Cricket thread

[Chromatic]

Although what just happened as I hit post reply doesn't encourage any positive thoughts at all.

 

[jowwy]

Thats the test match gone…….unless moen and butler, go hell for leather

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Now in 'battling to save' mode.

 

[Grant Fondo]

only 199 needed to win! LOL.

 

[matticus]

I hate to bring the G*ardian into this civilised thread, but their over-by-over page is a great source of entertainment. This reader email (Re: why Sibley isn't more liked):

“Monsieur Starbuck is not wrong about Hameed’s stance versus whatever you would call what Sibley does while waiting for the ball,” says Robert Wilson. “Cricket fans are oddly embarrassed by an uncomely stance in a proper batter. They’ll accept a hundred Peter Willeys or any number of tail-enders who look like broken bagpipes tossed in a skip. They’ll even take the alien strangeness of Chanderpaul’s facing up. As Eoin Morgan’s red-ball career faded away, his stance began to look like he was undergoing some awful gastric catastrophe in a hostel bathroom. People didn’t want to see it anymore.

“But it also could be because Sibley quite literally has the wrong face. I’ve rarely seen a bloke who looks more like a smasher and a biffer. His run rate with that face is like Cary Grant having Noddy Holder’s accent.”

 

[jowwy]

12 overs since the last wicket

 

[jowwy]

Dreadful batting by england…..india well up for this

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Oh well. Great Test.

Shame we lost it, mind.

 

[Grant Fondo]

Well played India, brave declaration but positive.
If only our openers scared the cr*p out of them, alas not

 

[Tenacious Sloth]

I think we were beaten by a better team.

If I were to compare the two teams, man for man, I’d probably only choose Root and Anderson from the England lineup.

I know we have some good bowlers out (Archer and Broad), but I don’t think that is our problem.

Our batting is generally our downfall.

Great match though! Really looking forward to the rest of the series.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Joe Root and the bowlers were beaten by another team more like. Did you see that Joe now heads the records for the highest% of a team's total runs in a series, ahead of Sir Don? Depressing - he and the bowlers need others to step up.

 

[AndyRM]

Root is a great player, but a terrible captain. A lot of questions around the ECB too. Changes are needed which has been obvious for some time, but they just aren't happening. Very frustrating.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Root is a great player, but a terrible captain. A lot of questions around the ECB too. Changes are needed which has been obvious for some time, but they just aren't happening. Very frustrating.

It's not his strongest suit, agreed, but the batters really haven't helped, and that's their bag, and theirs alone.

 

[PaulB]

They (our players) seemed to want to extract vengeance on Jimmy's behalf and I thing that contributed to the defeat.

 

[matticus]

It's not his strongest suit, agreed, but the batters really haven't helped, and that's their bag, and theirs alone.

Yes.*
And more specifically, the Top3; the appaling stats of recent England openers are well known, and we lost by 150 runs, which is almost exactly what the Top3 should have delivered over 2 average innings(es).

But what's the point in moaning at them? No doubt those batters are doing their best - it just ain't good enough at this level, and we don't seem to have anyone as clear replacements for them. C'est la vie!

*(although the IND 9th wicket partnership was a bit of a freak situation, so I'm reluctant to condemn Root's captaincy ability just on that. And his post-match interview seemed bang-on, no delusions there, I thought.)