[cite]Posted By: Spankie[/cite]Heard on Sky Sports News this morning that Glenn McGrath is predicting a 5-0 win for the Aussies. How predictably ridiculous that man is. About as good a seam bowler as you'll have in the modern era but a total idiot off it. There's nothing wrong with being patriotic but predicting whitewashes everytime there's an Ashes series is simply ridiculous.
He was right last time!!
The first white wash since 1920?!?!?! Wouldn't Ian Botham, David Gower or Michael Atherton look like a bell end if they predicted a 5-0 England win before every test? He might be trying to be patriotic and mix things up but comes across to me as slightly idiotic.
It's banter! Don't take if so seriously!
I know I shouldn't BDV just winds me up!!! GRRR ;o) I agree with BlackForestReds comments wholeheartedly...
[cite]Posted By: Spankie[/cite]Heard on Sky Sports News this morning that Glenn McGrath is predicting a 5-0 win for the Aussies. How predictably ridiculous that man is. About as good a seam bowler as you'll have in the modern era but a total idiot off it. There's nothing wrong with being patriotic but predicting whitewashes everytime there's an Ashes series is simply ridiculous. Remember last time in England McGrath when we won 2-1 and you predicted a whitewash and claimed you'd go home by canoe if England won. What a berk he looked hauling his cases on the bus and the assembled press asking a sheepish looking McGrath if he's going home by canoe with him saying "No, not exactly". If looks could have killed!!!
As for Brett Lee, he's a superb player, their best bowler by far so for him to play gives our chances of winning the first Test a real boost. As for the banter I'm sure there'll be enough of that flying about with the other 11 Aussie players! As for their players having little or no Ashes experience, I'm not sure that's a disadvantage. You look at our squad back in 2005 - how many of our squad hadn't any Ashes experience? Strauss, Bell, Pietersen, Flintoff, G Jones, Harmison and Collingwood. These players weren't carrying the mental bruises of Ashes beatings gone by and was a big head start for us in a psychological way.
Whatever happens I hope this series rivals the 2005 series in terms of drama and hopefully a similar result.
I think Mitchell Johnson might be interested to know that Lee is Australia's "best bowler by far."
Lee has been mediocre on his two previous Ashes tours and is only really effective when bowling at 93mph and beyond - but at 32 years old this requires a huge effort and he is liable to breakdown when he pushes for this extra pace - like he just did.
Johnson, on the other hand, is a real handful, I think a lot of English fans will be quite surprised to see how good he is and I reckon he is well capable of 25+ wickets and I think he could well put at least one English batsman out of the series with a broken hand just like he did with Smith.
In addition, Stuart Clark, limited though he may be, also has a much better Test average than Lee with 90 wickets at 22.9 from 22 Tests compared to Lee's 315 wickets at 30.8 from 76 Tests - although they both have very similar strike rates.
Like WG Grace said, "if you win the toss ten times, the first nine times you decide to bat; the tenth time, you think about bowling, then you decide to bat"
Australia have left out Stuart Clark and will play Hauritz their underperforming spinner.
England have gone for two spinners - prolly the first time in a home Test since Emburey and Edmonds, looks like both teams think the pitch will be a raging bunsen.
you seem to be able to pretty easily watch this match looking over the fence, from the pictures sky showed a few minutes ago! even at welling you have to climb a tree for that privilege.
It ain't easy out there...the Aussies have bowled well, Bopara got hit at least three times and rode a bit of luck. He screwed up playing a slower ball from Johnson in his last over, so it was inevitable that he'd get another.
Comments
I know I shouldn't BDV just winds me up!!! GRRR ;o) I agree with BlackForestReds comments wholeheartedly...
I think Mitchell Johnson might be interested to know that Lee is Australia's "best bowler by far."
Lee has been mediocre on his two previous Ashes tours and is only really effective when bowling at 93mph and beyond - but at 32 years old this requires a huge effort and he is liable to breakdown when he pushes for this extra pace - like he just did.
Johnson, on the other hand, is a real handful, I think a lot of English fans will be quite surprised to see how good he is and I reckon he is well capable of 25+ wickets and I think he could well put at least one English batsman out of the series with a broken hand just like he did with Smith.
In addition, Stuart Clark, limited though he may be, also has a much better Test average than Lee with 90 wickets at 22.9 from 22 Tests compared to Lee's 315 wickets at 30.8 from 76 Tests - although they both have very similar strike rates.
England:
AJ Strauss*, AN Cook, RS Bopara, KP Pietersen, PD Collingwood, MJ Prior†, A Flintoff, SCJ Broad, GP Swann, JM Anderson, MS Panesar
Australia:
PJ Hughes, SM Katich, RT Ponting*, MEK Hussey, MJ Clarke, MJ North, BJ Haddin†, MG Johnson, NM Hauritz, BW Hilfenhaus, PM Siddle
England have gone for two spinners - prolly the first time in a home Test since Emburey and Edmonds, looks like both teams think the pitch will be a raging bunsen.
Slow pitch, good decision to leave Harmy out for this one, two spinners should do the trick
Especially as England are scheduled to bowl last.
21-1
wicked!!
cheers JT, my day at work has just got much better.
The Aussies have give RavBop a working over, but he's still there.
90-3, giving wickets away by the sounds of it
Cook's yes. But imo excellent variety of bowling from the aussies for the last 2 wickets.
England have looked nervous.
91/3 isn't a bad score.
is that bad folks i dont know cricket but i thought 20 in the 20 we batted for a couple of hours and that is only 7 more.
I wish i understood this fecking game