Off Topic Cricket 2019

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Yes, I'm probably over optimistic, but you're not a realist, you're a downright pessimist. How many times did you write us off against India last summer, and how many times in the World Cup? You hate anyone slagging off the England football team, but seem to revel in doing it yourself to the cricket team. It's plain that we have focussed too much on white ball cricket and our red ball game has suffered as a consequence, but these are not poor cricketers.

I don't know where you get the idea that Stokes is thick - how does bowling a no-ball make him so? Root should lose the captaincy if - as now seems very likely - we lose the Ashes, and Stokes seems to me to be the logical candidate to replace him. If not him, then who? Buttler would be a good pick, I would say, but his form - other than a good second innings at Lord's - is such that he's not guaranteed his place in the team. Perhaps giving him the wicket-keeping role back as well as the captaincy would be the answer. Bairstow could then move up the order.

England chasing 359 and Burns just got out. Even I can't see us winning this one.
By winning the ODI World Cup, ok in a very tight final, England proved they have good batsmen and bowlers. It's not, from my perspective, the fault of the players, they are great cricketers, but the problem is with your selectors picking a test team based on your ODI team.
 
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By winning the ODI World Cup, ok in a very tight final, England proved they have good batsmen and bowlers. It's not, from my perspective, the fault of the players, they are great cricketers, but the problem with your selectors picking a test team based on your ODI team.

Joe Root is our only World-class Test batsman and sadly bang out of form, the rest are a mix of good county standard batsmen or ODI batsmen, at this level there's a huge chasm of difference between the disciplines and England have been found out, especially by the standard of the Aussie attack. When a bowler like Starc hasn't featured it tells you what we're up against...
 
By winning the ODI World Cup, ok in a very tight final, England proved they have good batsmen and bowlers. It's not, from my perspective, the fault of the players, they are great cricketers, but the problem is with your selectors picking a test team based on your ODI team.


Joe Root is our only World-class Test batsman and sadly bang out of form, the rest are a mix of good county standard batsmen or ODI batsmen, at this level there's a huge chasm of difference between the disciplines and England have been found out, especially by the standard of the Aussie attack. When a bowler like Starc hasn't featured it tells you what we're up against...

The only carry-over from the World Cup is Jason Roy, who has admittedly failed. Last year we picked Buttler against India based on his one-day form and he was very close to being Man-Of-The-Series, only being narrowly nudged out by Curran. There's nothing to say that a good one-day player can't become a good Test player (Warner is an example), but our lot just haven't played enough recent red-ball cricket.
 
The only carry-over from the World Cup is Jason Roy, who has admittedly failed. Last year we picked Buttler against India based on his one-day form and he was very close to being Man-Of-The-Series, only being narrowly nudged out by Curran. There's nothing to say that a good one-day player can't become a good Test player (Warner is an example), but our lot just haven't played enough recent red-ball cricket.

The West Indies tour went tits-up with some spectacular batting failures and we managed 85 against bloody Ireland at Lords, this malaise in batting seems to have developed over the last year but even when Cookie was around it always seemed to be 30-3 when him and Root were doing a rescue act. Our top three if you count Root as a No.4 is the big problem and county cricket isn't high enough in standard with the Test schedule as it is these days, these new batsmen rarely face proper test quality bowling in the county game...
 
We've made a game of it but tomorrow will be tricky in the first hour particularly if there's cloud about and with the new ball due we'll do well to get near the target. Could be a classic if we do...
 
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Bravo Root, Denly and Stokes playing the night watchman role.....

Proper test cricket and tomorrow could be a belter....
 
Trouble is England have been in this situation before & have folded before lunch chasing a big score, I hope this time they can play like today & take it easy & just accumulate runs from bad balls, first hour & new ball crucial
 
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