The Ashes: Adelaide.

[Dr Cricket]

Also nothing weird about hating ashes when you have two sets of fans/media going crazy and gaga over a cricket series and talk some utter nosence and make stupid claims like only runs and wickets in Ashes test matter and nothing else is important.

[backfootpunch]

Also nothing weird about hating ashes when you have two sets of fans/media going crazy and gaga over a cricket series and talk some utter nosence and make stupid claims like only runs and wickets in Ashes test matter and nothing else is important.

Who claimed that?

[Dr Cricket]

Also nothing weird about hating ashes when you have two sets of fans/media going crazy and gaga over a cricket series and talk some utter nosence and make stupid claims like only runs and wickets in Ashes test matter and nothing else is important.

Who claimed that?

plenty of people.
Vaughan, Ponting, bresnan to name a few.
even making splinter made a point few years ago when he said that he didn't rate dennis ammis because he failed in the ashes series.

also are you seriously telling me you never heard anyone not say ashes is the only thing that matter and any other result in cricket is irrelevant compared to what happens in the ashes.

[backfootpunch]

Also nothing weird about hating ashes when you have two sets of fans/media going crazy and gaga over a cricket series and talk some utter nosence and make stupid claims like only runs and wickets in Ashes test matter and nothing else is important.

Who claimed that?

plenty of people.
Vaughan, Ponting, bresnan to name a few.
even making splinter made a point few years ago when he said that he didn't rate dennis ammis because he failed in the ashes series.

also are you seriously telling me you never heard anyone not say ashes is the only thing that matter and any other result in cricket is irrelevant compared to what happens in the ashes.

The ashes is the most important series for England and Australia so obviously it matters more than other series and good performances in it are remembered for a long time (botham 81, Freddie 05)

But I'd need to see these articles you speak of when these people say that no other series matter

[Dr Cricket]

Shouldn't be the most important series, all series should be viewed equally.
TBH that is why England are so crap at cricket when you are aiming for small trophies you will obviously achieve small things.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2017 ... e-without/
ponting said something similar in 2013, sadly can't find the article but can post a thread on it if you like.
Bresnan posted something similar to his success in 2010/11.

[Dr Cricket]

I would think being the best in the world and actually winning games and beating everyone home and away plus winning a world cup would be regarded more important than beating one opposition that may not even be that strong.
Different case if Australia was a top opposition, really enjoyed the 2005 ashes.

[backfootpunch]

Shouldn't be the most important series, all series should be viewed equally.
TBH that is why England are so crap at cricket when you are aiming for small trophies you will obviously achieve small things.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2017 ... e-without/
ponting said something similar in 2013, sadly can't find the article but can post a thread on it if you like.
Bresnan posted something similar to his success in 2010/11.

You don't get to decide what series fans of another team views as important

The ashes is the biggest series in cricket, with a long storied history

Sport is about rivalries and the ashes is the biggest one, unfortunately we don't get to see the second biggest rivalry anymore

Il ignore your other petty comments

[Dr Cricket]

not really petty is it.
fact is in cricket england only been top of the test rankings for less than an year and never won a world cup, even if you count the T20 as a win that 1 win in so many ICC events.
that is pretty poor stuff.

[Dr Cricket]

Nothing wrong with having rivalries, but you can't based your entire achievement or based everything on one series though.
is like Manchester city not caring about the premier league and their entire season is based on two games against Man utd.

[backfootpunch]

Nothing wrong with having rivalries, but you can't based your entire achievement or based everything on one series though.
is like Manchester city not caring about the premier league and their entire season is based on two games against Man utd.

People don't base it just on the ashes

And anyone who does you should ignore not come on here with a chip on your shoulder about it

This isn't the comments section on a Facebook cricinfo article

I'd be fairly confident that nobody on here has such an extreme view

[Durhamfootman]

A bit of a recovery late on. Sadly I have no expectation of England knocking Aus over cheaply in the second innings. England will end up having to bat for 4 sessions at least to save this test.... and we all know how good they are at that.

[backfootpunch]

A bit of a recovery late on. Sadly I have no expectation of England knocking Aus over cheaply in the second innings. England will end up having to bat for 4 sessions at least to save this test.... and we all know how good they are at that.

Might be a good idea for us not to bowl them out

Probably the only way we don't lose

[meninblue]

Mark's selection is obviously justified given his county form. I haven't watched Mark bat apart from todays innings, but does he usually plays shots in the air (like the cut shot) so early in the innings as an opener. Considering that he was the 2nd highest ton scorer this county season that too in Divison 1, he must have seen off the new ball carefully - which makes me think why he did not attempt to see off the new ball today.

I believe the cut shot is a strength for him. That, and driving more square than through the covers. Durham/Surrey lot here might disagree, but thats what I get from him. His main strength is vs spin when the bowlers drag it short, hes onto that cut shot like a flash.

I said this to Westoelad at the end of the Summer tests, but he doesnt move his feet very much at all, and he sometimes waves his hands out to feel for the ball. A really good example was in the Lords Final in the OD cup, when he aired a drive (and was dropped by a sitter) that he really stretched for with his feet rooted the whole way through. The feet dont get to the pitch, and at times you feel hes not really knowing where his hands are either. Many players are all hand eye now, but this is less convincing, that rather than picking up the ball line and trusting his hands, its more his feet dont move, and hes shoving his arms out guessing, not judging the ball flight to any degree of certainty.

Westo made a fair point, that he had played in seamer friendly conditions at Durham against the new ball, and had stood up well, so it couldnt have been that much of a problem.

Im not convinced personally. He is sadly representative of a lot of England players we have tested recently, and by that I mean a player with obvious qualities in some aspects, but with a lot of negatives too. I think its asking a lot to make him a test cricketer.

Might be proved wrong, who knows.

Cut shot maybe a strength, but to play aerial cut shot so early in the innings at catch-able height is a high risk strategy, isn't it?. Good test batters are showing that some shots can be consciously avoided.That is where the temperament aspect comes into play.

[yuppie]

In conditions that played to Englands strengths they have managed to give themselves a chance. They could still limit this lead to under 350. That has to give them a chance.

[backfootpunch]

In conditions that played to Englands strengths they have managed to give themselves a chance. They could still limit this lead to under 350. That has to give them a chance.

Shame for us that the rain on day 1 meant we didn't get to bowl under lights with the new ball, I doubt the Aussies would have made close to 440, Jimmy got it hooping in the one over he had with it

Wouldn't matter anyway I suppose with our batting