Thursday, September 17, 2009 (DT 25921)

This puzzle was originally published Wednesday, May 6, 2009 in The Daily Telegraph

Introduction

Today we have a very enjoyable puzzle with lots of clever wordplay - but perhaps a little more challenging than average. I completed it but could not get my head around the wordplay in one clue until I read Tilsit's review.

Today's Glossary

Some possibly unfamiliar abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions used in today's puzzle

duck - cricket a score of zero (noun, defn. 5)

(The) Oval - a cricket ground in London, England

Today's Links

The only question on AnswerBank discussing today's puzzle was answered by providing a link to Big Dave's blog.

Tilsit's review of today's puzzle may be found at Big Dave's Telegraph Crossword Blog [DT 25921].

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

21a In English school fundamentals, not one mistake (5)

I needed Tilsit's explanation to fully comprehend the wordplay here. My initial interpretation had been that the phrase "school fundamentals, not one" was indicating two Rs (three Rs minus one). Perhaps that mistaken approach created a mental block that prevented me from seeing that "not one" equals "none" equals "o".

Signing off for today - Falcon