Cricket

[Whistler40145]

With Green taking all the three wickets

Looks like he’s going to be an asset for Australia

 

[Class800]

If only Malan was still fixing his helmet! Looks like a collapse is coming again - we need to seriously increase the gardening and try to get as few overs in as we can tonight

 

[daodao]

As expected, it's now 83-3.

101-5.

It's nearly all over. Who will leave Australia first: the vile Djokovic or the hopeless England XI?

 

[Class800]

Sad and familiar collapse. The Carey decisions were pivotal. But the collapsing tendency of England is concerning. They should also be better at controlling the pace of the game

 

[Busaholic]

101-5.

It's nearly all over. Who will leave Australia first: the vile Djokovic or the hopeless England XI?

The only question now is can Pope better his best second innings score in test cricket of 29? Yes, that's right, England continue to pick as a specialist batsman someone who will never win a match for them, unless every test was played at Kennington Oval possibly. Virat Kohli steps down as India captain having lost a series 2-1 in South Africa, Root should chuck it in too, having given it his best shot, being entirely let down by his seniors. Ashley Giles is the Boris Johnson in all this, wanting all power and getting rid of Ed Smith in case the latter showed him up. Djokovic is a big prick scared about having a little prick - hope he pays all costs from his vast fortune.

p.s. Pope bowled for 5

 

[Whistler40145]

Is it time for Joe Root to relinquish the England Captaincy?

 

[Pakenhamtrain]

9/124. This is ending tonight and as I type it is done.

Australia win by 146 runs and win the series 4-0

 

[Whistler40145]

England need to start with an empty score sheet

 

[Pakenhamtrain]

England lost 10/56.

 

[Whistler40145]

Unfortunately,, we never left the UK

 

[Falcon1200]

From 68-0 to 124 all out. That is some achievement, even by England's standards. I don't see how Root can remain as Captain, whether or not there is an obvious replacement.

 

[Pakenhamtrain]

https://twitter.com/triplemcricket/status/1482655551482114048

Sir Ian probably sums up England fans everywhere.

 

[Whistler40145]

Will Sam Billings be replacing Jos Buttler as Wicketkeeper

 

[daodao]

With England at 52-0, it's time for a batting collapse, so that the match can end today.

As predicted. I should have made a bet, but I guess the odds would have been 1 in 100 in favour of it not happening.

 

[Pakenhamtrain]

https://twitter.com/TitusOReily/status/1482668222361272320

The English Cricket team may not have won a test, or been particularly good at cricket, but they managed to clear Australian customs which is no mean feat. #Ashes

 

[Class800]

We really need a new coach and a new captain. And to develop more in the skills of Test cricket, the particular skills of this format. How to defend, how to waste time, how to play for a draw, how to bowl boringly, how to sledge.

 

[43096]

Unfortunately,, we never left the UK

They should never have left the UK. Shame they didn't screw the visa applications up like Djokovic and get deported before it had started - it would have been less embarrassing.

Spineless, gutless, feckless, hopeless, hapless. They are an utter embarrassment.

 

[DelW]

We really need a new coach and a new captain. And to develop more in the skills of Test cricket, the particular skills of this format. How to defend, how to waste time, how to play for a draw, how to bowl boringly, how to sledge.

Hmmm, I'd point out that Australia won very convincingly without needing much of any of those.
England have some good batsmen and bowlers, but confidence is key, and England were increasingly lacking in that, right from the first ball in Brisbane when Burns departed with a first ball duck.

 

[Class800]

Australia have been the masters of sledging since as long as I remember. They are a great side and deserved to win.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Five of the England batsmen scored five runs or less in their second innings, with defeat coming on the third day of a five day Test Match.

 

[Pakenhamtrain]

Hmmm, I'd point out that Australia won very convincingly without needing much of any of those.
England have some good batsmen and bowlers, but confidence is key, and England were increasingly lacking in that, right from the first ball in Brisbane when Burns departed with a first ball duck.

Even then our sledging has dropped down quite a bit.

 

[Busaholic]

how to sledge.

Difficult to sledge when you're lying on the canvas out for the count. Perhaps we should adopt the Trump solution and claim that we won really and were robbed by everybody in charge of the counting of runs and wickets process, given they were all Australians after all and thus out to get us from the start!

 

[DelW]

Australia have been the masters of sledging since as long as I remember. They are a great side and deserved to win.

No disagreement with either of those, but my impression is that sledging is much reduced, probably because of stump microphones.
Though I'm sure that being an English batsman at the crease surrounded by close fielders getting in your ear is a pretty intimidating experience.

