The Ashes - official thread

[Soul Requiem]

First topic message reminder :

I don't understand why Buttler isn't hogging the strike here.

[Soul Requiem]

Smith is good but he hasn't had Anderson to contend with which is huge massive advantage nor has the ball really swung all series, I still maintain that Kohli last year was the better performance in far more testing conditions. Dreadful batting on both sides have made benign pitches look like minefields.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Hopefully we can bat until around or just after lunch tomorrow - think time as much as runs is crucial here, need to bat some time to get the pitch to deteriorate more and bring Leach properly into the game

[Duty281]

Over rate of only 12.3 through this test. Utterly ridiculous and can't be explained away through the infrequent use of DRS.

[Soul Requiem]

It would appear then that Cummins and Hazelwood are starting to struggle which is no big surprise.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Warne’s been trying to talk up that wicket all stint

[Soul Requiem]

The Aussies getting agitated, the sandpaper will be out soon and they've got their man Bancroft out there.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

The Aussies getting agitated, the sandpaper will be out soon and they've got their man Bancroft out there.

Paine and Langer have tried their “nice schtick” but ultimately Wade is showing here it’s still the same old Aussies

[Soul Requiem]

The Aussies getting agitated, the sandpaper will be out soon and they've got their man Bancroft out there.

Paine and Langer have tried their “nice schtick” but ultimately Wade is showing here it’s still the same old Aussies

Once a team of cheats always a team of cheats.

[Dolphin Ziggler]

Not sure being ahead in a test is bringing the best out of some commentary

[Duty281]

Brace yourself, Mitchell Marsh is bowling.

[Soul Requiem]

The Aussies getting agitated, the sandpaper will be out soon and they've got their man Bancroft out there.

The ball has now started moving hmmmm.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Decent morning session for England that - only 2 wickets down, 157 ahead. Chance this afternoon and evening to really put this game beyond Australia

[GSC]

good morning for england albeit with Burns and Root failing to cash in on this pitch. If they can get to the end of the day, they'll just about have batted Aus out the game

[Duty281]

Yep good session for England. Lead is looking very healthy. Australia are still, just about, in it, but it has to be the next session where they wreak havoc on the English batting-line up. Five wickets minimum.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Tim Paine in not being able to review shocker

[Duty281]

Test match should be all done now, unless Smith wants to emulate 1948 Bradman at Leeds (wouldn't put it past him to be fair!).

Worry that a 2-2 result will be more wallpaper over the cracks.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Aussies now having a go at umpires for not giving out ones that are hitting yards outside off and missing 2 sets of stumps - close to completely losing it in the field

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Absolute ripper from Lyon gets Stokes - turn and bounce off the middle of the pitch...good signs for Leach that.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Denly falls for 94 - good knock, rode his luck a bit

Hussain says he’s “cemented his place at the top of the order” - really not sure about that.

[GSC]

probably earned himself another tour I guess. Bit late in the day though.

Not even contemplating a declaration if I'm Root.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Think that should be Bairstow’s final test innings for a little while

[GSC]

Bairstow however might be struggling for the winter.

Suspect its 1 from him and Buttler to take the gloves

[GSC]

Genuinely think Bairstow has reviewed every time hes been out this series

[Duty281]

Tim Paine in not being able to review shocker

And again!

[GSC]

Australia look out for the count. Keep going until lunch

[GSC]

or don't, whatever works

[GSC]

Good day for England, they've ran Australia ragged in the field and established what should be a good enough lead

Same issues remain that nobody goes on to make a big score though. This should've been over 400.

[Duty281]

Finally, a one-sided dominant day in England's favour. Should be a big enough lead. Even if Smith conjures a double ton, it's difficult to see where the other 200 runs are going to be found. Maybe Warner's been saving one gigantic innings?

[Soul Requiem]

Strong performance from England today, shame that Buttler got out when he did as another 30-40 runs would make it feel that bit more secure after Headingly. Should win from here quite comfortably but this summer has thrown up some interesting results already.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Yeah a shame Buttler got out - he was playing well from what I saw again, albeit a good catch by Labuschagne.

England haven't quite batted the Aussies out of the game, but it will require a Stokes-esque innings from someone...and the pitch is spinning now for Leach, with still something in it for the seamers if they get it in the right areas. England will get two bites at a new ball too, if it gets that far....

[alfie]

Only saw the last half hour - so probably my fault Woakes and Buttler got out

But that lead means that even if the bowlers don't add many tomorrow Australia will still need the highest score of the match in the fourth innings...

