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Cricket => England Test => Topic started by: Oldhasbeen on June 05, 2014, 06:36:16 AM

Title: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Oldhasbeen on June 05, 2014, 06:36:16 AM

Some interesting selection dilemmas here:

- who'll be behind the stumps?
- who'll be Ally's opening partner?
- who'll bat at 3?
-  Will England pick a spinner? If so, whom?
- Is Stokes fit enough? If not, will the selectors go for another all-rounder, maybe Chris Woakes or Fatty Patel, both in good form?
- Mssrs Jordon, Buttler & Gurney have already doen well in one-dayers - will / should this get them into the test team?

Answers on a postcard .......
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: afinetickletoleg on June 05, 2014, 07:52:38 AM

Some interesting selection dilemmas here:

- who'll be behind the stumps? Prior
- who'll be Ally's opening partner? Robson
- who'll bat at 3? Bell
-  Will England pick a spinner? If so, whom? Patel
- Is Stokes fit enough? Yes
- Mssrs Jordon, Buttler & Gurney have already doen well in one-dayers - will / should this get them into the test team? No.

Answers on a postcard .......
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Oldhasbeen on June 05, 2014, 08:53:45 AM
Interesting selection, finetickle. But I wouldn't put my money on Stokes & Prior being up to 5 days worth, or fully prepared.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a 13 man squad to give the selectors a chance to assess full fitness late on.

My 13:
Cook, Robson, Compton, Bell, Ballance, Root, Stokes, Foster, Broad, Jordan, Anderson, Gurney, Patel

Fatty Patel isn't test class but our spin options are dismal. The Kent lad Riley's doing well but very new to the CC & I haven't seen him.
A few punters fancy Mooen Ali & Jack Brooks for the team but I haven't seen either of them for quite a while
Finn needs more time to get his action/head right.

Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Diatribe on June 05, 2014, 11:01:26 AM
I personally think Compton has been shabbily treated by the ECB and has again perhaps not unsurprisingly been omitted. I note that amongst the comments, one clown is suggesting that the aforementioned isn't even of county standard, I dread to think how he would rate our top six batsmen.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: DT on June 05, 2014, 01:41:34 PM
Compton might have been unfairly treated granted but A/ he don't even open for Somerset (and didn't when he was playing tests!) and B/ hasn't exactly scored buckets of runs and missed out not surprisingly.

Now Jordan and Sam Robson given the nod and Liam Plunkett - have I missed something??  Didn't know Plunkett had improved that much or are we that desperate??
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: firehazard on June 05, 2014, 02:28:41 PM
...Liam Plunkett - have I missed something??  Didn't know Plunkett had improved that much or are we that desperate??

I seem to recall that there was some vague talk of Essex signing Plunkett a couple of years ago. Though I may have imagined it. We ended up signing Saj instead. That worked out well.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Andy on June 05, 2014, 02:39:53 PM
...Liam Plunkett - have I missed something??  Didn't know Plunkett had improved that much or are we that desperate??

I seem to recall that there was some vague talk of Essex signing Plunkett a couple of years ago. Though I may have imagined it. We ended up signing Saj instead. That worked out well.

Saw plunkett a couple of years ago in a t20 at old Trafford. Didn't make a great impression at the time. Then neither did Saj and look what happened to him...
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: afinetickletoleg on June 05, 2014, 04:11:48 PM
...Liam Plunkett - have I missed something??  Didn't know Plunkett had improved that much or are we that desperate??

I seem to recall that there was some vague talk of Essex signing Plunkett a couple of years ago. Though I may have imagined it. We ended up signing Saj instead. That worked out well.

Saw plunkett a couple of years ago in a t20 at old Trafford. Didn't make a great impression at the time. Then neither did Saj and look what happened to him...

Bumble was saying during the last one dayer that Plunkett was the best bowler he had seen this season; fast, straight and aggressive, and that it seemed that the penny had finally dropped.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: IanS on June 06, 2014, 03:26:04 PM

Some interesting selection dilemmas here:

-  Will England pick a spinner? If so, whom? Patel

Answers on a postcard .......

We have two part-timers in the squad, Root and Moeen Ali, both off-spinners. Moeen Ali does have 143 1st class wickets (Root has only 15) but averages over 40. For a rough comparison Ashley Giles averaged just under 30 in his first-class career.

At best they can fill in some overs while we wait for the new ball but if we are trying to build a team that can win Tests in India & Australia, we need a proper spinner who can build pressure and take wickets. Is the cupboard really that bare?
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Andy on June 06, 2014, 03:49:49 PM
Saw plunkett a couple of years ago in a t20 at old Trafford. Didn't make a great impression at the time. Then neither did Saj and look what happened to him...

