The summer of cricket 2020

First topic message reminder :

We have actual cricket news for the first time in forever...and some hope that we will see some test matches this summer!

England bowlers began a return to individual training on Thursday, with batsmen and wicketkeepers scheduled to make a return on 1st June, in anticipation of the West Indies series being rescheduled to begin on 8th July (all according to various reports).

There was also reports a few weeks back they might play some one day games, whilst tests are happening too. Not seen anything else about that, but with England’s depth in the shorter format it could be done you’d think players wise (and actually would present a good opportunity to some on the fringes)

ECB is going to confirm the full list of players who will resume training next week. Murmurings about Hales in the one day stuff don’t go away...

So anyways - let’s keep fingers crossed, and hope everyone who posts here is healthy and staying safe too

Gooseberry wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:Looking at the pitch I reckon this already enough for England to have a first innings lead, that Windies batting line up is awful.

\Its fair comment but England are going to be hard pressed to make 200. As bad as West Indies are 200 should be achievable in any conditions. England will have to bowl well to force it, and every run counts now. No room for sloppy fielding and looseners.

Yeah, but even if West Indies lead on first innings they will have to bat last. Way too early to call a huge advantage yet. In truth we should not be surprised at this scoreline : I think we were all agreed before the game that both teams are a bit fragile with the bat ?

Third umpire doing well here ...on field umpires not ! Archer was dead plumb then , should not have needed the review.

So much for promotion in the order

And probably so much for the 200

Just looked out to me, another good use of the review. Holder has a richly deserved five-for, and Jofra again doesn't justify his place at 9.

Windies have got to be favourites now, surely? Wood needs to clump a few like he did against the Saffers.

Yeah, Archer looks clueless with the bat. Certainly at this level.

Duty281 wrote:Just looked out to me, another good use of the review. Holder has a richly deserved five-for, and Jofra again doesn't justify his place at 9.

Windies have got to be favourites now, surely? Wood needs to clump a few like he did against the Saffers.

Doubt it - while England haven't covered themselves in glory with the bat, it should be remembered that the WI lineup is very weak and we have a very good pace attack. And the pitch is clearly aiding the bowling.

Think Wood/Bess should throw the bat a bit here, try to add a quick 20-30, and get Anderson bowling under these clouds...

Bess is a proper bat ...think he should play normally , let Wood chance his arm a bit maybe. Closer they can get to 200 the better.

Holder has done so well here you wonder if the likes of Broad or Woakes might have been good value on this ?

Wood gone...six for Holder. Windies will be batting at tea then...

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:

Duty281 wrote:Just looked out to me, another good use of the review. Holder has a richly deserved five-for, and Jofra again doesn't justify his place at 9.

Windies have got to be favourites now, surely? Wood needs to clump a few like he did against the Saffers.

Doubt it - while England haven't covered themselves in glory with the bat, it should be remembered that the WI lineup is very weak and we have a very good pace attack. And the pitch is clearly aiding the bowling.

Think Wood/Bess should throw the bat a bit here, try to add a quick 20-30, and get Anderson bowling under these clouds...

I think the West Indies are good enough to get at least a 50 run lead which will likely be enough in a low-scoring test like this one. Conditions may favour bowling, but it should be remembered the tourists have bowled excellently and the gloom is set to disperse tomorrow.

England still 2/5

guildfordbat wrote:Yeah, Archer looks clueless with the bat. Certainly at this level.

His test average with the bat almost two runs fewer than Anderson!

Burnley Lara away with an effortless boundary

Now what does Bess do ? Don't think he's a power hitter so better just work it around , try and scrounge another fifteen or twenty...

Dolphin Ziggler wrote:England still 2/5

English bookies ? Weight of money , no ? I don't think I'd be jumping at those odds

Dolphin Ziggler wrote:England still 2/5

Clueless bookmakers. Don't have a bloody clue about test cricket. I'll be very sad on the day when they learn to price it accurately.

Bess has a really good technique. A genuine bowling all rounder. He doesn't have the same attacking game as Woakes but he's a difficult number 8 to prise from the crease.

This is a highly valuable contribution from Bess and Jimmy.

Like the way these two have played this. Sensible batting (OK , Bess did slice over slips , but generally) and they've added some handy runs.
Closer to 200 than it looked like half an hour ago.

20 run partnership up 

204 all out and an excellent effort from Bess and Jimmy at the end.

I think the advantage is narrowly with the West Indies, but an inspired new ball spell from Anderson can turn that around swiftly. Pitch is far from a minefield, though there is assistance for the bowlers. Agree with Alfie above that perhaps Broad and Woakes would be better suited to this than Archer and Wood.

4 for Gabriel...204 is the lot.

Valuable 30 added for that last wicket - might well be significant if this game continues to be a bowlers benefit.

