What an embarrassment!! We have only a handful of English players of can attack a bowler and not one of them was in the side! Bopara and hales sat on the bench and Jason Roy, Luke wright and kp sat at home. But the selectors have got the mates in the team so all is good.
With the shift in revenue in cricket and the value of the short game to countries, clubs, players, media outlets there has also been more of an emphasis in coaching young players to hit the ball. Is it that we haven't caught up though?
I have to say that I don't care how good someone's eye to ball co-ordination is, if they don't have a sound technique and plan for any given ball, they will get out. And shot selection is everything.
We currently have too many players who, basically, have only two gears. Most are still, so far as one day cricket is concerned, stuck in first gear and even those like Morgan, Bopara and Hales who have that ability to take the opposition apart are, more often than not, too muddled in their thinking and shot selection.
Something happened yesterday that leads me to think that things are perhaps changing here. I witnessed a former county and international player (not England) actually coaching the front foot slog off to 11-15 year olds. To me it's a shot I've always played. But, in essence, it isn't. Because whereas I would always play it off balance and invariably off one leg it isn't now. It's played with the front leg straight and with a much firmer base.
Some of the kids that were being coached are amongst the best in their respective counties and I suspect that, if they weren't, they wouldn't be encouraged to play this shot simply because without an understanding of the technique and ability to execute it correctly, the risk/reward becomes too great.
And perhaps that's why the coaches parting words were to say to his pupils to recommend that they do not go back to their coaches at Club, District and County and say that that was what they were told they had to do by this former International. He was just introducing these youngsters to the fact that the world is changing and by the time they are grown up there will be even more of an emphasis on the shorter game. And if those boys want to be successful they have to have this shot, amongst others like the reverse pull and sweep, lap, scoop etc etc, in their locker.
But it's no use having it if you don't know when to use it. Or to recognise that you need a sound technique to dig in when the bowler does have the upper hand. And by "technique" I don't mean an ability to leave five balls out of six an over in a T20.
as Carberry said during the break (wtf was that all about - lets all stop play for 45 mins when we've only got to get 12 more rubs to win !!) one day cricket has moved on & its like 20/20 cricket - bish, bosh, bash from the off. Not the old 50 over game from yesteryear when the first thing was to get to 50 runs from your first 15 overs & the assess............we had Cook opening just a few months ago ffs !!!
Time for hales Roy stokes and possibly even Wright or lumb.. need players who will play with no fear and have the capability to take the game away from the opposition.. you do need the odd anchor but bell balance Taylor and Root is too much especially when Ali and Morgan could anchor... need players who can dominate bowlers rather than let the bowler dictate to them...
I think the break had a lot to do with revenue, it meant a lot more food/drink would have been brought in the ground. Something I'm sure the icc promised to all the host venues when games were allocated.
I think the break had a lot to do with revenue, it meant a lot more food/drink would have been brought in the ground. Something I'm sure the icc promised to all the host venues when games were allocated.
Surely once we won the toss and decided to bat the authorities could have brought forward lunch - to before start of play!
I have been saying for a while that we need more dynamic players for the 50 over game. Hales should open with Roy, these are players that can clear the ropes on a regular basis. Ok they will fail occasionally but at least they will take the game to the opposition al la Finch and Warner. I would also put in Vince who is an excellent striker of the ball. I would put Moeen Ali at number six where he has licence to go for it. In the bowling department Finn, Anderson seem to be cannon fodder. Southee bowled full length deliveries at a decent pace with a bit of movement.
My fifty over team would be Roy, Hales, Taylor, Vince, Root, Moeen, Butler, Stokes, Broad, Woakes, Jordan,
West Indies ended up bowling Pakistan out for 160 so won by a rather comprehensive 150 runs.
It looks highly unlikely that there will be any play in the Australia v Bangladesh game as it is still raining and will have to stop in the next 30 minutes or so for even a 20 over match to take place.
Comments
But the selectors have got the mates in the team so all is good.
Utterly pathetic.
The whole set up is a JOKE
I have to say that I don't care how good someone's eye to ball co-ordination is, if they don't have a sound technique and plan for any given ball, they will get out. And shot selection is everything.
We currently have too many players who, basically, have only two gears. Most are still, so far as one day cricket is concerned, stuck in first gear and even those like Morgan, Bopara and Hales who have that ability to take the opposition apart are, more often than not, too muddled in their thinking and shot selection.
Something happened yesterday that leads me to think that things are perhaps changing here. I witnessed a former county and international player (not England) actually coaching the front foot slog off to 11-15 year olds. To me it's a shot I've always played. But, in essence, it isn't. Because whereas I would always play it off balance and invariably off one leg it isn't now. It's played with the front leg straight and with a much firmer base.
Some of the kids that were being coached are amongst the best in their respective counties and I suspect that, if they weren't, they wouldn't be encouraged to play this shot simply because without an understanding of the technique and ability to execute it correctly, the risk/reward becomes too great.
And perhaps that's why the coaches parting words were to say to his pupils to recommend that they do not go back to their coaches at Club, District and County and say that that was what they were told they had to do by this former International. He was just introducing these youngsters to the fact that the world is changing and by the time they are grown up there will be even more of an emphasis on the shorter game. And if those boys want to be successful they have to have this shot, amongst others like the reverse pull and sweep, lap, scoop etc etc, in their locker.
But it's no use having it if you don't know when to use it. Or to recognise that you need a sound technique to dig in when the bowler does have the upper hand. And by "technique" I don't mean an ability to leave five balls out of six an over in a T20.
Just watch New Zealand and the way they play - Chalk & Cheese.
My fifty over team would be Roy, Hales, Taylor, Vince, Root, Moeen, Butler, Stokes, Broad, Woakes, Jordan,
we dont need players who craft a century in 45 overs.
we need several players who can hit 50-70 off of 15 overs.
In his post match analysis he describes England's batsmen as Derek And The Dominoes and their bowlers as The Grateful Dead.
Willis also points out that not only are the bowlers giving away a hundred in the last ten overs but now doing it in the first ten too.
Reminiscent of England losing to Pakistan after we had bowled them out for about 80 earlier in the tournament.
Pakistan are 1-3 after 3 overs in reply...
With the dropped catches and poor batting I get very suspicious !
It looks highly unlikely that there will be any play in the Australia v Bangladesh game as it is still raining and will have to stop in the next 30 minutes or so for even a 20 over match to take place.
In reply, Sri Lanka are 6-2 in the fourth over.