Yes, some of England's selections have been bizarre. None of the selectors seemed to notice Tremlett had lost his pace, Finn is supposedly in poor shape, Panesar isn't bowling well and adds nothing else to the team, at the moment Bairstow is neither a keeper nor a batsman at Test level (his batting average is now in the 20s). The decision not to call up a replacement for Trott when he left the tour was also a bit odd. Borthwick is an odd one as well. He was top of Durham's batting averages last year and 14th in their bowling averages so England have picked him as a bowler.
It's hard to think of a way that England could get any worse. Oh well, another "innings" coming up to show us new depths of ineptitude.
I turned on at 8-2 last night and really thought it must have been a recording of something else. Just a short while later at 20 something -5 the reality bit hard.
Seems that way .Rodgers is on 114 not out ,the others are just going for it .It could be all over today :-(
What the hell was that from England? It literally just gets worse and worse. Bowled out for 166 after 32 overs, in a test match, when they have 2 and a half days to bat. Nonsense. Dreadful end to a dreadful and embarrassing series.
I wake up in almost excited expectation as to how bad England have been overnight. I am never let down. A months' worth of ODI cock-ups to come, no doubt. Cook looked completely shot talking after the game. Trouble is, can't think of who could step in as captain.
But Broad has been a pretty poor captain in the ODI's. He has never struck me as a leader of men, bit too self centered. Don't think Bell has ever been a captain in domestic cricket, think he'd be suspect based upon how wound up he used to get from sledging etc.
Can't really criticise Broad in this series, or many of the bowlers actually. He does the logical one, considering his position as ODI and T20 captain.
In the 10 innings England have batted in this series, they have lost the first wicket for less than 10 runs on 7 occasions. Cook was 5 of those dismissals, and of course is our captain. Talk about starting as you mean to go on.
Contrast that with Australia, who have only done that twice in 10 innings, and they came in 2nd test where they only reached 133-3 before declaring.
I actually thought he was going to cry at one point. He was like a bumbling bafoon in that interview. Hardly striking an inspirational figure. Who was it that said, "It's easy to Captain the ship in calm waters?"