The summer of cricket 2020

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Great ton from Morgan. Came in at 44/3 - now victory looks assured for England after this partnership.

(Spoiler: It wasn't.)

I think this England team is on the up. The discoveries of Pope and Crawley have added great strength to the top six - Crawley has strong potential, Pope has immense potential. I'm unconvinced by Sibley for now, but I hope he carries on with his good start and adds a few shots to his arsenal, especially against the spinners as, for now, he'll be stuck if he tours the subcontinent. I still don't think Burns is test class, though he is an excellent scrapper and full of grit and determination which counts for something. Stokes is in the form of his life with the bat (though he didn't show it in the last test!). I'm very concerned about Root, for the last few years he's been averaging around forty in the test arena which is ten runs down from his previous. I'd still be very happy to relieve him of the captaincy and let him focus on his batting.

Seam bowling resources are excellent, as we all know, provided they stay fit. Anderson will be on the way out sooner rather than later, but England have superb depth in this department. Spin bowling is a bit of a weakness with no clear number one spinner, though we remain in hope of an undiscovered Graeme Swann lurking in the county game somewhere.

Overall, England are where they've often been. A match for anyone on home turf (haven't lost a test series at home since the 0-1 to Sri Lanka in 2014; have drawn against Australia and beaten India at home in recent series), but there are few places in the world where I'd make England favourites to win an away series (certainly not Australia or the sub-continent!).

It will still be a tough job to win this series, and a lot depends on Pakistan's mindset after this rather crushing defeat when they were about 99% favourites to win the game at one point. Will their young players be able to bounce back positively?

I think we can agree that England must be the most fun team in the modern test cricket arena. I've lost count of all the close finishes, incredible comebacks and disastrous collapses that have happened since 2005. As a side note on this, England have come back from a 100+ run first innings deficit three times in the last year and a bit (v Ireland; Headingley 2019 and yesterday).

Interesting thoughts on DRS by Alfie. Personally, I'm a huge fan of DRS. It's encouraged more positive play against the spinners and it eradicates howlers (provided you've got reviews left!) from the game...like the one Sibley suffered yesterday where he missed it by a country mile and then some. I think the system used for LBWs is fine, you need a umpire's call option in for the existence of doubt.

Just watched the highlights from yesterday. Amazing how luck plays such a part. Pope, whose place is secure, got an unplayable delivery while Buttler, whose place was under threat, twice skied the ball only for it to fall safe.

Woakes looked great. I saw his Test 100 at Lord's a couple of years ago and the wonder is that he's made so few Test runs since.

The hope for Pakistan, who must be bitterly disappointed, is that although England rarely fail to win a Test during a home series, they usually chuck in a horror display to allow the tourists at least one victory.

If you think following England is hard, spare a thought for Pakistan supporters. Their team is capable of being brilliant one match and hopeless the next.

I think that was England's horror display, they were absolutely miles behind in the game until right at the end. From Pope being out that's a big defeat most of the time. So worry for Pakistan is England had their horror display but still won anyway!

Very much so VTR, chances are that Pakistan will wilt as most touring teams do. Watching back now I can see the Captain and team feeling the pressure as the afternoon went on, the difference in experience maybe showed as it progressed.

Chris Woakes...averaging 27 with the bat an 17 with the ball this year. Not too shabby.

