David Kelly

I thought it wasn't great at the start but got better. Ren isn't a great bad guy but in some ways I quite like that. In the other ones they were nails and knew what they were all about. Ren is a complete mess and I think there is a positive in that. I thought there was a few too many scenes that were done just for comedy and I wasn't keen on that. I'm happy having comedy in there as long as it's part of the story. I didn't really like Luke in it until the end.

Only he really knows that but I don't really see the benefit of dropping him. Given his nature I think it's more likely it would make him think he wants to give it up. But who knows. Stoneman is looking a decent prospect to keep his spot. Hameed is the one they need to be developing to take over from Cook but it's looking like he needs more time so we really need Cook to keep going. Thats a good read from Gillespie. Reinforces the point that Australia have been preparing for the Ashes while we have taken eye off the ball.

Watching the big bash game at the minute and they're talking about Broad being injured. Overton certainly has a problem so it looks like there will have to be changes to the attack for Boxing Day. You'd have to think Wood has to come in. Ball has been worse than useless whenever he's come in so I'd like to see Curran given a chance if they change two of the quicks. If they are going to give Crane a go, like they should have done in the summer, then Curran offers a better prospect with the bat too. I dont agree with Vaughan about Cook like. I don't see the problem with him as anything more than him being out of nick. He's just got to work through it.

India was last year for us too so it's only fair to count both.

Between us and you? Possibly, we have been shocking in our last two tours (Australia and India) but we were good in SA. Didn't you get hammered off Sri Lanka though? The Stokes situation is been massive for us in this tour though. Had we not had it and the fitness issues we've had we would have been much more competitive I believe. Of course that can never be proven.

My whole point from the start was that no team is looking good away from home at the minute. So the fact we've looked worse than you in Australia doesn't go against that argument at all.

Looking at this series you would appear to be but overall no I don't really think so. I'd say we're pretty even, especially when Stokes is back in. I think we will both continue to struggle away from conditions that suit us.

By no means am I suggesting you shouldn't revel in your win, it's fully deserved. I'm just saying I'm not convinced you have the makings of a great team with the players you have at the moment. You have a good bowling attack, the worlds best batsman and another who is top class. You've got something to build on but the others who are playing at the moment haven't impressed me over a while now.

As I said, I do rate Warner and I'm well aware Renshaw hasn't played but up until this series he had been opening for you for the last year so I mentioned him as part of your squad. And I said the Marsh's have had good knocks but I've watched them a few times before and they don't impress me at all. Like I said, I wouldn't get any more excited about stuffing us here than I would about beating the West Indies. We have been poor and have missed one of the most important players in our team. Your lot will be full of confidence and I'm sure that will help you going forward, but other than Smith and Warner your batsmen are ordinary especially when they aren't playing in the conditions they know well. Maybe they will improve over the next couple of years but I can't see that any of them are particularly exciting prospects.

Your attack looks good but only Smith really looks good with the bat (I do rate Warner but he's not done anything special so far this series). Bancroft and Renshaw are nothing special, Usman can't perform outside Australia and hasn't looked great, neither of the Marsh's have ever looked much (obviously they've both had a good knock each against us), the jury is out on Paine, his stats don't suggest there's much there but he's don't pretty well on his comeback. If there was another series in England in the summer I wouldn't be concerned about any of them. Even Smith would be a much lesser threat. South Africa will be a good test for you, especially if AB and Steyn play. But I wouldn't be getting too excited just yet. You have hammered us tbf but don't let our deficiencies in this series make you think you're better than what you are.

There's not really a team in the world who seem able to win regularly away from home at the minute. India have swept aside everyone this year but all the series they have played have been in conditions they know how to play in. Can they do the same away from the sub continent? I doubt it personally. We have been comfortable at home but were poor in India and are looking poor again now. Australia weren't great in India or Bangladesh.

Who are the calls for our players to retire from? I've not heard them here. Clearly given his age, Anderson isn't going to have more than a couple of years left in him but I don't see any of the others calling it a day any time soon. Cook is out of nick at the moment but I think he's got a lot still to give and I've no doubt Root will get back to his best. Our bowlers are completely unsuited to Australian conditions. That was the fear before the series started and has been proven right. Of course having probably the best all rounder in the world unavailable hurt us massively but the fitness of Wood, Finn and Roland Jones also did. I don't think there's any need for a completely overhaul of the team, but we certainly need to put some focus into developing bowlers who can be more effective in overseas conditions, both spinners and quicks. And we also need a change of mentality. The way Bayliss has gone about things has done wonders for our white ball game but we don't seem the right mentality when things are going wrong. We either keep going to hard and lose too many stupid wickets or we are too meek (like we have been so far this series). Both ways of playing lead to the collapses that we see all too often.

Off to see it tonight. Can't wait.

Good to see some batsmen (Stoneman and Malan) gut it out under pressure. I think them two look like they could be decent test players. Vince not so much. Stoneman needs to learn how to get out the way of bouncers (not the dog from neighbours) though or he'll never get a century against the Aussies.

All the best you old cunt.

I'd snap your hand of for top 17 for this season.

I suspect they'd charge you for doing something like that up here.

Personally I'd be trying that in the games coming up that we have next to no chance of winning. Arguably Lester was our best chance of points for the rest of the year.

Has there been some fall out between Shelvey and Rafa? I can't understand him not playing. Hayden has been looking more and more like he's about as good as Colback. Shelvey and Merino are just about our two best players and both need to play for me. I agree with Parky that we should be knocking the 4-4-2 on the head, our defence just isn't good enough to manage with it. Especially without Lascelles.

So it is about his fitness. He didn't bowl at all in the tour game the other day which makes me wonder what the point of him playing was. I saw a bit of Wood's bowling at the end of the first day and he looked like he was going at a good pace and getting a bit of swing. He went for 11 off his first over but got two wickets and only went for 2.5 in the first innings.

Boycott is a lot more honest about the state of the performances than a lot of the other commentators are but he really does repeat himself far too much to enjoy his commentary. The others that BT, even the Aussies, are pretty good (it's always good to hear Swanny compare a good catch to one of Pav's saves) but I do feel it's much better on Sky.

Aye I went to see that last week as there was nothing else of interest out. Not my type of thing but not bad.

No I watched it ages ago. Come on.

Has very much a TV movie feel about it but I really enjoyed this.

I've not taken time off for the next one though so maybe that will improve our luck.