Ashes 2025/6

[bwildered]

Australia have confirmed captain Pat Cummins will not be fit for the first Ashes Test, with Steve Smith set to lead the side in his absence.

[bwildered]

 Hazlewood missed four games and Cummings one test, last time around, so beware?

[dazedpenguin]

Well, just having Mitchell Starc seems to be enough. What a shocking batting performance: 172 all out in 32.5 overs. The England bowling might yet get them back in it, but England are chasing the game now. So disappointing.

[dazedpenguin]

Wow. What a day's cricket!. After such an awful England batting performance, Australia did even worse in the face of some excellent England bowling. England now one wicket away from a first innings lead. 19 wickets fell in the day.

Test cricket- the best form of the greatest game.

[Andy]

Dull and predictable. Test cricket at its least exciting.  Clearly petering out into a draw.

Just three sentences that will not be written after the first day of the 2526 Ashes.

But will the WA Cricket Board and Cricket Australia lose a packet even if their team wins tomorrow?

Will a pitch inspector be dispatched to Western Australia?

[Bath Hammer]

What a fantastic bowling performance by England on what must have been a spicy pitch, presumably prepared to cause England more trouble than Australia. It?s a great feeling to start a test series in Australia in such a way after minimal preparation!

[vim]

I am nervous that England will succeed in messing it up, in the 2nd Innings.

[nat]

I am nervous that England will succeed in messing it up, in the 2nd Innings.

Don't be nervous. Be confident that they will mess it up.

[Bath Hammer]

Yes, always likely

[bobw]

They did.

[nat]

Here, in Oz, lies the body of Bazball. And take Rob Key with you.

[dazedpenguin]

Well that was shocking.

?We know that the preparation we put in works for us? said Ben Stokes in a post game interview with TMS. It clearly didn't. They played one warmup game amongst themselves. The last time England won the Ashes under Andy Flower in 2010/11 they played several warmup games. It might have been worth a try lads. (much blame is attached to Rob Key and Brendan McCullum for this). Now they're talking about the batsmen not playing the pink ball warmup game. It's arrogance.

[vim]

It was pointed out on Radio 5. That England to have forgone any further play, before the next test. Due to their complete lack of understanding of the conditions. They now have an extra three days, before they play again.

With most of the England bowling, they telegraphed what type of ball it was going to be, before it was released.

[vim]

In boxing, if a boxer is due to fight a certain type of opponent. They get the same in as sparring partners. England should get Australians who are similar, to bowl to them in practice. With a pink ball and at the right time of day.

[bwildered]

 Starc , a different class to the rest , not going to face him in in house warm ups.
Well in this game at lunchtime second day,  that?s five sessions, and got blown away in the next two.
Easily got the required runs, on the chase Bradley Walsh would have said, on that performance to beat the chaser would have needed another 300.
Bowlers superb  first innings was the only positive on this performance, sadly with the bat could not get out easily enough.
Players walked off at the end shell shocked, like soldiers back from the Somme, well at least they did not lack moral fibre. Bowling no ball bumpers at the end was disgraceful.
Perhaps at the start of next season we will need to leave reef for England Red ball cricket .