Sri Lanka v England, 3rd test, Galle, 18-22 Dec

Eric Air Emu wrote:So the positives then:

England played Murali in patches better than they have for a long while.

Prior batted almost as well as you can expect a keeper to bat.

Alistair Cook's career not imploding yet.

Sidebottom, although finishing with dreaful figures showing the 'right stuff' with bat and ball.

I just don't understand the recent criticism of Cook. He might have a few technical flaws but like today he often out scores Englands more 'illustrious' batsmen. At 22 he can only get better, and todays news that his seven test centuries in 18 months of international cricket equals Javed Miandad and is only bettered by batting Gods Sachin Tendulkar and Don Bradman, who have eight, proves how good he is.

The Lloyd and Botham post-match summary was interesting viewing and they both made lots of valid points. One of which was the fitness levels of the England players, which might go some way to explaining why Englands batsmen can't occupy the crease for long periods, and Harmison rarely if ever manages to bowl anything but military medium late in the day.

Yeah, I'm a Cook-detractor, though I'm warming to him. My criticism of him is he cashes in when the going is good, but I suppose it shouldn't be because at least he doesn't throw away his wicket like a lot of the other English batsmen.

Re: Harmison. I reckon he needs regular bowling. He never used to come back for a lollipop spell, but considering he's had about 4 FC matches in the last 6-8 months he's hardly what you can call 'bowling fit'.

I think there will be fewer changes to the squad for NZ than might be supposed. Strauss for Bopara is an obvious one. And (please God) Foster, or Ambrose for Prior.

I'm up for Iron Gloves in the regard that a poor series for him is like a good one for most other keepers that we play.

Batfink Begins wrote:Yeah, I'm a Cook-detractor... My criticism of him is he cashes in when the going is good,

AN Cook c HAPW Jayawardene b Welegedara 118
MP Vaughanc DPMD Jayawardene b Welegedara 24
IR Bell b Muralitharan 34
KP Pietersen c DPMD Jayawardene b Muralitharan 30
PD Collingwood st HAPW Jayawardene b Muralitharan 0
RS Bopara run out (DPMD Jayawardene) 0
MJ Prior not out 19
RJ Sidebottom not out 0
Extras (b 6, lb 5, w 1, nb 14) 26

Total (6 wickets; 95 overs; 387 mins) 251 (2.64 runs per over)

Mmm...

Batfink Begins wrote:I'm up for Iron Gloves in the regard that a poor series for him is like a good one for most other keepers that we play.

His keeping is worse than GoJo's was at the time Jones was dropped - not for one minute am I suggesting that Jones should be picked though.

Cook at 22, isn't the finished article by a long shot.
Lots of technical problems, carp against spin etc.

7 centuries already is some going though...

Geoffrey Trueman wrote:
Mmm...

Oooh sweetheart I have got your goat. Unforch for me I forgot to highlight the fact that this was the exception I hope to become the norm. I shall regret this until my death bed, possibly the place that you put me, nails.

Is there a Geoffrey/Finky love spat going on here or what?

Basil wrote:His keeping is worse than GoJo's was at the time Jones was dropped - not for one minute am I suggesting that Jones should be picked though.

Yeah, he's clunky. Thought he took a couple of peaches in the second Test and his batting just hasn't been bad enough to warrant the tirade IMO. His gob is the let-down. Quite worried about the late swing in UnZud I must admit though.

JKLever wrote:Is there a Geoffrey/Finky love spat going on here or what?

Nah, just some hard lad making me glad I'm tippy-tapping behind my keyboard rather than being in the harsh Northlands getting my comeuppance. For me it's just another day, for him it's personal.

Batfink Begins wrote:

Basil wrote:His keeping is worse than GoJo's was at the time Jones was dropped - not for one minute am I suggesting that Jones should be picked though.

Yeah, he's clunky. Thought he took a couple of peaches in the second Test and his batting just hasn't been bad enough to warrant the tirade IMO. His gob is the let-down. Quite worried about the late swing in UnZud I must admit though.

With a keeper as coach and another one as batting coach, Prior does not want for advice, and yet I detect no discernable improvement in his keeping.

Take him to NZ if you like, but let's at least have a viable alternative in the squad.

Basil wrote:With a keeper as coach and another one as batting coach, Prior does not want for advice, and yet I detect no discernable improvement in his keeping.

Take him to NZ if you like, but let's at least have a viable alternative in the squad.

Well, I just don't know of many alternatives - I'd rather not hear more nasal, squinty-eyed tones from behind the stumps personally, and as JKL says, not sure Moutard is a FC batsman as of yet. The only other keeper that has impressed me of late is Gareth Cross and he doesn't even get a game for his county side.

