Cricket... the game, not the insect

[Jimmy Higgins]

Some batsmen more than others. England's bats almost never lit up in the entire Ashes.

Kind of shocking watching South Africa and India and seeing two teams play each other well, and then watch Australia play someone that looks more like Ireland than England. Their batsmen were almost always on their heels except when they parked the bus in the fourth Test Match.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

BBC reports Australia has deported the England Cricket team from the nation in fears whatever the heck is wrong with their play is contagious.

 

[Tigers!]

Some batsmen more than others. England's bats almost never lit up in the entire Ashes.

Kind of shocking watching South Africa and India and seeing two teams play each other well, and then watch Australia play someone that looks more like Ireland than England. Their batsmen were almost always on their heels except when they parked the bus in the fourth Test Match.

England made us look better than we probably are. Though Boland was the discovery of the series.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Aussie / Kiwi Limited over series has been postponed because the Kiwis feared not being allowed back in the country because of some medical thing.... something about a disease that is wandering about.

Sri Lanka will head to Australia next in February for a series of bilby's favorite form of cricket, T20. Afterwards, the Aussies head to Pakistan (???) because... Pakistan didn't think Australia was safer, and they are probably right. The only reason Covid-19 deaths are so low in Australia is because of all the other things that kill people in Australia first. Regardless, the series is a potpourri of Test, ODI, and even T20 for the kids. But that is in March.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

U19 World Cup continues and Sri Lanka managed to provide their bowler Ranpul (5-10 at 9.1 overs) a first-class clinic of how not to run in Cricket, managing 4 run outs, which cost Sri Lanka an appearance in the Semi-Finals. Afghanistan were bowled for only 134 in the opening innings, and it seemed a miracle would be required to move on. And that miracle came in the form of awful decision making while deciding whether to advance between the wickets.

Ranpul bowled a remarkable performance. But when Sri Lanka went to bat what was assumed to be a casual 135, they were down 7 wickets with only 45 runs to show for it by the 18th Over, and Afghanistan is thinking, WTF... you mean we can win? Sri Lanka calms down, managing 60+ runs over the next 22 overs without giving up a wicket. It seemed like it'd be over now. But a couple wickets leaving Ranpul to try and bat this one out (11 from 14) was followed by another run out, which left Sri Lanka stuck 5 runs shy of the winning total.

 

[atrib]

Sri Lanka will head to Australia next in February for a series of bilby's favorite form of cricket, T20.

Why does Bilby like T20 so much? Does he want to shorten the inning even further, to maybe 3 or 5 overs per side?

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Sri Lanka will head to Australia next in February for a series of bilby's favorite form of cricket, T20.

Why does Bilby like T20 so much? Does he want to shorten the inning even further, to maybe 3 or 5 overs per side?

Despite the impression several of my posts presents, bilby hates T20.

 

[atrib]

Sri Lanka will head to Australia next in February for a series of bilby's favorite form of cricket, T20.

Why does Bilby like T20 so much? Does he want to shorten the inning even further, to maybe 3 or 5 overs per side?

Despite the impression several of my posts presents, bilby hates T20.

I know. I was just piling on

 

[bilby]

Sri Lanka will head to Australia next in February for a series of bilby's favorite form of cricket, T20.

Why does Bilby like T20 so much? Does he want to shorten the inning even further, to maybe 3 or 5 overs per side?

Despite the impression several of my posts presents, bilby hates T20.

I know. I was just piling on

I am eagerly awaiting the World Cup One Ball Megablast Death Chuck competition.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Man, Australia seemed a bit confused bowling against a team that could bat. Pakistan closes the first day 245-1. No England, that isn't 245 for 1 test series.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Rain shortened Day three meant Pakistan had to close out the Aussies to force them to follow on, but that didn't happen and Australia effectively ends the first test with an almost certain draw. Starc and Cummins are at bat, so not expecting much more production, but the Aussies manage to deal with the fact that they had nothing bowling wise against Pakistan who had to declare near the end of Day Two to have a chance at winning the first Test Match.

 

[Tigers!]

Rain shortened Day three meant Pakistan had to close out the Aussies to force them to follow on, but that didn't happen and Australia effectively ends the first test with an almost certain draw. Starc and Cummins are at bat, so not expecting much more production, but the Aussies manage to deal with the fact that they had nothing bowling wise against Pakistan who had to declare near the end of Day Two to have a chance at winning the first Test Match.

That's why the recent ashes series was not a good indicator of what Australia could do (or not). Australia took 4 wickets in 5 days. Hardly threatening. That pitch was a batsmen's delight.

 

[Hermit]

Rain shortened Day three meant Pakistan had to close out the Aussies to force them to follow on, but that didn't happen and Australia effectively ends the first test with an almost certain draw. Starc and Cummins are at bat, so not expecting much more production, but the Aussies manage to deal with the fact that they had nothing bowling wise against Pakistan who had to declare near the end of Day Two to have a chance at winning the first Test Match.

That's why the recent ashes series was not a good indicator of what Australia could do (or not). Australia took 4 wickets in 5 days. Hardly threatening. That pitch was a batsmen's delight.

Australia's test record in Pakistan has been less than stellar over its entire history. Its pitches are not suited to fast and medium bowlers, and I can't think of truly outstanding spinners apart from Grimmet, Benaud, O'Reilly and Warne. Few and far between over the past century.

Tests played in Pakistan have a habit of resulting in above average innings scores and draws.

