Cricket

Pete -

I’m not 100% sure but evening light now, especially with cloud about, is unlikely to be bright enough for cricket (as was experienced in some of the recent Tests) - and as in Tests I would expect the lights to be on from the start, given the game will take c.3 hours.

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Neither will we…

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It dawned on me afterwards, with the death of world cricket at the moment , if there wasn’t room to bring India over for a few matches against Pakistan - played in England .

It would have been a money maker in terms of TV revenue

I hope you mean ‘dearth’!

It would have been wonderful to have a 4-way set-up with England, Aussies, Pakistan & India (or mix in the WI) playing T20/ODIs, with just one bubble across the 2 grounds. Sadly, creating one robust bubble across the 2 venues appears to have been a reach too far.

Of course, nobody knew early enough that the T20 WC was going to be postponed - and more issues may follow.

It looks like the single planned Test between Australia and Afghanistan is still in the diary.

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Yes that’s what I meant , I’ll leave my typo there.

One thing that’s pretty clear - TV has been the saviour of sports with its funding .

My day has just gone downhill as Sky have brought KP out of whatever crypt he was inhabiting

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And looking at the score your day is going to get worst. :rofl::rofl::rofl:

Well done chaps good comeback. Aussies will definitely benefit from some game time.

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Wow.

What a strange game. Cruising to victory - and then something tantamount to a crash…and this time it wasn’t England. Defeat snatched from the jaws of victory.

Why oh why though do England think bowling fast and short will get wickets. Curran showed how to do it.

At least KP put the commentator’s curse on Maxwell.

But, as you allude, far to much rabbit, rabbit for my liking…strange how much thinking he exhibits now when he lost concentration so many times when fielding.

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Perhaps they can leave him to socially isolate in Southampton when they move on to Manchester ?

And pick him up next year?

Or better still, offer commentary by the red button that doesn’t include him. He may like the sound of his own voice but I …

Good grief. A T20 which looked dead and buried after 2/3rds gone. Not sure why it took so long for England to work out that short was not the best on a slowish wicket to Aussie batsmen who like to pull and cut but there you go. Australia bowled and fielded without looking rusty but no matches since March perhaps caught up with the batting.

We are having a summer of fine cricket despite all the challenges to the game in these times. I am even starting to forget the lack of a crowd!

KP is as slimy as ever. His contributions are not just cocky but often have a sort of sly dig at the players, on some personal or technical level. Whenever I hear him I imagine what a disruptive team mate he must have been.

Bruce

I always prefer my cricket with music I find a lot of the commentary boring dribble. Most now seem to think they have to say something all the time time, no air between them. It’s just words.

And by the way, congrats on a good win last night and also for not dumping on me for the stupid Aussies.

I’m paying the price for a TdF/T20 all nighter.

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(TdF stage was a bit lively too)

I keep saying it but the winners this summer are the ECB, and the touring and home teams who have tolerated their bubbles and produced such good cricket.

Sunday pm game is on BBC. Hope it is another good advert.

Our local League has pretty much fallen apart due to a variety of factors although we still have a game this weekend. I fear for the game at this level next season, and wonder how many more clubs will fold or fail to get out two teams. It is not money (most got sizeable grants to help them) but lack of players. Covid issues haven’t helped but it is a trend for several years now. We fielded a second team with an average age of 46 last week!

Bruce

God 46, there’s still hope for me.

I think we are just pleased to see the Australians and glad they could come here.

I hope they’ve brought their thermals and their long-johns

Towards the end of my playing days the three of us from the village in the cricket team were aged 43,56 and 62. The youngsters were all going down to the bowls green to play bowls. I did point out there must be something strange in the air.

Pete - after yesterday, there’s definitely an opening for team psychologist. I thought England wrote the handbook on how to effect a middle order collapse.

The very curious thing is that none of the batsman looked out of touch (save Stoinis, who never looks comfortable over here), just that aside from Warner & Finch, who were fed a diet of ‘hit me’ short balls at the outset which they feasted upon, they just didn’t want to hang around. The usually limpet-like Smith could have nudged the ball around to an easy win but didn’t and Maxwell was batting very high up the order for someone whose record appears to be ‘hero or zero’. Moeen Ali has played this role in the England team of late. Thankfully, we’ve got a jewel in Malan…and yet there’s a debate over his selection.

Good cricket is just that and while one likes to be partisan, it wasn’t a win England deserved IMV. The Sky commentary team, esp Hussain, kept jabbering on about bowling the ball ‘in to the wicket’ as the way to go (i.e. short), this against a team who play on fast bouncy wickets and can pull and cut all day long.

It all makes the next game interesting though and what changes in approach and selection the teams will make.

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…a word for Buttler too. When he plays like that it just looks so simple. They did not bowl badly to him either.

Bruce

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Don’t think there’ll be any changes other than (if any) injuries. I do agree with you about wanting to bang the ball around but I did think they looked a little rusty (I was fading in and out of consciousness). They’ll be much better for both the game and the loss.

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