Cant see a cricket thread round here so Id just like to say what a brilliant match thought we'd (england) lost it but got back to find we were winning comftorbly- lets hope the next matches are just as good. What a hat trick of shots to complete the win and get a century btw :goodjob: Unlucky for strauss though

Great game! Now who gets dropped?

IMO, get rid of Giles...waste of space.

But yeah, brilliant start to the series, and congratulations to England. :goodjob:

cricket OWNS!!!:D

Yup - great days' play yesterday. Freddie and Jonesy put together a great stand that really turned the game round. At last England have some real power at 6 and 7. Then a lethal spell by Hoggard and harmison blew away the Kiwis. Unplayable throat balls. They were wrapped up this morning and England are now knocking off the 45 runs they need for victory. Not bad for a 10 men team (Ashley , why are you still picked? )

Yeah Giles is useless I think the reason Fletcher picks him is because he likes a long batting line up.Personaly I think England should play Brown from Northants who is easily the best spinner the country.

I would like to unreserevdly apologise to Ashley Giles. In the past I may suggested that he was a lump of wood and unworthy of an England Place. I now accept that those comments are without foundation and that he is in fact heroic with both bat and ball.

3-0 England.

yep he did very well in this game, he probably ran close for man of the match

I couldn't believe that...

Well, congratulations to Mr. Giles I suppose...:goodjob:


That just doesn't sound right though...:crazyeye:

Am I to understand that England have won a test series? :eek:


Great to hear, and I hope the next Ashes series will be a bit more competitive than those of recent memory.

Doesn't that make it four wins in five series?

And if England beat South Africa this winter (assuming they beat the West Indies)...then they'll be ranked second in the world...

England are useless until they beat the Mighty and Magnificent Aussies. We are the best in the world and no-one is close except for the Indians. Enjoy your victory because it will be fleeting. :)

Copied and pasted from today's edition of The Sunday Telegraph:-

Zenmeyang! China takes up cricket

By Pallavi Aiyar in Beijing

China's government has launched a drive to make the country a world force in cricket. It is determined to reach the top rank of the game within 20 years.

Mention a "Chinaman" to cricketers and he understands it to mean a deceptive delivery from a left-arm spinner. Soon, however, the word will have a more literal meaning: a player from the newest cricketing nation.

China has launched a drive to persuade its citizens to take up the sport. Schools in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have been ordered to teach cricket next year, and government officials have earmarked a ground in Beijing as an international cricketing venue. It aims to reach the top rank of the game within 20 years.

The prospect of the sound of leather on willow reverberating throughout the world's most populous nation is exciting international cricket officials. Lured by the commercial potential of the game in a country with 1.3 billion people, the Asian Cricket Council will formally accept China as its newest member in nine days' time.

Few Chinese have ever encountered bats, balls and bails: most scratch their heads in puzzlement at the mention of ban qiu, as cricket is called in Mandarin, and even the vigorous miming of bowling actions and sweep shots does little to clarify matters.

Howzat! may translate as Zenmeyang! in Mandarin. It is a term used to inquire about a person's general wellbeing, but has rarely, if ever, been heard on Chinese lips in a cricketing context. History suggests, however, that when China decides it wants to be good at something it invariably succeeds. In the 1960s the nation aspired to be good at athletics and swimming, with notable subsequent success.

More recently, China decided it wanted to rival the rest of the world at chess and has produced two women world champions, Xie Jun and Zhu Chen, and several leading men players. Despite being new to cricket, China and the Chinese have already inspired some common cricketing words and phrases. The "Chinaman" is delivered by a left-arm spinner out of the back of the hand so that the ball turns the opposite way from the bowler's "normal" delivery: a leg spinner to a right-handed batsman.

The origin is of the word is not certain, although Richie Benaud, the former Australian captain, offers an entertaining explanation. In 1933, Ellis "Puss" Achong, a West Indian slow left-arm spinner of Chinese descent, had Walter Robbins, an English batsman, stumped in a Test match at Manchester with a ball bowled with a wrist-spinner's action turned into the right-hander from the off side. As Robbins turned to walk to the pavilion, he said to the umpire: "Fancy being done by a bloody Chinaman."

