The Official Cricket Thread

[Hal Jordan]

Another bone headed shot from Brook to piss away a century that just needed patience for the single that was going to be there sooner rather than later.

[OomStruisbaai]

Away from the pro game, I took my 650th wicket for my club this afternoon. Took my first aged 11 having arrived to score with the kit in the car ‘just in case’, caught at cover by my Dad. Celebrated the 650th with a couple of quick pints then back home for an evening of nappy changes. Two decades or so well spent.

And yes, the big one was a rank half volley caught on the boundary, no pictures in the scorebook.

Awesome. Playing with your son, your dad obvious spend hours and hours with you in the nets and backyard.

[SaintK]

Away from the pro game, I took my 650th wicket for my club this afternoon. Took my first aged 11 having arrived to score with the kit in the car ‘just in case’, caught at cover by my Dad. Celebrated the 650th with a couple of quick pints then back home for an evening of nappy changes. Two decades or so well spent.

And yes, the big one was a rank half volley caught on the boundary, no pictures in the scorebook.

Good man, well played

[Slick]

Away from the pro game, I took my 650th wicket for my club this afternoon. Took my first aged 11 having arrived to score with the kit in the car ‘just in case’, caught at cover by my Dad. Celebrated the 650th with a couple of quick pints then back home for an evening of nappy changes. Two decades or so well spent.

And yes, the big one was a rank half volley caught on the boundary, no pictures in the scorebook.

This is brilliant, well done.

Funnily enough I bumped into your old man on Wednesday morning

[Paddington Bear]

Thanks all, much appreciated, and Slick I have no idea how you two bump into each other so much!

[Slick]

Thanks all, much appreciated, and Slick I have no idea how you two bump into each other so much!

I genuinely hadn't bumped into him like that for about 20 years and it's now the last 3 times I've been down. Very odd.

Carse has started well

[Sandstorm]

I've watched a lot of Test cricket over the last 35 years & think I know a fair bit about how it works.......however can someone please explain to me how the fuck the only bowler on the planet who seems to be "able to mop up the tail cheaply..." is Josh Tongue??????

[Biffer]

I've watched a lot of Test cricket over the last 35 years & think I know a fair bit about how it works.......however can someone please explain to me how the fuck the only bowler on the planet who seems to be "able to mop up the tail cheaply..." is Josh Tongue??????

Like most things in test cricket, I put this down to players not playing red ball format enough. Bowlers no longer have the imagination, guile or often straight up brutality to knock a tail over quickly. And yes, I know you can't bounce people five balls an over to the head like in the past, but you can stick it right in their chest, which was always more brutal anyway (harder to avoid). Nowadays they're coached to use the bouncer as a dot ball in the death overs, not as a way to terrify 8/9/10/11. And the bizarre thing is it'd work even better now because those batsmen aren't used to facing it for the same reason.

[Thor Sedan]

344 to get - 3 sessions.

Crazy to think that India are about 150 runs short if England get going.

[Biffer]

Good test this.

[Sandstorm]

Good test this.

I’m loving it

[Slick]

Good test this.

I’m loving it

Me too

[tabascoboy]

Proper cricket, this

[Paddington Bear]

Terrible day to be in the office

[Slick]

Terrible day to be in the office

Might get more comfortable, looks like the rain is starting

[Insane_Homer]

PANIC!

[Slick]

That seems pretty stupid from Stokes, got to vary it a bit

[Enzedder]

Ooh, exciting. Wish my old links worked.

[Sandstorm]

Superb chase by England, classy batting. Well played.

[Enzedder]

And that's a great finish from Smith.

Well done Poms

[SaintK]

Superb chase by England, classy batting. Well played.

+1

[Paddington Bear]

Phenomenal test match. Duckett’s ton will age very well in all time conversations I think

[Biffer]

Proof that test cricket is way, way superior to the white ball game. Superb.

Looking forward to four more tests like that. World Cricket is properly shitting the bed over test cricket while it prostate itself in front of the IPL money men with its mouth open. Absolutely nothing is done to promote this form of the game, it relies on England basically, with some from the Aussies and an Indian public that will lap up any old shit quite frankly. I'm certain it's played a part in the demise of the West Indies. We need more day night tests, a WTC that makes some fucking sense and a genuine enthusiasm for tests from the authorities.

