The Ashes 2010/11

[Jeor]

Next up, an opener called Jack Daniels.

Don't forget the all-rounder Johnnie Walker.

Seriously this Beer selection thing is completely whacko. My only hope is that he doesn't play and the selectors go with a four-man pace attack plus Smith at No.7 (which is still not the best team since Hauritz isn't in it, but it's the best that can be had from the current squad). Even so, why would you pick such a random guy if you aren't going to play him anyway? Grrr.

[ljkeane]

Well the result of the bowl off in Melbourne to determine who England's fourth bowler is going to be is pretty clear. I'm confident that Paul Collingwood will do well as England's new opening bowler.

[Stubby]

Well the result of the bowl off in Melbourne to determine who England's fourth bowler is going to be is pretty clear. I'm confident that Paul Collingwood will do well as England's new opening bowler.

I thought you'd pick two new players - Gin & Tonic.

[Stubby]

Apparently the best form of Test match preparation is to NOT bowl in a Shield match. WA have Qld following on and Beer could well have expected to bowl a stack of overs. But he has flown back to Perth to be with the test squad before Thursday.

I don't get it - as it is day 4 of the Shield match and he would be back on a flight tonight with two full days to recover before the test starts, with a stack of overs (and perhaps some wickets) under his belt.

[Jeor]

Apparently the best form of Test match preparation is to NOT bowl in a Shield match. WA have Qld following on and Beer could well have expected to bowl a stack of overs. But he has flown back to Perth to be with the test squad before Thursday.

I don't get it - as it is day 4 of the Shield match and he would be back on a flight tonight with two full days to recover before the test starts, with a stack of overs (and perhaps some wickets) under his belt.

Do not question the wisdom of our all-knowing selectors, Stubby. They have this all in hand...clearly, Hilditch is a PR mastermind. They need Beer in Perth so that the skin graft switching faces operation with Warnie (ala the movie "Faceoff") can be done with enough time. The fact that Beer is a left-armer and Warnie is a rightie is just a minor detail to Hilditch, who after all assured us that Beer will bowl well on his home ground (where he has only played three matches).

[Stubby]

Do not question the wisdom of our all-knowing selectors, Stubby. They have this all in hand...clearly, Hilditch is a PR mastermind. They need Beer in Perth so that the skin graft switching faces operation with Warnie (ala the movie "Faceoff") can be done with enough time. The fact that Beer is a left-armer and Warnie is a rightie is just a minor detail to Hilditch, who after all assured us that Beer will bowl well on his home ground (where he has only played three matches).

Ah - this then is the cunning plan. Got it.

[sh_wulff]

:stunned:

Oz selectors work in mysterios ways

[Zoë Sumra]

...they work?

[sh_wulff]

So it begins.. in approximately 3 hours

Predictions- if they omit Hilfenhaus the Poms will likely win .

edit tyop

[The Anti-Targ]

I'm feeling a bit sorry for the Aussies. I hope this test is a lot closer than the last. Still prefer England to win the series overall. Actually an Aussie win this time round will set up the final test in the series rather nicely.

So, Aussie to win this one, then Englan win the last 2-1 to England would be my preferred outcome at this point.

[The Anti-Targ]

And so it begins. Aussie survives the first over (though wouldn't have had there been no review/3rd umpire system), which is a good sign for them :-P

[The Anti-Targ]

Oh dear, 1 down already with only 8 runs on the board. Oh, just scored a 4 for a 50% increase in the score without losing a wicket. :leaving:

[Jeor]

Goodness me, 3/28 now.

This is quite possibly the most embarrassed I've felt for the Australian team in a while. Ponting actually looked good for a few balls before he carked it.

Well, traitorous as it was, I saw this coming, and I'll reap a $100 profit if England win. ;)

[Stubby]

Of course, as Merv Hughes said during the week, Philip Hughes is the future of Australian Cricket. :rolleyes: If that's the case, we're royally fucked.

On another note, this morning I went to the shops near work and found out how Napoleon must have felt at Waterloo - I was all of a sudden surrounded by Englishmen.

[Jeor]

Can we start this series again, maybe in 10 years' time?

[Jeor]

Can we start this series again, maybe in 10 years' time?

I think all Australians owe an apology to the Pakistanis. We were making fun of them for their batting lineup, where it eseemed that every innings they threatened to be bowled out for less than 100. It appears our batting has deteriorated to the extent that I'm not confident we'd survive a one-on-one comparison on recent form to Pakistan or Bangladesh....

Good bowling by England (and great catching by Collingwood) but at least three of the first five dismissals shouldn't have happened. Ponting and Clarke hung out their bats to balls well wide of the stumps that could have been left alone, and Hughes was bowled by a leg stump half volley. That's an awful dismissal for any specialist batsman, but especially for an opener.

[delete this account pls]

Wow, we really do suck now.

[Ski the Swift]

It's a sorry day when your last two tail enders get fourth and fifth highest batting scores.

[Jeor]

268 all out. Better than it might have been, but still well below par. The days of regular 400+ declared scores from Australian sides when playing at home are long gone. About the only good thing that might have happened then was Mitchell Johnson getting a half century, which could give him some confidence to hopefully find the pitch when he bowls. Entertaining as the bashing from Siddle and Hilfenhaus was at the end (woohoo, the tail finally wagged), it really only confirms that the batsmen let us down badly and should have scored much more.

Australia needs at least one, preferably two or three wickets tonight. Day 2 and 3 are great for batting on any pitch, but at Perth where temperatures are supposedly going to skyrocket in the next couple of days, that's just going to make it harder for any fielding team.

[Slick Mongoose]

At least your tail wagged, it could have been so much worse....