I did cringe at that stupid KFC bucket shaped seating bit.
I did cringe at that stupid KFC bucket shaped seating bit.
Looking at that particular Colonel I can only imagine the boy's right leg ended up in a family bucket in the Polokwane branch and the left one will soon be going the same way.
https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/...ship-2019-2021
Feeling slightly better about our efforts in Hobbiton now, although fair fucks to them for a) rolling out a green one, and b) unearthing some ten foot tall line-and-length ogre who has just pissed through India on dayboo.
We're still the same team that got thrashed by Australia, so this should give some indication of India's strength.
I look at that Indian lineup and I really can't say anything inspires me for overseas performances aside from Kohli and the seamers. Pujara, ok, maybe, but he nicks off a lot against the sideways ball and his home/away splits are 60/39 (Virat's are 68/46). They are desperate to be seen as the new West Indies 80s/Australia 00s but I really don't think they are.
Like current Australia, though, they're probably unbeatable on their own tracks.
Full respect for the hobbits rolling this out vs India:
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New Zealand won the toss and decided to field.
Of course they did.
Pitch looked pretty crap for the first few overs to slightly surprised to wake up and see the scorecard.
That is the greenest pitch I can ever recall seeing. Didn't seem like it did too much though.
Hopefully our openers can survive the opening spell in the morning, which always tends to be the trickiest time.
Also, we're probably never going to produce another spinner ever again if these are our home pitches now.
I'll have to check back on Indian Cricket Twitter. Their general reaction yesterday was disgust at the pitch that turned quickly into "it doesn't matter we'll win anyway" so there should be some top seethe.
Day 2, 2 innings out the way and 90-6 in the third.
/
Rain delays as well.
Efficiency is key. Forget 4 day tests, can we do them in 3.
The Women's world cup sounds likes it's building to a suitably farcical denouement. India to win by virtue of washout?
In other lolworthy news Sri Lanka have rolled out an early season County Championship greentop for England's warm-up match.
It's the favourite tactic of subcontinental boards these days and it always backfires. Thick as pony shit. They did the same thing last time and got pumped 3-0.
Selling out the MCG for the womens cricket world cup final is cool.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_R...y_World_Series
Nothing screams excitement or glamour like calling it the "Road Safety World Series."
You can only raise awareness if the boundary's an active motorway.
Some of the names taking part don't exactly scream legend either. Good to see big Sulieman Benn get a game though.
I mean the word 'legend' has long since been stretched past breaking point.
I'm liking this "My Favourite Game" series on the Guardian.
A cricket one today:
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/20...-final-cricket
I've probably recommended this before, but on that note 'Cricket in the Eighties' by Derek Pringle is a must read.
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/ga...et-in-pictures
The Ben Stokes photo winning that is the most boring possible option. The runner-up is great and I love the one of the kids playing surrounded by fishing nets.
I love most of those but the Stokes one is already a cliché and it was literally his job to take it.
Yeah. I want unique ones, not one that was on literally every article about that match.
Have had the day four Headingley highlights on the sky planner since the summer. Tonight was the night. What a day
I saw they were redoing the test on TMS on the bbc and flicked onto sky today to see if they were replaying the match itself. What a magical hour or so that was.
Ricky Ponting’s “OOOH WEEE” after every six is so lovely. Warne early doors praising Lyon for his calmness under pressure knowing what is to come...
Just brilliant.
I still reckon that lbw would have ended DRS as a thing if they hadn't dicked their last one moments before.
Fuck me the punch through mid off with 12 to get off Cummins. Ooh wee
The TMS version of the commentary with Glenn McGrath seething his face into the floor is the best way to experience it. Need rights to be abolished and it to be synched over the pictures.
Root has just gone don’t fancy our chances much from here....
I've got a good feeling about this. Big Glenn coming in on co-comms.
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/20...d-in-the-1990s
I got a respectable-looking 10/17 but I reckon I was only confident on about two of my answers and the rest were either educated or total guesses.
15/17. What a miserable topic to be knowledgeable about.
Any guesses or did you just smash it? I guessed you'd do well.
Didn't get up this morning thinking I'd be pondering which panto I'd cast Ian Botham in.
2 and 12 I got wrong, most of the others I knew or kind of knew, although the one about Athers's insult was an educated guess based on his usual vernacular. For some reason I was absolutely certain about IT Botham's panto as soon as I saw the options.
The panto it felt like the only sensible option, somehow.
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There he is, opposite Max Boyce of all people.
You don't see many mentions of Max Boyce, do you?
The Incredible Plan is great. Or at least my memory of my dad playing it to me on vinyl decades ago is.
Sky have had some good content recently. A load of podcasts on their sky cricket podcast feed that are replicated on their YouTube channel. Just watched the David Lloyd one with Nasser and various guests, easy to be cynical but a genuine character - one of a kind.
They've been replaying the 2005 Edgbaston test for the past few days. Day 3 today and Flintoff's been going ballistic. It's easy to forget quite how crazy that game was leading up to the final day. Can't wait for Harmison's final over.
I know I'm biased but there have been so many great ashes tests in England over the years and I really struggle to recall an actually decent game from a series in Australia (instead of massacres one way or, on occasion, the other). Maybe everything feels better in the warm afternoon sunshine, beer in hand, rather than in the early hours of a winter morning.
Adelaide 2006 was probably classed as 'decent'
But in truth, Australian grounds and wickets are generally well suited for crushing Australian victories (or rather, crushing victories for the better side, which is generally Australia). English pitches have little 1-2 hour bursts where any fucker can rip through anyone else, cf. Tim Murtagh last year, and that tends to make for enthralling Test cricket in terms of the match situations that are created.
Flintoff bowling at full whack really was impressive.
Also, watching a full session of Warne bowling definitely makes me appreciate how much better he is than any spinner right now. Unbelievable consistency.
He's the best ever, probably by a long way. Sorry, Muttiah.
Also intrigued.
As an aside, this was looking like my first summer back involved in cricket for many years as I'd contacted a local club over the winter. I'll be gutted if I have to wait another year.