In the space of less than 12 hours on opposite sides of the world, the nation was humiliated twice on the sporting field.

I say sporting field, but I am not so sure about the Stanford Millions game - that was, in theatrical parlance, more a cross between pantomime and farce.

But it was no less embarrassing for it.

By the time the England innings had finished I was thoroughly sick of seeing batsmen move across to the off side and exposing their leg stump.

Then, having left out the two most consistent bowlers of the last 12 months in Ryan Sidebottom and James Anderson, their attack was flayed to all parts by Chris Gayle and Andre Fletcher as the West Indies - sorry, Stanford Superstars - won at a canter.

As I trudged off to bed after midnight, I consoled myself with the thought that England would be mixing it with the Aussies in the big RL World Cup clash in a matter of hours.

Oh dear.

The game in Melbourne was over as a contest well before half time and assumed catastrophic proportions after the break when the English players appeared to be allowing Australia to run through their attacking set plays.

It was pitiful.

And I had been told, by people who know more about the 13-a-side code than me, that we stood a real chance Down Under.

The game was certainly not a patch on the one between Tonga and Samoa last week which was as brutal a sporting event not using fists as I have ever witnessed.

As if to rub salt into my sporting wounds two of the sports people I have least regard for went on and won on Sunday afternoon.

As I was flicking between channels, I spotted Paula Radcliffe win the New York Marathon so comfortably that she had time for a rub down and shower before her nearest rival crossed the line.

Then it was Lewis Hamilton's turn as he - or at least his car - managed to secure the fifth place finish he required to become Formula One world champion.

Motorsport has always confused me but the Brazilian Grand Prix even managed to baffled the experts who thought he had failed as he appeared to cross the line in sixth place.

No one had spotted him overtake Timo Glock on the final bend to sneak up to fifth.

Hamilton is now odds on for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, although surely track cycling triple Olympic champion Chris Hoy is a far more worthy candidate.

The cyclists, incidentally, continued their stunning run of results by cleaning up at the World Cup event in Manchester without many of the stars who had dominated in Beijing.

Perhaps Glock, whose decision not to change to wet tyres in Brazil - they looked pretty damp to me - should get the Beeb's top gong instead.