**Official** Sri Lanka in England / Scotland - 2011

[Cevno]

Jeez these SL pace bowlers have terrible Test stats. Maharoof averages 62!

But they're clearly better than the stats suggest.

Maharoof has been pretty ordinary in tests so far.


Submits and waits for him to take a couple of wickets now.

 

[Spark]

Shot.

 

[vcs]

I know cherry-picking innings isn't always fair, but if you ignore the 200 at Adelaide, KP has averaged 25 over 12 matches since the beginning of last summer. Considering his ODI form has been even more woeful, he's surely on thin ice.

Yeah. Not too unfair to do that given that he has barely contributed apart from that innings, when he walked in on a road at 180-2 or something.

 

[vcs]

maybe they did

Played.

 

[TopCat]

Lakmal still going - 9th over on the trot. 87% of his deliveries have been Good or Full.

Another Bell edge falls short.

 

[Manee]

Stand closer you slips!!! Nothing is going over you!

 

[Isura]

Bell plays with such soft hands, frustrating for a bowler

 

[GIMH]

Good of us to give Bell a proper chance to bat for a change

 

[Spark]

Are Ian Bell's hands made of butter? Amazing that he's had 7-8 edges and none have carried, and only one has come close to carrying.

 

[Athlai]

Lakmal stepping up today.

 

[S Chanderpaul]

KP average over the last 12 months: 38
Strauss average over the last 12 months: 31

Constantly hearing KP questioned but why not Strauss?

 

[TopCat]

Another over for Lakmal, SL's workhorse he is.

 

[Spark]

Odd tactic if you're staying over the wicket.

 

[wpdavid]

KP average over the last 12 months: 38
Strauss average over the last 12 months: 31

Constantly hearing KP questioned but why not Strauss?

Apart from Strauss captaining a winning team, there may be a greater consistency about Strauss's scores, whereas KP's figures are massively boosted by that one double-hundred. Also, KP's poor form goes back longer than 12 months, so there's been a growing awareness of hims diminishing returns for a while now.

 

[four_or_six]

KP average over the last 12 months: 38
Strauss average over the last 12 months: 31

Constantly hearing KP questioned but why not Strauss?

I reckon a mixture of the captaincy, one-day form, Strauss not playing against Bangladesh, and just the general way he carries himself.

 

[Spark]

He also deliberately made his game more aggressive and risky - knowing there was plenty of runs from the other men in the batting lineup - during the Ashes to try and get England off to a good start.

 

[Manee]

Shot, Cook.

 

[Isura]

Maharoof is trash. FFS give Fernando a short spell before lunch

 

[vcs]

Jeez, Cook is in some form right now. Wish he was a bit more fun to watch.

 

[Athlai]

Haha wtf I didn't even realise Fernando was playing. Why haven't they bowled him?