Author Topic: India v England  (Read 4327 times)

zoony

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Re: India v England
« Reply #15 on: Feb 06, 2021, 06:36:58 PM »
Calcutta Cup.. Scotland 11  England 6. Congratulations to the Scots. They outplayed England all match. Superb result for them..
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Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #16 on: Feb 06, 2021, 06:51:57 PM »
Well done Scotland. Even for the ten minutes Russell was in the bin, 14 Scots were better than 15 English. Haven’t seen England so outplayed since the hammering by the Boks in the 2019 RWC
Mike 😪😪
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Cassandra

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Re: India v England
« Reply #17 on: Feb 06, 2021, 10:45:00 PM »
Anyway back to this threads cultured dedication - Cricket, not the mud wrestling boorishness you detracted too! ;)

More perfection today from Root and a fine structured innings from Ben Stokes. I must say I would have played Buttler ahead of Pope, we waste his abilities so late down the order in times of tactical ascendancy.

This track has two speeds, slow and slower, however the dust that flew a few times from the quicker bowlers footprints for the spinners, especially Nadeem bodes well for England, with technically 3 spinners if Joe ever backs himself for the fine bowler I think he is.

What an accomplished bowler is Ashwin, an absolute pleasure to watch.  Also Washington Sundar, only 21 yet shows great promise. What a shame the dropped dolly presented to Kohli didn’t give him his first test wicket today.

Tomorrow becomes very important. Personally by a narrow mental majority I’d have had them in for an hour tonight, but perhaps the ball swings more in the mornings etc etc. If they have to follow on I can’t see them escaping. Lets remember they have some fine players, bat deep and handle the climate a lot better than us. Dom and Jack PLUS Joe may be too much on this depreciating track however? Seeing the ball throwing up dust on day two is not a good sign normally.

Left armer Jack Leach may be a very valuable asset in long spells, to augment the off spin of Dom Bess and Joe! I think Archer will suffer regrettably and leaving out Broad seems unfathomable. It may be they decided to rotate Jimmy and Stuart, both ageing assets. Jimmy gets this one as a swinger with the Bay of Bengal in the distance, whilst Stuart, primarily a ‘cutter’ is retained for more suitable tracks later on maybe? Whatever reasoning Joe must realise Archer doesn’t possess the incredible stamina of Broad and consequently must be bowled in ‘shock’ spells of say 4- 6 overs only.

An interesting series is shaping up I feel? 
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Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #18 on: Feb 06, 2021, 11:46:43 PM »
Despite his fine first class record, I felt that Pope looked unconvincing, never really settled. In fact. I thought Bess looked more assured.
India’s batting depth looks formidable. Was it 2017, as we were reminded, that England scored nearly 500 first up and lost by an innings?
It looks as though Anderson and Broad may have played their last Test in harness- I would have had them together this time- so important to do well in the first game of a series and left out Pope. How often has having seven batsmen really worked out for England?
Mike
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The older I get, the better I was!

zoony

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Re: India v England
« Reply #19 on: Feb 07, 2021, 07:52:19 AM »
63 for 2?..Great start boys! First session goes to us methinks..
"Listen to the wind, it cleans the mind."

"Never use money to measure wealth, son"

                                           cowboy wisdom.

Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #20 on: Feb 07, 2021, 08:47:46 AM »
Yes - and 4-73 looked really threatening - but Pant and Pujara have added 80 odd at a run a ball - with Leach going for 10 an over.
Must be frustrating to think that, like so many  grounds, Madras has brought the boundary rope in a few yards - if the ground had kept to its full boundaries, three of Pant's sixes would have been caught - or dropped of course.
Root's catch - just sensational!
Mike
Thank you for the days, the days you gave me.
The older I get, the better I was!

Cassandra

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Re: India v England
« Reply #21 on: Feb 08, 2021, 12:28:23 AM »
Archer was sharp, going through the top 2nd over. He was as good as I can remember him, I think his friend and ex landlord England bowling coach Tony Lewis is a lot to do with it. Jimmy was a bit disappointing, but he's never a let down as a run giver.

Thought the precocious Pant was very entertaining and got after Jack Leach in the sloggeroo style his age group plays all cricket in. They presume every pitch is for a few hours only and he will perhaps need skills he has yet to learn about in the five day game on a turning last innings. No doubt he will tell the world about it as he never seems to shut up over anything it seems. He'd have driven me deaf as a slip fielder! Eventually he over did his belief in himself it and sliced one to the deep - inevitable really.

England won't forget such excesses and I noticed many faults in his method. Perhaps once Joe has been told about them from Graham Thorpe he'll shut him down second time around, or let Stokes and Jimmy set the fields and how to bowl to them?

Dom Bess was excellent, what an attractive action he has, so correct and a 'find' for us. Poor Jack Leach recovered his savaging and will I believe still play an important roll, as should the recalcitrant 'golden armed' Root. He turned it square a couple of times today, whilst looking completely disinterested at the same time. A valuable asset and no push over part timer with the ball. With a run bank to go at like today, he must bowl a little more often out there I feel?