Cricketers also refer to a "Chinese cut", which is when a batsman gets an inside edge on to a delivery and the ball misses his wicket and evades the wicket keeper, thereby going to an unprotected area of the field.

Until now, cricket has been played in China almost entirely by expatriates, but since 1994 the Shanghai Cricket Club has organised tournaments involving teams from across Asia as well as indoor cricket for young Chinese, played with a soft ball. Among those introduced to cricket in this way was Xin Jiabing, a secretary for a company in Shanghai, who was invited to watch a match by a British friend. "At first the game seemed a bit boring, watching the guys playing a long game in 35C weather," she recalls. Now, however, she is won over and convinced that the sport suits the temperament of her compatriots. "Chinese people like sports that require strategic thinking and quick responses," she said.

China is appealing to neighbouring countries in Asia to help with mastering the game. The ACC believes that, with a little help, the country can go far. Syed Ashraful Huq, its chief executive, said: "China will be able to play in the World Cup within the next 15 years and play at the highest level in 20 years."

Gee, it'd be awesome for the game if China did manage to get to the top tier. Perhaps they could take Zimbawbe's place?

On a different subject: what about Murali's decision to withdraw from the Australian tour? What a stupid thing to do! Everyone bags him for only taking wickets in his own backyard or against second rate countries, ie Zim and Bangadesh, and when he gets the chance to prove them all wrong what does he do? Withdraws. Further on the subject of the infamous doosra, it gets found by everyone, except the Sri Lankan cricket board, to be illegal so what does Murali do? He stubbornly keeps on bowling it. He sure knows how to play to his critics!

I saw an interesting bit on channel 4 the other day about his bowling action and from what i saw it seemed the reason it looks as though he is bowling incorrectly is because he has abnormal shoulder joints that create the impresion that he is throwing it.

So England are now officially the second best team in the world...:eek:

Can't argue though.

So England are now officially the second best team in the world...:eek:

Can't argue though.

Gee Whiz. The rest of Cricket must be awful compared to Australia. If England are 2nd and yet continually get thrashed by Australia all the time, then noone is capable of playing proper Cricket then.

On the Murali subject. He is a coward. He cannot face Australia because of our crowds. If every good player that coped heaps from Australian crowds cowered from the heat, then noone would come to Australia. Many of the worlds greatest players have been put under pressure by Australian crowds and they have gone on with the job to play the best they can for their country. That is what the crowds is for. Australians often feel heat when they play in front of other Nations and they just cop it and get on with playing. I'd say to Murali is just stop whinging and play against top Nations on their own turf and show your top character, or otherwise he will be known as someone who can only play on wickets that are perpared for him. Shane Warne is a much better cricketer than Mutiah Muralitharan.

Robert Key - this might sound a bit odd but although he scored loads I still think he is not up to test standard and should be dropped immediately. Comments?

Gee Whiz. The rest of Cricket must be awful compared to Australia. If England are 2nd and yet continually get thrashed by Australia all the time, then noone is capable of playing proper Cricket then.

On the Murali subject. He is a coward. He cannot face Australia because of our crowds. If every good player that coped heaps from Australian crowds cowered from the heat, then noone would come to Australia. Many of the worlds greatest players have been put under pressure by Australian crowds and they have gone on with the job to play the best they can for their country. That is what the crowds is for. Australians often feel heat when they play in front of other Nations and they just cop it and get on with playing. I'd say to Murali is just stop whinging and play against top Nations on their own turf and show your top character, or otherwise he will be known as someone who can only play on wickets that are perpared for him. Shane Warne is a much better cricketer than Mutiah Muralitharan.

What do you mean? Murali is the best ODI bowler in the world!And at least he's not on illegal anti-biotics ;)

Robert Key - this might sound a bit odd but although he scored loads I still think he is not up to test standard and should be dropped immediately. Comments?

Replace him with Ian Bell.

Aren't Glamorgan great?

What do you mean? Murali is the best ODI bowler in the world!And at least he's not on illegal anti-biotics ;)

No, he just has an illegal bowling action, and he gets all his wickets against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. While Warne has to play all the best teams coz Australia is the best and as such we don't just play any tin-pot country.

