Bit worried how we're going to bat on this against the spinners in the chase.
Bit worried how we're going to bat on this against the spinners in the chase.
They’ve played them better every game. Root looking in great nick now, hopefully a big Test series for him incoming.
A summer of Root magnificence would be gladly welcomed.
'Chef' in the runs for the Lions too.
13 hundreds at 51 for Root in ODIs, with a SR of over 87, didn’t think his record was that good. Such a great player. Think he’s going to have a mega Test series.
Such a professional run chase from Root and Morgan, don't know what I was worrying about.
Interesting to see Hardik, with 2 needed and Root needing 4 for the century, bowl a wide and then lob a full toss down at almost chest height.
Wonder how we will conspire to not win the World Cup next year? Everything is looking so rosy on the ODI front currently.
I honestly think he was trying to deny him the ton the snidey fuck
I thought that with the first wide, but then to biff down a full bunger on leg stump made me think Dhoni had given the appropriate baseball catcher style hand signal.
Dhoni fucking bang at it again I see. When will someone break ranks?
I don't deny the whiff of fixing has been there for a while but having watched him today he just looks finished, he is 37 now. If India drag him to the World Cup they will lose, not like they don't have a gigantic queue of talented wicket keeper batsmen waiting in the wings.
The problem with our team is that we have the batting power that i'd back us to win almost any ODI series (as we have done for ages) over 5 games, but in one-off knockout games we just need one game where our batters don't turn up and we're fucked. Probably post 300+ runs in every group game then randomly capitulate against Sri Lanka or Pakistan in the semis or something.
Our bowling is also a bit powderpuff apart from the Mo-Rash dynamic duo.
Agreed, but generally the bowlers just have to turn up and not be totally shit to defend our fairly regular monster scores (like they failed to against Scotland for example). I just have this feeling we'll absolutely dominate the group stage, then somehow get bundled out for about 250 on a road in the semis, and have absolutely no idea how to defend it. Bring back Jade and his VARIATIONS.
They've changed the 15 overs + 1 ten ball over idea to become 20 five ball overs, except bowlers can bowl two consecutive five-ball overs if the captain desires.
Everyone involved needs to be rounded up and dissolved in acid.
20 overs you say... 20 overs a side? Revolutionary.
Root's continued his form in "the blast" with 50-odd off about 20 balls. Came up short though. Lancs 176-2 (14) plays Yorks 175-4. Thanks for coming bowlers, and Kane Williamson, who only came in with 8 balls to go for Yorkshire and ended 6*(2).
I enjoyed it, there was some genuinely terrible bowling in there to be fair. Including by the clubbie in the last over who was almost bursting into tears having to bowl to Root/Williamson and then finally got it together for the last two balls.
Nice to know that Adil Rashid will unretire from red ball if selected for Test cricket, very good of him.
Meanwhile, Ronald has 127* from 59.
Someone should start some sort of petition.
Jordan Clark has just taken a hattrick for Lancs in the Roses match. Root, Williamson and Bairstow
Irfan Pathan got Salman Butt, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf in a Test. Obvs Butt far inferior to Clark’s three and the other two Pakistanis.
I think it would be the best test hat-trick. The other two, along with Pathan, that jumped out from the list were Glenn McGrath (Sherwin Campbell, Brian Lara, Jimmy Adams) and Harbhajan Singh (Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne). Also one from 1899 by Jack Hearne (Clem Hill, Syd Gregory, Monty Noble), but it's hard to really compare that one.
On batsman quality it definitely trumps them, although the match state for both McGrath and especially Singh was a solid point in their favour.
Thought I might glance over the ODI hat-tricks, and there's one or two fun ones there. Aaqib Javed got Shastri, Azhuruddin, and Tendulkar. Clint McKay got Pietersen, Trott, and Root. Those aren't too shabby.
OK so as well as the five/ten ball overs they are now proposing to introduce a twelfth player to the team as the DESIGNATED HITTER.
Fuck me can someone arrange Islamic State to do a job on ECB HQ please.
No, wait, I've shot my load early with the Telegraph story. The Times reckon it'll be 15 a side.
I love that they just keep announcing all of the tweaks in practically real-time. Then they realise everyone hates it, and try and fix it by making it worse.
And that's fine for a laugh once, but they seem to be stuck in a tragic loop. It's like they've got the world's worst ideas dartboard.
"They didn't like the designated hitter? What about extra-time multiball?"
ANNOUNCEMENT MET WITH WIDESPREAD DERISION
"They didn't like extra-time multiball? What about..."
Are the people who run cricket desperate money-grubbers, deeply insecure or both?
The two people driving this are CEO Tom Harrison, who is a shallow money grabber whose only interest in life is the value of TV rights, and Sanjay Patel who literally should be sacked right now.
It's all irrelevant though as the mighty brown hatters are storming to the title with our crack XI of Rikki Clarke, Morne Morkel and a load of children.
The Hundred (sounds like a HBO series) should do what we all know they desperately want to do, and make the circle into the boundary. It's where we're going at any rate.
Ravi Shastri, Len Goodman, Nasser Hussain and Brendan Julian in a little panel giving style points (extra runs) for boundaries scored.
India 5/2 at Chelmsford, Kohli HIDING at no.5, sending Rahane instead.
They got their whinge in early, demanding that the game be shortened from 4 to 3 days because they didn't like the pitch.
I can't be dealing with five tests of incessant whooping and half-appeals for every single ball bowled by an Indian spinner.
It doesn't matter what is actually happening, solid forward defensive, leave outside off, huge slog for six... fucking irritating.
I eagerly await the recriminations for Root and his conversion rate.
Thought that was a no ball personally.
Ashwin seems to have brought a tasty inswinger to the party this time. Probably need to bin all our left handers. Except my boy of course, who is riding this one out nicely.
Do not say you were not warned.
Cracking stuff this. Our sub Pakistan level slip catching aside obvs
'Dawid' in serious deficit here.
Get Ronald back.
Ronald and/or Joe Clarke. I love Moeen but we really can't be picking any more left handers under any circumstances. I watched Ashwin bowling last night and it was bloody ominous, I think in those spells at Worcester he's worked English conditions out.
England bowling to a set batsman marshalling the tail always one of life’s most painful viewings.
I've decided we can't really carry Broad for much longer.
He has about a 8 weeks left. Might actually do it if Stokesy does time