The Cricket Thread - New Year New (Vir)Us

It’s providing slow attritional cricket. It provided slow attritional cricket when England toured last. Hard to get out, hard to get runs. In short, a bobbins pitch.

Rahane

Sri Lanka, having had an astonishing day yesterday, have now lost two out of their six bowlers. Not the best strategic move you'd have to think.

twitter.com/ICC/status/1343126983706861569

Thoughts on the ICC test team of the decade. Personally I'd not have picked Warner but that's cos I don't like him. Also seems a bit light on Indians and nobody from Pakistan.

Reinballadeer wrote:Sri Lanka, having had an astonishing day yesterday, have now lost two out of their six bowlers. Not the best strategic move you'd have to think.

Such a shame about Dhananjaya, he's talented (but moreso with the bat).

Rex Krampus wrote:Thoughts on the ICC test team of the decade. Personally I'd not have picked Warner but that's cos I don't like him. Also seems a bit light on Indians and nobody from Pakistan.

It's been pointed out that Sangakkara hasn't kept all decade. :lol:

It's hard to think of somebody from Pakistan I'd play - Younis Khan would push out one of the Big Three Batsmen, Abbas hasn't had long enough, and nobody else springs to mind. I might have gone:

Cook
Warner (sigh)
Williamson (c)
Smith
Kohli
al Hasan (Stokes hasn't been godlike until the last few years really)
Watling (wk)
Ashwin (but only because Herath spins it the same way as Shakib)
Steyn
Anderson
Boult

Up until a few years ago, I would have picked Root ahead of Williamson but unfortunately his test form has gradually fallen away. :cry:

Rex Krampus wrote:https://twitter.com/ICC/status/1343126983706861569

Thoughts on the ICC test team of the decade. Personally I'd not have picked Warner but that's cos I don't like him. Also seems a bit light on Indians and nobody from Pakistan.

Hmm. You can't have all of Williamson, Kohli, Smith, and Sangakarra. Sanga and Kane bat at 3, the other two bat at 4. Smith is the superior number 4 and I'd probably take Kane over Sanga but it could just be recency bias. Also think Younus Khan has been overlooked. Also the second, Kohli as Captain :lol:

However, the worthy number 3 is actually Pujara.

Warner spent too much of the decade being a home track bully but difficult to argue with his numbers, sadly.

1 Cook
2 Warner
3 Pujara
4 Smith
5 Rahane
6 Stokes
7 Watling
8 Ashwin
9 Broad
10 Steyn
11 Anderson

What it does show is that there is a real dearth of world class wicket keepers in test cricket in the last 10 years. I guess T20 and 50 over cricket is to blame as a specialist keeper is something most teams don't go for. I also blame Gilchrist.

Steve Smith's test average is taking a battering this series. What a shame.

A mini-flop like this had to happen at some point. Right?

Just a shame it wasn't against us. Our quicks should be watching what India's bowlers are doing very closely.

Kiwis well on their way to another home win.

If Smith and to a lesser extent Labuschagne fail then they are pretty much doomed because the rest of that batting lineup are bang average.

Temba Bavuma just walked after being given out, caught behind, off this:

Then about two balls later, Faf waltzed to his century with a sumptuous four.

South Africa in a nutshell.

How does Shub-man Gill have a first-class average of almost 70? What pies do they bowl over there in ranji?

Given this is the squad for the tour of Sri Lanka, what do you think the XI will be for the first test (Galle)?

Joe Root (capt), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Dom Bess, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Dom Sibley, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

I'm thinking: Sibley, Crawley, Bairstow, Root, Lawrence, Buttler, Foakes, Bess, Broad, Wood, Leach

I'm happy for Root to chip in with his part-time spin where required. Not really wanting YJB back in the team but he's only in the squad because Burns, Stokes and Pope are all absent, plus he did score 125 runs in his only test at three in SL last time.

Also, you've got to listen to Simon Mann's prediction for the Ashes and Dom Sibley next year: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0925hjt (from 34:30)

:lol:

I don't see England playing Buttler, Bairstow and Foakes, the selectors will see the opportunity to play an extra bowler or all-rounder. I think it'll probably be

Sibley, Crawley, Bairstow, Root, Lawrence, Buttler, Curran/Woakes, Ali, Bess, Broad, Wood

The two frontline spinners should be Leach and Bess.

This idea that Moeen is going to miraculously rediscover his 2017/18 forms is misguided and unlikely.

Personally I'd opt for Woakes; the NZ tour showed he's improved in overseas conditions and Curran barely did anything with the ball the last time they were over there.

In other news, another ton for Kane, and a ton for Elgar. :wub:

If only SL bowled like this yesterday...

The Cricket Thread - New Year New (Vir)Us

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