Going back to some comments above...its a bit rough to call Burns not test class. Hes done better than any top 3 England player bar Sibley in the past how ever many years it is now since the Cook/Strauss/Trott partnership. An average of 34 isnt bad given where and against who most of his tests have been played, and he generally stays in for those runs too. Not been at his best this summer, but then he hasnt played or trained cricket this year prior to the camp so has as much excuse as anyone to be a bit rusty.
Sibley has already shown he can learn and adapt. The Asia tour will be a literal test for him, but hopefuly the coaches can help him find more ways of scoring. Continuing his fitness work should help too, more quick singles would do a lot to relieve the perceived pressure on him and Burns when they appear bogged down at times. For the talk that he may struggle in Asia theres equal theory that he should do well against the quicks in Aus.
Crawley, and I guess Bess too, is learning his cricket in tests. Hes obviously getting more slack than an experienced player like Burns who has less time and scope to get better but he is only averaging 28. That doesn't make him a sure thing to come back in, but I do think its probably better for England in the long term if he does. Its not like they can send him back to a county, unless they ditched him from the squad altogether.
Pope looks the best of the new caps and a potential run machine. Hes had a relatively easy ride of things in his second coming but loos a class act. Tests absolutely the right place now for him to improve further.

England are still flawed and we shouldnt forget they dodged a bullet here and its only a couple of days since everyone was pointing out they really aren't that good a side. But its the first time in a long while since you feel like theres pieces falling into place that can see a good side developing. Still some worries about the overseas bowling especially with Andersons future being questioned for the first time, but at least they have some quicks. Bess and Leach at least give a left/right combination for Asia.

Not sure Burns will ever be prolific but he's still a class above the rest of the openers England have had since Cook and Strauss. England need some stability at the top

Sibley has faced more deliveries than anyone in test cricket since his debut.

England got away with it here. Heroics get the headlines, but they should be something to also cause concern.

Whatever happens, they have to pick Root 4 and Stokes 5. If you’re desperate for that extra bowler, they’ve got to fit it in that framework.

Interesting criticism of Jof out there, considering his returns were pretty good really. Still unsure he’s used well, both for the team and for him personally. He’s too good to be a hit the deck bowler nonstop and I think it demotivates him.

Anderson to rotate out for a test, maybe Jof too, although Woakes and Broad have played a lot in a row and could be monitored. Curran and Robinson both wait for a chance.

I like Bess, something about him, maybe his temperament, and he’s got room for growth. Interesting watching as Warne did analysis on him, especially the difference in bounce he was getting to left and right handers.

Certainly a lot to like about this Pakistan side. Two leggies. They were poor with their tactics, clearly, and I think made it too easy for Jos and Sir Chris to settle.

Will be a great series to watch.

Stokes withdraws from the squads for the rest of the series to be with family in New Zealand.

Hope everything is ok for him and his.

Interesting dilemma for England.

Would guess Crawley has to come in and possibly Curran to try and balance out the order a bit

Hope all is well for the Stokes family, know his dad wasn't well over the winter

Dolphin Ziggler wrote:Sibley has faced more deliveries than anyone in test cricket since his debut.

It sounds like a great stat till you factor in that england have played more tests than anyone by a margin in that period and (top of my head) only Stokes and Pope played all of them alongside him.

So, does that confine us to a summer of Root at three? I hope not. Is it an extra space in the batting? Can Buttler have the gloves taken away? Does it open a door for Mo, considering that Bess isn’t prolific? Or is it just Curran and Woakes all summer long?

Burns
Sibley
Crawley
Root
Pope
Buttler
Woakes
Curran/(Ali)
Broad
Bess/(Jimmy)
Jof/Robinson

Gooseberry wrote:

Dolphin Ziggler wrote:Sibley has faced more deliveries than anyone in test cricket since his debut.

It sounds like a great stat till you factor in that england have played more tests than anyone by a margin in that period and (top of my head) only Stokes and Pope played all of them alongside him.

It’s a fun stat but it’s indicative of a strength and, most importantly, is exactly what everyone was desperate for in a new opener - at least when defending failings of the middle order. It was always the openers failings that exposed the middle order, so that excuse may wane.

Stokes out shakes things up a bit, good signs that they did win the last two with only small contributions from him ( and the wickets in this one made up for the drops!).

I guess if Buttler runs hadnt given him a reprieve then this will have, England wont want to make excessive changes and want winners in the side. His experience and ability to mentally reset showed againt pakistans flapping and head dropping. I liked the idea of bringing in Foakes and retaining him as a bat, but that seems less likely without Stokes taking the place of a full time batsman and bowler.