Bumble was saying during the last one dayer that Plunkett was the best bowler he had seen this season; fast, straight and aggressive, and that it seemed that the penny had finally dropped.

This is Bumble we're talking about!  Lets hope the penny drops for Saj as well.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: frank21 on June 09, 2014, 04:50:06 PM
I think the penny dropped down the drain ;)
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: nat on June 09, 2014, 08:43:49 PM
...Liam Plunkett - have I missed something??  Didn't know Plunkett had improved that much or are we that desperate??

I seem to recall that there was some vague talk of Essex signing Plunkett a couple of years ago. Though I may have imagined it. We ended up signing Saj instead. That worked out well.

At least we dodged one bullet. Both are pie chuckers.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Blocky on June 11, 2014, 12:22:31 PM
I'd take Plunkett over saj any day I reckon...I saw him on the tv recently and there weren't too many pies.....:)
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: firehazard on June 11, 2014, 02:17:59 PM
I'd take Plunkett over saj any day I reckon...I saw him on the tv recently and there weren't too many pies.....:)

Haven't seen Plunkett recently, but it seems there's an opinion that he was a pie-chucker, but since the move to a new county he's improved significantly. Can't help but wonder if that would've happened if he had come to Essex...
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: DT on June 11, 2014, 02:19:20 PM

Some interesting selection dilemmas here:

-  Will England pick a spinner? If so, whom? Patel

Answers on a postcard .......

We have two part-timers in the squad, Root and Moeen Ali, both off-spinners. Moeen Ali does have 143 1st class wickets (Root has only 15) but averages over 40. For a rough comparison Ashley Giles averaged just under 30 in his first-class career.

At best they can fill in some overs while we wait for the new ball but if we are trying to build a team that can win Tests in India & Australia, we need a proper spinner who can build pressure and take wickets. Is the cupboard really that bare?


I don't think it is but the problem is England have always gone for bits and pieces players - or players who can do this and do that.  Not that Ali and Root are bits and pieces in terms of their batting but defo in regards their bowling!
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: DT on June 11, 2014, 02:21:32 PM
I'd take Plunkett over saj any day I reckon...I saw him on the tv recently and there weren't too many pies.....:)

Haven't seen Plunkett recently, but it seems there's an opinion that he was a pie-chucker, but since the move to a new county he's improved significantly. Can't help but wonder if that would've happened if he had come to Essex...

Only if he'd left Essex and gone elsewhere  ;)
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Diatribe on June 12, 2014, 10:20:06 AM
England have always gone for bits and pieces players - or players who can do this and do that. 

Its never been any different, Larwood was only picked for his additional coal mining skills.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: DT on June 12, 2014, 11:25:10 AM
England have always gone for bits and pieces players - or players who can do this and do that. 

Its never been any different, Larwood was only picked for his additional coal mining skills.


 ;D
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Oldhasbeen on June 12, 2014, 05:37:33 PM
Well, I didn't think Matty Prior should be picked - a rollicking 76 runs have splattered egg all over my face. (Let's hope his Achilles lasts out 5 days, though.)

Ballance at 3? Seems an odd choice. 
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: nat on June 12, 2014, 06:37:01 PM
...

Ballance at 3? Seems an odd choice.

Gives the team balance. Geddit?
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: IanS on June 12, 2014, 09:50:35 PM
Well, I didn't think Matty Prior should be picked - a rollicking 76 runs have splattered egg all over my face. (Let's hope his Achilles lasts out 5 days, though.)

Ballance at 3? Seems an odd choice.

He and Root ran some tight 1's and 2's. Reckon the real test of his achilles wil be Fri am, then keeping wkt.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Andy on June 13, 2014, 11:54:00 AM
Notice how our 'England all-rounder' comes to the party when faced with the demon pace of the Sri Lankan pie chuckers.
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Diatribe on June 13, 2014, 12:37:03 PM
. Reckon the real test of his achilles

I'd have thought the real test of his achilles heel would be when he faced some reasonable pace bowling. It appeared to inconvenience him a tad when experiencing the bowling of Harris, Siddle and Johnson. ;)
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: Andy on June 13, 2014, 01:25:54 PM
I'd have thought the real test of his achilles heel would be when he faced some reasonable pace bowling. It appeared to inconvenience him a tad when experiencing the bowling of Harris, Siddle and Johnson. ;)

You mean the trio he creamed around the park in 2010/11?
Title: Re: Team for 1st Sri Lanka Test
Post by: stickyboy on June 14, 2014, 10:37:08 AM
hooray a wicket!!