Peter Miller (AKA ‘The Cricket Geek’) had a close up view of certain aspects of the cricketing landscape in the US as the head of PR and Communications for the 2017 Caribbean Premier League (CPL). He has a background as a freelance cricket writer, having been published by ESPNCricinfo, AllOutCricket, The Cricketer, Cricket365, Sports Illustrated and others. He has also commentated for the BBC and TalkSport.
Check out his unique cricketing journey, and answers to the #SixHitter below.
1. Tell us how you got involved in Cricket, what’s your role/association now?
I was made redundant from a job as a youth worker in 2012. I had already been blogging for a while but I made a concerted effort to turn a hobby into a job when this happened. I had a blog no one read and about 200 Twitter followers. Once I put my mind to it this increased and I started getting paid work. How this happened I don’t really know, I just kept asking for people to give me work until they started to say yes.
Right now I am Head of PR and Communications for the Caribbean Premier League and I write for various websites and magazines. I also do commentary for BBC radio for county cricket and for TalkSPORT on IPL and international cricket.
2. Describe yourself in three words
Opinionated on Twitter
3. What is your earliest cricket memory?
Surrey vs Kent, Guildford, 1988. I was nine years old. I was hit by a six and was taken into the Kent dressing room to have ice put on my bruise.
4. What is your favorite cricket moment of all time?
Watching Brian Lara score 179 at the Oval in 1995. It was the first Test match I had watched in the crowd and he was, and is, my favorite player. He was amazing that day and I will never forget him using his feet to the very rapid Devon Malcolm.
5. What is the one development you would like to see in domestic cricket, and in international cricket?
I would like to see an opening up of the international game so that all players, regardless of the country that they play for can progress to playing international cricket at the highest level. The way I would do this is by getting rid of status and having several leagues with promotion and relegation all the way to the very top tier that is currently inhabited by “full members”.
6. Where do see cricket in the USA in 10 years’ time?
The changes in US cricket in recent months have been fantastic and there are lots of reasons to be very cheerful and optimistic. That there is a new governing body that has a proper constitution is great news, and hopefully they can unite the US cricket community. What I would love to see is franchises playing more cricket in the USA and having teams based there. The CPL has already played regular season fixtures in Florida and it would be fantastic if at some point there was an American franchise in the league. I have no idea if this will happen, but it would make me very happy if it did.
