The Cricket Thread

[Meenzer 16940]

  On 19/08/2021 at 08:12, Dr Gloom said:

i've got a funny feeling we might see ken show his face again this winter 

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[Alex 38244]

  On 19/08/2021 at 08:04, Dr Gloom said:

oh great, red ball specialist dawid malan recalled to save the day 

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Tbh I would say both Malan and Vince are better options than a lot of those who’ve been picked recently 

[Dr Gloom 24591]

  On 19/08/2021 at 08:28, Alex said:

Tbh I would say both Malan and Vince are better options than a lot of those who’ve been picked recently 

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i don't disagree, but it says which says everything about the state of test match cricket that two white ball specialists are next in line

[Dr Gloom 24591]

i'd even give roy another shot, but put him lower down the order this time and just tell him to play his natural game. for every duck, he might get a quick-fire 50, which is more than most of our top order batsmen have managed lately. 

the extent to which we rely on our bowlers and root's batting makes you realise how good the team of trott, pietersen, bell and coillingwood was. 

[Alex 38244]

I was just thinking of Collingwood the other day. How you’d rather watch Moeen bat any time but you’d take the former every time in a pressure situation 

[David Kelly 1434]

I read an article yesterday from earlier in the summer saying they thought Malan would get in and that Ed Smith's thinking all along was that he might be better suited on the hard Australian pitches than he is to English pitches.  The way he gets out here is in areas that thay they won't bowl over there.  The other side is of course that he's been playing well and dealing with the pressure of international cricket in white ball matches.

Of course it's difficult to see how he could do worse than Crawley has since Pakistan last year.

[Dr Gloom 24591]

his case is helped by the 100 he got in australia last time and his one day form but he seems about as suited to test cricket as most of them we've tried in recent years - hales, vince, roy, crawley, take your pick. all capable of scoring quickly and playing nice-looking shots, all unable to resist a waft outside stump

[Dr Gloom 24591]

he's probably worth a punt though when you look at the lack alternatives. dropping sibley and crawley is absolutely the right thing to do. i think their cause would be helped if you played this sort of player down at 6 instead of asking them to bat at 3 

[Alex 38244]

  On 19/08/2021 at 14:08, Dr Gloom said:

his case is helped by the 100 he got in australia last time and his one day form but he seems about as suited to test cricket as most of them we've tried in recent years - hales, vince, roy, crawley, take your pick. all capable of scoring quickly and playing nice-looking shots, all unable to resist a waft outside stump

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Actually I think it’s only Vince that had the temperament / decision making issue with driving at balls he should be leaving. It’s a technical issue with the others. I’d be looking at Foakes as the long term keeper too. 

[Dr Gloom 24591]

  On 19/08/2021 at 14:33, Alex said:

Actually I think it’s only Vince that had the temperament / decision making issue with driving at balls he should be leaving. It’s a technical issue with the others. I’d be looking at Foakes as the long term keeper too. 

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crawley was guilty of nicking behind loads, wasn't hales too? roy i remember less well though his test career was over in the blink of eye. of all of them i would say he potentially deserves another crack at some point, but stick him down at six ffs. 

agree about foakes - very harshly treated by selectors given his ability with the gloves and that his batting mindset seems suited to test cricket. there has been an obsession in recent years with always playing counter attacking wicketkeeper/batsmen instead of picking the best glovesman. 

[Alex 38244]

The daft bit is Foakes arguably the best batsman too (in tests) 

[RobinRobin 13183]

  On 19/08/2021 at 14:10, Dr Gloom said:

he's probably worth a punt though when you look at the lack alternatives. dropping sibley and crawley is absolutely the right thing to do. i think their cause would be helped if you played this sort of player down at 6 instead of asking them to bat at 3 

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There's been a few openers over the years who have started in the middle order.

[RobinRobin 13183]

  On 19/08/2021 at 15:38, Dr Gloom said:

crawley was guilty of nicking behind loads, wasn't hales too? roy i remember less well though his test career was over in the blink of eye. of all of them i would say he potentially deserves another crack at some point, but stick him down at six ffs. 

agree about foakes - very harshly treated by selectors given his ability with the gloves and that his batting mindset seems suited to test cricket. there has been an obsession in recent years with always playing counter attacking wicketkeeper/batsmen instead of picking the best glovesman. 

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Gilchrist for wicketkeepers and Warne for wrist spinners.  Everyone trying to find the next one, rather than playing the best players for each area of expertise.

[David Kelly 1434]

It's a shame Foakes injured himself or I think there'd be a strong posibility he'd be in the team now.  He's about the only batsman who's come in to the team in the last five years who actually looks like a test player.

[Tom 14519]

Wonderful day today, superb bowling. India rattled tbh

[Dr Gloom 24591]

brilliant day - even overton looked threatening. i'm desperate for hameed to make a score 

[Alex 38244]

Jimmy ❤️❤️❤️

[Dr Gloom 24591]

3-6

[Dr Gloom 24591]

I’m delighted for Hameed. Hope he converts it tomorrow 

[Alex 38244]

  On 25/08/2021 at 17:39, Dr Gloom said:

I’m delighted for Hameed. Hope he converts it tomorrow 

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Noticeable how busy he and Burns were. Much more able to rotate the strike / keep the scoreboard ticking. It prevents the kind of buildup of pressure you have when Sibley gets into a rut. 

[Dr Gloom 24591]

  On 26/08/2021 at 06:30, Alex said:

Noticeable how busy he and Burns were. Much more able to rotate the strike / keep the scoreboard ticking. It prevents the kind of buildup of pressure you have when Sibley gets into a rut. 

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The fact he has more than one scoring shot helps. He looks like a proper batsman: solid forward defence, can play off the front or back foot on both sides of the wicket, good head position as the ball is released. What a shame he lost the last few years of his career.

[Alex 38244]

  On 26/08/2021 at 07:08, Dr Gloom said:

The fact he has more than one scoring shot helps. He looks like a proper batsman: solid forward defence, can play off the front or back foot on both sides of the wicket, good head position as the ball is released. What a shame he lost the last few years of his career.

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Aye. Says everything about the state of the game that a talent like that wasn’t nurtured.

[Dr Gloom 24591]

  On 26/08/2021 at 15:36, Alex said:

Aye. Says everything about the state of the game that a talent like that wasn’t nurtured.

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Shame he went into his shell a little this morning as he looked so fluent yesterday. Still an impressive return to the side. He has to be worth persevering with

[RobinRobin 13183]

Amazing what a solid opening partnership does for middle and lower order batsmen.  Be good if these two can get a few more this morning and get the Indians in just after lunch, just to wear them out a bit more.  Probably wouldn't risk Jimmy, though.

[Alex 38244]

That was Anderson’s 400th test wicket in England 😮