[Gumboot]

Terrific result to England.

Test cricket is best cricket.

[Slick]

Proof that test cricket is way, way superior to the white ball game. Superb.

Looking forward to four more tests like that. World Cricket is properly shitting the bed over test cricket while it prostate itself in front of the IPL money men with its mouth open. Absolutely nothing is done to promote this form of the game, it relies on England basically, with some from the Aussies and an Indian public that will lap up any old shit quite frankly. I'm certain it's played a part in the demise of the West Indies. We need more day night tests, a WTC that makes some fucking sense and a genuine enthusiasm for tests from the authorities.

All of this

[Biffer]

Also puts paid to the recent pish about changing the format.

[Rhubarb & Custard]

Proof that test cricket is way, way superior to the white ball game. Superb.

Looking forward to four more tests like that. World Cricket is properly shitting the bed over test cricket while it prostate itself in front of the IPL money men with its mouth open. Absolutely nothing is done to promote this form of the game, it relies on England basically, with some from the Aussies and an Indian public that will lap up any old shit quite frankly. I'm certain it's played a part in the demise of the West Indies. We need more day night tests, a WTC that makes some fucking sense and a genuine enthusiasm for tests from the authorities.

I don't think the ICC is in front of the IPL, it's much more in felching mode.

That said I'm utterly unsold on the notion of a WTC, the whole idea of test cricket is you are tested by a variety of teams in various conditions over time (across games and across years) and from that typically 1 or 2 sides emerge as the leader(s) in test cricket, having a one off game or even one off series just misses the point, and by a considerable margin. Day/night games..., well, maybe.

And the Windies demise is they're simply part of the US sporting market and they'd rather play basketball or even baseball than 40-50 years ago. Things change. I would agree with funding some grassroots facilities and school coaching, and giving them proper test series, but we might simply be trying to sell union into Wigan

[Enzedder]

Australia really struggling in Bridgetown

138/6 with Shamar Joseph 4/30 off 13 the real destroyer. Kuwahja and Head have saved Oz from a total failure

[Insane_Homer]

180

[Enzedder]

Windies 54/4 (including a night watchman who failed)

[Paddington Bear]

There’s public parks preparing better wickets than that

[Enzedder]

Windies appear to be getting the unlucky side of the close decisions today. I hope this "benefit of the doubt to the bowler" standard remains when Oz bat.

171/8

[Paddington Bear]

Windies subsiding fast including a run out at 70-6. Should be over tonight with an extra half hour

[Gumboot]

Deepsouth gloating imminent...

[Enzedder]

150 runs and 3 favourable TMO decisions to the good.

Bad luck Windies.

[OomStruisbaai]

Lohandre Pretorius, at 19 years 93 days, became the youngest South African to hit a ton on his test debut – and the seventh overall – while Bosch, in only his second test, reached three figures for his first test and first-class hundred. Among a number of achievements, Pretorius also became the youngest man to score 150 in tests.

[Enzedder]

Lohandre Pretorius, at 19 years 93 days, became the youngest South African to hit a ton on his test debut – and the seventh overall – while Bosch, in only his second test, reached three figures for his first test and first-class hundred. Among a number of achievements, Pretorius also became the youngest man to score 150 in tests.

That's akin to us playing Fiji though, isn't it?

[Monk]

Lohandre Pretorius, at 19 years 93 days, became the youngest South African to hit a ton on his test debut – and the seventh overall – while Bosch, in only his second test, reached three figures for his first test and first-class hundred. Among a number of achievements, Pretorius also became the youngest man to score 150 in tests.

That's akin to us playing Fiji though, isn't it?

These Proteas touring Zim are decidedly an “A” outfit.

But you are right.

Important for both countries though. Zim needs all the help they can get

[OomStruisbaai]

Lohandre Pretorius, at 19 years 93 days, became the youngest South African to hit a ton on his test debut – and the seventh overall – while Bosch, in only his second test, reached three figures for his first test and first-class hundred. Among a number of achievements, Pretorius also became the youngest man to score 150 in tests.

That's akin to us playing Fiji though, isn't it?

Dont think Fiji is a test playing cricket team?

[SaintK]

Surrey scored 820-9 against Durham in the County Championship this week, their highest ever score in any match.
Dom Sibley hit 305 and there were 3 other centurions!!!!