Test Match Cricket

[JCW]

Sorry but thats laughable. If Cook plays he opens the batting, thats where he's batted all his life and just isnt suited to batting lower down the order. Personally Id be relieving him as captain with a view to long term him being the opening batter who gets stacks of runs he was before becoming skiper, albeit he may want a few games away initially

Have you ever open the batting or Captain a cricket team in the local leagues at the highest level , its quite a job , lots to do and always a great many captains telling you what to do , It is not an easy job , drop down the order or just remove him all together

 

[fundy]

Have you ever open the batting or Captain a cricket team in the local leagues at the highest level , its quite a job , lots to do and always a great many captains telling you what to do , It is not an easy job , drop down the order or just remove him all together

Yep opened the batting and skippered at pretty much every level below county cricket so understand it fully!

He doesnt have the skills to bat at 5 or 6, at his best at the top of the order without doubt, what he needs is the burden of captaincy removing. After this series long while till our next test, by which time hopefully he'll just be an opener and not captain and get back to filling his boots as he was before

 

[DCB]

Two ways to look at it, if he's on his game, who can match him ? If he's not on his game, who could do the Captains job and allow him to regain form as opener.

Is there anyone else who can open at that level ? No, so drop him as Captain and get some runs on the board from the openers. That's where England are struggling, poor opening and early batting order putting too much pressure on middle order to get runs.

What about an appointment from way out left field, someone who is there to get the best out the team on the pitch, a man manager and leader, not necessarily an out and out test player..... it's worked before

 

[JCW]

Yep opened the batting and skippered at pretty much every level below county cricket so understand it fully!

He doesnt have the skills to bat at 5 or 6, at his best at the top of the order without doubt, what he needs is the burden of captaincy removing. After this series long while till our next test, by which time hopefully he'll just be an opener and not captain and get back to filling his boots as he was before

If you sack him as captain then you got to give a break as opener as well and he can go back to the county and score runs again , his captaincy is poor anyway so we have just had Prior taking a break from all cricket and cook needs a break from captaincy and go back to scoring runs. I captain my club In Dorset League 1 , I open the batting or batted at 3 and when i was captain i batted at 6 , so i am sure he could as well if he had too , lower down gives you time to settle your mind after being in the field all day ...............just my take on it , ........EYG

 

[Deleted member 18588]

If you sack him as captain then you got to give a break as opener as well and he can go back to the county and score runs again , his captaincy is poor anyway so we have just had Prior taking a break from all cricket and cook needs a break from captaincy and go back to scoring runs. I captain my club In Dorset League 1 , I open the batting or batted at 3 and when i was captain i batted at 6 , so i am sure he could as well if he had too , lower down gives you time to settle your mind after being in the field all day ...............just my take on it , ........EYG

With all due respect I don't think you can compare the demands of Club cricket with those of Test cricket.

Your Monthly Medal does not involve anything like the same pressures as the Open and it is the same with cricket.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Yep opened the batting and skippered at pretty much every level below county cricket so understand it fully!

He doesnt have the skills to bat at 5 or 6, at his best at the top of the order without doubt, what he needs is the burden of captaincy removing. After this series long while till our next test, by which time hopefully he'll just be an opener and not captain and get back to filling his boots as he was before

Cook is so out of touch he needs to get back into the county game and spend time in the middle. His leadership looks lacking and he is devoid of ideas. there are some that will learn with experience but to be honest you can make a case for dropping a number of players including some of the bowlers who should have used a new ball, humid conditions and green pitch to skittle the Indians out cheaply

 

[JCW]

With all due respect I don't think you can compare the demands of Club cricket with those of Test cricket.

Your Monthly Medal does not involve anything like the same pressures as the Open and it is the same with cricket.

never said it did , just putting it at our level and how it is for us and at thier level how it is for them and i was talking about opening the batting and captaincy and how you dont relax , i like to see his stats wen he wins the toss and bats and wen he bats 2nd after chasing leather for a day or more ..................EYG

 

[JCW]

Last 3 England captains batting average drop by up to 20 runs average from the career average before they were capt ..........EYG

 

[Deleted member 18588]

never said it did , just putting it at our level and how it is for us and at thier level how it is for them and i was talking about opening the batting and captaincy and how you dont relax , i like to see his stats wen he wins the toss and bats and wen he bats 2nd after chasing leather for a day or more ..................EYG

Cook's temperament and technique make him unsuitable for batting outside the first three.

Also if you move him to,say, number six then you have to move others around thereby disrupting the whole team. Root, Ali and Ballance have all done reasonably well in a struggling side so it would be better to leave them undisturbed.

 

[fundy]

Two ways to look at it, if he's on his game, who can match him ? If he's not on his game, who could do the Captains job and allow him to regain form as opener.

Is there anyone else who can open at that level ? No, so drop him as Captain and get some runs on the board from the openers. That's where England are struggling, poor opening and early batting order putting too much pressure on middle order to get runs.

