Cricket: More Than a Game

Didn't realise the cricket had even started yet

2nd Test about to start

Aussies won the toss and will bat.

England - The 1990s called, they want their cricket team back

Amazing how one mustache can be so devastating.

I'm concerned about how pedestrian our attack has looked. Its as though Australia have seen these bowlers before...

Stokes looks keen as does Monty. Broad seems up for it (except when facing the moustache) but Anderson and Swann look like they'd rather be at home.

Bell is far and away the best batsman, Carberry solid, but I think Cook and The Ego will play better from here on. Root seems to have some ticker and will get better with a few more years under his belt but putting him in at number 3 ahead of Bell is bizarre. Prior needs a rest.

Huh, Cook out hooking in the second over of the day. You guys are doomed.

Hashim Amla gets to 4000 ODI run in 81 innings, 7 better than Viv Richards.

Legend.

Amla is one of the best around in today's game no question, but Viv was something else. Also back in the olden days when he was playing teams scored a lot less - none of this losing after scoring 400 nonsense. Grats to Amla though, he's a very classy player and a joy to watch (except when playing Australia).

I never in my wildest dreams imagined a 2-0 lead at this point.

I have to say - in my wildest dreams I've never imagined ANY cricket scores.

You might have imported well with this Stokes kid. He seems to have a decent temperament.

KP, on the other hand, should have his card stamped. 4 sessions to bat and he holes out trying to clear long on. That was poor.

Vetori might come back but if he doesn't then that us probably the end of the genuine off spin bowlers with Swann's retirement.

Yeah - I think it's possible that he never got over the series of nagging elbow injuries. Still, I don't think that people should go retiring in the middle of a series, he could at least have stuck it out through the last two, it leaves a slight aftertaste.

It also means that his last ever over as an international cricketer went for 22 runs.

I'm sorry to see Swann's retirement. He's always been a decent character. Definitely my favourite sportsman on Twitter. Very high praise with what I think of most English sportsmen, cricketers in particular.

Anyone keeping an eye on SA vs India? I'm on tenterhooks. We were up sh*t creek, but now there's one session left, 6 wickets in hand, two well set batsmen and we need 128 to win. The game can go in any direction.

MrDeVil909 wrote:

Anyone keeping an eye on SA vs India? I'm on tenterhooks. We were up sh*t creek, but now there's one session left, 6 wickets in hand, two well set batsmen and we need 128 to win. The game can go in any direction.

Just watching it now, record run chase almost within grasp but that last wicket could be cruical.

So close, yet just too far. I'm actually more disappointed in India that they didn't chase the last 3 wickets harder. There's a lot of rain predicted for the Boxing Day Test, so this was their chance.

MrDeVil909 wrote:

So close, yet just too far. I'm actually more disappointed in India that they didn't chase the last 3 wickets harder. There's a lot of rain predicted for the Boxing Day Test, so this was their chance.

2 test series is a joke, meant that either side went for it at the end because to lose that one match was to concede the win. Also SA were the ones on the verge of history and instead of reaching for it, they ran away.

At the start of the day i would have been happy with the draw, at the end of the day I'm still satisfied with it. After du plessis' dismissal going for the win was too risky. I am pretty annoyed at the run out though.

I'm a bit surprised. It was a good result from the start of the day's play - but a mediocre one based on the state at the end of play.

They did such a good job of getting within range and then bottled it I reckon.

If you were climbing Everest and got to the final summit with a better than even money chance of getting to the summit - but the consequence of failure is death - then maybe you turn back. But this is sport. No one will die. The brass ring was there and they chose to sit tight in the saddle.

Compare two boxing day crowds.

A new world record attendance to see the start of a dead rubber while 8 men and a dog farewell one of the greatest to ever play the game.

You are a gun Jack.

It's actually not a bad turnout, cricket does struggle to pull a crowd here it's a real minority sport. If I didn't have to be at work today I would be down there watching.

If it was a dead rubber the other way, we could have had round 2 of 'Spot the Australian'.

davet010 wrote:

If it was a dead rubber the other way, we could have had round 2 of 'Spot the Australian'.

You're right. We'd have been in danger of only having as many at Boxing Day as the entire 5 days at Trent Bridge.

What, Australians ? All 5 days at TB were sellouts at 17,007, I believe.

An interesting thought experiment given that England have never in our lifetimes played at the MCG having already secured a series win (I am assuming you were born after 1965 when I stopped my stats-guru query.)

17000 is nothing. The ECB does deserve some credit for scheduling matches there, so that people who don't like crowds also get to attend a test match. I love that an extensive new stand increased capacity from 15.5 to 17.

Lords holds 30k. If we had only sold 30k tickets for Boxing day they wouldn't even bother to open the top deck of the Ponsford or Olympic stand sections.

The MCG is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mindbogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to the 'G, listen... (and so on)

The lowest day 1 attendance in the last decade was for Pakistan in 2009 where only 60k turned up (that's twice as many as can fit into Lords in case you need help with the maths)

I would believe it mate - I've been there. I was working in Australia for a while, and went for a wander round on the tour of the stadium when I visited Melbourne on holiday.

We extended it in 2006 for the Comm. Games.

I can't wait for tomorrow. The pitch is only 4 days old so chasing is not quite as tough - but 200ish to go is still enough to need some decent graft to get there. Flakes will be found out. One strong partnership is probably enough.

1 century in 80 innings by the tourists is just not good enough. There has been so many headless dismissals, by both sides to be sure but more Englishman have perished out of nothing than I can remember.

Or England could completely fall apart with Cook totally losing his grip.

And with an unlikely victory South Africa bids adieu to one of its greatest players. Glad with the result and that breaks a long dry spell at Kingsmead.

I thought they might have dawdled a bit too much over the first 3 days, but any side with those 3 bowlers is capable of knocking over a side in a hurry when conditions get tough.

Still have a man-crush on Steyn.