The Cricket Thread.

[Tmee2020]

Originally Posted by scoundrel

M...The worst Australian bowler in this match was Mitchell Starc, who had a poor game by his standards, but barring fitness issues there is no real case for dropping him.

About Starc. During the World Cup he's bowling high 140k yorkers that are moving 3-4", and some top bats might just have well been trying to play him with a broom handle for all the good it did them. When he's in that sort of mood- not even God can play that stuff.

Yet at looking at the pitch charts at Edgbaston- how many deliverys like that did he serve up? I can only remember one- Root nicked it to first slip. So what is the reason? I can only think that he has no confidence in being able to land it.

I thought Johnson bowled well in the last Test but again he should be asking more questions with the full-length delivery, right up in the blockhole. There are a lot of bats sitting right back in the crease.

[scoundrel]

Originally Posted by tmee2000

About Starc. During the World Cup he's bowling high 140k yorkers that are moving 3-4", and some top bats might just have well been trying to play him with a broom handle for all the good it did them. When he's in that sort of mood- not even God can play that stuff.

Yet at looking at the pitch charts at Edgbaston- how many deliverys like that did he serve up? I can only remember one- Root nicked it to first slip. So what is the reason? I can only think that he has no confidence in being able to land it.

I thought Johnson bowled well in the last Test but again he should be asking more questions with the full-length delivery, right up in the blockhole. There are a lot of bats sitting right back in the crease.

That full length delivery is even harder to keep out when it swings in. I've seen Mitchell Johnston bowl that one too. Darren Gough used to get a lot of people out that way, reverse-swinging the old ball. Flintoff bowled this delivery to good effect as well. Cricket hasn't changed as much as all that; it still needs skill and great speed of reflexes to spot and keep out the fast inswinging yorker. It is even trickier if the ball just before reared up at your throat from just a tiny bit short of a length.

[victor meldrew]

Originally Posted by jokerman

At the moment Woakes isn't match fit. As for Woods or Bresnan. Bresnan is the better choice.

I was unaware Woakes was not match fit, but wondering what Plunkett is doing in the squad as he has hardly turned his arm over this summer.

[Oswald]

Jim Maxwell from the ABC says Clarke could be on his way out as Captain and international cricket altogether.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/33742723

[Tmee2020]

I think they will do a straight swop, Marsh for Vosges. The other option would be to bat Marsh at 3. Clarke's average dropped below 50 in this Test, for the first time in a long time. I don't think they would drop him during this series (not a lot of other options, for one thing), but it's highly likely in my view that he will retire at the end of the tour.

There was a fair bit of drama about him rejoining after an extended break due to injury last summer. The word I heard was that the rest of the team didn't particularly want him back, but Clarke insisted.

Let me say that Clarke is a terrific slip, but that dropped catch- Jees! England probably would have been 3/40 (Lyth was out soon after) and it would have been a very nervous time in the dressing room. What if they are then say 5/60?

[marrow]

Be interesting to see if both teams can play well in the same test. I expect Marsh to bat at 4 and Clarke at 5. If Clarke fails in the next two tests, he will know he has to retire at the series end. Even if he does well, it might be best he does, as Australia plays West Indies and NZ in the home summer, a good time for Smith to resume captaincy and blood a new batsman. I would keep with Neville, Haddin's batting
has been poor over the last year. Depending on the wicket, Siddle might play. Better control from him than Starc. Anderson missing the Trent Bridge test where Australia perform well at, will be a big loss. Finn bowled very well, but his is a bit like Starc, hot and cold.

[scoundrel]

Originally Posted by tmee2000

Let me say that Clarke is a terrific slip, but that dropped catch- Jees! England probably would have been 3/40 (Lyth was out soon after) and it would have been a very nervous time in the dressing room. What if they are then say 5/60?

It would have been a hell of a turn up, but both England and Australia have successfully defended targets around 120 runs before; it can happen. Austrlia have good bowling and on this Edgbaston pitch anything close to 200 runs would have been hard for England to chase. You are right, Tmee; that drop of Ian Bell was a bad one, in view of the situation. It was probably Australia's last chance to put England under pressure.

Lyth is a weak link, I think. In fairness, his second innings dismissal was off a good ball. He needn't have referred it though; he was bang to rights lbw. But that's better than being bowled for an opening batter because it means he was at least covering his stumps. He played down the wrong line and was deceived by good bowling from Josh Hazlewood; Hazlewood has not set the world on fire but he has done himself good in this series with sterling, honest third seamer support bowling, keeping runs down and always posing a serious threat. You wouldn't pick him in front of Ryan Harris in Harris's prime, but he sure as hell ain't rubbish. I also think Hazlewood is going to improve and become a more complete bowler with test experience, and as I say, he isn't rubbish now. So that dismissal lbw to Hazlewood, taken in isolation, is one of those things; it will always happen. It used to happen to Boycott (if Graham Corling was bowling), Atherton, Gooch (especially if Terry Alderman was bowling); it doesn't prove anything.

What worries me about Lyth is the way he flicks foolishly and early in his innings at wide ones he should be leaving. This is a common failing in left handers. Even Allan Border had this failing when he first started out, though he mastered it quickly, being exceptionally self-disciplined. My point is that opening batsmen should stay in long enough to see off the new ball. Haydn and Langer, Australia's last really great opening pair, were both aggressive and positive in style, fast scoring; but I never saw either of them dismissed flicking at wide one outside off in that desultory way. I sometimes saw Langer dismissed playing a full blooded cut shot to that sort of delivery, but at least he was flashing hard and when he connected, even with the top edge, it went like a tracer bullet and if he got caught in the clips, then it was a bloody good catch. Usually though, he middled that cut shot and no one bothered to run after the ball. Lyth's first innings dismissal was a get-out shot, always going to slips unless he was lucky and missed completely.

He has got one more chance I wouldn't have given him and I hope he comes good, but I don't think he will.

[jokerman]

One for everyone to look out for as a future international. Oliver Hannon-Dalby.Who's 26 yrs old. And a former Yorks & now Warks player. He bowled well today against Glamorgan & if he can show some more consistancy, he may well get an England call up.

[rpsaturnal]

Oh man, what a nightmare I had a few days ago. I dreamt that Australia lost the 3rd Test. And it took less than three days. What a nightmare.

So when is the 3rd Test starting then?

[SanteeFats]

So is this funny