Cricket

A surprisingly interesting day given the bare facts. Crawley battling to find scoring shots against some funky fields, Stokes battling his attacking instincts to stay patient. W Indies looked a bit flat early on and very weary by the end with Gabriel clearly not fully fit.

The question is whether England can kick on today on the back of the hard work.

Bruce

I missed the last session of the day, but was rewarded by the highlights. I salute Sibley and admire Stokes: it may be old fashioned, but they showed true grit. Ok the WI looked tired, but today should see them revived.

I’ve just watched the video of Jerusalem and Rally Round; I heard it on TMS yesterday as I was going to a meeting. It’s rather emotional…

https://ecb-comms.co.uk/2SX2-124H1-61YCXJ-NXNJG-1/c.aspx

Talk about caught between a rock and a hard place! I see on the BBC live reporting page both Sibley and Stokes are being roundly castigated for not scoring quickly enough! This only days after the universal criticism of England’s batsmen’s inability to ‘dig in’ and occupy the crease.

We Brits just love to knock all our heroes.

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We don’t mind having a crack at them as well. :rofl::rofl:

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The only thing I would say about the scoring rate is that having gained control and some dominance it is important to be able to change up now. We know Stokes can do that, Sibley must show intent as well even if he is not pinging it out of the ground.

Windies have also been very disciplined so far, but might be a long afternoon for them.

Slightly iffy weather forecast for tomorrow also requires consideration if a result is possible.

Bruce

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Is it worth waiting up for the weather to clear, I can’t be bothered watching WSC from 1988 into the wee small hours.

I doubt it … but I hope so

Are we going to get any cricket today?

The BBC forecast is for sun with a light breeze, so looking OK.

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So I’ll be flicking between the cricket and F1, cheers.

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The joys of club cricket. We played yesterday despite starting in drizzle. We had a short break in the second innings to remove a hedgehog that was half way to the square!

So good to be playing again.

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Fastest mover in the field? :grinning::grinning:

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Hmm England, there is a difference between sending in attacking batsmen to get quick runs and aiming ugly hoicks at a classy quick who is jagging it around a bit.

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In between innings … this could be a classic game.
In the meantime here’s a container of willow being sent off to India (credit: J S Wright and Sons Ltd.).

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Well, an English victory is something to celebrate, with some (expected) fragility in the WI batting showing out. Thankfully, the wicket played OK even in to D5, albeit slower than expected throughout. Which all means there’s plenty to play for later this week at the same venue.

I just wish the English team would get a barber in.

In terms of selection, Broad did well and while it’s not forward-thinking, I’d be tempted to swap Curran for Anderson in the last game (or one swinger for another). There will be time to change things around in the games v Ireland. If Stokes is carrying an injury and cannot bowl then other plans may be required.

I’m not sure if Buttler is unlucky or jinxed as he seems to find ways of getting out cheaply as in the 2nd innings but, fair play, he went in up-top and it didn’t come off, and it’s hardly confidence inspiring to have to do this.

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Screenshot 2020-07-21 at 08.10.51

If you think they’ve got problems you should see me at the moment

Screenshot 2020-07-21 at 08.09.58

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Test cricket. Boring eh!

I only caught highlights of the last two days but both sides contributed to some fine entertainment despite one day lost to rain and a pitch that was never especially helpful. Twice now captains have maybe regretted winning the toss!

I’m not sure what depth is in the W Indies squad but Gabriel looks like walking wounded and Joseph too (shame, both have been great to watch). Not sure if they will change around any batsmen. Holder has a bit of confidence building to do, but they do look to have talent. It is slightly odd to see that is is our bowlers dishing the short stuff, and their batsmen struggling with it. Dowrich looks a bit sketchy with bat and gloves but I don’t know if he has a reasonable deputy.

As for England they will probably just field Stokes in the next match. He can do the lot. Just imagine what he’d play like with a crowd behind him!

Bess did not have a great game, seemed to bowl too flat, and bit fast and too full from the little I saw. He is young though and will have better matches. Leach vs right handers seems a likely call however. I’d like to see Archer back and I guess it will be Curran who makes way but it will be hard to drop Woakes for Anderson. Broad is not going anywhere surely. I do get the sense that all the pace bowlers are accepting that in such a tightly packed Test season there will be rotation. The selectors appear to be unmoved re Buttler but I’d like to see Foakes play again. Batsmen pick themselves, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Pope get a chance at No 3. Doubt they will do that though.

Bruce

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Time for a poll:

Do you pick Archer for final WI Test - Y/N

And I mean this from a cricketing perspective, not because of his misdemeanour.

My current thinking is No on the basis the pitches to date haven’t favoured pace. I’d rather have bowlers who can move the ball around than an emphasis on outright pace.

@BruceW - I agree re Bess. His first overs in both innings (and much of the 2nd in WI’s 2nd) were a fruit salad. It was also interesting to see how much more turn Chase got by comparison. This said, I don’t think Leach will get the call, as Bess bolsters the batting a tad and hasn’t done badly. It’s at times like this that one comes to appreciate the value of Swann even more. The days of a truly attacking spin bowler with a lot of rip appear to have gone, perhaps another casualty of white ball cricket.

Yes, he’s too good not to include imo.

(That’s if he’s fit of course)

Yes - especially after the racial abuse he has received …

As for Bess - he took the key wicket of Holder. He is still learning his trade. It’s tricky to develop the necessary skills in the nets, so match experience is crucial in his development.

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