6 needed and 3 wickets left. Unbelievable!!
Great advertisement for Test Matches - whatever the outcome - a great escape? It’s very tense here at home, TMS on, plus Now TV for the Sky coverage (just for cricket you understand), and supper is delayed.
Fine match. Such a shame no crowd to participate but the intensity of the cricket seems unaffected.
A very measured approach by Woakes and Buttler but it got tense at the end.
Thursday, Southampton!
Stokes will miss the last two Tests due to family illness.
Crawley back in? How about Foakes in and Buttler just to bat? England need to be confident of the keeper if the sub continent tour goes ahead this winter. Looks like Buttler was pretty sure he would be dropped when he went out to bat at the weekend. Fair play to him.
Anderson and or Archer to rest and rotate out maybe, some suggest debutante Ollie Robinson might play for one. Wood maybe gets a go.
When does the next test start, they don’t seem to let you down here I normally find it by accident flicking through stations
Pete, 13th August - can you get to the BBC links?
I hope the Ageas Bowl (Southampton) wicket plays with a bit more verve than it did against the WI.
On the basis you never change a winning team…
Here is a bold suggestion. In batting order.
Sibley
Burns
Root
Pope
Buttler
Foakes
Curran
Woakes
Broad
Wood
Leach
Bit unfair on Crawley but I think that Foakes has to get a game with a view to the future. Buttler has given the selectors a problem with his last match! Bess is learning his trade but not many left handlers to face and on a turning pitch he did not really threaten so I’d give Leach a game if he is fit.
Much more likely they will just bring in Crawley for Stokes and maybe rotate Archer and or Anderson for Curran and maybe Wood or perhaps Ollie Robinson.
Bit of me hoping Anderson plays in the final Test and then retires. He has nothing left to prove and best to go before pushed.
Bruce
Without Stokes, I don’t think they will weaken the batting via exchanging Bess for Leach - there will be too much uncertainty in the top-6 (Buttler at 5 is 2 places too high for me). And if the Ageas Bowl delivers up another slow-ish wicket (akin to the Ireland ODI game and the games against WI) then I don’t see Anderson dropping out, as the emphasis will be on moving the ball around rather than pace.
I suspect Foakes won’t get a game - which is sad.
I think they will drop Crawley in at 3 (I think he’s normally an opener?), given Root likes to bat at 4 - perhaps a comment which reflects my lack of faith in the opening combo. I think the opposition have now worked Sibley out - i.e. straight-ish ball, middle/leg area, with a bit of movement.
And I think they will continue to prefer Archer to Wood for the game this week.
I concur with your thoughts though that I don’t see Anderson touring again, on dead pitches and/or using the very unhelpful K-ball.
Weather?
Hot, humid, risk thunderstorms pretty much for all 5 days but shouldn’t lose lots of play.
Usual conservative picks; Curran for Archer, Crawley for Stokes.
Pakistan win toss and bat, all four Tests so far lost by the winner of the toss! Shan Masood out already.
Thanks won’t get to see any of it till after the lunch break.
Well, I hope the England openers bat better than they (don’t!) catch - and I agree with the Sky team that, initially, they were far too close together. IMV, you shouldn’t be crossing paths with another slip fielder, the movement of the other fielder more often than not distracts you.
Crawley for Stokes I can understand, not so much so Curran for Archer. For all his foibles, Archer can still surprise.
There yer go Pete, just after lunch
On and off again. I fear I may have misled Pete!
It doesn’t look good, thunder showers up to Sunday & showers for day 5.
Looks like at best it will be some form of damp & maybe not so warm.
Mike - top left showing your e-mail address?
Yep - very mixed weather hence, I suspect, why they went for Curran as another swing bowler.
As the commentators have said, why oh why did they go with 2 faster bowlers in the 1st game v the WI, at the same venue.
I gave up and went to bed, hopefully we’ll get more play today.
Play starting at 12.30 but in case they get peckish it will break for forty minutes lunch at 1.30.
I guarantee it will be dry when they are off, but rains later today.
Sometimes this game infuriates!
Given the way the wicket is playing and the climatic conditions at this time, I’m thinking ~200 may be a par score/if not quite a good one.
I agree, 20-30 runs either way could be crucial later on. Abbas is likely to love bowling in these conditions
Bruce