#231

Agree on Vince. Feel like the selectors are expecting him to suddenly turn into Ian Bell based on the fact he has some good shots but I can’t see it.

Jimmy was excellent in the second innings there, but our bowling generally doesn’t look threatening. We don’t seem to have any pace, even in the back-ups. I don’t really follow county cricket - are there any genuinely quick bowlers coming through?

#233

If all charges were dropped, he’d come back in very quickly, justified by ‘suspension served so far’.

He should have been given a ban after the incident, regardless of official charges, but we’re way beyond that now.

#234

This England team still has the same problems it’s been trying to solve for last few years. The roles currently held by our best players need to change whether they like it or not. We already have our best batsmen we don’t need Vince, Malan, Balance, Westley etc.

Root should bat at 3

Bairstow could easily play as batsmen only at 4

Stokes at 5

Mooen at 6

Keeper at 7. Foakes/Butler whoever

4 bowlers (including 1 full time spinner)

#235

Bairstow as a test 4 would be an awful decision

#236

Do you think? Reckon it could be making of him

Has batted high in order in county game. Chance of him, Root and Stokes batting together would get scoreboard moving. We’ve been 40-3 so many times in recent years

#237

I can’t remember Bairstow ever batting higher than 5 for Yorkshire. He batted at 6 in just about the only game he played for us this summer.

#238

Bairstow generally bats at 5 for Yorkshire. I say generally, he’s played precisely 6 FC games in the last 2 years, so it’s not as though he’s set in stone there.

It seems to be a general rule that when you play for England you bat lower than where you do for your county (openers excepted, of course). Hence we get Malan, Bairstow, Stokes and Woakes all batting a couple of places below where they would for their counties, Moeen about 6 below, and Liam Dawson was suddenly a tail ender. I can’t think of anyone who has gone in ahead of their county position (Vince, currently I suppose), but having said that, I do think Bairstow has the talent to bat 4. Maybe now’s not exactly the time to test that theory though.

The big cheese should bat at 3 though. Come on Rooty, step up.

#239

Given your cricinfo stats wizadry, can you work out the average number of balls earlier Joe root would come in if he batted at 3. I’d guess it’s around 20

#241

Mark Boatchair?

4 Likes
#243

How about Ben Duckett?

#244

That does seem to be the general rule in tests but just think it’s time for our best 4 batsmen (Cook, Root, Bairstow & Stokes) to bat within top 5 positions.

Seems we are always trying to protect our whole top order, let’s get our best players at the crease to score some runs.

We’ve tried everything else and hasn’t worked

#246

Go on then. Here’s a list of all third wicket partnerships for England in games where Root has played.

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;filter=advanced;orderby=fow_runs;partnership_wicketmax1=2;partnership_wicketmin1=2;partnership_wicketval1=partnership_wicket;player_involve=52656;team=1;template=results;type=fow

Removing all the ones where Root is actually part of the third wicket partnership, and noting that Root didn’t always come in at 4, the average length of the third wicket partnership when Root is playing is 70 balls. So he’d have come in 70 balls earlier, roughly.

4 Likes
#247

Impressive work.

#248

Lovely stuff (absolutely stealing this as if it’s all my own work next time I’m at the pub)

#249

Re: Stokes, he’s not exactly pulling up trees in NZ at the moment, one middling score with the bat and a few wicketless overs. From a performance point of view you might be better bringing him back for the ODIs/T20s, or even bringing him back in NZ, when the on and off-field pressure is going to be significantly less.

#250

So Stokes is in the ODI squad - on a ‘provisional basis’