England ODI and T20 squads

Well there's still a number 6 slot up for grabs for the SA series, but Chavi Flops is probably next cab off the rank once again. Little Jimmy has to be knocking on the door though, he had an uncertain start with Notts but who makes runs at Trent Bridge in April anyway? Expect Bopara to get the SA series, then another young batsman to be thrown to the wolves in India over the winter. Not sure the batting succession planning is being managed too well even in terms of Tests, the top three is even more of a concern.

Flower has stated bell will open with Cook.

Cook
Bell
Trott

Hmmmm....

I agree with Gus the lack of adventure is astounding given we are 3 years out from the WC. We'll obviously we'll wait till a gash showing a year out before deciding to 'experiment'.

JKLever wrote:Flower has stated bell will open with Cook.

Cook
Bell
Trott

Hmmmm....

I agree with Gus the lack of adventure is astounding given we are 3 years out from the WC. We'll obviously we'll wait till a gash showing a year out before deciding to 'experiment'.

Well, the length of time to the World Cup was my comment I think, but similar points made all around... I think with that top three we should have a sweepstake on the lowest score after the opening powerplay. I mean, Cook's proven a few people wrong in that he's made some big scores at a decent enough rate in ODI's, but he should be in the anchor role even if he can score at 80 or 90 SR. Who the ****** is going to clear the infield in the first 10 overs? There's going to be massive pressure on the likes of Morgan, Kieswetter and Bairstow to clear the ropes from the moment they walk out, as we will be so far behind the game by then. That or feck-all-for-3, anyway.

Ahem.

If consistency of selection is applied from the UAE, and one assumes it will be, we will actually have a horror top 4 of:

Cook
Bell
Trott
Bopara

You Poms sure know how to pick an opener : " he has played 108 ODIs; 28 of them as opener..... Overall he has averaged 34.04 with a strike-rate of 73.31 in ODIs, with one century and 19 half-centuries, while as opener he has averaged 33 at a strike-rate of 70.69 with five half-centuries."

To be honest I would have gone with Trott as Cook's opening partner for the ODI's against the Windies. Given the prevailing conditions I think it would be prudent to have wickets in hand for the last 10 - 15 overs and aim for scores somewhere around the 250 mark.

And I wouldn't have picked Bell for the squad at all - I would have given his place to Buttler or Stokes.

We're picking towards a World Cup in Australia/NZ though, where there will be fast, bouncy pitches and the need for clean hitting in the early overs. Never mind that it's at least 2 and a half years away, we need to get players established. Try out batsmen who can be potential matchwinners, who can hit the 80-ball hundreds we need to do well out there. Don't be too concerned if they don't always come off in English conditions where the ball moves around.

We might win 3 out of every 5 by scoring 250 in England, but that just won't cut it Down Under. And that top four won't give us the platform to score 300 against Holland or Ireland never mind the big sides.

Each four year cycle needs a game plan based on finding the side to win the next World Cup. Instead it's constant uncertainty and short sighted selections every time.

Basil wrote:To be honest I would have gone with Trott as Cook's opening partner for the ODI's against the Windies. Given the prevailing conditions I think it would be prudent to have wickets in hand for the last 10 - 15 overs and aim for scores somewhere around the 250 mark.

And I wouldn't have picked Bell for the squad at all - I would have given his place to Buttler or Stokes.

Well, personally I think your team should lump it. Who cares whether they have a difficult time in our conditions... Aus will prepare belters for the WC and apparently that's what Andy Flower is building towards.

I'm much more confident of my team's chances. They're a useful lot.

Beamer has said it better.

In fact I think I'd rather have Puke Shite in the side than that top four. At least show some attacking intent!

You're right, let's pick a side for Oz's fast pacy wickets and have them play on our slower nibbly seamers' decks - a sure winner.

