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England v India 2025 Test Match Series June 20-August 4

Who wins the series?

  • England

    Votes: 4 66.7%
  • Draw

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • India

    Votes: 2 33.3%

  • Total voters
    6
  • Poll closed .

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Yeah that wouldn’t surprise me. I would expect to see him play a lot of ramps and upper cuts to the shorter stuff - I know it just about got him out yesterday and will probably get him into trouble here too but probably his most effective shot to straighter short balls is the sort of upper-hook that he flicks over fine leg.

That works pretty consistently against wicket-to-wicket bowlers like Hazlewood, but it's dangerous against Cummins (angles the ball in and has an awkward action so you don't pick up the ball quickly), and very difficult against Starc (left-arm angle).

I haven't mentioned Boland because he doesn't really bowl short deliveries, and so Brook is likely well-equipped to take him on simply because he doesn't defend much.

Would expect it to come off sometimes, though.
 
That works pretty consistently against wicket-to-wicket bowlers like Hazlewood, but it's dangerous against Cummins (angles the ball in and has an awkward action so you don't pick up the ball quickly), and very difficult against Starc (left-arm angle).

I haven't mentioned Boland because he doesn't really bowl short deliveries, and so Brook is likely well-equipped to take him on simply because he doesn't defend much.

Would expect it to come off sometimes, though.

I honestly think one of the worst things he could do here or in general against some of those bowlers would be to try and defend.

Sehwag had success in Australia to me because he continued to try and attack. He never had a brilliant defence, just a moderate one so he backed his eye. I don’t think Brook - as you alluded to - has a great one either. Keep out the ones you absolutely have to, leave occasionally, and play your shots. Otherwise he will feed Carey and the slips probably
 

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I honestly think one of the worst things he could do here or in general against some of those bowlers would be to try and defend.

Sehwag had success in Australia to me because he continued to try and attack. He never had a brilliant defence, just a moderate one so he backed his eye. I don’t think Brook - as you alluded to - has a great one either. Keep out the ones you absolutely have to, leave occasionally, and play your shots. Otherwise he will feed Carey and the slips probably

That's the point; I don't think Brook will.

Boland is difficult to defend, but less difficult to attack because his variation relies on using the crease rather than changing up his length or using slower balls.
 
Test cricket is the best sport in the world when it involves Australia, England or India and at times South Africa

Any other team and it fails to deliver

A team in Pakistan earlier this year recovered to win a test match from 7-37 in the first session of the match, you realise, with a dreadlocked spinner leading the way with bat and ball on pitches the hosts openly admitted were doctored.
Pakistan have played out a draw 9 wickets down against NZ just 14 short of a 319 target within the last 2 years.
It’s a couple of years since the West Indies were set almost 400 to win a test in Bangladesh and a debutante smashed 200 not out at a run a ball to chase it down.

Even the ‘sometimes south Africa’ call is harsh. Pound for pound, considering they play nowhere near as much test cricket as the other big nations, is harsh: they play in a huge percentage of thrilling matches.

The WTC final was absorbing. The 2 wicket win against Pakistan to seal their place in the final. The match against India where they took 6-0 or whatever it was and Markram smashed that ridiculous hundred on that disgraceful pitch. They’ve played a heap of memorable tests.
 

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Would have loved a mankad to win the series, and India running straight to the airport with the trophy like some kind of Monty Python sketch.

Alas
 
Test cricket is the best sport in the world when it involves Australia, England or India and at times South Africa

Any other team and it fails to deliver
What you mean by this is that you only watch Test cricket when it involves Australia, England or India.

Even a nothing series like New Zealand v Bangladesh have played 4 Tests in the last 3 or so years and 3 of them have been absolute crackers.
 
Test cricket is the best sport in the world when it involves Australia, England or India and at times South Africa

Any other team and it fails to deliver
NZ have had their moments too, like when they beat India in India last year.

Pakistan, Bangladesh, West Indies and Sri Lanka being so poor for the last decade has really hurt international cricket though.
 
Would have loved a mankad to win the series, and India running straight to the airport with the trophy like some kind of Monty Python sketch.

Alas
Imagine the spirit of cricket outrage if Woakes faced a ball at the body that he couldn't get out the way of
 
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Imagine the spirit of cricket outrage if Workes faced a ball at the body that he couldn't get out the way of

I think it bounced off a crack but from memory when Smith batted with a broken hand Johnson got him absolutely flush on it and no one batted an eyelid - he didn’t say a word (he was obviously in pain but understood he would get hit).

I think even despite all the pissing back and forth, the English would know and accept that he’s at risk of getting hit. I think…
 
NZ have had their moments too, like when they beat India in India last year.

Pakistan, Bangladesh, West Indies and Sri Lanka being so poor for the last decade has really hurt international cricket though.
All 4 of those teams have either beaten or drew series with Australia in the last decade. "So poor" is a stretch.
 

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England v India 2025 Test Match Series June 20-August 4

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