England Cricket Tour to SA

Karl102

Karl102

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So Ian Bell out after a run of poor form, Alex Hales in!

Also, Balance and Compton in. Cant help but think Morkey, Steyne will be licking their lips. Grahame Smith and Mark Boucher have already tweeted so.

I think I would have kept Bell in. Experience counts for a lot in SA and his record is ok there.

The other talking point is Footit in (good choice i think) and Rashid out for Patel. I think they are obsessed with a spinner who can bat in the top 7.

Think we could be in for a hiding!!!!
 
Glad Compton has been given a go again - fully deserved

Bell has struggled for runs for a while now and there had to be a time for him to stop

Rashid out and Patel in is a pathetic joke - truely pathetic. Finally they give Rashid a go and he does well then bin him off but worse it's for Patel who is nowhere near the standard of an international cricketer in any department - poor choice

Footit is good choice
 
Bell's been clinging on for too long. Taylor is his natural successor. Compton is a decent choice.

As LP has said, Patel instead of Rashid is a shocking decision. Patel shouldnt even be close to the test team.

Smith and Boucher can give all the chat they want but SA's bowling line-up is a far cry from a few years ago. Steyn is still quality but Morkel is inconsistent. After that there isnt that much to be overly concerned about.

As for the SA batting line-up, well they best hope Amla and AB perform cos Anderson and Broad will be chomping at the bit to bowl at the rest!

I dont think England will be in for a hiding at all. SA are probably at their weakest for some time. And they will likely return on the back of a wopping from India. Yes, it will be on spinning wickets but defeats wherever they are sap the confidence.
 
Should have picked KP he has been knocking runs for fun in SA .
he would be really keen to do well against his country of birth .
backward step ? no .picking a form horse.
 
I'm actually dumbstruck that Patel was picked ?!?

And KP blog is funny - "fuming that Bell was dropped" - he wants to know why "Captain Cook can go a year without scoring a hundred and not get dropped"

KP can just do one
 
Liverpoolphil said:
I'm actually dumbstruck that Patel was picked ?!?

And KP blog is funny - "fuming that Bell was dropped" - he wants to know why "Captain Cook can go a year without scoring a hundred and not get dropped"

KP can just do one
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He's just rent-a-quote material now.

Maybe he's championing Bell as he doesnt want to admit he was so wrong about James Taylor!
 
Tongo said:
He's just rent-a-quote material now.

Maybe he's championing Bell as he doesnt want to admit he was so wrong about James Taylor!
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He is a joke now - it's easier to laugh at him as he "whores" himself to the highest bidder.

And it's not the first time he has been wrong about a player
 
Its a shame KP goes down that route. I had a lot of respect for him as a player and although his book is obviously biased, it raised some good points about how the team was run under Andy Flower.

The SA attack will be potent on their home patch. I don't think they are as strong as they were 3 years ago, but its as good a seam attack as any test playing nation at the minute.

Compton only average 38 this Summer, but he hot over 1000 runs, so it will be interesting to se how he goes. I hope they stick with Taylor and Hales. Two young players who have a lot of talent.
 
Have any of the selectors watched the recent India Vs SA series???

if they had I'm not sure they would have dropped Rashid, there batting looked all at sea against India's Spinners which included a Leggie
 
Liverpoolphil said:
He is a joke now - it's easier to laugh at him as he "whores" himself to the highest bidder.
Click to expand...

Whores himself? Are you serious? He has never picked T20 over England, never. He wants to play for England, but they won't let him, so instead he travels around the world and plays T20 cricket in all conditions, and excels in every competition he plays in. It's not whoring, it's earning a living. What else is he meant to do? Why shouldn't he take the money?

Patel in for Rashid is a joke. Bell getting dropped is fair enough. He's a class player no doubt, but there comes a point when you just have to drop someone for the good of the team. Taylor has come in and done incredibly well and it's time he got a good run in the side. Hopefully they'll give Hales a go too. Has earned his spot in the squad, should have played over Ali in the UAE and deserves a go. South Africa probably not the place you'd want to blood an opener, but could stick Compton up top and drop Hales in at 3, which is where he plays a lot of his cricket for Notts.

I'd like to see them pick:

Cook
Compton
Hales
Root
Taylor
Stokes
Bairstow +
Moeen
Broad
Anderson
Footitt

Pretty slim on bowling, but gone with the variety of Footitt to compliment Broad and Anderson, with the spin of Moeen back in his position as "The Worlds Best Number 8".
 
