All Out All Out

At the age of 22 Tymal Mills was told he had a congenital back condition and had the option of retiring from professional cricket. 2 years later he had secured a £1.4 million deal to play in the Indian Premier League for Royal Challengers Bangalore. In early 2020 Mills was in a back brace for 3 months having picked up a stress fracture, 8 months later he was bowling for England in the T20 World Cup. The man is seriously determined. Not only that but he's also easy going and totally honest, which made our chat a very enjoyable one. As he gets set for his 2nd IPL season in Mumbai, he opens up about how he didn't live up to the price tag in his first season, what it was like to play with cricket icons like Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers, and how he kept going through the dark days of injury. He's also got a very interesting take on racism in English cricket and the aftermath of the Azim Rafiq case. I hope you enjoy it and please do subscribe if you haven't already!

Mickey Arthur is a man who loves a challenge, no matter where it is. As head coach of South Africa, Australia, Pakistan and now Sri Lanka he has seen it all, and been on his own personal rollercoaster ride. He tells me how he felt he was made a scapegoat for 'Homeworkgate' when he was sacked by Cricket Australia, and how he fell in love with working in Asia. All this has come at a cost though, and Mickey is also frank about the loneliness of being a travelling coach and how you must sacrifice your personal life to do the job properly. But his passion to help his players is what really shines through during our chat - by the end of it you will feel like Mickey is the only coach you would ever want to play for!

Adam Hollioake has experienced his fair share of ups and downs. Because he was born in Australia, he was never fully accepted by some English fans but still managed to become one of the most successful and respected captains of his generation. His life changed suddenly in 2002 when his younger brother, and England team mate, Ben died in a car crash at the age of just 24. Adam opens up bravely and honestly on grief and how he is still finding it very difficult to deal with. After cricket he became a professional fighter - which half explains how he managed to knock out a team mate by mistake during a game! Find out who that was and why he never wanted to be England captain in an engagingly frank chat.

As Chief Executive of the Pakistan Cricket Board, Wasim Khan has one of the most fascinating jobs in world cricket. But things certainly haven't been easy for him - he tells Matt how internal politics and prejudice from sections of the local media initially made life very difficult. We also hear about his close relationship with the Prime Minister Imran Khan, and how intimidating he is, as well as getting his gloomy assessment on why he thinks Pakistan and India won't play a bilateral series for quite a while.

Few people have left as big a mark on English cricket in recent times as Nasser Hussain. As England captain, Nasser turned the side into a much tougher unit and laid the platform for future successes. As a pundit and commentator, he is now one of the most respected, articulate and dedicated in his field. In this episode he speaks about his anger issues and gets into a debate with Matt about racism and the experience of growing up mixed race in the UK.

With the new season of the Indian Premier League just around the corner, Kolkata Knight Riders' head coach Brendon 'Baz' McCullum gives us a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes at an IPL franchise. He talks openly about the challenges of managing players from different parts of the world and why he has a 'no d******d policy' in his squad! There's also an intriguing insight into dealing with pressure when Baz explains how his own career took off once he realised how to cast off his fear of failure.