23 ahead, 3 wickets left. Batting been terrible? Bowling been good? Game could well be over by lunch tomorrow... be gutted if had tickets for day 3 4 or 5
Terrible batting overall. Lots of good bowling but when you consider how many wickets have been gifts that tells the story.
Assuming it finishes by lunch on day 3 then days 4 & 5 should get refunds as no cricket played. Imagine the food waste as they would have catered for 5 days for a full house.
Just watching some of highlights. From what I've been reading pitch and conditions have been helpful to batamen but a few dodgy shots. Shame me that it's only going to last 2 1/2 days but rather this kind of pitch than the one at lords.
lords was just an easy batting track england bottled it on. imo england should only need cook and root tomorrow the rest are just fodder to the aussies while those two score the 80 odd runs needed
Interesting to see what happens with Bairstow. Comes in and immediately found out the same way he was when last played test cricket (although apparebtly was a brilliant bouncer than anyone would struggle against). I I think the problem is, the step up from county to test is huge. Unlike the prem where players play against the best each week so step up isn't as big, in county with the only 1 overseas player allowed young English players don't play against top quality each week. They don't face guys that bowl 90mph at your throat so immediately come under threat when making that step up. I think that's the issue people may have with football. They say making more home grown players play will make England better, but if they are playing against worse players then it won't make them a better player and will just get found out at top level.
having seen countless balls just evade the edge i would say at times both teams have been unplayable with ball in hand but i'd say 4/5 wickets have been trhown away poorly too... bowling has been top top class in spells. some of it not so much (stark) over all i would say 4 aussies and 3 england players have been piss poor with bat
its was not the same way though.. on tur he was done to fuller balls. Its like this. ballance was out of form. he's got to go work on it. bell is bang out of form. he did ok on this one but had a bit of luck too lyth is completely out of his depth. buttler has been woeful... nobody is calling there but today he trhew his wicket away/ ............. the other point is they all look good in ODI cos its bolwing restricted. you get a white ball and have to bowl in a channel and get whacked all the time. its not a great game for bowlers
Johnson M has bowled some brilliant balls to really put our top order in trouble and now Fin had come in to do the same for England with the odd expensive over thrown in. Both sides have tried to rattle along at 5 am over and that's the trouble. They have forced the scoring when not needing to on this pitch. Will be done and dusted before tea today, the Aussie tail will wag and leave England needing 100-ish. Not looking good for Anderson
Oh dear, it's a big decision who comes in. Would Broad, Finn, Wood and Ali be enough to take 20 wickets?
Let's get these convict ****s rattled out rapid and knock the paltry total off before lubch. DIRE news on Anderson
no... it really depends on the pitch. finn took 5 yesterday. last game at lords anderson took none. If theres movement then the home team should have bolwers out there capable of banging it in. finn got huge movement and it was so dangeorus all day yesterday. I think wood can go do the same. his line is brilliant. stokes can be consistent on line and tie up an end. But i think england need the batsmen to front up. lyth and bell are not up to it. hope it pisses down in test next week... i'd take the draw after finsihing this one off quick then its a last test shoot out.
lot of talk about cricket being all t20 now. do you thin kthe batting shown by both sides owes a lot to not facing such bolwing and being able to slog all day? I think the bowler yesterday by both sides was top class. The amount of seam movement and ball just whistling past the edge was so dangerous... no bouncers in t20.. just run in quick and deliver... get it in the choke hole... be defensive... then suddenly its 4 slips and the ball up round your ears. anderson, finn, jonhson were pretty impressive.
The Aussie's invented modern test cricket and made 4 and over scoring the norm, other sides just couldnt live with that to start with. What was needed was old fashioned Boycott batting yesterday. Bell, Root and Warner could have got very good scores after getting a start, but wanted to attack the bowlers and got out to poor shot selection....as did Ali and Broad when a big partnership was on
T20 has certainly introduced some new batting skills but it has damaged the game overall. Its similar to the premier league football, lots of goals with teams going mad to attack at the moment but only chelsea know how to defend properly hence chelsea win the league.
