Cricket

[flymo]

The Ashes will be back where they belong before Christmas, just how it should be.

The 'Ashes' never leaves England, so yes, I totally agree.

 

[DownSouth]

There are rumours going around that some new ones will be made, ideally from a bat used by Alistair Cook (he won't be needing one in Melbourne if this over rate continues). This is quite a decent idea, given that the general consensus is that the ashes in the urn were accidentally emptied out, and after discovery replaced by random ash from a fireplace.

England's inability to keep pushing on after the fifth wicket falls is continuing, this time they eventually got all ten wickets but at a huge cost - 5/242 after the last time two specialist batsmen were at the crease and an extra 47 after the last batsman got out.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Australia 385 all out...(103.3 overs)
Smith 111
Warner 60
Haddin 55

Broad 3-100
Anderson 2-60
Swann 2-71

England 146-4
Cook 72
Carberry 43

Play still in progress
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
At the end of play....

England 180-4

Strange to report that Johnson was the only Australian bowler not to claim a wicket.

 

[DownSouth]

Strange to report that Johnson was the only Australian bowler not to claim a wicket.

He did get involved by taking the best catch of the summer so far though!

He was also the bowler putting on the pressure at the other end leading up to two of the four wickets so far, and the effect of good bowling partnerships is not something to be underestimated - the Australian bowlers understand well from the McGrath-Warne years that it's a team performance and a run of tight overs restricting runs works for the wicket just as much as the wicket ball itself.

In Adelaide, Johnson took eight wickets himself and was the guy at the other end for four of the remaining twelve. In Brisbane he took nine and was at the other end for seven of the remaining eleven.

So long as England don't pull off the improbable possibility and match Bradman's side of 1936-37 in coming back from 2-0, I can't see Mitch's unshakeable hold on Player of the Series being broken. As well as the 17 wickets in two matches he is also only ten runs behind the best of the visitors on the batting charts!

 

[Johnuk123]

One wicket away from the expected and predictable collapse partly due to the primadona Pietersen who is turning into an ageing waste of space.

Incidentally the last time we were on this ground we overnighted at 180-6 and next day were all out for 187.

Just imagine how the Indians would have turned over this average Australian side.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

One wicket away from the expected and predictable collapse partly due to the primadona Pietersen who is turning into an ageing waste of space.

Incidentally the last time we were on this ground we overnighted at 180-6 and next day were all out for 187.

Just imagine how the Indians would have turned over this average Australian side.

I wouldn't agree that this is an average Australian side, batting it is probably well below average, but credit must be given to the bowling attack, which seems to be far superior to anything that they have mustered over the past few years ( yes, even when the 'young guns' - Patterson, Starc et al were playing). They are not giving anything away, drying up the runs and forcing errors...heartbreaking for me to say it but I do have a great deal of admiration for this attack. I don't think India would fare any better on Australian wickets.

 

[Johnuk123]

Australia 257 in front at tea without our inept bowlers taking a wicket so the series is gone and the whitewash is looking very likely.

Been a very long time since English test cricket was at such a low ebb and it's mostly self inflicted.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

There were hopes that having reached 190-4 that the England middle-order trademark collapse would not occur yet again, but of course, that would have been far to much to expect for the more cynical and realist amongst the England supporters and the last 6 wickets only added 61 runs. Australia then had the luxury of a first innings lead of 134.

England 251 all out....88 overs
Siddle 3-36
Harris 3-48

Australia 183-2....49 overs
Warner 112
Rogers 54

Match still in progress

 

[DownSouth]

I wouldn't agree that this is an average Australian side, batting it is probably well below average, but credit must be given to the bowling attack, which seems to be far superior to anything that they have mustered over the past few years ( yes, even when the 'young guns' - Patterson, Starc et al were playing). They are not giving anything away, drying up the runs and forcing errors...heartbreaking for me to say it but I do have a great deal of admiration for this attack. I don't think India would fare any better on Australian wickets.

I agree that the batting is average, we've got only two world-class batsmen in the side currently (Warner and the world's top cricketer in Clarke) and we're having to rely on England continuing to take the pressure off the moment they've taken five of our wickets.

A lineup reasonably similar to this one (featuring Harris, Siddle, Starc and Hilfenhaus) did whitewash India two summers ago, but the big thing this time around is that our first choice bowlers are all fit and in form, Siddle and Harris doing well avoiding injury and Mitchell Johnson resuming his 2009 World Cricketer of the Year form after a couple of poor years. Starc is still a first-choice ODI bowler, and while Cummins and Pattinson are pretty good they aren't quite as good as the first-pick attack.

