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Post by newby on Feb 23, 2024 13:34:14 GMT
I was interested to read Rehan Ahmed had gone home. Nothing to do with not being selected Cricinfo were quick to point out.
Kohli missing, Harry Brook missing, Ashwin left the last test for a couple of days, and now Ahmed. Is this becoming a bit of a 'thing' do we think.
Not knowing the reasons, and I wouldn't want to know, it's hard to judge whether it's the case that in the old days, they would have just had to park a similar situation and get on with it, I suspect it was.
I applaud it and hope the improvement in the treatment of employees welfare is mirrored, to some extent at least, in the wider working community these days.
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Post by donnylad on Feb 23, 2024 15:09:50 GMT
Nah sithee Joe Lad, see wor 'appens when tha gets thi nose down and plays proper crickit and leaves them sloppy shots t'ert'others.
Tha deserves a reet good pat ont' back.
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Post by davemorton on Feb 23, 2024 15:33:32 GMT
In 1929, Douglas Jardine (who was an amateur) left the Ashes tour mid-Test to go on a business trip. The MCC seem to have been happy with this, and the Aussies allowed a substitute fieldsman. The MCC were stretched, it is true. Captain Chapman was 'incapacitated', which was interpreted as 'drunk' by some people; Sutcliffe had an injured shoulder; and Ames had broken his finger in the previous match.
However, there was still one spare batsman, Hampshire's Phil Mead. But Jardine played, and entertained the MCG crowd by scoring 19 in 101 minutes. In the second innings, he was out second ball, late on day 5. Just as well, because he had to leave on day 6. The Tour Captain - clearly not drunk - fielded substitute in his place, in a game which went into the 8th day.
Did England have the right to refuse Ashwin a substitute last week? Which, of course, no side would, under those circumstances. The Jardine case was different.
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Post by newby on Feb 23, 2024 16:59:25 GMT
I was more wondering if things were changing without going back quite that far Dave. Answering my own question it almost certainly is.
Harry Brook, despite his obvious talent has really done nothing yet, but obviously feels secure enough to ask for the time off during a very important England tour.
I don't know what the position is, but in the same position, would a young up and coming player from a few decades ago, a young David Gower for instance, without such a thing as a central contract, been able to make the same choices. My feeling is he wouldn't.
On Ashwin I'm not sure whether the Indian team could have even have been allowed to raise the matter of a replacement.
Concussion and Covid seem to be the only reasons when a substitute would be allowed.
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Post by newby on Feb 24, 2024 9:31:34 GMT
It sounds like batting is a nightmare already and this is only day 2.
4 wickets for Bashir, who'd have thunk it, certainly not me.
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Post by hawke on Feb 24, 2024 10:17:23 GMT
Yes well done Root. Old school batting was needed in the circumstances. Bashir’s success is amazing. He is a Surrey product I read. An uncle played with Guildford. Somerset snapped him up and he has only played a handful of matches. Just turned 20. Suggests Somerset and England currently have their fingers on the right pulses.
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Post by hawke on Feb 24, 2024 10:19:12 GMT
Now Hartley is getting stuck in too. Again the selection is looking astute. Somebody must be liaising with the county game!!!!
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Post by tbsteve on Feb 24, 2024 10:55:33 GMT
Didnt all the umpires start wearing cameras last season so that the ECB lot can review any player at will?
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Post by newby on Feb 24, 2024 11:27:13 GMT
Perhaps they are using AI.
They did make a big deal out of saying both Bashir and Hartley had been picked partly because of their height.
The talk is that they both kept it tight and bowled well today. They had both been guilty of spraying it about previously, perhaps this pitch has kept them both more focused.
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Post by davemorton on Feb 24, 2024 13:09:25 GMT
I watched just about all of it. Dozed off a couple of times. Joe and Ollie, century partnership, good batting, game changing and potentially match winning.
Then Jaiswal, who must be (along with new-born Root) the best batsman currently in India. What a gorgeous player to watch! Next came Bashir, who comfortably outbowled 500-wicket Ashwin, and Hartley, who was almost as good. Odd how bowlers improve when they bowl.
Perhaps they lost a wee bit snap, or the ball got soft, in the final half hour. We need a lead of 80, minimum, to safeguard against the dreaded third-innings collapse. I reckon we're 70 / 30 at the minute, perhaps even a bit more than that.
So this is real Bazball, as I'm sure McCullum preaches. Aggressive, yes, but also thoughtful and flexible. What we don't want is doctrinaire Bazball. You know the thing. Nine wickets down and we need 100 off 2 overs, but still we try to slog it out of the ground. Two legs bad, four legs good.
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Post by davemorton on Feb 24, 2024 13:28:38 GMT
Best English off-spinners? In my lifetime, Laker and Swann, in either order, though I never saw Laker bowl in the flesh. Bob Appleyard? Briefly world class, perhaps the GOAT without the TB. Also Don Shepherd, in the view of many. 2218 f-c wickets, and never played for England!
Pre-war: lots of left-arm spinners, but I can think only of Gloucs Tom Goddard and our own George Macauley.
After Laker: Illingworth would easily head the list of McConnon, Titmus, Allen, Mortimore, Miller, Emburey, Watkinson, Such and Dawson, of those who played for England. There must be others, but not in this brain's memory. Oops! I forgot Bess.
The most famous of all of them is undoubtedly called Azeem... Fame is overrated. Obviously.
If Bashir can consistently bowl like this, he will soon be floating up there with the cream. It was lovely to hear Swann, on commentary, singing his praises, with careful analysis included.
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Post by newby on Feb 24, 2024 20:29:45 GMT
I imagine England will get them all out sometime in the first session but how much of a lead can England come out with. 42 partnership already from these two and they both have FC hundreds to their name. I hope England start well and don't let it drift like India did towards the end of the England innings. At least England are almost certain to take the new ball when it's available.
With the way the wicket is playing I should think England will go hard from the off and hope to get away with it.
Should be a good watch, I'll listen when I wake up.
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Post by newby on Feb 25, 2024 18:01:31 GMT
A bad third day all round for England and it will take something very unusual to happen for them not to go 3-1 down.
Concentrating on just one aspect, did Ben Stokes actually think starting with Root and Hartley was the best chance England had of making life difficult for the Indian openers in their second innings.
If conversely he thought, this is funky, I'll give it a try and if it comes off they'll continue to think I'm a tactical genius!
Well you did, and it didn't and you aren't.
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Post by newby on Feb 26, 2024 9:02:44 GMT
A bit of tension when they fell to 120-5 but a deserved win for India in the end. If we had done just marginally better yesterday with bat and ball they might have been looking at needing 300 runs which might have been a different story.
Dharamsala next on the 7th of March, local forecast looks colder and wetter than Inverness, with not much of an improvement due. Should be interesting.
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Post by slowleftarmer on Feb 26, 2024 9:28:00 GMT
we seemed to struggle at key moments, like the end of day 2 when they were 7 down but then recovered well on day 3 and then ditto at the end of day 3 when surely Jimmy had to bowl but we opened with 2 spinners who had poor control and allowed the Indian openers to knock off a quarter of the runs without loss quite comfortably.
Today we looked dead and buried until the first wicket and then once we got them 5 down it was game on but i dont think we even created another chance and we allowed them to rotate the strike and cruise home without much trouble.
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