The Ashes!
- Thread starter Ryan
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It's been a truly dismal day for England. I think it's time, after a thrashing in India and a thrashing here, that the ECB needs to think differently about how it selects a squad for foreign tours, and especially Australia. It's no good picking the same side you'd pick for a home series. The bowling, especially, has just not been right at all.
Fast-medium bowlers are ineffective in Australian (or sub-continental) conditions.
Since I got up this morning I heard Geoff Boycott say that 49 times on Test Match Special.
Which bowlers would you have picked?
Ouch! That's pretty much all I have to say about this abysmal tour. Well and truly owned both on the pitch and off. Fair play to the Aussies I guess.
There is no answer to this. Mark Wood is the only English bowler who can match the Australians, but he has continual injury niggles.
I think the only answer is a long-term one. Produce fast bowlers by selective breeding.
As I said previously, the most promising fast bowlers in recent years have either been allowed to specialise in limited over games or else they've stagnated in county cricket. What needs to happen is far more interest and coaching of young players with pace, and much more serious scouting of talent and interaction between country and test authorities. But as far as this series is concerned, if they couldn't find bowlers with really great pace (it was really unfortunate that Jamie Overton missed the tour with a back problem), then they should have at least gone for variety - Jamie Porter was worth a gamble.
Thing is portly, our fast bowlers usually have their pace coached out of them by the time they are 20/21 or they don't kick on into county cricket as our conditions suit swing/skiddy bowling better, so will always be selected first. Therefore the true speed merchants are lost.
We’ve missed Toby Roland Jones too. I think he could have been very effective on this tour.
Absolutely. Good height, a bit different, and - god how it's been missed - excellent length, discipline and control. I'm still reeling at Jimmy Anderson's complaint that the bowling coaches didn't tell him he was bowling too short. A bowler of his experience and skill needing someone else to point THAT out??
That ball from Starc to get rid of Vince was the very definition of unplayable. Fucking hell
The blame game beginning in earnest.
Ridiculously unfair and uncalled for. People can make critical points without indulging in a 'blame game, and I've been making the same points before the tour started.
I was referring to James Anderson, not you!
Whitewash it is , the only interest I now have is watching Anderson overtakeing Walsh in the most test wickets table, one more for parity, Pidge is next up.
As magnificent as it was to watch Steve Smith and Mitch Marsh effectively end careers on Saturday, the greatest satisfaction definitely came through watching that smug, middle-England, Etonian prick Stuart Broad get fucking welted all over Western Australia time and time again by a partnership from the world’s greatest batsman and some WA ring-in lucky to get a game in the first place. 0-142 Broad churned out. Not roaring in the face of a tail-ender now after a cheap wicket eh Stuart?
Hehehe
Can’t even be arsed
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All bowlers do that. They lead miserable lives and deserve a little joy occasionally.
Ha, fair enough.
Probably best to be magnanimous in victory dear chap. The Australians have played well. When I lived in Oz I learnt there's nothing more tedious that an Irishman pretending to be an Aussie cricket fan (just because he happens to live there) to spite the English. Shame because I love my Ireland brothers - Its was funny because even my Aussie mates used to be bemused. Maybe you've lived there long enough to get how fucking dumb it all is. Stay great X
- I've been a cricket supporter all my life, and have lived in this country for close to 12 years now. I can’t help not having an affinity.
- There’s been plenty of similarly barbed comments in this, and other threads, towards Australia’s players when they’ve gone out, etc. I could point them out if you like? Losing is tough, getting fucking belted is even tougher, and praying for rain to negate all of that tougher still, so I egt it must be frustrating when someone picks on one of your players.
- Stuart Broad is the pantomime villain. He’s given it plenty over the years and still does, so when you give it out, you get it back. He’s a high quality enough bowler to know that that was one of those days.
Fella - Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against Oz. I'm married to an Aussie. Both my son's Godparents are from Oz. I lived in Sydney for four years but I'm telling you - It's kind of a joke among the Aussies that I know that the Irish (for whatever reason you can dream up) find any excuse to twist the knife when it comes to anything competitive with the English. Even something like fucking cricket - Congrats. You've proved the point... Again 🙂