Anderson Borad and Archers bowling loads need to be considered too, doubly so with the former looking past it in the field. The Curran option does mean they could play all of them still and minimise the amount everyone bowls , but 5 seamers is somewhere between a luxury and overkill.

Probably also gives Bess another game, especially if they do go with the Curran option. But the pitch could play a part in that. Even with all the turn this one offered spinners in the end didn't play the decisive hand even in the second innings. England could get a really deep batting line up giving Bracey a go and making do with Root as a spinner.

Loads of options, but Stokes is never going to be easily replaced. Pakistan will be happy to hear it. Big questions for them about what to do to improve their batting too.

Dolphin Ziggler wrote:So, does that confine us to a summer of Root at three? I hope not. Is it an extra space in the batting? Can Buttler have the gloves taken away? Does it open a door for Mo, considering that Bess isn’t prolific? Or is it just Curran and Woakes all summer long?

Burns
Sibley
Crawley
Root
Pope
Buttler
Woakes
Curran/(Ali)
Broad
Bess/(Jimmy)
Jof/Robinson

They can't bring in Mo as he's not in the bubble. Leach is the other spinner but less likely to get a game if they are worried about the tail.

Usually not good news in these situations so just have to hope for the best for Stokes. He's had a remarkable 18 months.

I'd guess that Crawley comes back in for Stokes, with Root moving to 4. The other option would be Buttler staying at 6 as a batsman, then Foakes coming in at 7 to lengthen the batting order. and take the gloves. England seem very set on having 4 seamers and a spinner though.

1.Burns
2.Sibley
3.Crawley
4.Root (c)
5.Pope
6.Buttler (wk)
7.Woakes
8.Curran
9.Bess
10.Broad
11.Archer

My money would be on that for the 2nd Test.

Sorry to hear about Stokes' issues, and obviously from a cricketing perspective it completely kiboshes the balance for the rest of the series. Almost certainly means Crawley come in and England continue with the tail-heavy batting order, but at least Root can come down to 4. I can imagine something like:

Burns/Sibley/Crawley/Root/Pope/Buttler/Woakes/Curran/Bess/Broad/Jof.

I certainly can't see Anderson playing another test in a row, so that opens up a spot for Curran. If Jof needs a rest, it's a simple like-for-like with Mark Wood. Is it possible for Robinson to come in, or is he not in the bubble? If he is, he might be preferred to Curran.

Would agree that Jof isn't being used correctly for the most part in this side. Reminds me of how Broad was used as an 'enforcer' in the early stages of his test career, which never properly suited him.

Can Mo join the bubble? Isn’t Robinson being called up? Or would Mo (or anyone else) have to isolate for a week first?

England have a 25 year old bowler with 39 wickets in 10 games @ 29 and he's being criticised (not necessarily on here).

No Stokes is a huge blow to England. (And obviously his family issues must take priority , but it is really going to hurt the team)

Yes they won this one with out his runs ; but is that going to happen every time ? Recent stats say no. And it was probably his late surprise bowling contribution that ensured England chased only 277 in this game , don't forget.

They simply cannot balance the team without him. OK Woakes got runs , Buttler got runs - this time. I'm not going to put money on that happening again so the top order need to do a job - which at least might be easier with Crawley back at three and Root in his preferred spot at four. ( And anyone who still fantasised about Foakes getting a go with the gloves can forget it.)
Bowling will be OK , whoever they pick , I think. Likely to depend on fitness/tiredness issues. Won't even try to guess.

But I think Ben's absence gives Pakistan a lifeline , if they're good enough to take it.

He is that important to England. And if anyone doubts that go and rewatch some tapes of the last tour of Australia...

Is Dan Lawrence still in the bubble?

Soul Requiem wrote:Is Dan Lawrence still in the bubble?

