*Official Third Test at Edgbaston

[pup11]

Hmm well yea his technique does look a bit like a short Yuvraj whe he bats.

...And this seems to a recent development, I've seen fair amount of Marcus North at the domestic level, and he really doesn't usually bat as loosely as he has done in his previous three innings.

Having said that, he is probably among the better batsmen in Australia atm, and deserves the run he is getting in the Australian side atm, I am confident he would come good, just needs to be a bit more careful when it comes to shot-selection, and he would be fine.

 

[Frakstar]

I woke this morn thinking I had the worst nightmare ever.....apparently we lost something like 7/77....not possible of course

Superbly bowled J Anderson, was a pleasure to watch, even being on the receiving end.

 

[vic_orthdox]

The one flaw with bringing up Huss' one day record is that he generally comes in at 5, where the pitch is flat, the ball isn't moving and his job is to rotate the strike. It isn't the examination of Test cricket, it's a test of your ability to manipulate the ball to scoring areas, often against spin and mediums, rather than a fresh fast bowler thundering down trying to blast you out.

 

[Matt79]

Can somone read the ****ing riot act to the Australian Team?

Grow some balls, sledge the **** out of them and play hard (but fair) like the old days. If CA has told the team to be "nicer" on the field then they can get ****ed.

Apologies for the language, but i don't like this nice team one little bit right now. Get some **** back in the team, and a Ranga ffs.

Think our problem is that our cricketers are playing ****, not that they're being nice tbbh.

 

[ripper868]

Think our problem is that our cricketers are playing ****, not that they're being nice tbbh.

Yeah well aware of this, but their doesn't look to be any **** out there either, it all just looks a bit too chummy for mine is all.

 

[pup11]

Think our problem is that our cricketers are playing ****, not that they're being nice tbbh.

The bigger problem in my book is that most of them seem to be playing to save their own arses, and cement their own places in the side, which is one the main reasons why, they are struggling to deliver a collective team effort.

I think apart from Ponting, Clarke, Katich and Hadds, everyone else is feeling a bit hot under the collar atm, not being sure whether they would play in the next game or not, and that isn't exactly the kind of mindset you want your players to be playing with.

 

[howardj]

Having said that, he is probably among the better batsmen in Australia atm, and deserves the run he is getting in the Australian side atm, I am confident he would come good, just needs to be a bit more careful when it comes to shot-selection, and he would be fine.

I vigorously disagree. North is a solid domestic player, and that is all. He has the odd purple patch but is overall nothing better than serviceable. There has to be a reason why he averages sub 45 in FC cricket, despite playing years of county cricket (where Australian bastmen traditionally fill their boots). He is out of place in the Australian team, as is Manou for that matter.

 

[pup11]

The one flaw with bringing up Huss' one day record is that he generally comes in at 5, where the pitch is flat, the ball isn't moving and his job is to rotate the strike. It isn't the examination of Test cricket, it's a test of your ability to manipulate the ball to scoring areas, often against spin and mediums, rather than a fresh fast bowler thundering down trying to blast you out.

Your assessment is fair enough to a certain extent, but if Huss' eyes are gone then obviously he would struggle against most types of bowlers, irrespective of which format he is playing in.

I am pretty sure its the nerveous energy which is clouding Hussey's judgment and game more than anything else, in the last 10 tests he has got out to all types of bowlers, but the mode of dismissal has been either bowled, or caught behind the wicket.

That is an indicator of a batsman who isn't sure which balls to play at and which ones to leave, Hussey's never had much of a footwork, but he always used to make a concious effort to play as close to his body as possible, but even that's not happening anymore, and his lack of footwork is becoming even more evident.

So when one looks at all of this, it becomes pretty clear that most of Hussey's problem are just mental, and he needs to fix that area of his game, and then and only then he would be able score some runs.

 

[Demolition Man]

Shane Watson and Simon Katich had decisions given not out, which were just as out as Bell's. Stop whinging, Australia are playing awful cricket. End of.

Um no.

 

[howardj]

When is BLee going to be sent home? I've never heard of a player missing the first four Tests of a five Test series, but still being on tour. I've said it before that if either Lee or Watson could not play at Northhampton, they should have been sent home.

 

[pup11]

I vigorously disagree. North is a solid domestic player, and that is all. He has the odd purple patch but is overall nothing better than serviceable. There has to be a reason why he averages sub 45 in FC cricket, despite playing years of county cricket (where Australian bastmen traditionally fill their boots). He is out of place in the Australian team, as is Manou for that matter.

David Hussey and Brad Hodge are probably the only better batsmen than North in Australia atm, North got his chance ahead of them and to his credit he made the most of it.

