Cricket: More Than a Game

Test cricket = Best cricket.

IMAGE(https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/live-experience/cps/624/cpsprodpb/vivo/live/images/2019/8/25/b02a52a6-2e75-4201-b558-1e81f48c3aa7.jpg)

ODI World Cup Final - Look at this, the best game of cricket of all time

Ashes test cricket - Hold my beer

That is insane, ended up watching the last 40 mins or so at work on my mate's phone, hiding on the quiet part of the store.

davet010 wrote:

Test cricket = Best cricket.

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This this and a billions times this.

My word. What a game. Ben Stokes is just a total legend. And Leach! The most famous 1not out ever!

That dropped run out, the lbw not given after the Aussies had wasted their refereal, the dropped catch, Stokes lives a charmed life but those sixes, that composure when he was batting all day, in 30 degree heat. Just wow.

I think that the umpiring throughout the series has been utterly abysmal. OK the Aussies may not have helped themselves with that appalling referral (it was obvious even in real time that the ball pitched outside leg), but the lbw was totally obvious.

I'm not quite sure whether it's the million cameras and analysis of every ball that is showing up things that may just have been argued after the fact before, but when you've got games like the last Test where the umpires made 12 mistakes EACH, then something isn't right.

Just don't let them go to a VAR-style system where every appeal is reviewed, or else we'll be reducing five-day Tests to one inning each.

davet010 wrote:

I think that the umpiring throughout the series has been utterly abysmal. OK the Aussies may not have helped themselves with that appalling referral (it was obvious even in real time that the ball pitched outside leg), but the lbw was totally obvious.

I'm not quite sure whether it's the million cameras and analysis of every ball that is showing up things that may just have been argued after the fact before, but when you've got games like the last Test where the umpires made 12 mistakes EACH, then something isn't right.

Just don't let them go to a VAR-style system where every appeal is reviewed, or else we'll be reducing five-day Tests to one inning each.

The ICC Cricket Umpire's Elite panel has 12 umpires on it, 7 of which are Australian or British and therefore ineligible for the Ashes. they are also - by some distance - the best umpires.

Joel Wilson has a 60% failure rate when his decisions are reviewed - that it, in 6 out of 10 reviews his original decision will be overturned. Or, he gets it right less than half the time. Stokes was plumb just before the end there, Wilson should have given him out. I can't believe he didn't.

I think Ricky Ponting has already said he's going to bring this issue at the next ICC meeting so that so long as so the two captains agree, Umpires from competing team's countries can umpire a match they are involved in. I understand the reasoning but it's not really the answer.

I tried watching some cricket the other day. I can't, I keep getting flashbacks of balls bouncing off bats and Boult stepping on the boundary.

Sorbicol wrote:
davet010 wrote:

I think that the umpiring throughout the series has been utterly abysmal. OK the Aussies may not have helped themselves with that appalling referral (it was obvious even in real time that the ball pitched outside leg), but the lbw was totally obvious.

I'm not quite sure whether it's the million cameras and analysis of every ball that is showing up things that may just have been argued after the fact before, but when you've got games like the last Test where the umpires made 12 mistakes EACH, then something isn't right.

Just don't let them go to a VAR-style system where every appeal is reviewed, or else we'll be reducing five-day Tests to one inning each.

The ICC Cricket Umpire's Elite panel has 12 umpires on it, 7 of which are Australian or British and therefore ineligible for the Ashes. they are also - by some distance - the best umpires.

Joel Wilson has a 60% failure rate when his decisions are reviewed - that it, in 6 out of 10 reviews his original decision will be overturned. Or, he gets it right less than half the time. Stokes was plumb just before the end there, Wilson should have given him out. I can't believe he didn't.

I think Ricky Ponting has already said he's going to bring this issue at the next ICC meeting so that so long as so the two captains agree, Umpires from competing team's countries can umpire a match they are involved in. I understand the reasoning but it's not really the answer.

I'd happily take both Illingworth and Kettleborough as the umpires for the series. The reasons for neutral umpires have significantly diluted since this protocol was introduced. Let's have the best officiating the biggest games please.

End of the day today was almost like England were desperate to get Ben Stokes into the game ASAP.

More desperate than the City Council and Metrolink are to get the supporters there, though - the service is all but out of operation tomorrow, due to 'essential maintenance'.

I mean, it's not like they've had months and months of notice that the last day of an Ashes Test fell on that Su.....oh, wait.

A compelling series between two equally matched sides completely ruined by Steve Smith......

There's a sport just appeared on my TV.

T10 cricket.

There's no punishment that I can suggest which would be adequate for the degenerate who came up with this, but I'm willing to start us all off with "having eyes removed and conkers in their shell put into the sockets."

For the benefit of our non-UK readers, a conker looks like this. It's 2-3 inches across.