Holder and Gabriel (and Roach , despite no wickets himself) can take a bow for a fine bowling effort

Hope the light/weather allows a full last session ...could be quite revealing.

I think people are misjudging Archer as a bowler somewhat, the bulk of the wickets he took last summer were with line and length at around 82mph rather than the express pace he's probably known for, aside from his debut test he's not bowled all that quickly.

I was gonna say Archer did a pretty good job with the moving ball in the Ashes last summer Soul.

It's actually Wood who hasn't really demonstrated that in his test career so far. Averageds 44 in England, and a high of three wickets in an innings, really isn't good enough for a seamer in this country...needs to rectify that this summer. Good chance today to make a start you'd think

Wood indeed hadn't done a lot in the way of Test wickets until last year...but you'd hope the SA efforts show he's found the key...

Will be interesting to see whether he can follow it up this season.

Archer got a fair few wickets in that Ashes series. With a rather odd mix of devastating bursts and strangely flat days. Unfortunately the flat days followed him to NZ so how he goes here may also be revealing...

Hopefully at least one of them has a really good match now , defending this modest total.

Plenty of close catchers waiting...

Reviews again save the West Indies. Had that one as out in real time, but was just outside leg.

Very ragged start from Archer in particular, though Anderson wasn't consistent either.

Bad light now stopped play. Music to the ears of the batting side - they'll be delighted if they don't have to bat again until tomorrow.

Since I praised the umpires for being the best in the business they've gone on and got almost every single decision wrong albeit none of them have been howlers.

If that is all for the day it has worked out perfectly for West Indies. Sunny skies tomorrow , no ? Though I imagine the ball will still do a bit off the deck at times.
It will be a bit of a test for Stokes as a novice captain , because juggling his bowling attack may be crucial tomorrow. And of course he has to consider how and when to use himself - often tricky for a bowler captain.

Still a lot of cricket to be played of course ; but right now I have the tourists ahead on points about 60-40

Ha. Light improved rapidly then ! Good...be a pain to have a second day chopped off early...

So far West Indies openers doing a good job of setting a base : 30/0 off nine is very decent when you are only chasing 204.

God how bad is our bowling ...dropped off for a couple of hours and surely its nit the west indies batting that well?

The West Indies seamers consistently hit good line and length and got the rewards. England haven't, so far, as they've bowled too short. The pitch isn't actually that bowler-friendly, bar the odd bit of variable bounce. I do think this pitch would have been tailor-made for Broad.

Too early for Stokes to be majorly concerned, but it's only another 50-60 overs worth of batting before the lead disappears.

There's the breakthrough...or not! How many successful overturns is that for the Windies now - five?

I like this better from Archer , over the wicket to Campbell. Don't think the round the wicket attack was achieving much.

Still only early but England will be a little disappointed to have nothing in twelve overs. Really hasn't been anything alarming for the batsmen yet , so that 204 is looking distinctly underwhelming...

Now Jimmy is trying round the wicket to Campbell. Hmm.

Got him !

Pending review.........

Oh that is going over ! Well I thought that was at least going to be umpires call ...obviously so did Jimmy

Getting closer at least.

Umpires are having a 'mare , aren't they ?  West Indies five overturns...will it be six ?

No . This one was out !

England needed that.

At last, Campbell goes and Jimmy gets a reward.

Wood's turn now. On what I've seen so far I agree with Duty that Broad might have been handy here...but we will see as the game goes on. The faster men might prove their worth as the ball - and the pitch - wears a bit.
Unlike West Indies , England do have a proper spin option and it will be interesting to see if Bess can get anything out of this when he has a go.

Stokes and Wood banging it in shorter and shorter. Not sure that's the best approach on this pitch. England might have to hope that there's some turn for Bess if this carries on.

57/1 and off for bad light again. Likely to be the end of play today. West Indies have given themselves an excellent platform to win this test match.

Cricket is pathetic sometimes, the amount of effort that has gone into making these games happen and they're going off for a little bit of drizzle or because it's got a little bit darker, needlessly lost the best part of a day.

Off again for the light. Will they get back on again I wonder...

Wood certainly had his pace up ...some serious heat , but unable to get a breakthrough. Anderson clearly the most dangerous of the bowlers so far. But the batsmen have done a pretty good job , especially Brathwaite , who looked a bit wobbly early on but has settled rather nicely.

Judging by the England innings , this is not a pitch on which batsmen are necessarily blasted out immediately...but even when apparently set they have found it difficult to turn a start into anything big. Whether that will be the same in brighter light tomorrow remains to be seen. But England will certainly be hoping to get back on and nab a couple of scalps this evening.
The fact that the umps are still hanging about in the middle is a little hopeful perhaps .

