u00a0The game has lost what even the most demanding north of England league cricket supporter would describe as: “A couple of good-‘uns,” in the last few days.

The abrupt retirement and ensuing Twitter controversy told us much about the quirky personality of England’s highly successful off-spinner Graeme Swann. On the field he was as traditional as they come; an old school offie who relied on curve and drop from a hard spun delivery and a simple “straight one”, all delivered with a pleasingly clean action in an era where most off-spinners lean heavily on the style of Paul Simon’s One-Trick Pony - “a herky-jerky motion”.