 

[Chapeltom]

Well I didn't care about the Ashes anyway...

 

[Whistler40145]

Is it my imagination or does Alistair Cook give the impression of complacency & has lost his way and it's rubbing off onto the team?

IMHO he just doesn't have much fire & assertiveness e.g. Tony Greig, Ray Illingworth, Brian Close or Nasser Hussain.

Does anyone think the ECB could make a change of Captain at the end of the Ashes?

Also, how much longer will the ECB keep Matt Prior as Wicketkeeper before giving Jonny Bairstow the job.

 

[flymo]

One thing that sticks out to me is that most of the batsman out, on both sides, so far have been caught rather than bowled or LBW.

1st test.
Eng took 17 wickets, 13 caught, 3 bowled, 1 run out.
Aus took 20 wickets, 19 caught, 1 bowled.

2nd test
Eng took 12 wickets, 10 caught, 2 bowled
Aus took 20 wickets, 14 caught, 5 bowled, 1 lbw

3rd test (so far - stumps day 3)

Eng took 13 wickets, 11 caught, 1 bowled, 1 run out
Aus took 10 wickets, 7 caught, 1 bowled, 2 lbw

Out of the 42 wickets England have taken so far, only 6 have been bowled and not one single lbw. Thought they might have done better than that....

 

[Johnuk123]

Not only Prior but Anderson, Pietersen, and Swann look like they're finished.

The worst thing about this is a team of no-marks are rubbing our noses in it and are being talked up to something they aren't.

South Africa, India and Pakistan would not have rolled over like we have the English cricketers have been a disgrace from day one.

Most of our team out of form, no team spirit , Broad probably not going to bowl again, the last 2 tests are going to be really joyful.

 

[Whistler40145]

I agree, the whole touring party didn't look mentally or physically fit from arrival in Australia.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

Is it my imagination or does Alistair Cook give the impression of complacency & has lost his way and it's rubbing off onto the team?

IMHO he just doesn't have much fire & assertiveness e.g. Tony Greig, Ray Illingworth, Brian Close or Nasser Hussain.

Does anyone think the ECB could make a change of Captain at the end of the Ashes?

Also, how much longer will the ECB keep Matt Prior as Wicketkeeper before giving Jonny Bairstow the job.

I don't think that anyone was expecting that Jonny Bairstow would be good enough - yet - to take over! He was really included in the touring party as a batsman, with the option of filling in behind the stumps if Prior was injured. Not sure that many thought that the slump in Prior's form would continue.Perhaps it might be thought that he could do no worse, but he doesn't have a good record against short-pitched bowling' As for Cook, it's an impossible situation for a captain, the senior players just aren't delivering, not sure that can be blamed on Cook....and, Australia are definitely having the 'rub of the green' this time, which arguably they didn't have last summer in England, and, of course, they are playing the much better cricket anyway!

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Australia 369-6 declared
Warner 112
Watson 103

An amazing first session saw Australia scoring 134 runs in only 17 overs with Bailey scoring 28 from one Anderson over and when they declared, they had set England a total of 504 to win.

England 95-3...(34 overs)
Cook out to the first ball of the innings for a "golden duck".

COMMENT....Not often that an England opening batsman registers a "golden duck" nor a main England strike bowler is hit for 28 in an over in the same Test Match.

 

[Johnuk123]

Cook out to the first ball of the innings for a "golden duck".

COMMENT....Not often that an England opening batsman registers a "golden duck" nor a main England strike bowler is hit for 28 in an over in the same Test Match.

Strictly speaking it's called a diamond duck or royal duck when it's the first ball of an innings.

 

[flymo]

Thought a diamond duck was a batsman who is given out without facing a ball. Maybe it has more than one meaning.

 

[Buttsy]

From Wiki:

An opening batsman who is dismissed on the first ball of a team's innings is said to be out for a diamond duck, platinum duck or royal duck, depending upon the regional usage.

An opening batsman who is dismissed on the first ball of a team's innings without facing a ball is said to be out for a titanium duck, though due to the extreme rarity of this occurring, this term is not widely used.

 

[Johnuk123]

Thought a diamond duck was a batsman who is given out without facing a ball. Maybe it has more than one meaning.

Yes we're both right according to Wiki -

Diamond duckregional usage varies, but either a dismissal (usually run out) without facing a delivery,[21] or a dismissal (for zero) off the first ball of a team's innings (the less common term platinum duck is used interchangeably).

