Cricket

[PerfectFooty]

I missed the news. What's he saying? Everybody is an A-hole?

He doesn't play anymore but proceeds to give out his thoughts nobody asked for. Would be fine for commmentating but he literally complains about everyone and everything. Did a 60 minitues gig, ripped into some people. Then on the launch of his book he got stuck into ex team mates and what he thinks of the current team. He throws everybody under the bus. asides from the drugs he's being a real James Hird in how he handles things, everybodys fault but mine, past and now

 

[Ando727]

He doesn't play anymore but proceeds to give out his thoughts nobody asked for. Would be fine for commmentating but he literally complains about everyone and everything. Did a 60 minitues gig, ripped into some people. Then on the launch of his book he got stuck into ex team mates and what he thinks of the current team. He throws everybody under the bus. asides from the drugs he's being a real James Hird in how he handles things, everybodys fault but mine, past and now

He was never an easy person to like. The closest I got was when he was in his purple patch and playing long determined innings that bailed us out of trouble. That was in the middle of his career - the start and end were not flash.

 

[Cannon82]

Michael Clarke's commentary renders any game unwatchable.

 

[Klyntonius]

Michael Clarke's commentary renders any game unwatchable.

100% agree. Otherwise I've been enjoying the world cup.
Particularly how well the Bangers have been performing. Shakib is a star.

 

[Cannon82]

100% agree. Otherwise I've been enjoying the world cup.
Particularly how well the Bangers have been performing. Shakib is a star.

Have been flicking it on and off, so haven't tuned in that much. Managed to miss the more spectacular moments, ie Morgan's pongo innings.

Isa Guha's commentary is good. One of the few people who actually seems to add to what is taking place on the screen rather than just waffle and prattle on like most do.

England favourites for mine, being at home. The sides with decent bowling attacks are being negated with these flat decks and small grounds. These games just feel like drawn out T20 matches now.

 

[Klyntonius]

Have been flicking it on and off, so haven't tuned in that much. Managed to miss the more spectacular moments, ie Morgan's pongo innings.

Isa Guha's commentary is good. One of the few people who actually seems to add to what is taking place on the screen rather than just waffle and prattle on like most do.

England favourites for mine, being at home. The sides with decent bowling attacks are being negated with these flat decks and small grounds. These games just feel like drawn out T20 matches now.

Isa is excellent. I've enjoyed her commentary for a few years now.

I'd have England favourites too. Comfortably the most explosive batting line-up. The question mark is over their mettle under the pressure of big tournament finals, something they're not proven at.
No Dharwan is a big blow to India's hopes.

I was hopefully early in the tournament that after some lower scoring affairs we'd be in for some hard cricket, especially with the English "Summer" weather. But alas, it's devolving into a tonkathon.

 

[Cannon82]

Isa is excellent. I've enjoyed her commentary for a few years now.

I'd have England favourites too. Comfortably the most explosive batting line-up. The question mark is over their mettle under the pressure of big tournament finals, something they're not proven at.
No Dharwan is a big blow to India's hopes.

I was hopefully early in the tournament that after some lower scoring affairs we'd be in for some hard cricket, especially with the English "Summer" weather. But alas, it's devolving into a tonkathon.

Ian Bishop has been quite good, too. Have heard him put Clarke in his place a few times, and he tends to call it as it is without the wonderful hyperbole modern commentators seem to think is required.

With decks like these, I think it more comes down to winning the toss and piling the runs on. Scoreboard pressure will sort the champs from the pretenders when it comes down to slogging everything out of the park. There'll be some successful large chases but runs on the board will win out more often than not. If you haven't had a look, check out the top run scorers list for the world cup on the Cricinfo page. Ludicrous reading - every man and his dog is chalking up runs for fun.

Edit: Shane Watson would have been ashamed of that review.

 

[Johnny Karate]

England should win it. Their batting lineup has a good combination of class players and big hitters. They also have a good combination of seam and spin bowlers with Wood, Archer, Woakes, Stokes, Ali and Rashid with Plunkett in reserve.

