery Ground, where the pros warm up before a game, and where today a corporate "friendly" match is taking place. Edging the eastern boundary is MCC Cricket Academy, where budding cricketers are put through their paces by coaches. Sachin Tendulkar and his son Arjun are known to pop in to practise here from time to time, though ordinary Joes who fancy strapping on the pads can also book a net session here and face deliveries from a bowling machine.
This sounds very tempting but, right now, it's time for lunch. Renowned for its real ales and refined pub grub, the Lord's Tavern should do the job. It's situated next to the Grace Gates; named after that famous old foe of Australia - batting legend WG Grace.
FACT FILE
Bespoke tours of Lord's can be arranged but daily public tours usually leave on the hour from 10am to 2 or 3pm. They last about an hour and 40 minutes, and cost £18 ($33) for adults and £12 for concessions (over-60s and children aged five-15). You can also take tours followed by afternoon tea in the Lord's Long Room.
When planning your tour, be aware that timings and schedules are affected by international games. For example, no tours take place during Test matches or for three days before.
Check lords.org for the latest information.
Steve McKenna was a guest of Lord's.
