1997: England v Australia First Test

For once in my life it appeared as if my optimism had not been misplaced. Going into the first Ashes Test in the summer of '97, there seemed a renewed energy, not just with English cricket but also the nation as a whole. Euro 96, Britpop, Things Can Only Get Better, it was clear that this momentum was leading to an inevitable conclusion: The Ashes were coming home. 

Disappointment heaped upon misery, embarrassment and despair since 1989 had left many English cricket fans wondering when the drought would end. But in 1997 there was genuine hope that Michael Atherton could lift the Ashes urn and end the years of hurt.

2001 Ashes

By 2001, the Ashes had become a bit of an obsession. Winning the urn in 1985 was my beautiful introduction to Test match cricket and retaining the Ashes down under in 1986/87 was the stuff of dreams during a turbulent time for English cricket. But then came 1989.

A series that has entered the hall of shame for the England national team, anything that could go wrong that year did. The 4-0 reverse was shocking, as 29 players were shuffled around in the vague hope that England could compete with the resurgent tourists. To be honest, losing 4-0 flattered us.

From that point on I dreamed of winning back the urn at the start of every Ashes series. But time after time it soon became clear that my initial hopes were ill-founded. Losing became a habit against Australia, but still I hoped that the latest series would be the one. You do it to yourself, you do, and that's what really hurts. 

2000: Pakistan v England

England began their tour of Pakistan in 2000 just looking to compete. By the end of it they were dancing in the moonlight.

A year had been a long time for the English cricket team. Beaten by New Zealand in the summer of 1999, England dropped to the bottom of the unofficial world rankings and the start of the new captain/coach partnership of Nasser Hussain and Duncan Fletcher suggested that the road to recovery would be long.

In fairness, the bowling conditions were ideal as England slumped to 2/4 in the opening Test of the series in South Africa. But despite going down to a 2-1 series defeat - the one win coming after the notorious Hansie Cronje declaration in the final match - there were small signs that Hussain was moulding a side in his image.