Guess those late wickets mean they haven't been completely batted out of it ; but a run chase of near 400 remains a very tall order , even for better batting lineups than this one . They do , of course , have Smith. And plenty of time. But my money is on the home team from here.

Will be a good test for Leach to see if he can contribute in the traditional spinners way in a fourth innings. I feel he's been a bit disappointing with the ball so far - while outperforming with the bat ! So this might be his chance to shine...

Just the same I have faith in the pace men to do a bit of damage whether Leach turns it on or not. Might be Broad makes up for that
rare wicket less first innings ? He's had a great series and it would be fitting if he closed it out.

Denly narrowly missing a century , eh ? Who'd have picked that ? And Buttler has had two very solid efforts ; so only a week after half the Internet wanted him axed he is now set in stone for the next five years
Seriously , we all need to ease up on the knee jerk reactions about players. I've criticized the selectors enough for inflexibility - with some justification , I think - but on balance I prefer the current attitude of giving players a decent chance to prove , or recover , form ; rather than the 1990s method of chopping and changing one match to the next.
Still wish they'd picked Sam Curran a week earlier...

[dummy_half]

Alfie

Agree with much of what you wrote - I don't think Denly is the answer in the medium term, but he's probably done just about enough to get a chance through this winter, possibly batting 3 with Sibley opening alongside Burns.

At the moment Buttler looks in better form as a red ball batsman than YJB, but are they competing for selection as a specialist batsman or as the keeper?

Curran should have played last week, but I think the issue was they mis-read the pitch and expected more pace, which would have favoured Overton.

Big day for Leach tomorrow - can he be the wicket taking threat we need on a wearing pitch in the 4th innings? If he bowls well, he could go a long way to cementing his place in the side, as he's shown plenty of character so far. Just needs to show that the skills in his main discipline are good enough.

[alfie]

Buttler is certainly finishing the series much better with the bat than Jonny...but it seems odd that he is once again batting after the wicket keeper . Would have thought it logical the other way around ? To be honest I do not expect them to change either in the short term. Buttler doesn't really want the gloves now I think - he bats much better without them. And the real alternative to Bairstow - Foakes - is having a poor season for Surrey ; and is in any case unlikely to take on the Bairstow role of batting at 5 or 6 in Tests ahead of Jos...
Obviously YJB needs to start scoring serious runs again but I can't see any good reason why he won't : he has actually looked quite fluent in the last couple of games before getting out so I doubt he's forgotten how to bat.

Denly may not be one for the long term - and he might easily have made nought here instead of 94 - but I think he's shown enough to stay in place for now. Has done better than any of the Australian openers ! I quite like your plan of batting him at three , dummy_half. Get Root back at four where he belongs ?

Ah well let us win this game first , and then consider the squad for NZ...

[Dolphin Ziggler]

Denly is pushing himself into another tour. You’ve got to respect him, he’s fought with every sinew to keep his place and he’s been thrown around like the spare part of that top order and just tried to get on with things. To be suddenly moved to open and deliver says a lot.

I want him at three, personally. Sibley in, Root to four.

I would thennbring in Pope for Bairstow and see how that goes for a while. Buttler with the gloves and in his finisher’s role is fine.

A good day, but not one that means we’ve won. The late wickets take some floss off and I’d like to hope we can add 20 more

[KP_fan]

Only a miracle can win Aus this one. And the one miracle for the series already happened in Stokes's inning.
Tim Paine's blunder of putting Eng in might prove to be a historic BIG one.

Aus team selection for batsmen has been extremely bad and this time even Smith couldn't subsidize them

[Pal Joey]

I'm not banking on any Australian miracle, KP_F. To be totally fair; they simply don't deserve one.

You should hear the outcry here... all you England fans would love it!

Was at a wedding reception last night... beautiful evening by the harbour. I managed to slip behind some hedges in the garden and discretely check the score on the phone when it was 90/2 but I wasn't surprised at the scorecard when I got home after midnight and saw what I saw. They blew it big time!

[guildfordbat]

When I arrived on Friday morning we were 8 down and when I left on Saturday evening we were 8 down. Mind you, quite a lot happened in between and I did go home once!

You folks seem to have covered everything well. Just a few rather random thoughts and observations.

* Full credit to the seamers who bowled the most over the two days I was there. It was very hot with the sun never letting up and, unusually for the Oval, no breeze at all. I don't know if it was ever shown on tv but the flags on the pavilion roof were limp throughout - and that's not a euphemism!

* Just as when I saw him at a rain curtailed ODI earlier in the season, Archer seems to generate pace and bounce without exerting himself. Such a silky controlled run up. I can understand Root wanting to use him so much and especially when amongst the wickets.

