Re: The Michael Vaughan Appreciation Thread

[Lara Lara Laughs]

Gary is spot on in most of what he says. Dello's stats are misleading.

His ton vs India last year was one of the finest any of you are ever likely to see. There's loads to write about him, but I don't have the time.

[Merlin]

Gary is spot on in most of what he says. Dello's stats are misleading.

His ton vs India last year was one of the finest any of you are ever likely to see. There's loads to right about him, but I don't have the time.

TFFT.

Vawnnnn's gawnnnn ... huzzah and huzzah .... now here endeth the lesson.

[taipan]

There's loads to right about him, but I don't have the time.

And loads to the left of him?

[PeterCS]

Cannon?

[taipan]

Brass Monkeys?

[furriner]

Cold enough?

[PeterCS]

No, I meant

Into the Valley of Death rode the Gallant Mick Vaughan (dread), etc.

[taipan]

No, I meant

Into the Valley of Death rode the Gallant Mick Vaughan (dread), etc.

Ah, I was thinking more along the lines of "clowns to the left...."

Nothing like a bit of Tennyson to lighten up the place.

OF course Flashman was there as well.

[Gary 111]

Gary is spot on in most of what he says. Dello's stats are misleading.

His ton vs India last year was one of the finest any of you are ever likely to see. There's loads to write about him, but I don't have the time.

One of the major criticisms of Vaughan is that he never led by example with the bat - unlike Smith in the most recent test.

This isn't 100% accurate - as he did at times, just not as often as we would have hoped a player of his talent would. His match saving centuries at Kandy, Antigua, brilliant but fortuitous 166 in the Ashes and twin half centuries in that thrilling match at Johannesburg tick this box. But the stats don't lie on this occasion and a batting average of 36 is a disappointing return.

That innings at Trent Bridge is the biggest frustration - because Vaughan really was looking like he could win that match for us, from what had appeared a hopeless position. His freak dismissal, the ball deflecting off the thigh pad and bizarrely turning a ball angled down the leg side back round his legs onto the stumps was incredibly unfortunate. All the hundreds and hundreds of matches i've watched and I can only remember this type of dismissal happening twice (Giles to Ponting at the Gabba was the other btw).

I guess this shows that you not only have to be good but be lucky. Graeme Smith could just as easily have been given out on a couple of occasions on Saturday and an innings that will be remembered as his masterpiece would have just been a footnote to an England victory.

But then again, a slightly bigger deflection off Kasprowicz's glove down to fine leg for four and Vaughan would have been just another England captain who failed against the Aussies, so I guess he can't complain too much about luck...!

[Big_Bad_Bob]

That innings at Trent Bridge last year was a thing of beauty.

I've been bloody jammy with some of the moments of genius, history and heart thumping drama that have unfolded before me at my, truth be told, not incredibly regular visits to the Test match arena.

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