Incidentally his catch today was breathtaking. Shame he had to have the felonious 'equipment man' message delivered on the pitch from upstairs to get Archer on, but too late towards the end. Tactics are not his metier - unlike so many of the great forebears from his noble County, Hutton, Close, Illingworth etc.

If we can get them out for say another 100 or so, NOT invoke the follow on, score 200 fast but leave them to defend for five sessions with a minimum lead 400/450 ahead (time dependent) we should do it. They are good batsmen, look how well these two Sundar and Ashwin played at seven and eight. Both started off life as opening batsmen before developing their fine spinning skills. However patience overall is not their strong set I feel? A combination of their impetuosity and inexperience in strategy within this type of scenario may combine to their own undoing.

Pujara could be the problem, he does have patience and is a thinking man's batsman. Finally how well umpired too throughout, as both of England's puerile and wasted appeals against Sundar confirmed.

Fascinating match, played in good spirit amidst a graceful setting.   
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zoony

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Re: India v England
« Reply #22 on: Feb 08, 2021, 12:44:09 AM »
I should begin to collect these wonderful views of the day's play if I didn't know that it was already done. Many thanks Cass. A lovely read and appreciated.
   I've found that my bladder's natural rhythm wakes me up just in time for the first over or so.  Ain't life grand?
"Listen to the wind, it cleans the mind."

"Never use money to measure wealth, son"

                                           cowboy wisdom.

Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #23 on: Feb 08, 2021, 03:53:19 AM »
Soon start of the day. I was astonished at England’s first review - from the depths of the armchair it was clearly too high. The second review was closer than I expected, but agreed with me.
As I mentioned earlier, why have so many grounds shortened their boundaries? Being cynical, to encourage’exciting’ limited over slogging? Three of Pant’s sixes wold have failed to clear the full boundary, but to be fair to him, perhaps he would not have tried such shots? Only one of his sixes travelled the sort of distance Stokes achieved the previous day.
I thought Bess bowled pretty well, although a shade lucky  - a catch it the deep off a full toss, and that bizarre catch off a rebound. Napoleon’s required attribute of a general, ‘is he lucky?’ springs to mind!
Root’s catch was an absolute blinder!
I missed the first hour or so, so didn’t see the opening spells, but Jimmy didn’t seem as metronomic as usual.
Obviously that wicket is slow; quite a few of the seamers deliveries only just reached Butler before bouncing, but enough pontification. Play starts shortly!
Mike
Thank you for the days, the days you gave me.
The older I get, the better I was!

Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #24 on: Feb 08, 2021, 06:07:25 AM »
Can’t understand Root’s tactics. Ashwin goes to a ball which turns and pops a bit and Butler charges round and take a catch about level with the bat on the offside. In comes the number nine. Right hand bat, facing a left arm spinner – and does Root place someone close in on the offside in front of the bat? No – why not? An over or so later he finally does so and almost at once the number nine is caught at slip just trying to defend with that ring of catchers to worry about as, again, the ball lifts and leaves him a bit.
I know it must be hard work bowling fast in those conditions, but only one Archer delivery all day was over 85 mph. Most of the time he was at around 82 mph. In fact, He and Anderson were bowling at the same pace
And now Burns has gone first ball!
Mike
Thank you for the days, the days you gave me.
The older I get, the better I was!

Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #25 on: Feb 08, 2021, 08:31:21 AM »
Not going very well. Five down including Root for a lead of 354 so far. Given what happened at the Gabba, India aren’t out of this yet
Mike
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Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #26 on: Feb 08, 2021, 08:54:10 AM »
I think Bumrah has the oddest run-up for a pace bowler that I have ever seen!
Something that was new to me – the bats folk are using. Not the sort of thing you get a chance to notice when limited to highlights. All the bats I have noticed have a totally flat face with the edges at right angles and again flat. Every bat I ever wielded (very inexpertly) had a face which was gently convex and the face blended into the edges with the latter quite definitely gently curved. Must be about 40 years since I last held a bat – wonder when the change came about? Last time I saw Test cricket live was the 2005 Ashes, and I don’t remember the bats being any different from those I used (just used rather better!)
Mike
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Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #27 on: Feb 08, 2021, 10:33:02 AM »
Presumably England wanted to limit the time they have to bowl today, but the lack of urgency they showed puzzled me
Thank you for the days, the days you gave me.
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zoony

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Re: India v England
« Reply #28 on: Feb 08, 2021, 12:44:30 PM »
I'm increasingly irritated by the use of the word 'click' to mean kilometres..It's a measure of distance first used in the US/Vietnam war but it comes from the distance one can hear a rifle being cocked in the still of early morning hours, not kilometres!..
"Listen to the wind, it cleans the mind."

"Never use money to measure wealth, son"

                                           cowboy wisdom.

Michael Rolls

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Re: India v England
« Reply #29 on: Feb 08, 2021, 12:51:43 PM »
Irritates me, as well
Mike
Thank you for the days, the days you gave me.
The older I get, the better I was!