India second favourites on the back of Rohit, Kohli and Dhoni with the bat and Bumrah, Bhuvi and a million good spinners with the ball.

Wouldn’t mind seeing the Kiwis win but don’t know if they have the depth of class to do it.

The Aussies just have too many questions marks for mine. Finch, Warner and Smith are all solid but not really destructive. Maxwell is hit and miss. Khawaja doesn’t have a defined role. Stoinis kind of sucks. I like Carey but don’t think he’s good enough to bat in the top 6 which is almost a must for an odi keeper. Starc and Cummins are good. Lyon has never really been given much of a chance or got much continuity in ODIs. Zampa is s**t, ditto Coulter-Nile and K Richardson. Happy to be proven wrong but we look an easy semi final kill.

 

[Cannon82]

England should win it. Their batting lineup has a good combination of class players and big hitters. They also have a good combination of seam and spin bowlers with Wood, Archer, Woakes, Stokes, Ali and Rashid with Plunkett in reserve.

India second favourites on the back of Rohit, Kohli and Dhoni with the bat and Bumrah, Bhuvi and a million good spinners with the ball.

Wouldn’t mind seeing the Kiwis win but don’t know if they have the depth of class to do it.

The Aussies just have too many questions marks for mine. Finch, Warner and Smith are all solid but not really destructive. Maxwell is hit and miss. Khawaja doesn’t have a defined role. Stoinis kind of sucks. I like Carey but don’t think he’s good enough to bat in the top 6 which is almost a must for an odi keeper. Starc and Cummins are good. Lyon has never really been given much of a chance or got much continuity in ODIs. Zampa is ****, ditto Coulter-Nile and K Richardson. Happy to be proven wrong but we look an easy semi final kill.

Got a soft spot for the Kiwis as well. I think they've made gutsy changes with their bowling lineup recently and it looks to have paid off. We'll see how the relatively fresh faces go in the latter stages, but they've got a well balanced attack and pretty good secondary options to allow them to mix it up a bit. They're very reliant on Williamson to pile the runs on, Ross Taylor is getting on a bit and the rest of the batsmen are hit or miss, but seems like there's enough talent there that they should be able to put a defendable total on the board.

I think we're a damn good chance, actually. One of the key points you mentioned is with Smith and Khawaja - really Smith should be coming in at #3, but in limited over matches, you can't really afford to bring Khawaja in in the middle order unless you're planning on being 2 or 3 down after 20 overs... and who plans for that? If either of them are slightly more likely to come in later on and hit a few runs about, its more likely to be Smith, but its not a role either of them will do well. Warner seems to be scratching around and making plenty of runs despite the fact he's not looking overly brilliant, but I think he'll become a bit more fluent after the big hundred he put on. He's spent that much time at the crease the ring-rust should be just about shaken out. I don't like Finch as a player but the ball isn't doing enough in the air to expose his technical problems, so he'll probably keep chalking up runs as well. Definitely agree re: our middle order though - Maxwell, Stoinis and Carey are inconsistent or unproven. Coulter-Nile had a good dig with the bat but otherwise his bowling is nothing special.

I thought Lyon should have been selected ahead of Zampa, or we could mix things up and actually pick two spinners. Not like the decks have been a quick's paradise despite being in England, and the spinners have shown more ability to clamp down on the runs than the quicks have in most games. I guess we do have Maxwell to throw the pill to as well.

 

[Johnny Karate]

Got a soft spot for the Kiwis as well. I think they've made gutsy changes with their bowling lineup recently and it looks to have paid off. We'll see how the relatively fresh faces go in the latter stages, but they've got a well balanced attack and pretty good secondary options to allow them to mix it up a bit. They're very reliant on Williamson to pile the runs on, Ross Taylor is getting on a bit and the rest of the batsmen are hit or miss, but seems like there's enough talent there that they should be able to put a defendable total on the board.

