Ashes Series 2021-22

Exactly. He’d be captain, opener, keeper and probably occasional spin option for us…

Its on

Stokes will be a big loss.

Yeah, we’ll be missing 50% of our world-class players. 5-0? We’ll be lucky to get the nil. In a way I was kind of hoping it would be cancelled, as it will be a demolition job to put the Ryder Cup in the shade.

Anyway, a “full strength” squad to be named tomorrow.

Or today, even…

Joe Root (Yorkshire) captain, James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire), Dom Bess (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Rory Burns (Surrey), Jos Buttler (Lancashire) wk, Zak Crawley (Kent), Haseeb Hameed (Nottinghamshire), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Jack Leach (Somerset), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Craig Overton (Somerset), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham).

Very predictable and cautious squad, once you take out those who weren’t available. Crawley the backup top 3 player and Lawrence the middle order cover. Bairstow and Buttler fighting it out to be the keeper and/or the luxury player contributing the occasional 30 in the upper middle order. No sign of Foakes, fit or otherwise.

And is there really no better option than Bess? No evidence he’s progressed and I’d rather rely on part-timers as backup/alternative to Leach.

Wisden says Poms have a match for Puddle

In the seven Test matches he has played in 2021, his average of 11.1 is the lowest of any England top-six batter to play 10 innings in a year, ever. And yet, when he was dropped halfway through the summer, it was with one eye on protecting him from any further mental damage ahead of the Ashes where he was expected to resume his position in England’s top three.

I take it that’s Crawley? He made a double century last year, but probably hasn’t made as many runs in all his innings since. Could go down as one of the great one-innings wonders. Will probably be dropped and recalled as many times as his 90s namesake.

Bumble pulling no punches in predicting a McGrath… perhaps a bit of Lancastrian bias in his favoured alternatives (Red Ken, Parky, Saj II) but has a good point that this isn’t a side set up to do well in Australia, lacking in aggressive top order batsmen, pace bowling and spinners with height on their side.

It’s the most cautious squad possible, based on the incumbents at the end of the English summer who mostly hadn’t covered themselves in glory. There was surely room for a wild-card pick or two.

The top order does look a defensive one ... Burns and Haseeb. It worked for England 50 years ago, with Boycott and Edrich (and Luckhurst). Alongside Root, Malan is the free flowing batsman that England needs to come off.

bad enough for the Poms supporters that they sent a dubious squad, now their commentary team isn't coming, so they have to put up with some of our awful commentators.

Nath wrote:bad enough for the Poms supporters that they sent a dubious squad, now their commentary team isn't coming, so they have to put up with some of our awful commentators.

Well, it’s on BT so wouldn’t have had our familiar ones anyway. Pretty poor that we’re not sending a UK commentary team though. Hopefully TMS will do so for radio… having said that, they’ve probably lost the rights to TalkShite

TMS do have rights

Even if it’s a case of broadcasts from Aggers’ attic as per last winter, it’s 1000 times better than having to tune in to that audible betting billboard… “Here comes Anderson, you can get odds of 4-1 from Betshite that he takes a wicket this over… Smith lets it go outside off-stump. He’s 5-4 to be next man out…”

idiot Clarke suggests Uzzie and Head (!) as openers.

Nath wrote:idiot Clarke suggests Uzzie and Head (!) as openers.

Paine says Harris is set for a recall

Big Dog wrote:

Nath wrote:idiot Clarke suggests Uzzie and Head (!) as openers.

Paine says Harris is set for a recall

that's just as bad, honestly

Aye, Ima talking up Harris big time, given Puke's new concussion.

His logic is reasonable. Harris is coming off a pretty successful County stint. He finished 10th in the overall averages with a useful 655 runs in 8 games at 54.58.

Still, he is a bit of a Head merchant, prone to getting out for a below par score after a good start. And he's a bit of a crab, which is manageable if GCS is going well at the other end. Alas, that hasn't been the case for some time.

Nath wrote:idiot Clarke suggests Uzzie and Head (!) as openers.

Clarke has become an even greater farkwit since retiring.

Perhaps they should play the ashes in the UAE too, they've
got everything else.

Lost Wombat wrote:Perhaps they should play the ashes in the UAE too, they've
got everything else.

Apart from Newcastle, the Saudis took that one

Have we learned nothing from previous thrashings in Oz? A diet of right arm medium fast simply will not cut it. Oh, and don't even mention Bess!

Ashes 21-22 is really shaping as a battle of the mediocre.

Possibly the Aus bowling attack lead by Cummins might be the difference.

Aus has a real weakness in the batting opening positions and in the no. 5 spot. Although Shrapnel needs to spark up from his recent form at no. 3.

Former test allrounder Tony Dodemaide will replace Trevor Hohns as selector.

Big Dog wrote:Former test allrounder Tony Dodemaide will replace Trevor Hohns as selector.

Good news. Hohns has been a disaster.

skully wrote:Ashes 21-22 is really shaping as a battle of the mediocre.

Possibly the Aus bowling attack lead by Cummins might be the difference.

Aus has a real weakness in the batting opening positions and in the no. 5 spot. Although Shrapnel needs to spark up from his recent form at no. 3.

We have the same weaknesses but without the pace attack to make up for it. Wood will have to bowl like Malcolm Marshall (or Devon Malcolm after he was hit on the head…) to give us a chance. And without Stokes’s ability to turn a match, it’s not clear where the difference-making performances will come from, other than the captain himself.

Playing safe in terms of squad selection was never likely to cut it. Even the backup squad has little to excite in there, if called upon.

James Pattinson retiring from International Cricket.