The Ashes 2015

Whats worse for me is the pitches have lost their own identity, they all used to be very very different but of late (since the new drainage was installed across the test grounds) theyve all become very samey, lacking in pace and bounce because they are so much drier. Not sure they could get a fast bouncy one at Lords if they tried anymore (their only other choice would be to leave more grass on it but they wont risk the gate receipts doing that!)
 
Pitch is benign......apparently.

Curated as such to negate the Aussie bowlers! Well that worked.

pitch is benign, had nothing to do with any of the 4 wickets, 2 were bowled by full deliveries and 2 wafted at short and wide ones. none of them did anything of note off the pitch at all. aussies bowled superbly first up but the batting was rather complicit sadly
 
So the best we can hope for is a draw, but to achieve that, the middle order and tail are going do have to do some serious wagging, the Aussies will have a significant first innings lead and will go in to bat for a few hours to add a couple of hundred more, then aim to bowl us out.

Anyone know a raindance?
 
Aussies not whining about a slow wicket now are they. England's lack of top order runs throughout the summer catching up with them now. Can't expect middle order to bail them out every game.

Don't see many obvious top order alternatives without making some positional changes in the batting order.
 
Aussies not whining about a slow wicket now are they. England's lack of top order runs throughout the summer catching up with them now. Can't expect middle order to bail them out every game.

Don't see many obvious top order alternatives without making some positional changes in the batting order.

Bairstow is the man scoring the runs but, to me, he just doesnt look like he's gonna cut it at test level. Bell's gonna keep his place in the team cos there's no-one else to replace him whilst they will persist with Lyth, i think, cos England are struggling to find an opening partner for Cook.
 
Going to have to stick with Lyth I think, Balance looks way out of his depth at 3. In that position you have to be able to deal with the short ball and he simply can't. This affects his whole technique and he is hanging back waiting for it.

An in form Bell would be the obvious move at 3 but he is a walking wicket at the moment. We seem to be starting every innings 3 down at present.
 
Not too many putting their hand up in county cricket sadly. Bairstow the best formwise but not really what we need (an attritional top 3 type), likewise Taylor (not got that many runs and not really a top 3 option).

That leaves options that have been tried before, likes of Carberry, Compton and Robson (all averaging in the high 30s) and none screaming to be picked

Who else? Hales? Morgan? Northeast? Westley?

Cant see anyone there as a better option than the current incumbents, the best options would lead to having to move Root from 5 to probably 3 and I cant see that happpening, at least not yet anyway
 
fundy;13313 ot too many putting their hand up in county cricket sadly. Bairstow the best formwise but not really what we need (an attritional top 3 type) said:
If we want to win the ashes Root may have to move up to 3. Current line up not up to it.

Only way I can see it happening though is Root himself requesting the move.
 
That early collapse has killed England's chance of saving the game. Weather won't help now and I can't see them batting for a day and a half to survive. Not sure if the bowling was poor in the first innings or the Aussies hit form and can't see why we couldn't do the same on what looked a decent batting wicket
 
Another shocking collapse by the top order and lucky if we can survive the day now, Stokes should be fined his match fee for an inexcusable schoolboy error,what an idiot,

Thought we was just going steamroller the aussies after 1st test and stories of unrest in their camp.

Time for changes-Lyth out ,Ballance out, Bell don't know.
 
Another shocking collapse by the top order and lucky if we can survive the day now, Stokes should be fined his match fee for an inexcusable schoolboy error,what an idiot,

Thought we was just going steamroller the aussies after 1st test and stories of unrest in their camp.

Time for changes-Lyth out ,Ballance out, Bell don't know.

who you replacing them with paddy? easy to drop them, not so easy to replace with better
 
Top