ljkeane Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 I don't know how true it is but I seem to remember hearing that a lot of his County coaches think that long term Curran's going to end up being a batting allrounder. You'd think that's probably the way for him to really nail down a spot in the test team, he's a good bowler but he's going to end up missing out a lot in tight choices between and him the likes of Archer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 Australia looks to have made the bold but I think very astute decision to leave Mitchell Starc out of the playing XI for tomorrow's match. There are a few very good reasons for this (in my view): The recent warm-up match showed that Starc is fatigued after being the spearhead in the World Cup. He's also short of red-ball practice compared to the other bowlers. Australia has a wealth of other fast bowling options who will provide as great (or an even greater) threat, most notably Pattinson. Starc has a middling (not bad, but not outstanding) record in England. Starc had a pretty ordinary 2018 in test cricket, which may be the result of being overused in the three previous years. On the downside for Australia, this is great news for England's lower order, who would probably see Starc as the greatest threat in a rearguard action. It also reduces the variety of the attack, as there are no other left-arm pacemen in the squad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted July 31, 2019 Author Share Posted July 31, 2019 4 hours ago, Paxter said: Australia looks to have made the bold but I think very astute decision to leave Mitchell Starc out of the playing XI for tomorrow's match. Yes, even though his ODI form has been good, he hasn't been bowling well in Test cricket for a while. Fortunately Pattinson can also bat a bit, so it isn't weakening the lower order batting too much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 5 hours ago, Paxter said: On the downside for Australia, this is great news for England's lower order, who would probably see Starc as the greatest threat in a rearguard action. It also reduces the variety of the attack, as there are no other left-arm pacemen in the squad. English batsmen have also seemed to have a particular weakness against left-arm pacemen, although it's still a strong bowling attack for Australia. Meanwhile, Archer misses out on the England squad due to the lingering injury from the World Cup, although I suspect we'll see him later in the series. A bowling attack of Anderson, Broad, Woakes, Stokes and Ali is still going to be very useful even without any express pace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Anyone have an tips for this series? I’m thinking a 3-2 margin but not sure who will take it...maybe Australia this time? I worry that England’s batting is too fragile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 I'm a little more pessimistic on the Aussies. We haven't won a series in England since 2001 and this is probably the weakest batting lineup we have toured with in decades. Our bowlers might give us a fighting chance, but I'm going to say 3-1 to England, with the weather creating a draw somewhere in a low-scoring series. England's batting is also weak, but they bat very deep and I just think their bowlers will be better at exploiting the home conditions than ours. The run rates will be pretty low (as batsmen play just to survive) and I think a number of batsmen will face prolonged slumps, with selectors chopping and changing multiple times throughout the series. I have a feeling Root and Smith will shine as the most consistent batsmen in each team, and their quality should tell over the course of a five-Test series dominated by the bowlers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 Australia win the toss and bat. There will be an early wicket for sure! I'm not really a fan of these giant numbers on the back. Isn't Test cricket meant to be all white? EDIT: There's the early wicket. Just saying before they show replays, I thought he should have reviewed it - could have gone down the legside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mosi Mynn Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Two early wickets! The Hollies Stand are showing no mercy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 3/37 so far, this is starting out as I feared. Glad they stayed away from Mitch Marsh and gave Wade a spot, but there isn't a lot of batting to come after him. Paine isn't quite as good as a specialist batsman and I don't fancy the tail against this sort of bowling. If the next two partnerships don't fire we could well be in line for a 150 total. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Not a great start, but that’s hardly unexpected from either side after what happened in the Australia warm-up game and the Ireland test. As ever, Smith is the key wicket now. ETA: I’m a bit taken aback at the Hazlewood decision. Not sure what to make of it to be honest. Siddle is a proven performer, but Hazlewood has been a key man for a long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 21 minutes ago, Paxter said: ETA: I’m a bit taken aback at the Hazlewood decision. Not sure what to make of it to be honest. Siddle is a proven performer, but Hazlewood has been a key man for a long time and is the vice captain of the team. I wonder whether there was an injury niggle or something. Hazlewood certainly has been a key part of the team so dropping him (when they also dropped Starc) does seem a little odd. Anderson has only bowled 4 overs this session (out of 26) of which 3 of them were maidens. Reckon the injury is flaring up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Yeah maybe injury played a part in the Hazlewood call, but I haven’t read anything to that effect. What I’ve read would indicate that Langer wants better player management and more of a squad approach to the test attack. That was by no means a bad session in the end for Australia. If they can scratch and scrape to 250 at Edgbaston I think that would be a decent effort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philokles Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Anderson off for a scan after feeling tightness in his calf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mosi Mynn Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 Jimmy is off for a scan on his calf. Not great news for England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 Bad to lose your star bowler on the first morning of a Test. That being said, England are better equipped than most to deal with it given that Stokes has enough pace to be considered a genuine third seamer as it seems he will have to be for this match. 3/83 is a pretty good effort in the end, especially after that bad start. Head just has to make sure he doesn't get out after the break, he was playing pretty fluently and Smith as ever was grinding it out. But they'll have to start again from scratch after lunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 England down to three seamers with Smith looking in good touch... You have to question whether Jimmy was really match fit for this one if he couldn’t get through more than 24 deliveries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mosi Mynn Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 It's just a scan (ever-hopeful England fan). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 6 minutes ago, Paxter said: England down to three seamers with Smith looking in good touch... You have to question whether Jimmy was really match fit for this one if he couldn’t get through more than 24 deliveries. Lisa Sthalekar on the Australian coverage said that it was concerning given that it was at the start of the innings. He should have been fresh, stretched, properly warmed up and ready to go. Also, I wouldn't say Smith is looking in good touch yet. He's been scratchy and hung around, but he hasn't been hitting it in the middle. Time will tell...to be fair, he is one of the few Australian batsmen who can tough it out and hang in there. Puts a much higher price on his wicket than the other batsmen. 3 minutes ago, Mosi Mynn said: It's just a scan (ever-hopeful England fan). If they've sent him off for a scan I think it means he probably won't bowl anymore today, which probably covers this first innings (there are rules about being off the field and when you can take part again, I'm not sure exactly what they are but I think once he's off the clock starts ticking on how long he has before he can come on to bowl again). He might bowl in the 2nd innings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mosi Mynn Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 5 minutes ago, Jeor said: If they've sent him off for a scan I think it means he probably won't bowl anymore today, which probably covers this first innings (there are rules about being off the field and when you can take part again, I'm not sure exactly what they are but I think once he's off the clock starts ticking on how long he has before he can come on to bowl again). He might bowl in the 2nd innings. I will be quite happy if the Aussie innings finishes today! I agree, though, Jimmy is unlikely to be back today. It's down to Broad and Woakes, unless Moeen Ali wants to astound everyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted August 1, 2019 Author Share Posted August 1, 2019 Broad will have to shoulder a heavy workload, but it's up to Smith/Head/Wade/Paine to cash in and make England feel it. The innings is still only 30 overs old and being down a bowler won't really bite until the end of the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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