drop bairstow
drop bairstow
Look at his stats on Cricinfo it seems like he hasn't really been especially consisnt in the test side since about 2017. Some big scores but a lot of rubbish ones.
Is Foakes out of the reckoning at the moment?
Good to see all of that great work by Burns has been undone in about half an hour.
I mean there really is a lack of English keeper batsmen isn’t there?
Sadly only 1 of our much vaunted middle order ever plays well in a given innings.
Also, what's going on with Mo? Sad times.
Going to need to bowl well in the second innings.
If it does happen, it's only ever in a losing cause.
These old clips of Bob Willis are great. He's just taken a wicket in one of them and he still looks ready to commit an act of violence.
Invaluable partnership this. Almost want to get bowling now, the atmosphere is rowdy, seems like we could potentially run through them.
I'm going tomorrow, pretty pleased with how the game has gone- England on top but plenty of cricket left. Before aus and England's lower order recoveries I was starting to wonder if there would even be a 4th day.
A few wickets after tea will go down a treat. A bit disappointing to not have a 3 figure lead after we drew level for 5.
See ya Davey.
Jo-El goes from bad to atrocious though. How did he miss that edge?
Feels like we've made this a lot harder than it ought to be, let them get a hundred too many, then probably came up fifty to a hundred short from where we were.
The field placings were insanely negative. 40/2 and the ball turning and Moeen had a t20 field. And the constant cycling between bizarre “plans” for Smith ain’t too flash.
Would fancy us to chase 250ish but who knows. It’s well poised.
I note that Davey Warner doesn't seem to field mid on so much these days.
He isn’t there ‘taking care of the ball’
Ah.
Yeah, bit slow there.
But they only tried ball tampering that one time and unfortunately it was the time they got caught!!!!
Shame. Shame. Shame. Shame. Shame.
Any chance Smith gets bored today and just.... lets us get him out?
My mind goes back to the story of Jardine poring over the (presumably very grainy) film footage of Bradman deep inside Lord's and suddenly exclaiming: 'I've got it! He's yellow!', and hence Bodyline was born.
I reckon beamer-beamer-yorker the way to go.
That would be rude.
You see? Mo knows.
Any chance this cunt could just fuck off now?
Hard to see what breaks these two other than boredom or a new ball. 200 run+ lead and collapse tonight/tomorrow morning.
Bat out for the draw with a knackered Anderson having to survive 10 overs and playing another stupid waft.
This is far from our biggest issue in this game, but Bairstow's keeping is so untidy.
Well done Stokesy.
Rain about tomorrow. Do they put the foot down now and look for a declaration shortly after tea?
Considering me and my mate were discussing whether 150 or 175ish would be too much to chase at 8am in Rugby wetherspoons, the day didn't exactly go to plan. Just had to admire the Aussies though, was absolutely ruthless stuff, even though our bowling attack was injured and shit.
A bunch of 15 or so Aussies in their 40s/50s were sat right next to us, and I have to admit that they were a very funny bunch. When Mo had conceeded his 100th run, one shouted "GREAT CENTURY MO, DOUBLE IT NOW MATE DON'T THROW IT AWAY". Hardly the most original material I know, but execution ya know. Got a lot of begrudging laughs from other England fans. They probably seemed especially funny just in comparison to the bantersauruses in the Hollies.
Still not sure why the fuck Woakes only had 7 today. Thorpe claiming he's fine, which means it was some bizarre captaincy or he's lying and we're gonna be lining up with Stokes, Broad, Archer and Stone as our pace attack or something next game.
Surely we just get Rashid in for Mo at this point. Also what’s happened to Curran.
In positive news I have tickets for day 2 at Old Trafford, could be a right laugh at this rate.
Steve Smith's kryptonite is left arm filth, so expect Leach to open at Lords.
Jofra has been known to dabble in slow left arm. Can’t wait to see him in action at Lord’s. Let’s hope it’s at 0-0 when we get there.
Getting ready for Edgbaston. 13/0 at the close will do me.
Distinct lack of rain on the radar, typical lazy Brummies.
Was thinking the same.
Roy will just have to win it with a big double hundred.
Not ideal losing a wicket before Lyon has even come on ffs
Joel Wilson has truly lost the plot here. Thank god for DRS.
He has just been promoted to the Elite Panel after they booted out S Ravi. A cracking start for him.
Oh my god he’s straight up guessing now. Actually feel sorry for him.
His problem is he appears to give things out if he isn't sure. You need to be the opposite.
That’s the dismissal everyone who didn’t fancy Roy being picked for Tests probably saw in their mind. Horrible.
Root will need to face 320 balls for us to survive this.
Well this is typically pathetic.
There is never any fight in this side and they are so unapologetic about it.
Woakes outbatting much of the middle order (all?) is both lol and so predictable.
You'd be looked at like a madman to suggest he should at 4, but, without looking, I'd wager his averages in test and 1st class are probably better than Joe Denly. What's the deal with him? Is it a Kent thing? You can't have a middling batsman who has reinvented himself as a limited overs filth merchant lining up as a test 4, it's beyond mental, without even getting into the idea of having 3 'wicketkeepers' playing in the next match. They'll obviously say this was a game they could have won (probably should have had Anderson been in any way fit) and so there's no need to tear anything down, but they'll still sack Mo off (and fair enough, he's not been great) without batting an eye at some of the real problem areas in the team (4,5,7). How's Gary Ballance going these days? Any Middlesex Lords' specialists who aren't called Dawid? An actual opener and Roy to 4 would be my preference, but we've been sort of scratching around in that area for a while.
Good result for the series and a good game though. So much for the rain and no day 5s.
I would do this:
Burns
Sibley
Root
Roy
Buttler
Stokes
Foakes
Woakes
Archer
Broad
Leach/Moeen
I am torn between Leach and Mo, everyone says Smith is supposedly vulnerable to SLA but a) I bet he isn't, and b) they have five left handers.
They will get nowhere near the side above - a side that still isn't that great - because they have anchored themselves to Bairstow and Denly for reasons that elude me.