I'm a little confused by Cook. On the one hand, he's a determined grinder of a batsman with some good Test runs to his name at the age of 22.

On the other hand, he often appears shot-less, is a terrible runner between the wickets and for such a young guy is a poor and unathletic fielder. And he doesn't bowl at all.

Suspect that, like pretty much all England cricketers, he needs a rocket up his backside if he's ever to become a 'proper' player. Strikes me as a bit of a coaster.

I wish we had an old school coach who would put a couple of these England fellas up against the wall and spell out the way it's going to be. All this matey-matey sing-along bullshit - combined with Captain Vaughan's positive 'vibes' - doesn't seem to be creating an atmosphere of sporting excellence, to say the least.

Surely England can do better than Prior? He's as bad as Jones at his worst, the times I've seen him. Almost Patel-esque.

Batfink Begins wrote:

Basil wrote:With a keeper as coach and another one as batting coach, Prior does not want for advice, and yet I detect no discernable improvement in his keeping.

Take him to NZ if you like, but let's at least have a viable alternative in the squad.

Well, I just don't know of many alternatives - I'd rather not hear more nasal, squinty-eyed tones from behind the stumps personally, and as JKL says, not sure Moutard is a FC batsman as of yet. The only other keeper that has impressed me of late is Gareth Cross and he doesn't even get a game for his county side.

Tim Ambrose is cap'n of the SquadFormallyKnownAsTheAcademy at the moment.

So you'd have to assume he's next in line.

Top keeper. Good batsman with the potential to go better. Australian.

The perfect mix. The more non-English blokes we can get into the side the better.

Dello wrote:Tim Ambrose is cap'n of the SquadFormallyKnownAsTheAcademy at the moment.

So you'd have to assume he's next in line.

Top keeper. Good batsman with the potential to go better. Australian.

The perfect mix. The more non-English blokes we can get into the side the better.

That's probably the truth. However, as I say we could do without any nasal whiny tones.

I hope he's similar to Curtly and the Dessert...oh wait thats Ambrosia.

JKLever wrote:Cook at 22, isn't the finished article by a long shot.
Lots of technical problems, carp against spin etc.

7 centuries already is some going though...

He's not the most fluent against spin, but it's harsh to say he's crap against it when he's scored test centuries in India against Kumble and Harbhajan, against Warne in Aus, and in Sri Lanka against Murali.

Dello wrote:
Tim Ambrose is cap'n of the SquadFormallyKnownAsTheAcademy at the moment.

So you'd have to assume he's next in line.

Top keeper. Good batsman with the potential to go better. Australian.

The perfect mix. The more non-English blokes we can get into the side the better.

Didn't Moores prefer Prior to Ambrose when he was at Sussex forcing him to leave at the end of 2005 and, wot, yet another baldy 'keeper - you're havin' a larf!

Allan D wrote:

Dello wrote:
Tim Ambrose is cap'n of the SquadFormallyKnownAsTheAcademy at the moment.

So you'd have to assume he's next in line.

Top keeper. Good batsman with the potential to go better. Australian.

The perfect mix. The more non-English blokes we can get into the side the better.

Didn't Moores prefer Prior to Ambrose when he was at Sussex forcing him to leave at the end of 2005 and, wot, yet another baldy 'keeper - you're havin' a larf!

They both shared the gloves - the other playing as a specialist batsman - for a couple of years, but in the end a choice had to be made between them because neither was going to be satisfied being a part-time keeper.

Unfortunately for Ambrose (or luckily for Prior, as Ambrose is easily the superior keeper), the time that decision had to be made happened when he was in the middle of a batting slump, so that's what swung it.

Warwickshire snapped him up straight away, and he hasn't looked back. Batting's back on track in all forms of the game and his keeping has always been very good.

Would be ironic if he ultimately took over from his one-time county rival Prior behind England's sticks.

Henry wrote:

He's not the most fluent against spin, but it's harsh to say he's crap against it when he's scored test centuries in India against Kumble and Harbhajan, against Warne in Aus, and in Sri Lanka against Murali.

Didn't he struggle in every innings except that century during the ashes?

please don't yell wrote:

Henry wrote:

He's not the most fluent against spin, but it's harsh to say he's crap against it when he's scored test centuries in India against Kumble and Harbhajan, against Warne in Aus, and in Sri Lanka against Murali.

Didn't he struggle in every innings except that century in the 2nd dig on the dead flat WACA track during the ashes?

Indeed.

And every other pitch was a minefield?

He did struggle, but more against Clark and McGrath than Warne if I remember correctly.

Of course, he may have struggled against Warne if Clark or McGrath hadn't already got rid of him by the time he started to bowl most times. But he's not the worst player of spin ever. Better than Strauss, possibly, although Strauss did improve against it over the years.