England test tour of Pakistan December 2022

[Burgey]

Very forward thinking of you mate - nevermind the fact that the public in Pakistan might actually want to see the game and the financial implications to Pakistan should it not go ahead.

Maybe we should do what India did last year and pretend there's a Covid outbreak as players were more concerned about playing in the IPL than poor mugs like me who had bought tickets expecting to see a test match.

Yeah, you guys suck. Just put an XI out and play on ffs

 

[Nintendo]

I've said on here before Crawley is better placed at three... but now they're investing heavily in Pope batting there that rather inhibits that spot also!

I thought the top 5 for this match should have been

Jennings
Duckett
Crawley
Root
Pope

with Bairstow still out injured.

I guess we'll now see who's not ill in the morning

Pope has stunk the house out at test level at 5 and can't play spin, putting him at 5 in Pak is like playing head at 5 in SC conditions.

 

[kevinw]

Hey I actually rate Livingstone's bowling tbh. Bowls at a good pace, reasonably accurate and can turn it both ways. Similar to Marnus imo. Think he can be a good spin accompaniment to Leach

Batting him at 8 is a bit ugh though

Absolutely ridiculous imo. This is like when England used to pick Blackwell and Ansari on Asian tours. Guys who are top order batsmen who are bog standard spinners. No issue with Livingstone playing at 5 or 6, taking Brook's spot. Rehan Ahmed could then play at 8. Notwithstanding the sickness bug stuff now.

 

[Ashes81]

Absolutely ridiculous imo. This is like when England used to pick Blackwell and Ansari on Asian tours. Guys who are top order batsmen who are bog standard spinners. No issue with Livingstone playing at 5 or 6, taking Brook's spot. Rehan Ahmed could then play at 8. Notwithstanding the sickness bug stuff now.

We pick these players because we don't produce many test match class spinners.

I've been watching cricket since the late 1970s and we've produced 2 top class spinners - Underwood and Swann.

So we end up picking spinners who can bat to pad the batting out.

I'm surprised we didn't pick Dom Bess for this tour. He's a much better spinner than Livingstone and can bat as well.

I'm not joking when I say this, but Root is probably as good a spinner as we've got after Leach.

 

[kevinw]

We pick these players because we don't produce many test match class spinners.

I've been watching cricket since the late 1970s and we've produced 2 top class spinners - Underwood and Swann.

So we end up picking spinners who can bat to pad the batting out.

I'm surprised we didn't pick Dom Bess for this tour. He's a much better spinner than Livingstone and can bat as well.

I'm not joking when I say this, but Root is probably as good a spinner as we've got after Leach.

I agree with that. He doesn't bowl much dross and manages his line and lengths pretty well. Nice arm ball across the batter from around the wicket He's as good as Bess I reckon. It seems ridiculous that Livingstone is playing as a main spinner ahead of Parkinson or Patterson-White but they've done ok with their hunches and I imagine they see Livingstone as having the right attitude.

 

[nightprowler10]

The chef is also ill.

Reportedly snuck off for some murgh palao and got sick.

 

[Chubb]

Time to rally round working class heroes Jack Leach and Liam Livingstone. Let's see if the Golden Boy manages to make it to double figures, not that consistency matters with him of course.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

You don't get to put a test off for a day because the side isn't fit enough. FMD. It isn't the Black Death. Covid protocols don't apply.

If they aren't fit it's a forfeit. How self-indulgent are these clowns expecting the world to wait while they get over the squirts. **** that.

AWTA 100%. Harden up. Touring cricketers to the subcontinent were usually sick back in the day. The All Blacks played a Rugby World Cup final when 90% of the team had severe food poisoning.

 

[Chubb]

This is like the start of a Boy's Own story. The entire team down sick, the support staff and coaches are called in to the side but there's still a spot left and a random Pakistani-British guy gets plucked out of the crowd, or club cricket, to make up the numbers.

 

[Burgey]

You can't let the Poms get away with this, because if you do they'll take liberties. They always do. If you let them postpone a test match because a few blokes have the squirts, next thing it'll be "Oooh no, we can't possibly play, the UV factor is a tad high, plus Broady rolled an ankle."

They lie, they cheat, they steal. Stand firm Pakistan. Don't let them get away with it.

 

[Starfighter]

I'm hoping England turn out an XI like this one: http://www.sportstats.com.au/zArchive/1960s/1963IE/1963IE2.pdf

Henry Blofeld nearly played in that test, but Mickey Stewart declared himself fit before departing part of the way through the first day and never returning (ever, he never played another test).

 

[Daemon]

Where’s cnerd to provide his take on how it’s impossible in terms of admin & logistics to push the game back a day

 

[trundler]

Delaying this would be an irreparable expression of meekness and servility. Big ****ing whoop if your team has a stomach bug. If you can't put together an XI, you lose. Simple as.

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

I'm sure the Barmy Army can stitch together a starting XI

 

[Daemon]

Big ****ing whoop if your team has a stomach bug. If you can't put together an XI, you losen.

Yes loosening is precisely what they’re doing atm

 

[Jarquis]

Such little International cricket has been played in Pakistan over the last 15 years; of course, everyone is more interested in getting the game played rather than winning due to some stupid stomach bug.

Sounds like the game is going ahead anyway.

 

[Burgey]

Delaying this would be an irreparable expression of meekness and servility. Big ****ing whoop if your team has a stomach bug. If you can't put together an XI, you losen. Simple as.

Secretly hoping england scrapes together a team of pasty whale-sized barmy army members (thousands to choose from) and they win, just to taste trundler tears

 

[trundler]

Secretly hoping england scrapes together a team of pasty whale-sized barmy army members (thousands to choose from) and they win, just to taste trundler tears

Losing here would be pretty bad but surely my tears are stale af because of an overabundance.

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

Why does Waqar looks like he's in MIB?

 

[Starfighter]

Bit of a shame England will be changing their XI. I was looking forward to them going into a test on a flat deck with that bowling attack.