By far the most exciting part of Thursday’s game was the flicking over to sbs to watch the finish to stage 6 of Le Tour. I liked the idea that was being bandied around about the sun at Headingley and the role it plays in cricket there. The suggestion is that there are only ever two teams that play there – the overcast conditions vs when the sun comes out. Weather and cricket of course have a close and intricate relationship – cooked pitches and moisture laden balls moving in clandestine directions; players with cold hands or suffering from heat exhaustion. So I like this Headingley mythology which really brings this to the fore, where the sun gets man of the match awards. But really, Ponting’s boys were disappointing. It was very disappointing that they couldn’t use the talents of the weather better – England certainly harnessed the form of the sun very well – it was inspired recruiting. The weather also put in a big stage in Le Tour – Persistent Rain moving up the general classification after a powerful lead out by Slippery Corners.