Cricket-Match-Special ... A forum for discussion

4th test, dosen't start for 6 days or so, but time to move things into this thread

Am I right in thinking this is only the third test hosted by the Rose Bowl?

2 of them involving India as well.

Ali to play then..
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine ... pe=bowling

Slipstream wrote:Ali to play then..
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine ... pe=bowling

Jokes aside I think he should. Rashid hasn't been at all disgraced and the pitches have been such that he has not had a lot of opportunity to shine ; but nothing has happened to change the view that I and many others held before the series : in red ball cricket , against an opponent who can play spin , he is not likely to prove a cutting edge weapon.
The main attack for England revolves around the pace men and the spinner is essentially a relief/support/occasional partnership breaker...the main requirement is reliability , and hopefully a measure of control ( in England , that is : overseas , different criteria apply. But England is where this series is being played)
Granted Moeen doesn't always offer too much control. But he has enjoyed success in the past even against Indian bats , and is - assuming he is now past the injury/confidence issues that plagued him down under - perfectly capable of doing a job ; perhaps more Giles than Swann but still effective.
And with the weakness of the top order batting his potential to further extend the strength of the lower middle should surely not be ignored...

alfie wrote:

Slipstream wrote:Ali to play then..
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine ... pe=bowling

Jokes aside I think he should. Rashid hasn't been at all disgraced and the pitches have been such that he has not had a lot of opportunity to shine ; but nothing has happened to change the view that I and many others held before the series : in red ball cricket , against an opponent who can play spin , he is not likely to prove a cutting edge weapon.
The main attack for England revolves around the pace men and the spinner is essentially a relief/support/occasional partnership breaker...the main requirement is reliability , and hopefully a measure of control ( in England , that is : overseas , different criteria apply. But England is where this series is being played)
Granted Moeen doesn't always offer too much control. But he has enjoyed success in the past even against Indian bats , and is - assuming he is now past the injury/confidence issues that plagued him down under - perfectly capable of doing a job ; perhaps more Giles than Swann but still effective.
And with the weakness of the top order batting his potential to further extend the strength of the lower middle should surely not be ignored...

Well his confidence should be up 8/89 plus 219. He bats at 3 for Worcs. You could even try him there for England and move Root to 4.

Cook Burns Ali Root Stokes Buttler Bairstow Pope Curran Broad Anderson

They are looking at trying Bairstow at 4 and taking the gloves off him. I don't think he will be successful there, especially not having the gloves. He is the better keeper and at 7 where he has 3 100s.

Agree JB1 should go to seven and keep, though it's a press favourite that he should give up the gloves and apparently Bayliss has said Buttler may remain keeper.

Mo doesn't look like a Test number three to me. I rather hope they don't go back to him as a spinner either, as his record over many years was so poor as a bowler (even allowing for some very good days). Which is a shame as he's one of the more likeable players around, and he bowls with a lot of revs. But I think he's a slightly lesser bowler than he was when he first came into the side when he showed potential.

Much as I have a weakness for all rounders, I think you can have too many who don't quite get in for their batting and don't quite get in for their bowling, and England have Stokes and maybe Woakes in that category. Even that's one too many. England shouldn't give up their search for a spinner so hastily by going back to one who has shown us his shortcomings so abundantly. He's too loose to bat at the top of the order. I think he should be filed under white ball specialist.

Hope I'm wrong though.

Sounds like JB1 is determined to play through the pain. The coaches shouldn't let him. Playing when injured usually turns out badly and his fielding will be compromised even if he doesn't keep.

Read that Bayliss comment about the keeping . Not sure it sounds as if he's set on the idea of a switch...more his (usual) style of suggesting all things are possible.
Seems sensible enough this match sees Jonny restricted to batting only (if he even plays) but while that gives Jos another chance to impress I don't think that makes it axiomatic that he then keeps the job - no matter the number of media types who keep pushing that idea.
Bayliss clearly is attracted by the notion that Jonny might help solve top order problems but I'm not sure he's that convinced yet. And I note he also mentions "other" alternatives - presumably Foakes ?

My own take is that Bairstow is already proven to be the superior "w/k no 7 " of the two and really should be first choice for that role. Buttler's recent form suggests he just might make a case for himself as a pure batsman - though I can't see him higher than five myself. Logic says that would be worth trying once both are fit. Because quite frankly I don't think either of the two JBs can fix the top three issues ...and since I maintain Root has to go back to four sooner or later then that remains a totally separate matter...

Agree with Arthur that YJB should give this game a miss if he's still suffering with the injury.

bigfluffylemon wrote:Am I right in thinking this is only the third test hosted by the Rose Bowl?

and the last

face don't fit

Getting a Thursday start though. And The Oval has been pushed to Friday.

I can remember India with 3 seamers and a spinner overseas. Dhoni always saying he wished they had an all-rounder. Now they have Bumrah, Sharma, Shami, Pandya.

I really don't hold any hope of these England batsmen getting many runs. At the Oval last time we made 591/6d. Batsmen like Strauss, Bell, Pietersen, Prior who you expected to get big scores. Now we have batsmen batting out of postition, not sure if Bairstow or Stokes are fit, Cook and Jennings and so many dropped catches.

Still 2-1 to England and India's batting has badly struggled to adapt. Games will hinge on the conditions. India have obviously done better in England than vv, but they have batted far worse than I thought they would. Either side could collapse in an instant. Given half the luck, I expect England to win the series from here.

Durhamfootman wrote:

bigfluffylemon wrote:Am I right in thinking this is only the third test hosted by the Rose Bowl?

and the last

face don't fit

I wonder if Hants were offered the Glamorgan deal to keep their mouths shut?