England v South Africa v Zimbabwe, NatWest Series final, Saturday 12 July 2003
Lord's, London |
When the sun comes out, white chests soon follow, slowly but surely going pink as a day at the cricket goes on.
In an effort to prevent the change from white to pink, Lord's has installed "Sun Stations" around the ground where spectators can get a free squirt of sun block.
"We're promoting sun safety to men because they don't often think about it," Emily Woods of Marie Curie Cancer Care explained.
"In the last five years we have seen a 12% increase in skin cancer in men."
England's players have recently been screened for skin cancer and the rest of their professional peers are due to be tested over the course of the summer.
There is no need for the war paint favoured by some players, but factor 15 is the recommendation for anyone watching cricket under clear skies and soaring temperatures.
Matthew Hoggard was impressed by what he saw on finals day at Lord's.
As well as the main attraction, the NatWest Speed Challenge came to a conclusion on the Nursery pitches and Hoggard was there to give out the prizes.
"They weren't wayward and it's nice to see the balls coming down and hitting the stumps with some ferocity," the England bowler said.
A nationwide competition searching for England's fastest young bowlers, the Speed Challenge had seen 5,000 entries whittled down to finalists in three age groups.
Top speed on the day was achieved by Dean Smith, who registered a 72mph delivery to win the boy's senior competition.
"I've bowled quicker but it was a good day and I had a bit of a natter with Matthew Hoggard," Smith said.
Lydia Fenny won the girl's senior competition and caught the eye of England skipper Clare Connor.
"It's great hear the ladies captain is keeping an eye on me," Fenny said after winning with a 54mph delivery.
It was a day of firsts at Lord's.
The victory saw England win consecutive one-day internationals for the first time against South Africa since 1994, when they won the first four matches between the sides.
And Chris Read, one of the stars of the win, became the first Englishman to finish with five catches behind the stumps in a one-day match - not withstanding the six Alec Stewart claimed against Zimbabwe.
Consolation for South Africa came in the tourists making their one-day international debut at cricket's headquarters.
England's victory gives them the a 6-5 lead in the head-to-head stakes between the sides on Englsih soil.
South Africa still hold the overall advantage, with 17 wins from the 27 meetings.
It was a case of breakfast on the hoof in the Lord's early morning sunshine.
A busy morning in the box was only broken by the unmistakable smell of bacon butties doing the rounds.
 |  I had just finished frying my breakfast and was sitting down to eat when I heard that someone in the box could smell bacon. It's a long way from south London to Lord's - but I suppose it's possible |
The sight of Mike Gatting passing over the opportunity to tuck in left Jonathan Agnew musing that the former England captain must have his own supply hidden somewhere.
But Gatt was let off the hook as his generosity was aimed at a weary and harrassed Christopher Martin-Jenkins.
The "late CMJ" lived up to his monicker having got caught in the London traffic.
"I could see he was looking a bit tense and slightly thinner than usual after the frustrations of the morning," an ever courteous Gatt said.
The snack helped CMJ recover his composure before taking to the airwaves an hour late.
"I defy anybody not to get tense stuck behind the wheel while they should be somewhere else," he said.
"But it was enjoyable to listen to the team before getting here."
MMIX
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