I understand he is.

As are Bracey and Foakes. Robinson already in the 13 , or 14 , of course.

Crawley for Stokes and Curran for one of the seamer I think

alfie wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:Is Dan Lawrence still in the bubble?

I understand he is.

As are Bracey and Foakes.  Robinson already in the 13 , or 14 , of course.

Not ideal but for batting balance you could drop Bess for Lawrence and use him and Root for the spin overs.

Soul Requiem wrote:

alfie wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:Is Dan Lawrence still in the bubble?

I understand he is.

As are Bracey and Foakes.  Robinson already in the 13 , or 14 , of course.

Not ideal but for batting balance you could drop Bess for Lawrence and use him and Root for the spin overs.

Bit part timey though , no ? Add the risk of a new cap...

Unfortunately Denly has left the bubble

GSC wrote:England have a 25 year old bowler with 39 wickets in 10 games @ 29 and he's being criticised (not necessarily on here).

Jof is an excellent bowler. He just needs his work load managed as with all pacers. I also hope he bowls seamers lengths more as he did at Sussex as well. Archer and Robinson didn't bowl in dissimilar styles for Sussex. Jof can just do it with a bit more pace and bounce.

If England won the 2nd Test then I do wonder if Robinson could debut in the 3rd. He's a very good bowler.

In terms of batting depth Robinson can definitely bat but he's more in the Bess bracket than Sam Curran. Albeit Robinson does has a first-class century which Curran hasn't managed yet. Curran is the more talented batsman though. If I were picking a batting order Robinson would be coming in below Bess.

As said last night, figured something was coming with Robinson being drafted into the bubble - hopefully Stokes and his family get as much time as they need.

Think this probably cements Crawley coming in, and will in the process shift Root to his more comfortable spot.

Then it’s a question of what they do with the seamers - again, imagine we’ll need to wait to hear about any fitness issues, before we get an inkling about what will happen there. Agree with GSC that Curran for Anderson seems likely...but this will be the fourth test in four and a bit weeks for Broad and Woakes. Don’t want them to be pulling up lame like the West Indies seamers did...

Makes that comeback yesterday all the more important. Wouldn’t fancy them overturning a 1-0 series deficit sans Stokes!

VTR wrote:So what was the main sport headline on BBC news last night? Oh yeah, Chelsea going out of the Champions League. Absolutely ridiculous, get Sir Chris on the front and back page!

Always depresses the hell out of me that the standard response from the media (particularly newspapers) to the idea that there is an imbalance in coverage of football compared to all other sports is to reduce coverage of other sports.

alfie wrote:But I think Ben's absence gives Pakistan a lifeline , if they're good enough to take it

Yes, absolutely. The perfect fillip that Pakistan needed after their crushing defeat.

A fantastic win for Eng and the hero of it in my view Woakes  

I have been a loud and repeated supporter of Woakes for many years......firstly as an undisputed first 3 seamer pick atleast in Eng.....and further more for the batting skills he brings.

bowling all-rounders like Woakes don't fire with the bat all the time.....and don't offer a solid batsman like consistency....but do exceed the poorest of the 6 or 7 batsmen and every now and then make a telling contribution with the bat.
Ditto Butler...he won't be a pure batsman in tests but rather a WK-ing allrounder who when he fires make a  material impact.

Hope Eng learn and bring back Moeen...who is in no way inferior to Bess as a spinner and every now and then can play a telling inning with the bat,

Now the other side of coin....Pakistan pulled out defeat from the jaws of Victory
The game turned away from them......when rattled by th quick 50 stand between Woakes and Butler......Azhar took off the spinner....and resorted to line-length-and spread the fielders.
Terrible....awful....nothing spirals you downward into a loss faster than playing under "fear of losing" to avoid a loss.

