The Ashes

just woeful....end of

Australia will score at 3 an over which is 270, minus the 124 they are behind leaves them probably at 150+ at the end of day 2.

It is totally woeful, hard to watch and take, a Christmas miracle is needed to pull off 3 draws, but 5-0 looks likely.

......and just when you think it can't get any worse.......

I was thinking this just before this test started, and my thinking was that this would have been worse now that what it was in those heady WI days..

As Wareham indicated in an earlier post,there will be several test careers finished after this tour, two bowlers for sure despite one taking 4 in the Aussie innings and possibly two batsman, though some should be if their own volition , otherwise should be asked to step down along with those responsible for this abysmal display and preparation , COVID is no excuse for this, Cricket Australia have done as good a job as is possible to protect both camps and should be applauded for it

Agree with this post.
Even if Root is replaced as captain, who is 100% guaranteed out of the present side, to be a certain starter for several tests in a row, especially with Anderson/ Broad being rotated, rested, to be the new choice?
I can only think of Root himself, and Stokes, and as has been pointed out, it would be putting too much of a workload on him, as happened with Botham all those years ago.
New Zealand are due for a test series in June, and with their battery of quality seam bowlers, we can expect more probable batting pain, but Woakes will be back in conditions that suit him, which should make the series more balanced.
First Ashes series I can remember was 1958-58, when we lost 4-0, which was a big shock to me as a 9 year old!
I can recall we were all out for 87 in one match, and in one of the innings we were 7-3.
The batting was always collapsing, despite May and Cowdrey, with some contributions from Tom Graveney, and Trueman and Statham were at their peak.
It was the end of the road for players such as Jim Laker, Tony Lock, Godfrey Evans and Trevor Bailey, famous Ashes heroes in the post war years, Graveney was left out for two or three seasons.
The team was completely re built the following summer, May and Cowdrey were still there, but younger players such as Dexter, Pullar, Subba Row and Barrington added to the batting, making an immediate impact for years.
Can’t really see the same sort of thing happening next summer, unfortunately,

I don't know enough about the personalities in the England camp to suggest a future Captain. Nor do I know enough about the various captain's on the County Circuit. Apparently Buttler would have been a good pick (or so I hear) but there has to be doubts about his ability to play Test cricket. As a wicketkeeper/batsman he is lacking in both aspects at Test level. Would Foakes do a better job? Only one way to find out. Maybe play Buttler as just a batsman?
Stokes as Captain? No.
Why isn't Rashid playing Test cricket? Surely he would be a much more dangerous spinner than Leach?
Give Jason Roy another go at opening? He only ever played five tests after all ! It can't be any worse than what we have now.
Time to look at players like Livingston and Bracey? I think both would bring a bit of mental toughness to the team. Mahood is another?

I remember when Trescothick was picked for England. At the time he didn't have that good a record in County cricket, but he was selected by ? (can't remember his name) as he felt Marcus had the batting talent to succeed at Test level. He finished with a Test average of 43 ! Are there players out that like that? Are they being spotted? It appears that scoring a lot of runs at County level doesn't mean you're a good player. We are seeing proof of that in every test match we play.
Shall we search South Africa for some young players ala Alan Lamb or Kevin Peterson?
We really are in desperate straights. The ECB need to take a long hard look at themselves. Does English cricket need the 100 as well as a T20 tournament? Why are we playing the 100 when no other country in the world does? Are the ECB too arrogant and are they expecting the rest of the world to follow their lead? With both T20 and the 100 there isn't enough time in the English summer for many four day games, which really is the breeding ground for Test prospects. India, Australia and New Zealand all play T20, One Day and Test cricket to a high standard. All have strong National leagues.

The end of day two in a Test match. England have lost fourteen wickets and are still 51 runs behind. Just let that sink in.

Michael Vaughan got it spot on yesterday when he said the only thing England have got right on this tour was to turn up on time.



Yes, both Illingworth and Brearley were there for their Captaincy and not necessarily for their personal cricketing contributions. The same currently could be said of Morgan in the T20 team.

That's right, it was Duncan Fletcher. The name escaped me when I was frantically typing. The point is, Tresco was not a top run scorer in county cricket at the time, but Fletcher thought his technique would be suited for Test cricket, and he was right.