A lead of 280 should make for an exciting fifth day. I haven’t heard whether or not Moeen is going to be able to bowl - I assume a plaster on the spinning finger would be totally against the rules! - but I think Root is good enough to make an impact.
Rain early tomorrow and a fair amount of cloud cover could also be helpful to the three pace bowlers. Robinson in particular. He’s had a very good game. Shame he was a bit over the top (apparently) when he dismissed Khawaja.
Let’s hope there is just enough rain. I believe there was a previous Ashes match when the winning target was 281 and a narrow victory was achieved but I didn’t catch the details.
The stats yesterday on chances created and taken were quite interesting and massively different between the teams. But I’m always a little sceptical on this. Was Stokes a chance? He gets a hand to it sure but it’s a miracle catch if he takes it.
I understand the debate on Bairstow v Foakes, but with Bairstow basically in for his batting, you have to take his batting total and then take off the runs added after his wicket keeping mistakes to come up with a true average for him. Not sure where that would fall, but it would present a clearer picture in the debate. It's all very well bashing a bunch of runs, but if you cost as many with basic mistakes, it's a bit like a goalkeeper who scores free kicks but lets in howlers.
Leaving aside my thoughts on the actual cricket for a moment, the below exchange on the BBC website updates is a typical example of the wit regularly on show and pleases my soul (if I had one) immeasurably:
(14.20) Going in for an operation at 14:30 can we please be into the tail by the time I wake up!
Anon
(14.24) Going in to perform surgery at 14:30, can we have a few wickets please, so I'm not so jittery
Dr safe hands.
(14.42) I'm back in the office tomorrow after watching the cricket today. Quiet morning hopefully...
Back to the cricket looking at it in simplistic terms, we won the toss on a belter of a pitch where 400 should have been the minimum target for a first innings score.
The declaration below that was a deliberate attempt to gain a psychological advantage and (regrettably) we have to give great credit to the Australians for not letting that unsettle them.
I love cricket as a sport (as I have bored on here before) and test cricket is the ultimate manifestation of that sport.
The way this game has gone has has made me more excited about this series than any I can ever remember.
At stake I think is whether ‘Bazball’ is a Fosbury flop moment for the 5-day game.
I’m afraid the frailties which I highlighted at the weekend came home to roost. Four of the five vulnerable players that I mentioned were below par.
Jimmy, Jimmy. Jimmy, Jimmy Anderson, by his own admission, was not performing at peak level, following over a month with no cricket while he recovered from a groin strain.
Moeen Ali was a strange pick, with no red ball experience for a year or two. He barely contributed.
Stokes himself can no longer perform at the level he used to (as a bowler) and seems to get out too quickly when it comes to batting. Superb, intelligent and creative captain, though.
Bairstow. What can I say? He has performed better behind the stumps but this was his first match following a long lay-off with a broken leg and, even at his best, he is no match behind the stumps for Ben Foakes. His errors in this match have resulted in more runs for Australia I should think, than the difference between what he himself scored and what Foakes might reasonably have contributed. Clumsy way of saying what @Shev was saying earlier.
Stuart Broad, my fifth worry, was superb.
Not sure about Ducket. I’d be happy for Bairstow to replace him and return to his greyhound patrolling of the boundary but I think the left-hander/right-hander combination may be considered sacrosanct.
Comments
A lead of 280 should make for an exciting fifth day. I haven’t heard whether or not Moeen is going to be able to bowl - I assume a plaster on the spinning finger would be totally against the rules! - but I think Root is good enough to make an impact.
Rain early tomorrow and a fair amount of cloud cover could also be helpful to the three pace bowlers. Robinson in particular. He’s had a very good game. Shame he was a bit over the top (apparently) when he dismissed Khawaja.
Let’s hope there is just enough rain. I believe there was a previous Ashes match when the winning target was 281 and a narrow victory was achieved but I didn’t catch the details.
Blimey, very evenly poised now!
Yep, couple of early wickets tomorrow and the Aussies will be getting a bit nervy.
A couple of early wickets tomorrow and the Aussies are toast.
It's been years since I properly watched a Test match, but this has been very entertaining! (I'm aware it's not always like this.)
You’ve got to back England on a day 5 pitch
Especially if the forecast rain and subsequent cloud cover actually materialise.