What do you mean? Murali is the best ODI bowler in the world! And at least he's not on illegal anti-biotics ;)
Anti-biotics are not illegal. Australia has an even spread of good bowlers in both forms of the game. They don't have to rely on one good bowler to get them out of trouble. That's the problem with the ODI game, you can see one bowler off and never have to see him again. Australia are no.1 in both forms of the game. No nation ever came close to Australia in the last World Cup. We went through that tournament without losing a match. That's the first time that has happened. And which team holds the record for winning streaks in both forms of the game? That's right, Australia. Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Oi, Oi, Oi. :D

A quick quote:
"Future generations will be hoodwinked into believing 'Muchichuckalot' was the best of them all. At best, his action is suspicious. At worst it belongs in a darts tournament."

Michael Parkinson doesn't beat about the bush when asked about Muttiah Muralitharan's action

"It's a bit like training for an attempt on Everest by jogging upstairs and planting a flag on the landing. The unstoppable juggernaut has been replaced by the circus clown's car - one parp on the horn and all the doors fall off."
The Daily Telegraph's Martin Johnson makes clear his view of West Indies as Ashes preparation for England

This is a fair comment – England look promising, but all we have done recently is beat a poor West Indies team and a ‘middling’ New Zealand team. Still, it’s better than losing to them. :)

Our recent record is impressive though – P10 W9 D1 L0. We have also won the last 6 Test matches in a row. The last time we did that (?1958) we then went on to lose 4-0 to the Aussies.:(

We have Sowth Efrica this winter which will be a big test. If we can do well there, who knows we might give Australia a run for their money. Especially if the two old men of Autralian cricket, McGrath and Warne, are picking up their pensions.

England will beat South Africa easily, IMO. They've just got a hammering from Sri Lanka...

Replace him with Ian Bell.

It appears the England selectors have been listening to you.
Or perhaps it could be something to do with the 665 runs from his last 5 innings for Warwickshire, including 4 centuries and a 96*

Also, doesn’t Freddie Flintoff look a teeny bit awesome?

Replace him with Ian Bell.
Good call.
Contrary to what I said earlier R Keys 90 no innings to win third test showed much better ability than his 200+. Perhaps he will now build on it. However I think the flaws in his technique will be found out and exposed by better (and better catching) teams ie anyone but Zim.

Trerscothick, Strauss, Vaughan, Butcher/Bell, Thorpe, Flintoff, Jones - is imho the best batting line up england has had for some time.

And they certainly have their best bowling line up for a good few years.

Harmison right now is possibly the best opening bowler in the world. Consistently 90+mph and frightening bounce from a good length.

Flintoff also 90+Mph and bowling consistently giving little away and excellent against left handers

Hoggard - consistent swing. Good line and length.

Anderson/Jones - competing for fourth seamer. Anderson is swinging the ball and is capable of bowling anyone out. Good at mopping up the tail with swinging Yorkers. Can be expensive. Jones more consistent and seams rather than swing.

Giles - left arm spinner. Has developed a good method of bowling over the wicket into rough outside RH leg stupm. Hard to hit and has taken a lot of wickets on good batting wickets.

England's slip fielding is much improved. Flintoff is brilliant and Thorpe and Trescothick are consistent.

Out firlding is much better than in previous years. Fielders are fast and mobile with good arms. No one has to be hid. Weakest is probably Key who has turned himself into a pretty effective short leg.

If this team avoids injuries and stays togther and continues to develop, I'd expect us to beat the South Africans quite handily then the big test wil come in the Ashes series next year. I'd expect the Aussies to win narrowly but it could go either way and the toss may be crucial.

I have been following England's test match cricket since the summer of 1993 (My first year at university left me without a dime to spend, so I stayed at my dad's house all summer to study for exams). It was a rainy summer here, and simply switched to the BBc for some reason. The moment test cricket left hte BBC, I stopped watching. At that time England was doing poor.

At the end of july, I was in London and yes: cricket was around too. It got me again, and since then, I have been checking cricinfo.com . I was surprised by England doing so well, and by the West Indies doing so poor. I think I remember the 1995 test, where England didn't have chance.