(Edited to add)
Congratulations to @Pakenhamtrain on his team's excellent performance, and thanks for coming on here so often to provide another perspective. Australia's batsmen wobbled occasionally, but their bowlers were absolutely relentless, and produced fine performances throughout.

 

[SteveM70]

A typical central contract for red ball cricket is £700,000 a season. The match fee is £14,000.

Talk about being in a comfort zone!

Should be a far smaller retainer and probably slightly higher match fees, that might persuade a few of them to knuckle down and graft rather than feel like they’ve “made it” once they land a central contract

 

[Class800]

Boland is an excellent 'boring bowler' - we need to find similar. And we really need a keeper who can stand up to the fast mediums - that puts the pressure on and keeps the batsmen under scrutiny. Australia deserve the plaudits - it's as much about their excellence as England's ineptitude. Australia do have weaknesses - a double left handed opening partnership and no front line leg spinner making the eleven, as well as no keeper who can stand up to the seamers except for Starc (and maybe Cummins?) - the Australian seamers are on the fast side though.

I do value having men around the bat as much as possible - even at the low level I played when younger, I recall how hard it was to face a bowler with the keeper standing up, 4 men around the bat, all chanting, clapping, swearing and chuntering during the bowler's run up and trying to 'accidentally' get in the way of the running between the wickets to get a run out by colliding with one of the running batsmen. I got run out for a duck once when the short leg cleverly moved into the running line, but not enough to be caught, and knocked me over. Cricket is meant to be a gentleman's game but there is a lot of underhand tactics always and it's hard to get rid of it really. I manage to pull out just in time of facing a ball once though when the keeper tried to belch loudly in the batsman's ear when the arm comes over trick. Are tactics from lower levels still relevant when players are better or can players ignore that sort of thing? Who knows.

 

[Busaholic]

More food for thought:-

The combined total of Australia's first two wickets in the match was 12 runs: only once before have Australia put on so few runs in an Ashes for those match since the nineteenth century. This defeat is almost entirely due to the batsmen and the selection process, the latter almost certainly a significant contribution to two of the defeats, arguably three.

 

[Class800]

More food for thought:-

The combined total of Australia's first two wickets in the match was 12 runs: only once before have Australia put on so few runs in an Ashes for those match since the nineteenth century. This defeat is almost entirely due to the batsmen and the selection process, the latter almost certainly a significant contribution to two of the defeats, arguably three.

I agree - there may be some credence in Crawley's point about poor pitches in county cricket

In other cricket news, a good start for England U19 vs Bangladesh in the youth world cup - an early wicket for Boyden, caught behind. Keeper was back which I don't really like unless the bowling is 90mph. But at least he didn't drop it. No S. Baker or Barnwell for England. If Horton is standing back, wonder why didn't pick another all rounder with Rew keeping?

Bangladesh U19 are now 8 for 4 wickets against England U19 after 9.2 overs!

 

[stantheman]

Not wishing to be wise after the event but I did predict England would not make 200 before the series began on the forum here . I stand by my claim Root is overrated as a batsman

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Have a look at the very first postings on this long-running thread and England were then a totally different kettle of fish to the team that has just been utterly useless in an Ashes series.

 

[Class800]

I agree with that.

How can we address the short-comings?

My views are controversial probably but I think (and I expect none of these will be done):

• No overseas players in English domestic cricket - I get the argument about raising standards but it mainly serves to give foreign players experience of our unique conditions, so it disadvantages the national side
• Introduce DRS into county championship - I hate technology in cricket, as many county fans do, but there will be no getting rid of technology from Tests now sadly, so we need to have comparable conditions in the 1st division of the championship, with replays for run outs (not the traditional approach that it has to be run out by a long way to be given out) and reviews for decisions, plus checking of no balls, as we don't take such a rigorous approach to no balls in the domestic game (fine by me), but it gets us caught out in Tests when marginal no balls are now being called costing us key wickets
• More incentives for developing English qualified young cricketers and putting England U19 players into the first team at county level
• All national matches to take precedence over all county matches - to have no repeat of the availability issues for England U19 seen last year - it should be the best 11 age-appropriate cricketers in England, barring injury
• Improve pitches in the county game and ECB to direct what pitches they want counties to provide
• English selectors to have control over availability of England pathway players and what role they are able to be used in for counties, e.g. he is an opener - if he's going to be at #6, he is not released for duty.

England need to improve ruthlessness somehow - today in the youth world up, we let Bangladesh recover from 51/9 to 97 all out. Not a good score, but an unacceptable last wicket partnership.