He should have had one spinner ALL THE TIME and with 70 off runs left......both spinners with  close in bat-pad catchers. There was so much spin in the pitch all the time.
What a pitiful waste of Shaan masood's inning of life and my 3 bets on Pak

New Zealand has a strict 14 isolation day quarantine so I wonder if Stokes is getting a pass on that coming from the bio secure bubble. Apparently Butlers father was admitted to hospital during the test which arguably makes his response saturday with the bat even more impressive. Im sure even his harshest critics whilst wishing he hadn't won the test for england wont wish hes forced out of the next by a decline in that situation.

Big test for Pakistans leadership and resolve to pick them up after that. England have spent years learning from similar set backs (cough). I've been really impressed by the attitude they turned up with and general athleticism and work ethic, if they can add mental resilience to that and respond in the way Broad and Butler have to low points they can still be a force. But most touring sides wilt.
They also have to think about managing the two quicks, whilst they didnt put down the number of overs Gabriel and Joseph did the warning signs should be thee for the difficulties in 3 back to back tests. Do they rest one now to have one fresh for the third test or put all their eggs into this one to try and get back to parity?
And what do they do about the batting?

He won't be travelling to NZ since his father now lives in South Africa, Goose.

GSC wrote:England have a 25 year old bowler with 39 wickets in 10 games @ 29 and he's being criticised (not necessarily on here).

I am not one to criticise but i also do not get the hype around Archer. Clear to see that he is a talented young man who definitely has a future in the game but i do not understand all the massive hype that surrounds him on the media. Like most quicks, he will have his day when he will be very destructive. I think he needs to perform a tad more consistently to warrant the hype.

He is either being used incorrectly or he is simply not experienced enough to have that cleverness in bowling as yet.

He reminds me a lot of Broad when he first started out, Broad was used incorrectly in my opinion and then the coaches decided to put far more work into his batting to re-create a Flintoff rather than focus on his bowling.

In fairness to Archer the media hype mainly comes from his performances during the world cup where he took 20 wickets at 23 with an economy of 4.57 which for a pace bowler is mightily impressive.

It is for ODI's, without a doubt but this is test cricket so a different beast all together for me.

Pal Joey wrote:He won't be travelling to NZ since his father now lives in South Africa, Goose.

Are you sure?

I thought Ben's dad headed straight back to NZ after he was released from a SA hospital earlier this year (and he was only there following his son's efforts with England when he was taken ill).

eirebilly wrote:It is for ODI's, without a doubt but this is test cricket so a different beast all together for me.

His first-class record is very good and his Test record not too shabby having played 10 Tests. He needs his workload managed like any quick and he needs to be allowed to bowl the lengths that made him successful at Sussex. I.e. pitching it right up on a seamers length, being able to do a bit either way both in the air and off the pitch. Then occasionally one will rear up due to his pace and height.

He's an excellent seamer who can bowl 90mph plus. He isn't a 90mph bowler who can make the ball do a bit off the pitch. It feels like England are using him as the latter though.

If Anderson is rested for the 2nd Test then I think Archer will take the new ball with Broad which will be an interesting pairing.

Agnew's column about the 1st Test mentions that Anderson was bowling off a few paces before that final day, just trying to get his wrist in the right position. Jimmy spent years playing a lot of Test cricket without much break. He was so consistent that he was pretty much in a rhythm from 2010 ('08 and '09 were also good years but in '10 his average suddenly dropped to an exceptional level) to 2018. From 2014-18 he didn't average over 24 in Test cricket for a single calendar year. The injuries and now no CC cricket to get rhythm means it makes some sense that he is basically out of form for the first time in a decade.

I actually think it's a situation that could resolve itself. Anderson may well have not toured India and Sri Lanka anyway. That means he has a winter off, then he is in contract with Lancashire to come back and bowl at the start of 2021 summer. If he has that hunger to keep going, do a pre-season and play CC early next year then he can get overs under his belt. If he decides that hunger isn't there then he can walk into the sunset with a phenomenal career to look back on. Personally I hope he gives it another summer as it would be a shame for Jimmy to walk away without a send off at a packed Oval as many others have enjoyed.