These test series have been a walk-over.

From the Australian perspective- for years now we have been hearing stories that the English team is much improved and this time they'll give Austalia a good run, but it never comes to anything. This time it might be differet though- I hope so anyway, I would almost almost mind you, like to see England win. (of course, if I said that in public back home I'd be dropped in the sheep-dip).

Anyway, I'm looking forward to the next Ashes.

I dont think we can match the Oz batting lineup and we certainly dont have a spinner in Warne's class. I think our pace attack has the edge particularly with the injuries you've had recently. I'd settle for giving your guys a game. I think our second place in the world is about right.

Can we safely conclude them that the West Indies suck these days?

What happened just before the last Ashes series was that the England team had, indeed, looked promising, but as soon as they faced the Aussies, they played way below their true abilities. Australia does this to other teams (and all credit to them btw). Bowlers don’t bowl as well, expecting to get hit; batsmen don’t bat so well, expecting to get out. It’s a kind of hex they have over us – very similar to the hex England have over the Windies at the moment. So much of cricket is about confidence and the belief you are going to win

For this recent tour England were playing like Australia and Windies like England (from the confidence point of view I mean and the ‘hold’ over the opposition).

This time we definitely have a better side than before but we would still need that little bit of luck to get off to a good start. Score some runs say, and put them under a little pressure. Then we might not get put under the Aussie domination spell and so stand a chance of giving them a game at least.

But, we are getting carried away here. There is still a ‘small’ matter of beating SA, who are going to be very strong at home.

Yes, you are right about the importance of the psychological aspects of the game and certainly the Australians put a lot of emphasis on that. I just think that they might be in danger of getting into a situation where the degree of confidence exceeds the actual underlying talent- not now but in a few years when some of the older players retire. I haven't been in Australia for a while, but when I was there a few years ago it seemed that there were not really many younger players with a lot of promise. The up and comming bowlers didn't look up tp much and the younger batsmen looked like the flashy types who can score well in domestic one day games- but when it come to tests don't look the goods.

@stapel May I commend you for your interest in cricket sir! Another sign that you are indeed a dscerning and learned gentleman. As to your question, although I haven't seen them up close for a while, I think its a pretty fair appraisal of thier team these days. In the old days Lara would have been a stand-out, but there would have been others at least up to his shoulders, these days his teammates seem to be somewhere around his ankles.

@stapel May I commend you for your interest in cricket sir! Another sign that you are indeed a dscerning and learned gentleman. As to your question, although I haven't seen them up close for a while, I think its a pretty fair appraisal of thier team these days. In the old days Lara would have been a stand-out, but there would have been others at least up to his shoulders, these days his teammates seem to be somewhere around his ankles.
Thank you!

But I disagree with your analysis.
Runs for Brian Lara in 2004 test match West Indies in England:

Lord's, 1st innings: 11
Lord's, 2nd innings: 44
NB: Chanderpaul not out in both innings

Edgbaston, 1st innings: 95
Edgbaston, 2nd innings: 13

Old Trafford, 1st innings: 0
Old Trafford, 2nd innings: 7

Oval, 1st innings: 79
Oval, 2nd innings: 15

I'd say Lara's teammates were up to his shoulders, but unfortunately Lara's shoulders were not as high as they once were.

Yes Lara has not been playing well as captain. He averaged just 33 in this series (very bad by his standards).
In the series in the Windies earlier this year he averaged 83. But that was when he scored his record 400*. He only scored another 100 runs in all the other 6 innings on that tour!

He should step down as captain IMO.

One positive thing for the Windies side is that, on the whole it is quite young. So maybe there is some hope there for the future.

I don't think he should step down as captain. It's not his fault the West Indies team is rubbish. He's just one man...he can't bat, bowl and field for the rest.

Also, well done to the England selectors for leaving Ian Bell at home while England tour South Africa. :rolleyes: They really are idiots. Soooooooo conservative.

From the Australian perspective- for years now we have been hearing stories that the English team is much improved and this time they'll give Austalia a good run, but it never comes to anything. This time it might be differet though- I hope so anyway, I would almost almost mind you, like to see England win. (of course, if I said that in public back home I'd be dropped in the sheep-dip).

