I loved how when Overton took the slip catch to dismiss Pant, Jonny Bairstow leapt into Craigo’s arms, rather than pick him up like he did Joe Root!
What are they putting into the water at Sussex that they are producing fine pace bowlers across all forms of cricket these days?
Apparently he will indeed miss finals day due to the IPL. Wonder if that means Sussex play an extra batter (they looked very light in that department), or if Robinson will come in for him (assuming that the ECB release him).
Shame not too many fans at the Lashings match at the Ageas yesterday. It was a good day out and saw the Vipers play for the first time. I had no idea they wre all so young! The batting was good but I felt that the fielding was not so good. Still, it was very watchable with both games reaching an exciitng conclusion. Off to the Oval on Friday for the Test match.
Steven Finn: Sussex to sign Middlesex fast bowler after 17 seasons - BBC Sport Good luck to him!! Compared with Anderson, he is still a spring chicken!!! Perhaps a change of county and environments will help him find that energy of his former years as he seems to have been rather underused this summer.
So now that it's been confirmed that Abbas will miss this week due to quarantine, I'm guessing our side might look something like: Holland, Weatherley, Alsop, Gubbins, Vince, Dawson, McManus, Barker, Abbott, Crane, Wheal. If there's to be any difference to that XI, Organ would be the obvious one. Whether in place of Crane if they want to strengthen the batting, or in place of Dawson if his finger isn't ready for four day cricket yet.
I suspect the next month will go a long way to shaping how next season's schedule will look. And maybe long beyond that too. For all the positive feedback to date on the three group structure, 12 sides are now left playing glorified friendlies for the next month. I'm dubious if the feedback will still be so overwhelmingly positive at the end of that. One suggested change that I don't yet recall seeing anywhere could be bin off D2 and D3 (ie 12 sides finish their red ball season after the group stage), and have the 50 over competition played at the same time as D1 rather than at the same time as the 100. It could either be a 12 team only 50 over competition, or all 18 teams could participate but with the six D1 sides putting out weakened sides in the 50 over competition. (Although for some, those weakened sides might still be stronger than the weakened sides they played in the 50 over competition this year - very much depends who you "lose" to D1 cricket vs who you lose to the 100. By having white ball cricket clashing with red ball cricket, rather than fellow white cricket, the red ball only and white ball only cricketers aren't impacted. Eg Chris Wood or Keith Barker or James Fuller for us.)
Really looking forward to the end of this season, can Hants win a hat-trick of trophies?... https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/58347265