I think the 11 they will go with is below, with my preference in brackets:

Cook
Hales (Compton)
Root
Taylor
Bairstow (Hales)
Stokes
Buttler + (Bairstow +)
Moeen
Broad
Anderson
Footitt
 
I have no problem with Rashid being dropped because he bowls so much garbage waiting for the one good one that a batsman is on 60 before he even has to worry. You might has well nickname him "Penfold Commando" because he is full of bad balls.

Bell has had his chance so I see that move. And anything rent-a-gob Pietersen says, immediately go with the opposite. He and Piers Moron (Morgan) were made for each other.
 
Rashid does bowl garbage, but so do Patel and Moeen. Rashid also got more runs than Moeen, only 1 less wicket but had a better run rate (marginally). Not a whole lot in it, but for me, if you've got a leg-spinner as promising as Rashid, you give him a chance and give him support. You don't pick him for Tour after Tour and not play him, give him 1 chance in a Test series and then drop him. He should have played in the West Indies, should have played all summer, and should still be in the team now. Ridiculous that Fats Patel is in ahead of him, a cricketer who despite being told countless times to improve his fitness has failed to do so, and not even been playing that well. It's a joke.
 
Pathetic Shark said:
I have no problem with Rashid being dropped because he bowls so much garbage waiting for the one good one that a batsman is on 60 before he even has to worry. You might has well nickname him "Penfold Commando" because he is full of bad balls.
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Shane Warne was rubbish in this first few Tests. :whistle:

He certainly won't get better if he's not used properly or backed-up by the management. Give him a whole Test series and then make the assessment. Twiddling from one Test here to T20 in Australia won't do him much good really, IMHO.

Samit Patel isn't good enough. Extremely lucky to be on the tour. Can only be as a tea-boy and a back-up to Moeen.
 
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Rashid was never going to play tests in SA as first choice, so why take him as a water carrier? Patel can do that. They're doing the right thing by sending him to BBL to play T20 ahead of the World Cup next year, he will be crucial in India so let him hone those skills rather than wear a fluorescent bib for the next 2 months.

As for KP, I'm more than happy for him to go around the world earning a living in T20 Franchise cricket. I'd be happy if he was in the England side (although that ship has sailed). What I cant stand is his need to have an 'opinion' 24/7, which is actually just an agenda. He says he is 'too honest' - yet he isn't honest enough to admit his own mistakes that he is made, or judgement calls on players which are way off the mark. He is rapidly becoming a walking joke, and people are already turning away from listening to him. He will be on I'm a Celeb or Strictly in 2/3 years time
 
I'm torn on Bell being dropped. I would have at least taken him to be part of the squad, especially with an inexperienced batting line up. But it's hard to defend his form over the last year, and the experience on similar tracks should serve the team well ahead of the Aussie Ashes series coming up
 
Pathetic Shark said:
I have no problem with Rashid being dropped because he bowls so much garbage waiting for the one good one that a batsman is on 60 before he even has to worry. You might has well nickname him "Penfold Commando" because he is full of bad balls.

Bell has had his chance so I see that move. And anything rent-a-gob Pietersen says, immediately go with the opposite. He and Piers Moron (Morgan) were made for each other.
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Dan2501 said:
Rashid does bowl garbage, but so do Patel and Moeen. Rashid also got more runs than Moeen, only 1 less wicket but had a better run rate (marginally). Not a whole lot in it, but for me, if you've got a leg-spinner as promising as Rashid, you give him a chance and give him support. You don't pick him for Tour after Tour and not play him, give him 1 chance in a Test series and then drop him. He should have played in the West Indies, should have played all summer, and should still be in the team now. Ridiculous that Fats Patel is in ahead of him, a cricketer who despite being told countless times to improve his fitness has failed to do so, and not even been playing that well. It's a joke.
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And that's the rub. I don't think there'd have been too many complaints about Rashid being dropped, particularly on wickets which aren't known for favouring spinners but to pick Patel instead is an insult.
 
TheDiablo said:
I'm torn on Bell being dropped. I would have at least taken him to be part of the squad, especially with an inexperienced batting line up. But it's hard to defend his form over the last year, and the experience on similar tracks should serve the team well ahead of the Aussie Ashes series coming up
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Experience means nothing if you don't score runs. Instead it puts further pressure on the inexperienced players.
 
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