Surprising thing I learnt today. Jimmy Anderson is older than Graham Onions.

Less surprising thing I learnt today. Living in the North East seems to age you more than travelling the world, staying in 5 star hotels.

Soul Requiem wrote:In fairness to Archer the media hype mainly comes from his performances during the world cup where he took 20 wickets at 23 with an economy of 4.57 which for a pace bowler is mightily impressive.

He also averages 24.47 with the ball in the 7 home tests he's played, with 30 wickets taken and two five wicket hauls. There is good reason for excitement! But the media are just doing their classic thing of massively hyping a player to unrealistic expectations, and as soon as he doesn't reach them for a bit, cutting him down (watch it happen with Pope if he has a lean spell...). I mean you see it with the team themselves, one day Vaughan is saying they're the best thing since sliced bread, then the next barely fit to lace their own boots...

I think all of us on here are more than level headed enough to recognise he's had a very good start to his test career, but he's still got a lot of learning to do at this level...and will have down games and/or series.

Also agree with King Carlos's post that he needs to just be allowed to bowl usual seamer line/length - feels like last winter in particular, England just wanted to use him to bowl exclusively short, when actually that's not really what he's great at (Stokes is much better at that round the wicket, into the body stuff). They used to do it with Plunkett and Wood when he first started out...we do tend to use these "fast" bowlers in pigeon holed roles, which personally, I don't like.

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:
Also agree with King Carlos's post that he needs to just be allowed to bowl usual seamer line/length - feels like last winter in particular, England just wanted to use him to bowl exclusively short, when actually that's not really what he's great at (Stokes is much better at that round the wicket, into the body stuff). They used to do it with Plunkett and Wood when he first started out...we do tend to use these "fast" bowlers in pigeon holed roles, which personally, I don't like.

I really fear for Archer and Wood in Australia if they are told to bowl the wrong lengths. Whilst you need an excellent bouncer down under to stop batsman just 'coming at you' on those fast wickets, bowlers who have most success in Australia tend to be ones who can find a length to still threaten the stumps.

I often think that bowlers who try to go to Australia, bowl back of a length or try to bounce batsman out usually get smashed. Bowlers who succeed there are the ones who find that length where they can threaten the stumps without getting driven. In 2010/11 that's what Anderson, Tremlett, Finn and Bresnan did. In 2013/14 Ryan Harris did that excellently for Australia and Broad actually did it very well for England. It's a very difficult thing to do on those pitches but something that Archer's natural game should allow.

Occasions where pacers regularly bounce batsman out on those quick wickets are actually pretty rare and take a phenomenal individual performance from a bowler. Mitchell Johnson being the obvious recent example.

I miss the old BBC boards where there would now be a clamour for Cox and Leaning to replace whoever we hate this week in the team. And probably calls for Darren Stevens to slot in as the allrounder for Stokes

king_carlos wrote:

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:
Also agree with King Carlos's post that he needs to just be allowed to bowl usual seamer line/length - feels like last winter in particular, England just wanted to use him to bowl exclusively short, when actually that's not really what he's great at (Stokes is much better at that round the wicket, into the body stuff). They used to do it with Plunkett and Wood when he first started out...we do tend to use these "fast" bowlers in pigeon holed roles, which personally, I don't like.

I really fear for Archer and Wood in Australia if they are told to bowl the wrong lengths. Whilst you need an excellent bouncer down under to stop batsman just 'coming at you' on those fast wickets, bowlers who have most success in Australia tend to be ones who can find a length to still threaten the stumps.

