#755

Umpires making a big deal of this

#756

Disappointing lack of ā€œa listener has rung in to ask ā€˜what was the deal with that time when you shot that guyā€™ā€ from the questions.

#757

ā€¦and also asking about the time Harbajahn called Andrew Symonds a monkey

#759

christ he sure does

#761

Jennings out leaving again

#762

Pretty damning Jennings stats.

1 Like
#764

Yiiiiikes.

#765

Yeah, but note Brearley, Cook and Gooch in those stats (not comparable though)ā€¦

#766

Itā€™s the timing in their careers thatā€™s damning though. Itā€™s absolutely understandable for a batsmen to go through a bad run of form, an opener especially given how aggressively their technique is challenged by conditions, but to to be allowed to go on a run like this at the start of a career is pretty much absurd.

If he goes to Sri Lanka all the fault will lie with the selectors. Jennings is 26 and has all the time in the world to come back. It would take a batsman of incredible character to be able to play themselves back into form after a run like this without taking a break, and if he can do it then absolutely fair play but from the outside it would look like madness to try.

1 Like
#767

Lovely intro from Cricinfo:

The ball will go past your edge. The new ball will make you look silly. There will be big appeals. Thatā€™s the lot of an opener in England. You just have to dust yourself off, scratch that guard again, play the line of the ball and not follow the seam movement with your hands. You need a lot of luck too. In his last dance, Alastair Cook has encapsulated all it takes to be a successful opener when you play primarily in England. And through some luck on his side, he is refusing to leave the crease that he has occupied for over 580 hours in his career, which is more than 24 days. Not Test-match days but 24-hour days. He is not yet done. He is hanging on to it. Making a final few memories. The smile after middling a ball in an over full of plays and misses. The cashing in off the hips. The walk into the ground to loud applause. Now he needs four more to start and end his career with two scores of 50 or more. Is it indeed written in the stars then? Same opposition as his debut. A half-century in the first innings on debut, a half-century in the first innings of his farewell Test. A century in the second innings of his debut, a century in the second innings of the farewell? If he does reach the fifty, which is four runs away, Cook is assured of a career average of 45. Oh what a day we have in store.

3 Likes
#768

The logic, I guess, is the one time heā€™s looked remotely like a test opener was in Asian conditions so either he can find some form or completely make up the selectors minds.
I disagree though obviously. the ashes are being played here, Starc is better than anything Indian seamer, not sure who the openers can be for the ashes but he definitely canā€™t be one of them, so weā€™ve got 6 matches to have a look at burns, Gubbins and maybe stoneman/denly.

Everytime I go through the options Iā€™m more convinced cook hasnā€™t played his last test match for England

#769

Can you think of any player less likely to change his mind?

#770

Still reckon the pull would be too much if the series was in the balance

#771

I do completely agree with you. Itā€™s not like he hasnā€™t had a fair run. Sounds like we need an accumulator with immaculate technique against the new ball. Are there any available?

#772

20180910_105918
20180910_1059181154Ɨ866 348 KB

havenā€™t been to a test match at the Oval since 2001, figured it was time to put that right :+1:

7 Likes
#773

Feeling I wonā€™t be able to get any work done today as a result of the agitation brought on by fear of Cook not getting his century.

#774

First to a ton

  • Cook
  • Root
  • Neither

0 voters

#776

TON UP WITH OVERTHROWS

#777

Lovely, lovely stuff

1 Like
#778

urgh my stream is a few mins behind