Cricket

basically i want our bowlers to be genuinely challenged coz that's where the ashes is being lost & won

Bopara out. Here's KP who needs a score.

nope, it's jimmy as nighwatchmen to protect KP. Can he keep his run going etc.

should do on this pitch

;-)

fidel is now flying

jimmy edges and it drops short of the keeper. edwards is making the pitch look wild now

and there we go

You two are the Boycott and Agnew of ILX.

looks like no play today

You two are the Boycott and Agnew of ILX.

Jaggers and Pfunkboycs

tom d is much more boycottesque

Is Boycott too stubborn to admit that he's dead already?

I say: probably.

Lizzen, what I don't know about grigid threads - goundy grigid OR tezd grigid - isn't worth knowing, how many posts have you made to this grigid thread? You're rubbish you are.

Roobish shurely?

Bloody roobish at that!

Shocking shot by KP trying to hit a 6 to bring up his 50 and hes out caught.

this is a cracking spell by Broad, the way he got Sarwan out was the way Harmison used to bowl. God i wish Harmison could come back and bowl like this.
Broad really is improving. He's become englands go to bowler with fred out.

Well done to strauss for implementing that plan and to broad for bowling superbly.

I think LJ mustve enjoyed that

i enjoyed the way it sounded on the radio :P but credit to broad rather than strauss imo

anderson is england's go-to bowler imo

well actually maybe not, anderson's probably still the strike man, and broad the turn-to man

anyway i am going to play some cricket of my own now

Was going to be playing today as well, but our match in Potter's Bar was cancelled :-(

So Broad and Anderson's bowling this match is making me feel slightly more optimistic about the Ashes. Get Freddie and Sidebottom in and that's a pretty menacing, as well as varied, attack.

I've seen more menace from turtles on valium than that proposed bowling attack.

I can tell you're worried.

I actually had a nightmare last night, that England batted first in the first Ashes Test and scored 696, then Australia were 82-9 before Ben Hilfenhaus came in and smashed 77 to take them up to 240, then bowled England out for like 60 and chased 500-odd to win

I think the main nightmare was that England didn't enforce the follow-on tbh

Not sure about Sidebottom vs Australia; am thinking a second spinner wouldn't be the worst idea.

Anderson denied a 10-fer

No Symonds in Aussie Ashes squad strikes me as a big mistake.

^otm i fukkin hate watson btw u_u

Watson is not very good, so on that front I'm all for him being selected.

Sidebottom's done, I reckon. I hope I'm wrong, as we could use a bit of variety, but I think those niggling reoccuring injuries might have reduced him to a pie-thrower, at least vs Aus.

There's no way that Flintoff will be fit for the whole series, but an attack of Anderson/Broad/Flintoff/Swann + one other might give us a chance in a couple of tests.. The 'one other' could be Panesar for Cardiff and possibly the Oval. But he's got to get some confidence back. I fear it will be Onions, who will need to tighten up considerably against the likes of Ponting, Hughes and Clarke. Possible outsider: Woakes?

I think Tremlett must still be in with a chance too.

One person definitely not in the running is Chris Lewis...

Rumour (via a cab driver who knew him - make of that what you will) has it that he developed quite an addiction, to crack I think it was, ran up terrible debts which he had to pay off in the form of being a mule, which was when he got caught. Lived with his mum when he lost his money, a la Merson.

Casts a slightly different light to Surrey signing him as a 'specialist' 20/20 batsman last year.

Poor bloke. I always liked him as a player, he was a real talent, but like so many others of that era he was a victim of selectoral inconsistency.

But also a complete arse and not a team man...

Tremlett? If he plays another test I'll be surprised.

Chris Tremlett, aside from anything else, always impressed me on the field because of his great resemblance to a Victorian fast bowler in build. Something about how high his trousers were and his large upper body. If he grows mutton chop whiskers I think he should be reselected no matter what.

There should be more extravagant facial hair in cricket generally, a la Merv the Swerve, Boony or Thommo.

Lewis was always a loser who wasn't interested in knuckling down and improving himself. He never delivered, he was given way too many chances than he deserved for England. Simply he was not good enough. He also pulled out of more England squads than Rangers players pulled out of Scotland squads.

http://www.cricinfo.com/db/PICTURES/DB/062004/053007.player.jpg

x-post Herman OTM

Problem with Tremlett is that he is about as threatening as Derek Pringle was.

bring back kabir ali obv

Problem with Tremlett is that he is about as threatening as Derek Pringle was.

Pretty much, yes. It's a shame he didn't combine the looks of a Victorian fast bowler with an aptitude for hurling down fiery snorters with the benefit of arms like gigantic hams.

He does on occasion bowl a very good line and get some decent bounce, but his speed was yawnsome.

i loved derek pringle!! He got wickets and could bat a bit for England. He was a lucky player, always nice to have.

I was thinking the other day about players that weren't that talented but i still adored. Players who did something for England but weren't seen as the top players. like Allan Lamb(went 7 years without a century then did actually become our best player in the early 90s), Mike Brearley who was a terrific captain, my own personal faves Derek Randall and Eddie Hemmings!!!

I adored these guys as much as i did botham and gower.

Anyone else got any personal faves?

even Alec Stewart at the start of his career people said he wasnt a good enough batsmen or keeper, who then promptly shoved all that down the naysayers throats, which is why persevering with Prior might be worth it (he might even be good enough to just bat for england and have foster keep if Prior doesnt improve behind the sticks.)

I used to like Chris Tavare too but I doubt LJ would have approved of his style.

fave bowler = Gladstone Small. Liked Neil Foster too until he betrayed us to go to SA in the apartheid years with Gatting.