 

[DownSouth]

COMMENT....Not often that an England opening batsman registers a "golden duck" nor a main England strike bowler is hit for 28 in an over in the same Test Match.

Only the second time ever that's happened to any bowler, Bailey equalled Brian Lara's record for the highest score off one over in a Test.

A dismissal on the first ball of an innings isn't as rare as you might think, it's happened on the first ball of the whole match 11 times in the last 15 years which would suggest it also happens 2-3 times each year in the second, third or fourth innings.

It was a pretty entertaining morning session of oddities, on top of those you mentioned there was Bresnan carrying a Watson six over the rope, Watson's run out after the skier got spilled, the Bailey shot which Bell and Anderson hilariously watched into the ground, and that length ball which hit a crack and cleared Prior for five wides.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Only the second time ever that's happened to any bowler, Bailey equalled Brian Lara's record for the highest score off one over in a Test.

A dismissal on the first ball of an innings isn't as rare as you might think, it's happened on the first ball of the whole match 11 times in the last 15 years which would suggest it also happens 2-3 times each year in the second, third or fourth innings.

However, I did refer to both instances quoted as happening in the SAME Test Match if you re-read my posting.

 

[DownSouth]

However, I did refer to both instances quoted as happening in the SAME Test Match if you re-read my posting.

True, but if you had enough time you could look at any Test and find two mildly bizarre things (20+ run overs happen fairly often) which would become rare to happen together.

With Anderson now bowling more deliveries per year than any other bowler in international cricket and his speed dropping down to 130-135 km/h (top end of medium pace) it's probably more accurate to call him a stock bowler than a strike bowler though. England's own research suggests that once a bowler's speed drops below 135 km/h (the common definition of the difference between medium and fast) their wicket hauls drop, and below 130 km/h they become rare.

 

[Buttsy]

With Anderson now bowling more deliveries per year than any other bowler in international cricket and his speed dropping down to 130-135 km/h (top end of medium pace) it's probably more accurate to call him a stock bowler than a strike bowler though. England's own research suggests that once a bowler's speed drops below 135 km/h (the common definition of the difference between medium and fast) their wicket hauls drop, and below 130 km/h they become rare.

I would agree with that comment if the bowler were not English, particularly as of England's next 19 test matches (2 v Aus [away], 3 v Sri Lanka, 4 v India, 3 v WI [away], 2 v NZ and 5 v Aus), 14 of them are in England where the ability to do 'something' with the ball, which Anderson can, means that pace is not as necessary as it is elsewhere in the world.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

England 251-5...Close of play on day 4

Stokes 72 not out
Bell 60

England rather surprisingly took the match into the final day and equalled their first innings run score. All the five Australian bowlers used took one wicket each.

 

[flymo]

Minimal chance of rain in that bit of Western Australia for Tuesday so I wonder if the remaining 5 wickets can last all day. Somehow I doubt it. Hopefully when 'The Doctor' blows in it will bring some relief for England. Again, somehow I doubt it as they may be all out by then.

 

[Johnuk123]

Minimal chance of rain in that bit of Western Australia for Tuesday so I wonder if the remaining 5 wickets can last all day. Somehow I doubt it. Hopefully when 'The Doctor' blows in it will bring some relief for England. Again, somehow I doubt it as they may be all out by then.

The chance of England batting the day out are less than nil.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

Minimal chance of rain in that bit of Western Australia for Tuesday so I wonder if the remaining 5 wickets can last all day. Somehow I doubt it. Hopefully when 'The Doctor' blows in it will bring some relief for England. Again, somehow I doubt it as they may be all out by then.

Wishful thinking, I'm afraid! Yet watching Bell and Stokes this morning (I turned TV on the ball after KP got out) one felt that the attack could be taken to the Aussie bowlers ( and I have previously said how good they are). Both batsmen attacked the bowling and probably for the first time this series Australia looked slightly rattled, yes, they had a slice of luck each, but that has not gone England's way this series.....I'm looking for some crumbs of comfort here!

 

[Cletus]

Do you see the stat Sky showed the other day?
Cook & Clarke's combined tests played (200), centuries (51) and runs scored (15921) exactly totalled Tendulkar's test career.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

Do you see the stat Sky showed the other day?
Cook & Clarke's combined tests played (200), centuries (51) and runs scored (15921) exactly totalled Tendulkar's test career.

Yes, it was quite funny at the time....the Sky scorer (Benedict?) was, according to Nasser Hussain, getting quite worried that Clarke would hit a four and therefore the combined total would not exactly tally with Tendulkars career, but he hit a two and all was right with the world for a very short time!