IMAGE(http://ppaconkers.weebly.com/uploads/5/1/9/0/51900191/3978652.jpg?250)

RIP Bob Willis

That spell of bowling at Headingly 1981, one of the best individual efforts I've ever seen. Sometimes criticised for being harsh on modern players, but most of it was justified.

Was still on TV until a few weeks ago, but apparently been ill for a while.

Rest easy, Bob.

IMAGE(https://e0.365dm.com/13/05/2048x1152/BobWillis1981_2938979.jpg)

Coming soon to a Sky commentary near you, yes it's Dumb and Dumber.

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Sound off and radio commentary on, assuming I can find it.

Since the radio has gone to TalkSport here in the UK (there needs to be a law that says it can only be on TMS) I've only really been following it on the BBC Website.

Not been a great Winter for the England test team so far to be honest.

"Why should Test matches be 5 days?"

I give you exhibit A.

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On another tack, and maybe other posters can better inform me, but I do find Faf du Plessis' captaincy to be very ordinary. I'm not quite sure what the game plan was yesterday with Maharaj's spell, but I'm fairly sure that it shouldn't have been 'go and get smashed to all parts of the ground while I stand here and watch'. He just seems far too passive.

That was the third time he'd taken a jaffa in the soap dish too. At that point you just take the rest of the day off, right?

Bet his box looked like it'd been run over by a bus.

I'm not sure what the hell this is, but it sure isn't cricket. These are the rules of this 36 over 3-sided game that the Saffers have come up with.

I'm going to watch it if it's on over here, just to hear the commentators try to explain WTF is going on.

Rules

– A 3TC match is contested between 3 teams of 8 players each. The match is played over 36 overs in two halves of 18 overs with a break at halftime.

– Teams bat for one innings of 12 overs, split between two 6-over periods. They face one opponent in the first half and the other opponent in the second half.

– In the first half, teams rotate from batting to bowling to the dugout with the starting positions determined by a draw. In the second half, teams bat in order of the highest scores in the first half. If scores are tied, the first half order is reversed.

– After the fall of the 7th wicket, the last batsman stands alone. However, he can only score in even numbers of runs. If the 7th wicket falls in the first half, the team forfeits the remaining part of that half and the last batsman resumes the innings in the second half.

– Each bowling team has the use of one new ball for their full 12 overs which is used for both opponents. A maximum of three overs per bowler is allowed. An uncompleted over due to the fall of the 7th wicket is deemed to be completed with dot balls.

– Most runs wins Gold, second Silver and third Bronze. If 2 teams tie with most runs, super overs decide Gold; if all 3 teams tie, all get Gold; and, in a tie for second, Silver is shared.

Yeah, looks very confusing. Not sure why this is even being trialed... Haven’t seen a lot of excitement here in South Africa for it at all...

Next time there's a pandemic the SAF Cricket Board are not allowed to be locked away with their weed.

I'm thinking you need something a bit stronger than weed to come up with a game in which there are three teams. Pure blotter acid, maybe.

My concern is that the players are going to go out not understanding anything about the rules, and wandering on and off the pitch trying to work out whether they are batting or not, let alone this last person stand rule. It does look like the sort of thing that should be trialled in a low key setting before you start televising it.

It sounds like the sort of thing a bunch of execs will come up with to try get escalating internal divisions out of the news.

...AAAANNNNDDD it looks like we've jinxed it - the game has been postponed. Surprisingly enough, for a game which was supposed to take place next Saturday, one of the things that was outstanding was government permission for the game to take place. Hmmm.

MrDeVil909 wrote:

It sounds like the sort of thing a bunch of execs will come up with to try get escalating internal divisions out of the news.

Apropos of MrDevil909's comment, it appears as though the SA government is less than supportive of the recent changes in the makeup of the senior management of CSA, in particular the replacement of Africans by the likes of Graham Smith and Mark Boucher, nor were they keen on the statement that selection would be done only on 'merit'. It would appear that the recent instability is not yet at an end.

I must say that over the lockdown here in the UK, I've missed cricket far more than football - but Sky's cricket vodcasts and watchalongs have provided hours of genuine entertainment, My favourite has to be the World XI's of the last 30 years, chosen by Nasser Hussain and Rob Key. Rob was obviously still smarting after his England XI was beaten by Nasser's England XI, despite the latter having to include both himself and Ashley 'Wheelie Bin' Giles for lack of viable alternatives.

Today is the first day of the Test match between England and the West Indies (at the Ageas bowl in Southampton), which is also the first professional cricket match in the country so far this year.

It’s raining. How quintessentially British.

C'mon Sorbicol, it IS July, after all.

Proper, old school test opening batting from Dom Sibley this test. He got his 100 from 312 balls, the third slowest century by an English player this millennium. I so annoyed about people complaining when the England team has been crying out for someone capable of doing that since Cook left - well, before cook left truth be told.

That said I hope they coming out hitting a little more frequently after lunch.

I hope so too - the weather forecast for tomorrow isn't brilliant.