I think its not fair to write him off just after three bad knocks, though the way he got out was disappointing, because you expect North to show better application then that, but still I think he will be fine.

 

[pup11]

When is BLee going to be sent home? I've never heard of a player missing the first four Tests of a five Test series, but still being on tour. I've said it before that if either Lee or Watson could not play at Northhampton, they should have been sent home.

Don't think there is any need to send him home, because even if he fails to play in any of the test matches, these is still an ODI and T20 series that Aussies have to play in after the Ashes, and not only that Aussies and Lee himself is pretty hopeful that he would play in the next test.

Though.. I would have send someone like Dougie Bollinger over there as cover for Lee.

 

[howardj]

Don't think there is any need to send him home, because even if he fails to play in any of the test matches, these is still an ODI and T20 series that Aussies have to play in after the Ashes, and not only that Aussies and Lee himself is pretty hopeful that he would play in the next test.

Though.. I would have send someone like Dougie Bollinger over there as cover for Lee.

In sending him home, I'm thinking that's the only way they will draft another guy into the squad. It's farcical that another guy has not been added. We've effectively been down an option all Test series, and will be until the Oval it seems. Decisive action should have been taken when Lee was ruled unfit for Northhampton.

 

[pup11]

In sending him home, I'm thinking that's the only way they will draft another guy into the squad. It's farcical that another guy has not been added. We've effectively been down an option all Test series, and will be until the Oval it seems. Decisive action should have been taken when Lee was ruled unfit for Northhampton.

I don't think it would have been a problem to add Bolly to the squad as a shadow player without trimming it (or is something like that not allowed), but I guess they just don't wanna do that, because they already have someone like Clark on the side-lines.

Its the batting department that looks a bit light on options, imagine if Watto gets injured, then there is no other option then going back to Hughes, who they have already labeled as not being good enough (which is of course something that I don't agree with), but still just goes onto show how short of options we are in the batting department.

 

[simmy]

What a days play yesterday.

So happy to see Jimmy bowl at his best on the biggest stage of them all. Finally the world knows what we English are talking about!

All up to Strauss now

 

[Craig]

I don't think it would have been a problem to add Bolly to the squad as a shadow player without trimming it (or is something like that not allowed), but I guess they just don't wanna do that, because they already have someone like Clark on the side-lines.

Its the batting department that looks a bit light on options, imagine if Watto gets injured, then there is no other option then going back to Hughes, who they have already labeled as not being good enough (which is of course something that I don't agree with), but still just goes onto show how short of options we are in the batting department.

I guess we are all still wondering why Hodge got a CA contract and he wasn't picked in the Ashes squad.

 

[andyc]

Yesterday obviously wasn't the ideal day for Australia, and it was without a doubt a sub-par performance, but it's not the end of the test match yet. As it is, England is pretty much in the same position we were last night; 100-odd for not many, with a batsman looking good after making a 60. The last time Strass tried to continue an innings, he was bowled second (?) ball. We're still most certainly going to be behind in the second innings, but it's not all doom and gloom yet.

 

[TT Boy]

Yesterday obviously wasn't the ideal day for Australia, and it was without a doubt a sub-par performance, but it's not the end of the test match yet. As it is, England is pretty much in the same position we were last night; 100-odd for not many, with a batsman looking good after making a 60. The last time Strass tried to continue an innings, he was bowled second (?) ball. We're still most certainly going to be behind in the second innings, but it's not all doom and gloom yet.

Weather forecast is.

 

[Uppercut]

I didnt watch said ball so I cannot comment on it. However, the reason why I think I rate Anderson's ball to Manou was because it was bowled from right at the edge of the crease and he was still able to bend it significantly and hit off stump. If Steyn bowled from wide of the crease and did the same, then credit to him, although whenever I've watched Steyn bowl he gets pretty close to the stumps.

Anderson doesn't have the consistency of Steyn. The ball was swinging in the second innings at Lord's, as it was at times in Cardiff, and Anderson was still ineffective. He's not the scattergun wild card he once was but he's still never guaranteed to deliver. Essentially you're getting excited over an excellent series from Anderson where he's taking 11 wickets @ 30, while Steyn's taken his wickets at 23 over his entire career.

 

[Uppercut]

Can somone read the ****ing riot act to the Australian Team?

Grow some balls, sledge the **** out of them and play hard (but fair) like the old days. If CA has told the team to be "nicer" on the field then they can get ****ed.

Apologies for the language, but i don't like this nice team one little bit right now. Get some **** back in the team, and a Ranga ffs.

Haha, I'm sure they laugh this suggestion off. If Australia start shouting and screaming at the opposition with the way they're playing at the moment they'll just be the laughing stock of the cricketing world.