I often think that bowlers who try to go to Australia, bowl back of a length or try to bounce batsman out usually get smashed. Bowlers who succeed there are the ones who find that length where they can threaten the stumps without getting driven. In 2010/11 that's what Anderson, Tremlett, Finn and Bresnan did. In 2013/14 Ryan Harris did that excellently for Australia and Broad actually did it very well for England. It's a very difficult thing to do on those pitches but something that Archer's natural game should allow.

Occasions where pacers regularly bounce batsman out on those quick wickets are actually pretty rare and take a phenomenal individual performance from a bowler. Mitchell Johnson being the obvious recent example.

Carlos - a much earlier example but a standout one I recall from radio comms and grainy black & white tv news coverage was John Snow down under in '70/'71. Ask your dad!

Dan Lawrence will be unavailable for the 2nd test due to a family bereavement

Is it too late to call Darren Stevens into the squad?

GSC wrote:Is it too late to call Darren Stevens into the squad?

Jack Leaning can also bowl a decent bit of dibbly dobbly.

guildfordbat wrote:
Carlos - a much earlier example but a standout one I recall from radio comms and grainy black & white tv news coverage was John Snow down under in '70/'71. Ask your dad!

I'm sure I've mentioned it many times but I grew up watching VHS recordings my grandfather made of cricket from previous decades. A strange upside of little cricket on terrestrial TV whilst growing up was ending up with a strangely good knowledge of 70/80/90s English cricket courtesy of my granddad. Dead 19 years god rest him but as an Essex CCC member I still reckon he could put forward a passionate argument for Mark Waugh being a better batsman than Steve.

John Snow in Australia was one of the earlier (and jumpier) VHS recordings available but some good footage nonetheless. An excellent bowler and fascinating character/career. He was many things but boring wasn't one of them. Even his action seems menacing watching that old footage. Almost a combination of Bob Willis and Bret Lee.

Not much from those archives can beat recordings of Hampshire games from the 70s and 80s it must be said. Barry Richards and Malcolm Marshall remain two of the most remarkable overseas performers in County Cricket. I'll throw my usual mention for Mike Procter at Gloucestershire into that mix as well of course!

LondonTiger wrote:

GSC wrote:Is it too late to call Darren Stevens into the squad?

Jack Leaning can also bowl a decent bit of dibbly dobbly.

Dawid Malan took 2/24 against Notts, both wickets against highly acclaimed international players (Samit Patel and Jake Ball). Clearly, a bowling attack led by Malan and James Vince is what's needed for England to get back to number one.

Duty281 wrote:

LondonTiger wrote:

GSC wrote:Is it too late to call Darren Stevens into the squad?

Jack Leaning can also bowl a decent bit of dibbly dobbly.

Dawid Malan took 2/24 against Notts, both wickets against highly acclaimed international players (Samit Patel and Jake Ball). Clearly, a bowling attack led by Malan and James Vince is what's needed for England to get back to number one.

Chris Nash took 3 wickets with his off-breaks in the current match. Bring him in for Stokes and pick the extra seamer instead of a front line spinner I say.

Ha, it is like the old days. Anyone who did anything of note based solely on looking at County scorecards, ignoring the fact they might be over 40, the performance was a complete aberration in a mediocre career, or in some cases that they aren't even English, get them in the team!

I do miss seeing fans on the BBC 606 calling for Mark Cosgrove to get a chance. Even overlooking him being capped by Australia he made Rob Key look like Paul Collingwood in the field.

VTR wrote:Ha, it is like the old days. Anyone who did anything of note based solely on looking at County scorecards, ignoring the fact they might be over 40, the performance was a complete aberration in a mediocre career, or in some cases that they aren't even English, get them in the team!

Back in the '70s the last game of the county season was usually the Gillette Cup final, a one day match of 60 overs per side, played at Lord's with the powers that be of English cricket all watching. It was often felt that a good performance in that game could result in a player being called up for England's winter test tour notwithstanding the format being entirely different!

Ha, excellent, perhaps I am being a bit harsh then, the commentors were clearly only invoking the spirit of a tried and tested policy!