England v Australia, ICCCT Match 3, Edgbaston, 8 June, 2013

Are Australia ttying to lull us into a false sense of security? Or is this just the worse ODI team v the next worst ODI team and The Ashes will be totally different?

No false sense of security, Eowyn. I think Australia really are sh*t.

Two shitty teams playing each other at being shitty. Right now we're better at being shit.

lardy, your team is taking shitty into a whole other epoch, I feel bad for you.

Bumble's trying not to rub it in too hard and Warnie sounds dejected.

Faulkner probably Aus' 2nd best player today.

Are England really trying to get the last wicket, or just letting things coast to a victory?

A professional attitude would be to try hard to finish it off. Foot on the opponents' throat, net run rate, all sorts of reasons like that. Why be lax and lackadaisical?

PeterCS wrote:Faulkner probably Aus' 2nd best player today.

Best, shirley?

Bailey did fine when all around him were floundering against a workmanlike England performance. Finally slogged the ball in despair, but I would hardly blame him.


(pssst: I'm also shovelling a bit of grist to Lardy's mill of disgruntlement at the waste-of-space Dubbers.)

Not sure if England can progress. Well, they might pip one of the other teams in the group, and go forward, but unless they improve their fielding (which may be a blip) and above all the solidity and purposiveness of their batting in the first 35-40 overs, then both Sri Lanka and New Zealand will be tough enough.


As for Oz, I am not sure where the inspiration is going to come from, with their squad as it is. You never know, they might do the Oz thing and rise doughtily from the near-ashes. But Watson, Warner, Hughes, Johnson, Wade don't look much like phoenixes.

How is Tredwell with the red ball?

I never thought I would hear myself saying that.

PeterCS wrote:How is Tredwell with the red ball?

Hasn't taken a single wicket in FC cricket this season. Not a one. Middle of June. Nada.

The batting was still inadequate but credit where it's due - I reckon that's the best England have bowled in an ODI in ages. Jandy and Broad looked in particularly good order.

Must be said that Australia's batting was surprisingly anaemic. For a country which is supposedly only producing T20 players now to be so shot-shy was weird.

I mean, what's the point in David Warner if he's not going to tee off? He can't do anything else.

Disgraceful award of MoM for Bellyflop and his average massaging. He even had the temerity to say he enjoyed opening because he gets to "play a few shots". He said that. Those words dribbled out of his Malteser hole.

Presumably he considers the pre-meditated dob to third man for a single, the charging leave and the full toss pat-back as going hell for leather.

Going to hell for avoiding leather?

Whats the bet our moronic selectors stay with the same team of numptys for the next game (with the exception of Clarke who I would'nt even risk bringing back, even if he were fit). Warner Marsh & Johnson have contributed nothing, Voges & Wade are struggling but no doubt Invers will come out with some bullcrap statement that "all players have the confidence of the selectors" & we will wave goodbye to the trophy & all credibility.

My God that was inept from Aust.

Warner needs to sort his shit out. Tee off or fark off.

Hughes. Why?

And so on.

we won't make the next stage (ie we can beat Pakistan, but we'll lose to the Windies)

Bernie needs to have a good hard look at himself. His continual insistence that Warner, Hughes and Johnson are international players is embarrassing.

Aus - gobshite!!! That is all.

The NSP is doing a fine job - leave them alone.

Why isn't Invers' nick in the Glossary, btw? Is he not expected to stay around long?

*** ESPNcricinfo exclusive ***

Inverarity - No Reason for Panic Moves

Daniel Brettig

June 09, 2013

Chairman of Australia's National Selection Panel, John Inverarity, has confirmed an unchanged team for the second match of the ICC Champions Trophy, and taken the opportunity to speak out against critics of the national team.

"All our players have the confidence of the selectors," he stressed forcefully, "therefore we shall be making no changes for the team to face New Zealand next Wednesday."

"Our players all have the mentality and skillsets needed to triumph in this and succeeding challenges, though a meeting with the team after the England match concluded that everyone has to find that extra 5%.

"I don't think anyone has got the exact answer as to why we haven't won most of our games lately," Inverarity said, and then started fighting back. "But one thing I am sure about is those fair weather supporters back home in Australia need to set aside all their nitpicking and sour-faced knocking and get right behind their team.

"The problem for those yobbos is that there's fast food and immediate gratification and those things all round, and after all that cheering for their preferred franchises in the Big Bash and the IPL, most of those drunken bogans just don't have the patience to wait for all the obvious talent in our team to shine right through.

"It's a downright scandal, and unpatriotic, too. We are certainly not going to be deflected by that sort of garbage - we are sticking right by our champs to show their class as usual on Wednesday, and throughout the winter."

Nobody is panicking, Bernie. We are merely wallowing in the malaise that is Aus cricket.

It was a blindingly obvious attempt at humour/satire, Skulls

I guess you couldn't stomach more than the first line!

So what would Oz's current best 50-over team actually be, if Clarke is injured?


Something like?:

Warner (with orders to let fly)
Faulkner
Burns (Finch??)
M Hussey (or even Ponting??)
Bailey
Watson
Paine
Maxwell??
Coulter-Nile
Hazlewood / Cummins / Cutting ???
McKay ??

Nath wrote:we won't make the next stage (ie we can beat Pakistan, but we'll lose to the Windies)

replace Pakistan with NZ, and Windies with SL, rather.