A bit of a by the by type point but I like the look of England's slip cordon. Often with England sides of the last few years I've looked at the slip cordon and wondered whether a player is stood there due to being a good slip fielder or because he's a senior player.

When I see senior batsman standing in the cordon at Test level as if by inheritance it can feel quite village. A bit like when Alistair Cook came into the test side and started fielding at short leg despite Ian Bell being outstanding there purely because Cook was now the junior batsman.

Sibley, Burns and Crawley are all excellent slip fielders whilst Pope is very athletic and quick across the ground in the point region. Stokes of course is just an outstanding fielder anywhere. It's a strong slip cordon.

Queue 3 chances in a row being turfed...

Soul Requiem wrote:Cricket is pathetic sometimes, the amount of effort that has gone into making these games happen and they're going off for a little bit of drizzle or because it's got a little bit darker, needlessly lost the best part of a day.

Nonsense isn’t it - don’t often agree with Vaughan but he was right in that they’d be staying on if it was a ODI/T20 and there was some drizzle, but for some reason in tests as soon as they feel a spot of rain they go inside. Makes no sense, no wonder this format is dying out worldwide

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:Cricket is pathetic sometimes, the amount of effort that has gone into making these games happen and they're going off for a little bit of drizzle or because it's got a little bit darker, needlessly lost the best part of a day.

Nonsense isn’t it - don’t often agree with Vaughan but he was right in that they’d be staying on if it was a ODI/T20 and there was some drizzle, but for some reason in tests as soon as they feel a spot of rain they go inside. Makes no sense, no wonder this format is dying out worldwide

And to add, it's further nonsense that in England they don't restart play 30-60 minutes early the following morning, like they do overseas.

Wow what an unexpected collapse....but the kind that's  possible any-day by Eng vs. WI
I would love to catch-up extended highlights..
I encashed my $5 on WI for $20,,,,,,a fantastic cash-out rate that bet365 offered based on match situation

WI ain't  winning this....simply because they are batting 4th....and will collapse under 150ish in the 4th inning.
I will wait for the return rate on Eng to rise a bit when WI hopefully puts some kinda partnership and put money on England.

and hope to watch it live on the weekend

65-35 in the West Indies favour for me. If they can bat the day tomorrow (presuming we get a full 90-98 overs) they'll win, as the lead will probably be 140+. They'll have a fair crack at doing so with better overhead conditions and an older ball in use from the start.

England need an inspired burst in the morning and a minimum of three wickets in the opening session to haul themselves back into the test. Pitch the ball up, not this useless short stuff. Learn from how the tourists, especially Holder, bowled in the first innings. A lot could depend on Bess and how conducive the pitch is to spin if the seamers fail to make much impact.

Think you might be overrating the West Indies batting , Duty. If they get a 140 lead by end of Friday they would indeed be in a strong position , but I think that is asking a lot of a rather ordinary lineup - unless England bowl pretty poorly.
Better batting conditions will perhaps be in their favour. But the ball has done the odd bit off the pitch rather than in the air and I'd expect that to continue. It's no minefield , but not exactly a road either.
They are certainly on top right now but I think it could still go either way from here. What is Guildford calls it ? "Moving Day" tomorrow ?

alfie wrote:Think you might be overrating the West Indies batting , Duty.  If they get a 140 lead by end of Friday they would indeed be in a strong position , but I think that is asking a lot of a rather ordinary lineup - unless England bowl pretty poorly.
Better batting conditions will perhaps be in their favour.  But the ball has done the odd bit off the pitch rather than in the air and I'd expect that to continue. It's no minefield , but not exactly a road either.
They are certainly on top right now but I think it could still go either way from here. What is Guildford calls it ? "Moving Day" tomorrow ?

Hi Alfie and all - ah, ''Moving Day''. King Carlos likes that term too. However, it's probably more suited to Day 3 off a 4 day Championship match than a 5 day Test. Especially here when we've already lost about a day's play.

That said, I have a gut feel that the last session today could be particularly significant. My guess - it's only that but am trying to factor in what I've seen so far and what I think I know which pretty much tallies with your comments - is that we'll be batting again before the close. Maybe around 50 in arrears. IF (big ''if'') so, how many wickets we end up down tonight and how we go about building a lead tomorrow will properly ''move'' the game on.

I would add that I've shared the frustrations of others - particularly Duty - about the stop / start delays but have still enjoyed cricket's return at the top level. Still early on in this match and intriguingly poised.

