Cricket

it is enrmsly entertaining (third game i attended in the past month). the only thing that keeps surprising me is how incredibly silent the crowd is. like gayle was on some crazy shit and the stadium was really quiet.

weird, they were the home side too.

i agree t20 is barely cricket but 175 off 66, whoo

"Gayle completed a fine day's work by taking two wickets for five runs." lol

the bangalore stadium is the only i've been too but the crowd is kind of impassive. of the three matches i saw, there was only one where they were into it (kind of repetitive though, they only chant RCB! RCB! over an over, sometimes they might have a small chris gayle chant) and that too only when rcb was batting. i don't know, i'm used to football crowds where there's singing and the stadium's rarely silent, but here it is more often silent than not, except for a bit of yelling for 6s and 4s. can't help that they have a terrible speaker who once in a while tries to start a wave or begins rcb chants. ab de villiers fielded right in front of me, the ppl around me were really into calling his name out, seems like a nice guy, kept turning around to wave to us. he's def the biggest crowd favourite, moreso even than gayle.

i'd compare them to the crowds i saw at the only baseball game i've ever been too (so maybe not representative of what baseball crowds are like usually), as in ppl are happy enough watching what happens and talking with their neighbors but not really supporting.

yeah sounds rather like mlb. so strange tho when the noise for the national team's short-form games is near-constant iirc

These are still relatively new franchises, I suppose. People come because they love cricket and the matches are exciting but club loyalty / passion might take a while to develop.

yeah. the game against mumbai, i was sitting next to a guy, we ended up chatting and the guy told me even though he was from blore and had lived his entire life there, he supported mumbai because of sachin. i guess i can understand that, dude is a god. so ya it'll prob take a while before there's a real supporting effort, even if some ppl are already really into rcb or other teams.

Record breaking week so far. First Englishman to hit six sixes in one over in professional cricket

http://www.espncricinfo.com/db/PICTURES/CMS/167800/167845.jpg

the brattish psychosis of someone who is going to absolutely decimate bowling attacks across the world for 20 years

He bowls pretty well too.

Zol will slay with icy precision, this dude will just obliterate without mercy. Worrying times for bowlers

Samson's still only 18 as well. He looks a hell of a player.

Just want India to pick the youngsters by this point. Stop fucking around with wasters like Raina

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BWNZKOgIcAAD-pD.jpg

fuckoffSouthAfrica

if there's one team in world cricket that could cock up a chase of 40 on a flat deck, it's Pakistan

Misbah and Younis ftw

Misbah should hopefully steady the ship.

In a way this is good for Pakistan - they won't be complacent before the next Test

job done

Cricinfo have a 'Cricketers On Twitter' box on their front page. Current top Tweet:

Graemefowler @GFoxyFowler
These fuckers take longer to turn on than my great Grandad's bellend ! #useless

;D

would quite enjoy seeing Pakistan's and SA's ODI bowling against Australia's and India's ODI batting right now

I spent too much time watching Sheffield Shield games without commentary yesterday.

Also, RIP Dave Warner's Twitter, heaven needed 12-year-old girl tweets like Warnie's and butthurt missives at everyone.

think Tino Best might be my favourite current cricketer

it's him or the two-headed Sangawardene sexbeast of destruction

I would like Tino a bit more if he was better at that whole bowling business but he is thoroughly endearing.

he's bowling a beautiful spell rn, which is what provoked the voicing of that sentiment

Shannon Gabriel otoh is a fucking disgrace to West Indies fast bowling

Holder looks by a million miles the most interesting young fast bowling prospect but appears to have been pegged as a one-day player

How is Shillingford doing? His bowling action is under investigation again.

he's bowling steadily without any doosras at all, which makes him somewhat ineffective

oh look here's Gabriel. make me eat my words

first ball hooked for four

second ball cut for four

this guy shouldn't be in international A-team cricket let alone a Test

think NZ might have the most sloggish batting line-up in Test history btw. there will be sixes

watching Best batting to save a Test is a singular joy

it must be nice watching a team with guts batting to save a test

Oh *shit* they're 50-4 chasing 112!! Serious torn loyalties as to which I should watch now

think the windies' race is run now. good effort tho

heads be rollin'

keep an eye on SA - India

srsly

ty, ws amazing!

KP will score a century. Eng would be mad to push him out making him the scapegoat. Still top scorer in this series and the only one who looks remotely capable of scoring a ton.
Cook is a terrible captain and I think Broad would do better then Cook could get his form back.

Entire coaching team must go. Theyre as negative as I am before anyone defends them!
Flower did a great job but everyone has their day eventually. We need coaches that can motivate. The man-management by cook & flower is a disgrace.
3 or 4 SENIOR players possibly could do with being "rested" for may tests to play county cricket and get their form back and justify their inclusion instead of walking back in. Id hate to see the likes of root,ballance,monty, bresnan take the fall (even if im not sure bresnan is good enough.)

Also what have the coaches done to Finn??

Please god though make Cook resign as captain. He hasnt got a clue or back up plans or man-management skills.

After all that I bet KP and maybe bell are the only ones dumped while Cook/Flower blunder on.

ps KP wont score a century probably but I still hope hes not forced to retire or dropped. He does deserve 1 more series in the summer. Not sure about others though.

probably need a change of selectors if cook stays on as its clear they pick players cook has no faith in (monty/bresnan et al)

Michael Vaughan, Ex-England captain on BBC Test Match Special

"I think it's going to be over today. There will be about 60 overs and the extra half hour. With the momentum of the series and the way Australia have bowled, it will be a tough ask for England to stretch it into tomorrow. Five times in nine innings they haven't got 180."

Michael Vaughan, Ex-England captain on BBC Test Match Special

On the way forward for England: "I would go radical and make Kevin Pietersen vice-captain. He is England's best player. He can make the biggest impact on the game. But he is not involved in this team - I see him at third man, at fine-leg. If there's an issue there, get rid of him. If not, then involve him.

"There are not many good cricket brains in this England side. Get him involved and it's the way to get two more years out of Pietersen - to the end of the next Ashes series.

"England need to do something different. They need someone different to stand up to Andy Flower."