It was a good game on Saturday. England made what looked like a par score, or maybe that’s me just assuming we are going to make good 300+ scores these days. The visitors lost their key men with the winning line a little way away, but Morris and Miller brought them close before the curious / brilliant final over. England took the series, found a death bowler, and then pronounced injury worries.
I’m not going to go into a massive preview as the main event starts in a few days time. We will welcome any comments on the game tomorrow, as we always do, below, but realise that the interest is not there for ODIs. We hope it comes back for the Champions Trophy and the test matches. Great games, like Saturday’s, will not be remembered long. As I said, I hear the stuff about test matches lacking context, but an ODI series like this is so context-lite that it barely exists.
Here’s where I am these days. Work is busy. Life has limited spare time. There is a ton of sport out there. And I feel as those of us as cricket diehards are pretty unappreciated right now. Maybe there is a chance to enjoy the cricket for itself, but it’s hardly likely. It’s great we have a fresh pair of eyes to write more regularly for us, and a formal welcome to Danny from me, but I can’t even be bothered to read the press these days. Well, I do a bit:
Newman:
There was a time last winter when Morgan, who refused to lead his side in Bangladesh because of security concerns, was under pressure. But he has responded in style. This was his third one-day century in eight innings, after he had gone 24 knocks without one, and Morgan will go into the Champions Trophy at the top of his form.
Just how long is he going to go on about this?
OK. Enough. It’s late on Sunday, and I want to take the dog for a walk. Have a good one, and any comments on the game, leave below.
Being Outside Cricket 
“There was a time last winter when Morgan, who refused to lead his side in Bangladesh because of security concerns, was under pressure. ”
Bullshit!
Last winter Morgan accepted the offer of the ECB to decide for himself if he wanted to tour Bangladesh. He chose not to. And that pissed off puffed up idiots in the media like you. Unfortunately Mr Newman you weren’t seen as sufficiently important enough to trash Morgan so The Mail, your piss poor employer brought in Ollie Holt to do it for you. Holt knows as much about cricket as he does about most football clubs outside of Manchester. ( ie nothing)
The pressure you talk about was brought by a man who wears an Alice band on TV. As a result nobody with an IQ over 60 took him seriously.
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Thanks for having me!
The thing which stands out to me about this game is that, on the eve of a major competition, all three of England’s allrounders are to some extent injured. This is a team built around having a core of players who can both bat and bowl, as there are no English limited overs bowlers available who can consistently manage to take wickets and not concede many runs. Instead, England rely on posting or chasing bi totals by batting all the way down to 10. Just look at this series: Without big scores from Moeen and Stokes, England probably wouldn’t have won either game.
Some commentators will point out that Stokes and Woakes played in the IPL as a reason for their injuries. Of course Moeen didn’t go to India, nor did Jimmy Anderson who is also injured right now. On the other side, South Africa have 5 IPL players in their squad, and none of them seem to be in danger of not playing in the Champions Trophy. It certainly seems like the common thread is not the IPL, but the England team’s management, training, and medical care.
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Saturday’s game was one of the best games of cricket you’d see in any format. Why can’t it be enjoyed on its own? I don’t really get the outcry over context. Champions Trophy will apparently have much more context than this series, but it’s unlikely any Champions Trophy game involving England will have as much drama as the last ODI.
As cricket fans, which one would people prefer? A “context-less” but absorbing and dramatic game of cricket? Or a super hyped off the field but mediocre contest on the field?
Seems to me a lot of cricket media, fans and players prefer the latter these days. Which, in my opinion, is a shame.
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Agreed. I listened to it on and off for most of the day and had heart in mouth during the last two overs. Bloody good game.
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I’d prefer a super hyped off the field but mediocre contest on the field, thanks.
If a tree falls in the forest but no one hears it, does it make a sound? To put that another way: If there’s a great game of cricket but almost no one watches it, who cares? If adding context and hype gets more people watching cricket, even if it hypothetically made the quality of cricket worse (which I can’t see exactly how that happens), then I want that. English cricket is suffering badly from declining numbers of fans and participants, and the best way to solve that is to get cricket in front of as many people as possible. If hype can make that happen, let’s do it already!
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For me, preferring the hype over the actual game itself suggests people like the *idea* of cricket, more than cricket itself nowadays.
Now, if that’s what floats their boat, all the power to them. But I am personally very glad I can appreciate the game to the fullest without any requiring any surrounding build up of hype. Give me a so-called “meaningless” absorbing contest any day over a dull World Cup final. Not saying World Cup finals can’t be thrilling by the way, but so often they fail to live up to the hype.
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All fur coat and no knickers!
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For me, context is just marketing jargon. Everything has a context of one sort ot another. However, the hype applied to some events is selective and ironic. To elucidate:
There was an Olly Murs concert recently at the 1st Central County Ground at Hove. I know because I was waiting at a bus shelter 5 miles outside Brighton in front of a giant poster advertising the gig.
10 days ago South Africa played Sussex at Hove. I happened to be at the same bus stop, went into town and all along the main shopping centre. You wouldn’t have known there was a cricket match on.
I prefer longer form cricket. If Broad, Wood, whoever is on form, I don’t want their bowling cut short and I like captains to be able to put fielders where they want. At the same time, I’d like batsmen to be more positive – no such thing as a good leave.
Oh dear, Roy’s caught behind again.
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Ah yes, another lecture from Adam on how we must all cheer louder. The beatings will continue until moral has been restored.