I think we're a damn good chance, actually. One of the key points you mentioned is with Smith and Khawaja - really Smith should be coming in at #3, but in limited over matches, you can't really afford to bring Khawaja in in the middle order unless you're planning on being 2 or 3 down after 20 overs... and who plans for that? If either of them are slightly more likely to come in later on and hit a few runs about, its more likely to be Smith, but its not a role either of them will do well. Warner seems to be scratching around and making plenty of runs despite the fact he's not looking overly brilliant, but I think he'll become a bit more fluent after the big hundred he put on. He's spent that much time at the crease the ring-rust should be just about shaken out. I don't like Finch as a player but the ball isn't doing enough in the air to expose his technical problems, so he'll probably keep chalking up runs as well. Definitely agree re: our middle order though - Maxwell, Stoinis and Carey are inconsistent or unproven. Coulter-Nile had a good dig with the bat but otherwise his bowling is nothing special.

I thought Lyon should have been selected ahead of Zampa, or we could mix things up and actually pick two spinners. Not like the decks have been a quick's paradise despite being in England, and the spinners have shown more ability to clamp down on the runs than the quicks have in most games. I guess we do have Maxwell to throw the pill to as well.

I’m sceptical of Finch as a batsman but think he’s a good captain and leader in the field.
I’d like to see two spinners but Stoinis undermines it a bit as I don’t think he’s a good enough 3rd seam option.

Tonight’s game is huge. Roy is a big out for them. I don’t really rate Vince. Early wickets will be crucial. Bairstow, Root and Morgan out in the first 20 overs and they’re in trouble.

 

[Cannon82]

I’m sceptical of Finch as a batsman but think he’s a good captain and leader in the field.
I’d like to see two spinners but Stoinis undermines it a bit as I don’t think he’s a good enough 3rd seam option.

Tonight’s game is huge. Roy is a big out for them. I don’t really rate Vince. Early wickets will be crucial. Bairstow, Root and Morgan out in the first 20 overs and they’re in trouble.

Don't think anyone really rates Vince. Throw Buttler in there as a key wicket, too. See him as more of a threat than Root and Morgan, despite the latter's heroics. Comes down to how much pressure the Poms can put on us - if they can get a few early poles and expose our middle / lower order, we're in strife. They've got a lot more batting depth than we do.

 

[Klyntonius]

There's been some really good contests lately.

England should be favourites, the weapons are there, but I've got question marks over their mental strength. Have they ever won a major tournament? Can they deal with the weight of expectation? Losses to Sri Lanka and Pakistan suggest not. Couple that to Jason Roy under a hamstring concern and they're far from a sure thing to even make it to the final.

New Zealand, India and Australia are all a bit similar with strong top orders and soft middle orders.

New Zealand have beaten up on the poor teams so far in this tournament but been a bit fortunate in their last couple and missed their toughest assignment in India through a washout. On paper they look good but their results have been less convincing.

India will be highly reliant on Kohli and Sharma. The loss of Dharwan hurts their top order a lot. Dhoni may well be the difference for them. Will he remain the calm master he's always been or does he finally get old? Bumrah will give them a chance in most games even if their batting fails.

I like the build and launch approach we've taken. Keeping wickets in the shed, no more than 3 down with 15 to go should mean we're always in a contest. The one issue we have with this though, is a lack of ability to immediately blast late when a wicket falls. Most of our batsmen need time to get set before they can attack, especially Stoinis who keeps being thrown in as a late order slogger. Maxwell is the only one who has really shown an ability to do it on a semi-consistent basis. Carey has a little bit and after that we're relying on Starc or Coulter-Nile. In terms of spinners, Lyon can possibly dry up an end a bit more, Zampa more likely to get a wicket but neither are particularly inspiring ODI options.


This World Cup is wide open.

 

[Cannon82]

More pitches like this please. Make the batsmen work for their runs.

 

[Klyntonius]

250-300 or even less run total games are infinitely more enjoyable to watch than 350+ slogathons.

 

[Cannon82]

250-300 or even less run total games are infinitely more enjoyable to watch than 350+ slogathons.