I'd say it's completely irrelevant if we win 3 ODIs versus the West Indies. But then, I'm in the JAMODI camp. You're obviously not. Which is cool. But I'll go through my rationale with you - I didn't care when we beat India 4-3 in a 7 match ODI series (with the likes of Ian Bell in the side) four years before the 2011 World Cup. I did care that we looked like total fools in the 2011 World Cup, though (with Ian Bell really helping us along in that regard). I feel that the series in between the WCs are rendered friendly status because nothing else matters in ODI cricket apart from the WC. But yeah - let's pick horses for courses and win this series, because at the end of the day that's all we'll have to cling to in three years time.

It's not as if Trott is a complete chop at the limited over stuff though is it? I'd rather have a halfway decent bat at the top of the order - rather than have him coming in at three or four with a repair job to do when the score is 20/2

Repair job? The likes of England's prospective top three is usually the reason for the repair job. They're all powerplay wasters.

Basil wrote:It's not as if Trott is a complete chop at the limited over stuff though is it? I'd rather have a halfway decent bat at the top of the order - rather than have him coming in at three or four with a repair job to do when the score is 20/2

Trott and Cook in there is fair enough, you need a backbone to the innings, but they need to be surrounded by explosive momentum changers and unorthodox shot players. One opener has to be able to hit it over the circle and make use of the powerplay, otherwise you have 40 or less on the board after 10 overs and are chasing the game from then on. The middle and lower order then just have to slog indiscriminately to try and get a competitive total, or chase a testing target, and the innings just tends to subside from there.

Yes England's batting has a bit of a vanilla plodders look about it.

Red wrote:Yes England's batting has a bit of a vanilla plodders look about it.

We are ever grateful for your insightful comments, borne of years of meticulous research and observation

You must be stark raving if you think a Cook, Bell, Trott, Bopara combo would be anything but pedestrian. They're arms-shouldering dot-ballers extraordinaire. They have as much ability to play over the top as hemiplegic otters from Siberia.

Brass Monkey wrote:You must be stark raving if you think a Cook, Bell, Trott, Bopara combo would be anything but pedestrian. They're arms-shouldering dot-ballers extraordinaire. They have as much ability to play over the top as hemiplegic otters from Siberia.

Did I say I'd pick Bell or Bopara?

Well, isn't it the crux of this issue what England is going to pick?

And anyway, a 2/4 of those mentioned are hardly jazzy plasticfantastic superstrikers. They couldn't be tamer if they'd been chained to a radiator for 4/5ths of their life. There's as much effervescence in amongst that lot as there is in a pensioner with swine flu, living in a rest home.

Brass Monkey wrote:Well, isn't it the crux of this issue what England is going to pick?

And anyway, a 2/4 of those mentioned are hardly jazzy plasticfantastic superstrikers. They couldn't be tamer if they'd been chained to a radiator for 4/5ths of their life. There's as much effervescence in amongst that lot as there is in a pensioner with swine flu, living in a rest home.

You've just described Horrie

Aye it does describe him a bit, but he's got some zeal left in him! OK, the aforementioned zeal is all geared towards a verbose hatred of non-Victorians and a quite disturbing gushing adulation for Peter Siddle and how he touches the 90MPH barrier every two or three overs.





I'd agree with Cook and Trott, but the fact of the matter is all of the unclean hitters of the ball will be included - if we're being realistic. Even though I'd be 'comfortable enough' with those two, I'd recognise how many dot balls they're prepared to face in the PP overs... I'm sure some case can be made for the fact they have to pat the ball back to the bowler a lot, but in essence all we did successfully in the UAE is outbat a cabbaged batting line-up called 'Pakistan'.

Basil wrote:

Brass Monkey wrote:Well, isn't it the crux of this issue what England is going to pick?

And anyway, a 2/4 of those mentioned are hardly jazzy plasticfantastic superstrikers. They couldn't be tamer if they'd been chained to a radiator for 4/5ths of their life. There's as much effervescence in amongst that lot as there is in a pensioner with swine flu, living in a rest home.

You've just described Horrie

turn it up

Pigs get Horrie Flu