That said, the recent ashes series was not an indicator of what Australia could do. It was an indicator of England's low quality.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Rain shortened Day three meant Pakistan had to close out the Aussies to force them to follow on, but that didn't happen and Australia effectively ends the first test with an almost certain draw. Starc and Cummins are at bat, so not expecting much more production, but the Aussies manage to deal with the fact that they had nothing bowling wise against Pakistan who had to declare near the end of Day Two to have a chance at winning the first Test Match.

That's why the recent ashes series was not a good indicator of what Australia could do (or not). Australia took 4 wickets in 5 days. Hardly threatening. That pitch was a batsmen's delight.

Australia's test record in Pakistan has been less than stellar over its entire history. Its pitches are not suited to fast and medium bowlers, and I can't think of truly outstanding spinners apart from Grimmet, Benaud, O'Reilly and Warne. Few and far between over the past century.

Can someone explain this to me. I've heard in commentary about the pitch and how it impacts bowling. What makes a pitch good for pace bowlers?

 

[Hermit]

Can someone explain this to me. I've heard in commentary about the pitch and how it impacts bowling. What makes a pitch good for pace bowlers?

From a quick and dirty description of various pitches:

Which Pitch is Good for Fast Bowling?​

A green pitch will help the faster bowlers at the start of a game. If the covering of grass fades, that assistance may be lost so it’s a good idea for the pacemen to take advantage of that green surface while it lasts.

Which Pitch is Good for Spin Bowling?​

Dusty pitches will help spin bowling as the ball will have a better chance of gripping the surface which can make it turn. At the end of a test match, a green pitch will have worn, maybe become dusty and this will also provide assistance to spinners.

Why are Indian Cricket Pitches Slow?​

Climate plays an important role in the type of cricket pitch provided and this is the main reason why Indian pitches are slow. Hot, dry conditions tend to lead to a dusty pitch and this will not help the faster bowlers.

However, those types of surfaces will aid India’s spinners as they can become ‘dust bowls’.

The comment about Indian pitches applies to Pakistani pitches as well.

 

[atrib]

Rain shortened Day three meant Pakistan had to close out the Aussies to force them to follow on, but that didn't happen and Australia effectively ends the first test with an almost certain draw. Starc and Cummins are at bat, so not expecting much more production, but the Aussies manage to deal with the fact that they had nothing bowling wise against Pakistan who had to declare near the end of Day Two to have a chance at winning the first Test Match.

That's why the recent ashes series was not a good indicator of what Australia could do (or not). Australia took 4 wickets in 5 days. Hardly threatening. That pitch was a batsmen's delight.

Australia's test record in Pakistan has been less than stellar over its entire history. Its pitches are not suited to fast and medium bowlers, and I can't think of truly outstanding spinners apart from Grimmet, Benaud, O'Reilly and Warne. Few and far between over the past century.

Can someone explain this to me. I've heard in commentary about the pitch and how it impacts bowling. What makes a pitch good for pace bowlers?

A little bit of grass on the pitch will usually make it faster. The weather conditions can also affect how much the ball swings with fast bowling, especially in the early hours if there is fog/mist. The pitch will deteriorate over the course of the game as the green cover wears off.

 

[Tigers!]

Rain shortened Day three meant Pakistan had to close out the Aussies to force them to follow on, but that didn't happen and Australia effectively ends the first test with an almost certain draw. Starc and Cummins are at bat, so not expecting much more production, but the Aussies manage to deal with the fact that they had nothing bowling wise against Pakistan who had to declare near the end of Day Two to have a chance at winning the first Test Match.

That's why the recent ashes series was not a good indicator of what Australia could do (or not). Australia took 4 wickets in 5 days. Hardly threatening. That pitch was a batsmen's delight.

Australia's test record in Pakistan has been less than stellar over its entire history. Its pitches are not suited to fast and medium bowlers, and I can't think of truly outstanding spinners apart from Grimmet, Benaud, O'Reilly and Warne. Few and far between over the past century.

Can someone explain this to me. I've heard in commentary about the pitch and how it impacts bowling. What makes a pitch good for pace bowlers?

If a cricket ball spun prodigiously (aka Shane Warne 'flipper' ) hits that crack it will do anything. You cannot predict its behaviour.
If you got a Jeff Thompson 'toe cutter' or a Joel Garner thunderbolt hit that crack in front of you you are in hospital that night.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

T20 can be cool but sometimes it seems like it should save time and just become a Boundary Fest T5 as the last five overs are usually not in kind with the previous 15 overs.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

So England continues its fall. Collapsing against competent, but not juggernaut West Indies. Third test match saw them bowl out Aussie Style (as in England performance against Australia). It is pretty bad right now for British Test cricket.

Aussies managed to pull one out against Pakistan in a rather competitive affair. No one really seemed to have control in that test series. And Jebus... how tall is Afridi? Cricket is funny because most players are not next to each other, but then Afridi and Warner go "head to head" in a funny moment and my gawd!

 

[bilby]

So England continues its fall. Collapsing against competent, but not juggernaut West Indies. Third test match saw them bowl out Aussie Style (as in England performance against Australia). It is pretty bad right now for British Test cricket.

Aussies managed to pull one out against Pakistan in a rather competitive affair. No one really seemed to have control in that test series. And Jebus... how tall is Afridi? Cricket is funny because most players are not next to each other, but then Afridi and Warner go "head to head" in a funny moment and my gawd!

Top bowlers tend to be really tall; Top batsmen are usually short arses.