“I don’t really get the outcry over context.”
It’s not an outcry, but just an observation of fact that this is a warm up series. The result is meaningless. And if by putting on a show they have knackered Stokes, then very stupid.
“But I am personally very glad I can appreciate the game to the fullest without any requiring any surrounding build up of hype.”
Have you any idea how pompus that sounds? Are you therefore implying that we are not sufficiently sophisticated enough to appreciate this? And if the game is meaningless in context, you are NOT appreciating the game to the fullest, however much you pretend otherwise.
“There are a myriad of great games Give me a so-called “meaningless” absorbing contest any day over a dull World Cup final.”
And how do you know before hand which one to attend? Please do tell me before I hand over my money!
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Well, it was a good job this one wasn’t hyped up..15/4 and the games only 25 mins old…S/Africa to bat by 1pm??
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Spare a thought for the poor sods who paid all that money for this debacle.
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Well if you are the type of person who is going throw £90 at a meaningless ODI, then I’m less inclined to feel sorry for you
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Nearly as bad as the last Ashes where my day three tickets for Edgbaston left me cheering on Australia on day two to even get that far.
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I was there too on that day!!
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Were you???? Well we ballsed that up then.
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Yeah I only found out the next day!!
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It actually turned out to be a reasonable day. But we cancelled the hotel that night expecting it to be over in an hour meaning I was beer free all day. Grrr.
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Ha, I wasn’t! Up and back on the same day, including beers on the train from Marylebone…
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If only I had a station where I live!
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“Ah yes, another lecture from Adam on how we must all cheer louder.”
It wasn’t a lecture, just an observation, and where did I say what you or anyone else *must* do?
“The result is meaningless.”
Every sporting result is “meaningless”. Sports is about entertainment and fun, not deeper underlying meaning.
“Have you any idea how pompus that sounds? Are you therefore implying that we are not sufficiently sophisticated enough to appreciate this?”
Yes I do. I am saying that anyone who needs hype in order to enjoy a game of cricket, does not love the cricket itself as much as the *idea* of cricket. I enjoy watching the best cricketers in the world compete against each other, whether it is in the World Cup final or in a bilateral ODI series dead rubber in May.
“you are NOT appreciating the game to the fullest, however much you pretend otherwise.”
You seem to think you know better than me what I appreciate or not.
“And how do you know before hand which one to attend? Please do tell me before I hand over my money!”
Again, I am not telling anyone to do anything. But me? I don’t care if a game of cricket is a dead rubber or a World Cup final. I’ll try to catch both, as long as I can afford to. And if the so-called meaningless dead rubber ends up as a better contest, then I will enjoy and remember that game more fondly than a dull World Cup final.
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“You seem to think you know better than me what I appreciate or not.”
Interesting complaint ….. Seeing as you say….
” I am saying that anyone who needs hype in order to enjoy a game of cricket, does not love the cricket itself as much as the *idea* of cricket.”
So you seem to think you know better what constitutes the love people have for cricket now? Rather strange as you previously stated………. “Sports is about entertainment and fun, not deeper underlying meaning.”
So one moment its about “entertainment and fun” then those that don’t agree with you cant love the game as much because they don’t have your higher “deeper underlying meaning”
Please make up your mind!
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“So one moment its about “entertainment and fun” then those that don’t agree with you cant love the game as much because they don’t have your higher “deeper underlying meaning””
What? Nowhere did I say those who need hype and “context” to enjoy cricket don’t have “higher deeper underlying meaning”. Show me where I said that. In fact, I said the exact opposite, that is, anyone who needs any deeper underlying meaning to enjoy a game of cricket doesn’t actually love the game itself, as much as the stuff surrounding it. And I stand by it very firmly even if you think that’s pompous.
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I get your point completely – if there has to be context then it’s about the event rather than the sport. But it’s also pretty normal to care more when it’s in that context. Same applies when playing a Sunday friendly rather than a league game I would say – that there’s more on it makes it more intense. I guess what makes the difference is that a really tight “meaningless” game gets the attention a bit later than one in which it matters. I mean, I can enjoy a really good football friendly, but ultimately I don’t care that much about the result. It’s a shrug.
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I do love Morgan. All those 300+ scores, but he still makes sure that every now and then they observe the great English tradition of the collapse. It shows a sense of history..
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Can you hear the siren calls for Bairstow to open instead of Jason Roy?
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To be fair, it’s a waste to have him carry so many drinks that he needs resting from it so he can carry more drinks. He’s even got an ancient glossary entry to that effect.
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They always say you have to double the score at 30 overs. So England still on for 300!
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Sir Ian commenting on England’s style of batting….” It’s the way they play.”
Nasser, nearly spitting out his dummy…..
“I hate it when players or teams say it’s the way I play”
Now remind me, who was it who used to say that phrase?
WG Grace?
Don Bradman?
Miles Davis?
Keith Moon?
Jimmy Hendricks?
As Thelegglance said the other day we can’t criticise them when they play this way after the snail like way they have played before. And that is right. If we want to see them taking a positive approach we can’t then demand they go back in their shell.
However, Mike Atherton made a good observation that in England sometimes you do have to reign it in a bit if the ball is moving about, and you are 3 wickets down for 15. A score of 250 might have been good enough today. It will be interesting to see what they do when the context of the game is more important. That is, for those of us who think the “context” of a game has some value.
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