Anyway, I'm looking forward to the next Ashes.
I think we'll try and come to England and seek you out, you tratior. :D

No one can beat Australia!! Especially with McGrath and Warne now back from injury and suspension. Plus the star studded batsmen. No wonder they're the best.

I think we'll try and come to England and seek you out, you tratior. :D


Hey - I did say almost., Anyway I'm not in England :p

News from the ICC Champions Trophy Comp- Australia defeated the U.S.A, U.S.A all out for 65 and Australia made 1-66 in 7.5 overs.

The Australian captain Ponting wonders if there is any point in such teams taking part in elite level competitions.

http://theage.com.au/articles/2004/09/14/1094927549507.html

He's got a point, the ICB should use profits from tournaments like this to fund development tournaments for weaker nations (I'd include Zim. and Bangladesh for that too, at the moment anyway). The best of them could be invited to the proper tournaments so thet get a chance to experience top level competition.
Even one-day cricket won't take off in America, though I guess Twenty20 might.

But still, it's good seeing such a low profile and never before seen n00b cricket team such as the US (who are good at many sports) get beaten soo badly. I want to see more!

Nearly as funny as the laugh-out-loud Olympic basketball competition!

But the US team are mainly veterans ex-pats from the Caribbean and Asia. As discussed here
http://sport.guardian.co.uk/thespin/idx/0,12496,1304233,00.html
it would be good to see developing nations with young homegrown players.

England beat Australia for the first time in 15(?) matches. At last.

Over by over report:
http://sport.guardian.co.uk/cricket/story/0,10069,1309467,00.html

:lol:

*phoenix_night waits for the Aussies to show up*

Ha Ha. I cant wait for the Ashes now.

Congrats to England! Just don't get too excited about a one-day victory though chaps. You should know that the one-day game is quite volatile- in fact I was very suprised to hear that ENgland hadn't beaten Australia in one since 1999.

:lol:

*phoenix_night waits for the Aussies to show up*
:cry: It took you 5 long years to beat us. :cry: O well.

And that makes it all the sweeter :)

And I know that funny things can happen in one-dayers, but England bowled well, fielded well and batted well. No mental collapses, no batting collapses. Harmison's first few balls to Gilchrist were so encouraging. When things looked like they might be turning Aus's way, Eng struck back.
It was the most complete performance I have seen in a long time.
It's got no bearing on the Ashes though :(

@Scuffer
Well put. England did not seem scared of Australia for this game which is half the battle IMO. This sets up the Ashes very well (unless England go and mess it all up in SA this winter – not that I think they will of course).

Agree entirely. Australia have had the mental upper hand for so long, but there is confidence and talent there now. I think we stand a decent chance in the Ashes, and I can't remember the last time I said that and really meant it.

So, the two ‘sick men of cricket’ – England and Windies – make it to the final of the ICC trophy. Shurely shome mishtake?

Yes, the ICC trophy. One large and pointless mistake.

Yes, the ICC trophy. One large and pointless mistake.
Yes and the Windies won. [party] It is certainly better that they won than the Pommies. :D It is very pointless. Still it is the one trophy that we haven't had our hands around yet.

It was lousy by England. 35 extras, 24nb or wides. At least it wasn't a real competition. Think of all the money the ICC made, and spot the real winner. You only have to win 3 competitive games (+1 against some no-hopers) to take home the trophy.

England v South Africa

What a game. Swung backwards and forwards over the five days. A heroic defensive effort by Smith but 7 wickets for Hoggard and England win with about 5 mins to spare.

Great stuff.

Great game. :goodjob:

I really want England to secure this series to setup what should be one of the most entertaining Ashes series in years.

I don't think they've been that convincing during this series though...

No, the middle order has been largely poor. Thorpe, Flintoff and Jones have rarely contributed much with the bat, and Jones has dropped a few important catches too. The bowling has been pretty mediocre as well, with a few exceptions. Plenty of spirit though.

We stand no chance agianst the Aussies unless there is an improvement. All the same, an away victory over SA would still be very impressive.