Wonder how I managed to upset three people earlier with what I thought was a completely innocuous post!
Andwers on a postcard.
This has been England since Stokes became captain, he doesn't entertain draws, its win or lose ! Luckily we've won a lot more than we've lost
https://www.whoateallthepies.tv/portsmouth/178322/portsmouth-wycombe-abandoned-due-to-torrential-rain-and-lightning-storm-at-fratton-park-photos-video.html
Well, that worked well !!
Try again
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2472991/amp/Portsmouth-match-abandoned-players-tunnel-flooded-pitch-waterlogged.html
Sorry, can’t find the dramatic video that someone posted on Twitter yesterday.
Big game is getting quite tense now:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/scorecard/ECKE1215967
Sod me this is nervy
This is MK v Wycombe all over
Aussies are going to shade it.
I fear so.
Genuinely not sure I can handle four more of these in the next few weeks!
Test cricket is dead isn’t it
Sliding doors. Maybe an extra 15 on the total instead of declaring ?
We havnt lost this match because of the declaration, we've lost it because of dropped catches and a missed stumping
The stats yesterday on chances created and taken were quite interesting and massively different between the teams. But I’m always a little sceptical on this. Was Stokes a chance? He gets a hand to it sure but it’s a miracle catch if he takes it.
Oh yeah that was a tough chance, was more thinking of all the opportunities we missed in their 1st innings, we could've easily had a lead of 100
Ouch what a way to lose
First innings is where it cost us.
crazy declaration followed by missing two routine chances behind the stumps by Bairstow plus Broad’s no ball.
I think that yesterday was we’d taken 4 of 10 chances and Aussies 12 of 15.
I understand the debate on Bairstow v Foakes, but with Bairstow basically in for his batting, you have to take his batting total and then take off the runs added after his wicket keeping mistakes to come up with a true average for him. Not sure where that would fall, but it would present a clearer picture in the debate. It's all very well bashing a bunch of runs, but if you cost as many with basic mistakes, it's a bit like a goalkeeper who scores free kicks but lets in howlers.
Leaving aside my thoughts on the actual cricket for a moment, the below exchange on the BBC website updates is a typical example of the wit regularly on show and pleases my soul (if I had one) immeasurably:
(14.20) Going in for an operation at 14:30 can we please be into the tail by the time I wake up!
Anon
(14.24) Going in to perform surgery at 14:30, can we have a few wickets please, so I'm not so jittery
Dr safe hands.
(14.42) I'm back in the office tomorrow after watching the cricket today. Quiet morning hopefully...
Nobby, Medical Negligence Claims Lawyer
Back to the cricket looking at it in simplistic terms, we won the toss on a belter of a pitch where 400 should have been the minimum target for a first innings score.
The declaration below that was a deliberate attempt to gain a psychological advantage and (regrettably) we have to give great credit to the Australians for not letting that unsettle them.
I love cricket as a sport (as I have bored on here before) and test cricket is the ultimate manifestation of that sport.
The way this game has gone has has made me more excited about this series than any I can ever remember.
At stake I think is whether ‘Bazball’ is a Fosbury flop moment for the 5-day game.
I’m afraid the frailties which I highlighted at the weekend came home to roost. Four of the five vulnerable players that I mentioned were below par.
Jimmy, Jimmy. Jimmy, Jimmy Anderson, by his own admission, was not performing at peak level, following over a month with no cricket while he recovered from a groin strain.
Moeen Ali was a strange pick, with no red ball experience for a year or two. He barely contributed.
Stokes himself can no longer perform at the level he used to (as a bowler) and seems to get out too quickly when it comes to batting. Superb, intelligent and creative captain, though.
Bairstow. What can I say? He has performed better behind the stumps but this was his first match following a long lay-off with a broken leg and, even at his best, he is no match behind the stumps for Ben Foakes. His errors in this match have resulted in more runs for Australia I should think, than the difference between what he himself scored and what Foakes might reasonably have contributed. Clumsy way of saying what @Shev was saying earlier.
Stuart Broad, my fifth worry, was superb.
Not sure about Ducket. I’d be happy for Bairstow to replace him and return to his greyhound patrolling of the boundary but I think the left-hander/right-hander combination may be considered sacrosanct.
I love bazball.
Goodnight.
Or to put it another way. We nearly won against the best test team in the world with half a team.