Yep. When they show the top run scorers for the tournament and they're on 4 or 500 runs after 6 games and averaging 100 odd each... silly. Give the bowlers something to work with. Nice to see Finch getting carved into pieces with a deck that does a bit - genuinely not good enough to nick some of these deliveries.

 

[Klyntonius]

Yep. When they show the top run scorers for the tournament and they're on 4 or 500 runs after 6 games and averaging 100 odd each... silly. Give the bowlers something to work with. Nice to see Finch getting carved into pieces with a deck that does a bit - genuinely not good enough to nick some of these deliveries.

Ditto for Warner. In fact, 98% of batsmen these days look like this against a moving ball. I love the battle.

 

[Cannon82]

Ditto for Warner. In fact, 98% of batsmen these days look like this against a moving ball. I love the battle.

In terms of technique, the best equipped batsmen to actually deal with movement, spin, etc are Root, Williamson and Kohli. Saying that, those guys would probably have managed to get an edge on a few of these ones that our boys are missing by a foot, but there's something to be said for going hard at it as well. Good odds it flies over the cordon if they get more than a sliver on it, and I read that both Finch and Warner got lucky with a few not going to hand earlier on. On the other hand, have to give them credit, too. That graphic they put up earlier with us not losing a wicket in the first 10 or 15 against anyone other than the Windies (and then we lost 4 fa) shows how good a job these peanuts have been doing, luck and technique be damned. Not sure our luck will hold, but its not the openers' fault we've got a relatively soft middle and lower order either.

 

[Cannon82]

Root doesn't seem to be giving this much thought. Not sure why you wouldn't have an extra man straightish for a bloke who loves to drive everything. Consider making Finch try and play shots he's not as comfortable with and that might involve him doing more than planting the front foot and swinging away...

 

[Klyntonius]

In terms of technique, the best equipped batsmen to actually deal with movement, spin, etc are Root, Williamson and Kohli. Saying that, those guys would probably have managed to get an edge on a few of these ones that our boys are missing by a foot, but there's something to be said for going hard at it as well. Good odds it flies over the cordon if they get more than a sliver on it, and I read that both Finch and Warner got lucky with a few not going to hand earlier on. On the other hand, have to give them credit, too. That graphic they put up earlier with us not losing a wicket in the first 10 or 15 against anyone other than the Windies (and then we lost 4 fa) shows how good a job these peanuts have been doing, luck and technique be damned. Not sure our luck will hold, but its not the openers' fault we've got a relatively soft middle and lower order either.

Also, there's no shame in being inferior to three guys all with legitimate claims to being the world's best batsman.

 

[Klyntonius]

Root doesn't seem to be giving this much thought. Not sure why you wouldn't have an extra man straightish for a bloke who loves to drive everything. Consider making Finch try and play shots he's not as comfortable with and that might involve him doing more than planting the front foot and swinging away...

Maybe he's a Dees fan - alternate strategies are a foreign concept.

 

[Cannon82]

Michael Clarke is back in the box... arrggjjgjgkjfkgmmbmmcm;d.

 

[Cannon82]

Maybe he's a Dees fan - alternate strategies are a foreign concept.

Currently no strategy. As one of the commentators said, there's no plan. I look at the field they're setting and I'm not sure how they're planning on getting a wicket, or drying up the runs given they've only got the bare minimum inside the circle. Pretty gutsy move to let a side wander into the 30+ over period with all their wickets intact.

Edit: lol, spoke too soon. Operator error wins out, as it had to with that effort. And I forgot that Morgan is the skipper, not Root.

 

[Klyntonius]

Michael Clarke is back in the box... arrggjjgjgkjfkgmmbmmcm;d.

That's pretty much the same comment mentioned in my household.

 

[Klyntonius]

Classic England - boo the bloke off the field and clap him at the same time.

 

[Cannon82]

Should have pulled Ali after the wicket. Bring Wood or Archer on from one end to pair up with Rashid. Dot up Khawaja, starve Finch of the strike and try to frustrate the bloke out.