What about an appointment from way out left field, someone who is there to get the best out the team on the pitch, a man manager and leader, not necessarily an out and out test player..... it's worked before

The only candidate that really fits that category for me is Rob Key, and probably 5 years too late for him sadly

 

[fundy]

If you sack him as captain then you got to give a break as opener as well and he can go back to the county and score runs again , his captaincy is poor anyway so we have just had Prior taking a break from all cricket and cook needs a break from captaincy and go back to scoring runs. I captain my club In Dorset League 1 , I open the batting or batted at 3 and when i was captain i batted at 6 , so i am sure he could as well if he had too , lower down gives you time to settle your mind after being in the field all day ...............just my take on it , ........EYG

so because you couldnt open and captain no one can lol. Didnt seem to cause a problem for Graeme Smith amongst others

tbh the job currently is a poisoned chalice, the backing behind the captain is currently laughable, the whole system needs a change from head down, sadly the jobs for the boys network will ensure this doesnt happen and failures like Moores get a chance to repeat what happened first time round

 

[DCB]

I think the main problem is that the game has evolved and isn't centred around the five day game any more. Test Cricket is very different to much of the cricket the guys are playing nowadays. 20-20 may be exciting stuff but has it really helped the game. Having watched cricket in the 70s & 80s when there really were world class players in the English game, it really is a bit of a disappointment as to what the current crop can achieve.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

I think the main problem is that the game has evolved and isn't centred around the five day game any more. Test Cricket is very different to much of the cricket the guys are playing nowadays. 20-20 may be exciting stuff but has it really helped the game. Having watched cricket in the 70s & 80s when there really were world class players in the English game, it really is a bit of a disappointment as to what the current crop can achieve.

And yet countries like Sri Lanka and India play far more ODI and "slap & giggle" cricket than England and still beat us in Tests.

As for bygone eras look at what the West Indies did to us in the '70s.

 

[SaintHacker]

Much better display today. Brave decision by Cook to bat but looks like it was fully justified. Hope he has turned the corner a bit.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Much better display today. Brave decision by Cook to bat but looks like it was fully justified. Hope he has turned the corner a bit.

Shame he couldn't make the ton but the batting looked much more solid throughout with the exception perhaps of Robson who seems to have been worked out by sides aiming at the top of off stump and getting him to play

 

[fundy]

Much better display today. Brave decision by Cook to bat but looks like it was fully justified. Hope he has turned the corner a bit.

Brave decision to bat? On an utter road?

Good to see him get runs, doesnt change anything regarding his captaincy or the way English cricket is being run (long term he should be one of the first names on the sheet, as a batter only imo)

Would love to know the explanation as to how they choose between Jordan and Stokes each game, can only hazard a guess that theyre flipping a coin each test. The fact that all the alternative seam bowling options are partly there because of there ability to bat a bad indicator in the faith of resources available again.

The brave decision that probably should have been made is that Broad shouldve been the one to miss out (isnt close to being fit on all accounts) makes sense to rest him now with the possibility Andersen could be banned for the last 2. Be interesting to see if he lasts the summer (and then has an op straight after)

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Brave decision to bat? On an utter road?

Good to see him get runs, doesnt change anything regarding his captaincy or the way English cricket is being run (long term he should be one of the first names on the sheet, as a batter only imo)

Would love to know the explanation as to how they choose between Jordan and Stokes each game, can only hazard a guess that theyre flipping a coin each test. The fact that all the alternative seam bowling options are partly there because of there ability to bat a bad indicator in the faith of resources available again.

The brave decision that probably should have been made is that Broad shouldve been the one to miss out (isnt close to being fit on all accounts) makes sense to rest him now with the possibility Andersen could be banned for the last 2. Be interesting to see if he lasts the summer (and then has an op straight after)

Agree with the lot. Especially the way the game's run, Broad's lack of fitness and the Jordan/Stokes selection although I heard it best of three, rock, paper, scissors

 

[SaintHacker]

Brave decision to bat? On an utter road?

Far from a road. Did you see how much grass was on it? Add to that the cloudy, humid conditions this morning and for the first couple of hours at least, it was a fast bowlers paradise. The TMS team all agreed it was a good toss to lose, although England can't even get that right!

 

[JCW]

so because you couldnt open and captain no one can lol. Didnt seem to cause a problem for Graeme Smith amongst others

tbh the job currently is a poisoned chalice, the backing behind the captain is currently laughable, the whole system needs a change from head down, sadly the jobs for the boys network will ensure this doesnt happen and failures like Moores get a chance to repeat what happened first time round

I could and did to start with but choose to go in at 6 to give the younger guys a chance , as for Cook it was not brave but the right thing to do , I always batted when i won the toss , old school , nowadays they dont and thats a mistake , win the toss and bat , that way you are in control and if you bat and get a big score you are in control , I have been in the field for a whole day , its a long time i can tell you and for Cook he was fresh this time and getting dropped at 15 helped , still think he should quit as captain and just bat ....................EYC

 

[patricks148]

i don't think Cook getting a score here should change anything, his Captaincy is poor to say the least, far too conservative and lacks tactical nous.