If West indies do bat all day today then they fully deserve to win, they will have batteds and England will have bowled badly. Let's be honest Archer wasted the new ball, and the west indies wickets didn't come from outrageous movement or absolute freak balls just some consistently rusty looking play from england.
There's a bit of hindsight to the toss decision and leaving Broad out, neither cut and dried decisions but both given the current situation you might go back in time and change if you could.
As it is England have simply been outplayed so far. If that continues they deserve to lose and no amount of shuffling deckchairs would really have changed that.
They really need to pull their socks up and drag themselves back into the game. Its far from gone but they need to start performing better and hope west indies crack. They can afford to ship a lead, but if it is in the realms of 150 then it would take a hell of sdcond innings to win even if they do have rhe advantage of conditions. They are capable of better, and west indies are capable of folding like a pancake. But with the position now they have to improve to win, not just rely on a fragile opposition batting lineup and some bowlers getting tired.
West Indies seem to save their best for England don't they! This side seems way more switched on than so many other touring sides, a big chunk of credit has to go to Holder as a leader not just for his wickets. Maybe the current situation and some of the politics around the tour have helped focus minds on cricket rather than pay disputes.
I'm disappointed to see England looking more rusty and less on it. Some of the players just aren't that great to begin with but they should be capable of better than what we have seen so far. Someone needs to step up.

Really this tailor made for a Broad 6 for peanuts Denly Stokes run a ball century in the second innings. Its the sort of thing he does.

alfie wrote:Think you might be overrating the West Indies batting , Duty.  If they get a 140 lead by end of Friday they would indeed be in a strong position , but I think that is asking a lot of a rather ordinary lineup - unless England bowl pretty poorly.
Better batting conditions will perhaps be in their favour.  But the ball has done the odd bit off the pitch rather than in the air and I'd expect that to continue. It's no minefield , but not exactly a road either.
They are certainly on top right now but I think it could still go either way from here. What is Guildford calls it ? "Moving Day" tomorrow ?

Yeah, I'm not expecting the West Indies to bat all day, but they've certainly given themselves a platform and a chance to do just that. Though as Goose says above, the West Indies do seem to save their best for England! Even if they don't bat all day, you would think they would take a lead of at least fifty from this position.

Will be interesting to see how England cope with less swing expected today, as well the factor of no saliva allowed on the aging ball. Only Anderson bowled well yesterday, Archer's pace was up into the 90s but his accuracy was atrocious.

They need to stop with this short ball nonsense that get Archer and Wood to persist with, both look far better bowling a line and length with the odd surprise short ball thrown in.

Good interview with Broad there - clearly hurting from being dropped, and he made some very valid points about how well he's bowled the past year! Lets hope that fire comes out in the next test...when surely he will be back in the XI...(I still can't believe he was dropped, as I stated when the rumour was out pre-test)

Good start to the day from the umpires, and a lost review from England.

guildfordbat wrote:

compelling and rich wrote:west indies spot on with their reviews today

Yes, but for this series there is an extra review in each innings which helps and encourages it to be used.

In recent years, we've seen some ghastly goofs by third umpires but tbf Michael Gough appears calm and to know what he's doing in that role. For Crawley's dismissal, he took time to check that the spike being shown on UltraEdge was from the pad and before the ball reached the bat (''clear daylight between bat and ball'' in his words) before jumping to a conclusion.

I actually thought the ball from Holder that got Crawley was going down leg but I was wrong there. Like Duty, I was absolutely sure in real time that Burns should have been given out by the on field umpire.

Atherton and Holding now joining me in singing the praises of Michael Gough as third umpire, both yesterday and as he's started today in turning down an appeal for caught behind off Anderson. Atherton paying tribute to Gough speaking with ''logic and clarity'' whilst Holding emphasised his common sense approach in only looking at what is necessary.

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:Good interview with Broad there - clearly hurting from being dropped, and he made some very valid points about how well he's bowled the past year! Lets hope that fire comes out in the next test...when surely he will be back in the XI...(I still can't believe he was dropped, as I stated when the rumour was out pre-test)

https://twitter.com/SkyCricket/status/1281528340730580992

Said interview for those who missed it.

Wood all over Hope here. Just don’t get carried away and keep hitting a good length with a good bouncer an over and something will give. Been a good start from England this, just need that breakthrough.

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:Good interview with Broad there - clearly hurting from being dropped, and he made some very valid points about how well he's bowled the past year! Lets hope that fire comes out in the next test...when surely he will be back in the XI...(I still can't believe he was dropped, as I stated when the rumour was out pre-test)

I'd be dropping him for the rest of the series for those comments, not helpful in the slightest.

JDizzle wrote:Wood all over Hope here. Just don’t get carried away and keep hitting a good length with a good bouncer an over and something will give. Been a good start from England this, just need that breakthrough.

Yes decent start ...though the batsmen have played it quite well so far. Need to keep the pressure on and not expect it just to happen easily , and you'd think they'll get a break eventually.

Just hope Archer and Stokes latch onto good lines/lengths when they get on. This is more of a "wear them down" pitch than one on which you expect to blitz them.