* The first wicket Archer took was a strange one. Warner given out caught behind on review. According to snicko he feathered it although in real time it didn't look that way at all and the tv screen at the ground also suggested no contact. The player who appeared to be pushing Root most to review was Broad - I'm sure there's a few jokes to be had with that but I'll leave that to others. Anyway, Warner went and his uncomplaining body language suggested the right decision had been made.

* How Cummins and Hazelwood only took one of the eight England wickets to fall yesterday I just don't know. By some way, they were the most menacing pair of the bowlers of either side.

* As some have posted here, Curran does seem to have upped his pace. He bowled one bouncer to Smith which took the Don mark 2 by surprise. He bowled pretty well - always at his best when he's whipping the ball in low at the batsman's toes from a slight angle as when he got both Wade and Cummins lbw. However, his average speed still seems less than the other seamers and there were still some legside gimmes. I do like and rate Curran but I do still feel he's been over promoted too soon to be playing Test match cricket. Certainly, as a batsman, he was naive and out of his depth at number 7.

* As ever in this game of ours, fine margins. Denly could / should have been caught on Friday night. His dismissal then for a duck egg would have in all likelihood seen him out of Test cricket for ever. Instead, a gutsy 90 odd yesterday which should get him on the plane for England's next trip although I share Olly's view that it doesn't ''cement'' his place as Nasser suggested.

* Impressed by Stokes' batting. As well as his clean hitting, he's perhaps surprisingly also a fine defensive player and quite classical in approach. Long and early stride forward to smother the ball from Lyon and negate the spin.

* Some excellent catches (Burns, Smith, Labuschagne) but a few too many other less difficult chances dropped by both sides. Sums up in a way that both sides have lacked consistency throughout this series.

State of the game now? Predictably, I would have preferred us to be only 5 or 6 down and be able to bat until just after lunch (dirty up the wicket and keep their openers wondering when they'll be padding up). As it is though, we're still in an extremely good position. Another 20 or 30 to take the lead past 400 would be lovely. Smith will need to excell and we'll need to badly muck up for the series not to be squared. Btw, no one at the ground - including a fair few Aussies - regarded the match as a meaningless dead rubber.

[guildfordbat]

...

Was at a wedding reception last night... beautiful evening by the harbour. I managed to slip behind some hedges in the garden and discretely ...

Joey - was a bit worried what was coming next there.

[Duty281]

20/1 on SkyBet that Smith makes a double ton. He needs jinxing because I've got this feeling that Smith's summer is going to end on the highest plain of all.

[KP_fan]

20/1 on SkyBet that Smith makes a double ton. He needs jinxing because I've got this feeling that Smith's summer is going to end on the highest plain of all.

He's done for the series I think...…….Warner might get a score and cause some flutter but Eng will take this safely by a margin of 100 runs

[Soul Requiem]

Got a bad feeling about the rest of this game, can't help but think that the Aussies will return the favour and pull off a miraculous run chase.

[Duty281]

Paine finally cracks the DRS code.

[Soul Requiem]

At what point does this become intimidatory bowling?

[Pal Joey]

So nearly 400 runs needed then.

Smith may be Bradman-like (of late) but I'm not sure the mighty Labusch can do an Arthur Morris. Even with nearly 2 days left; not 1.

[Duty281]

Good chance for Leach to underline his credentials as England's number one spinner on a helpful track. About 90-10 in England's favour.

Let's see if Warner and/or Harris can do something with the bat other than look like tailenders.

[guildfordbat]

So nearly 400 runs needed then.

Smith may be Bradman-like (of late) but I'm not sure the mighty Labusch can do an Arthur Morris. Even with nearly 2 days left; not 1.

[alfie]

At what point does this become intimidatory bowling?

Probably can't claim intimidation when you've just whacked two balls into the stands

I do think the policing of overdone short stuff seems to be a bit hit or miss . Personally don't mind a bit of aggressive bowling but I suppose there should be some limits kept on it. Especially to the rabbits.

[alfie]

Would be ironic if Warner finally got his act together and played a blinder today...

Can't surely expect Smith to carry them to 400 with occasional twenties from others ; so someone else would need to make a big one. The one thing in their favor is that with unlimited time a good solid day in warm conditions would leave the bowlers a bit worn down for tomorrow : so , say , 280/6 would see them in with a chance...

One down ! Broad does for Harris

[guildfordbat]

Beauty from Broad gets Harris

[alfie]

And Broad does it again...gets his bunny , Warner for another low score. Averages under ten for the series !

Burns again showing he has a second useful skill as a slip catcher

Now comes Smith

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