Have we just not practiced bowling to left handers? Wide after wide after wide. As if we've got runs to throw away...
I think this summer is evidence of our massive focus on limit overs cricket. I suppose it should come as no surprise; perhaps a more balanced approach is required
The fact is that 5 day cricket is the beautiful game, but is it really a spectator sport likely to make big money? Going for a day out at the cricket and seeing a bit of play without a result is much harder to sell than an afternoon of smacking the ball about!
Agreed. As much as I love test cricket, I can absolutely see why others may find it a tad dull at times when compared to limited overs - especially amongst the younger audience.
The "whack 'em about" form of the game evolved from (the purer) bat vs ball on a village green-type of surface. Both sets of skills (in the "longer game") became highly prized and were 'hard earned' by diligence & hours of practice. Now, sadly, the "slog-'em as hard & as far as you can" format will, eventually, see the demise of traditional cricket as we know it. Schools cricket - declining; Parks League cricket - already gone; Hampshire League cricket - declining; County Cricket - struggling to survive. If kids don't get encouraged (and taught!) to play the "traditional game" from an early age the cricket will slowly die...... Maybe to be replaced with a sort of cricketing version of 'english baseball' Perish the thought!
St Johns Wood tube station announcement this morning:- "If anyone knows how to get Steve Smith out please report to the England dressing room".
You can predict that Smith will be out cheaply in the 5th test if the Ashes is decided by then. So rain is predicted to interrupt play today, in the September tests it will be bad light. From my time in the UK, the light can get very dull from 4 onwards, even in the second week of September, so it is likely to impact on the outcome of the Oval Test.
Floodlights were used in the County Championship in 2015, still didn´t stop play ending early in those final round of matches. if I recall.
It is only sad for the West Indies that they cannot capitalise on his talents. It is great for England, though, and good luck to him in his international and domestic career. I hope he can stay injury free and transfers his loyalties to Middlesex. PS: We also have a foreign born Prime Minister!!
But that is hardly surprising as we have links with so many countries and so have immigrants from those countries. Throw in the fact that there are financial incentives to playing for England (or GB in some sports) and easy to see why someone who spent formative years here will choose to play for us.
Another wash-out then - shouldn't have held it so late in the year. Or could have used logic and started at 10am rather than 11am.
Starting at 10pm on a hot day in July is one thing, at 10pm in the middle of August is very different. Add in the people who have paid tickets for the start of play to begin at 11. They would be mightily cheesed off to find out it started an hour earlier. I can see you would like to see more flexibility but that is up to the ICC to work out. I suppose that is the beauty of playing cricket in Oz, India, Dubai, West Indies, Sri Lanka, South Africa - the weather patterns are much more predicable.