After yesterday’s washout, we should get underway today at last. The match is reduced to four days, with the follow on target down to 150, and with 98 overs scheduled for each of the remaining days. Obviously, in terms of the latter, they won’t get 98 overs in, but that’s de rigeur these days, and no one cares about it anyway, but even so if the weather stays fair then there is a reasonable chance of a result.
England made it pretty clear yesterday that Jofra Archer was going to play, and while they could always change their minds, there’s no reason to assume they will. Pattinson is certainly out, rested, for Australia, while Hazlewood replaces Starc.
Other than that, it’s pretty much as you were – England are fretting about how to get rid of Steve Smith, who has moved from world class batsmen to batting God in the space of a Test, and will doubtless provoke wild celebrations just by showing signs of human weakness at any point. The two batting orders still look fragile, the two bowling attacks still look like they might run through the opposition. Australia have the upper hand largely because of Smith, but there is no reason at all England can’t skittle their visitors – the problem is the lack of confidence in the England batting order taking advantage of it.
There was some talk in the media about replacing Denly with Curran, drawing a furious response from Nasser Hussain about what that implies about the England batting order. He was right too, either England choose batsmen or not, and selecting a bowling all rounder on the basis of more runs would be a savage indictment on the selection process. Yet the wider issue is that even the suggestion of it already is that savage indictment – the possibility that an all rounder might contribute more to the run scoring than a selected batsman. And that it might well be true.
Let’s hope we have a full day’s play today, not least for those who have paid the £150 a ticket for their inadequate seating and the privilege of seeing on social media how the chosen people get to enjoy the dining options.
Comments as always below.
Being Outside Cricket 
Australia won the toss and chose to bowl first. This could be fun …
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Roy lasted all of 3 balls. Can’t say it was unexpected. But seriously, if England wanted Roy to succeed, he should not be batting as an opener.
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There’s a rumour that Pattinson pulled up sore after bowling in the nets on Monday and that was why they left him out.
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I didn’t see Nasser’s response, but the figures don’t look all that ambiguous, Curran has a better Test match batting temperament than Denly. Now maybe we should be selecting better batsmen than Denly from CC in the first place… but then Nasser should be slating Ed Smith.
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That was his point really.
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Wouldn’t hurt to pick some-one better than Roy as well
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Swish and miss.
Played inside the line of a good one.
Edges the next one to the keeper.
You can stick a fork in this match, it’s done.
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I think Roy has a lot of talent but it is unfair on him to pick him as an opener.
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It’s like picking Jofra Archer and asking him to bowl leg spin.
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I was more thinking of picking Stuart Broad as a wicketkeeper.
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Think of the DRS improvement!
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This tactic has a chance if we play on decent batting surfaces. That’s not our modus operandi in England. Woe betide a chief executive wicket.
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That thunder you can hear in the background is Dmitri, cursing FICJAM for picking Roy as a Test opener….
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Only following the herd. That herd masquerading as “experts”. If you give him 10 goes he might come off once or twice. Is that enough?
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England carrying 4 walking wickets: Roy, Denly, Buttler, Bairstow.
Hard to see how that’s viable.
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Am I the only one who is tired of Warne’s commentary?
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I got tired of Warne years ago.
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Just remember during the World Cup he was saying Bairstow and Roy should be England’s Test openers.
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QTWAIN. ON STEROIDS. AND SHOUTED!
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Root gets out like that quite a bit
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There’s an argument that all the pushing him to play at 3 has just exposed him more to the inswingers that he has trouble with…
Anyway, England in big trouble now. Burns will hang around, but who else?
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I don’t get, I’ve never got, the argument for compromising your best player in order to make up for the shortcomings elsewhere.
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I don’t even feel strongly about England, but this particular thing makes me want to swear like the proverbial trooper. It’s absolutely insane: it was just the same when there was all that clamour for Pietersen to bat at 3 during that pre-Trott phase (shortly after he’d lost the captaincy as well).
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Remember when Root used to get criticised for failing to turn 50s into 100s? Those were the days.
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Great post 🙂
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I hate seeing Buttler get out. Which means I hate Test cricket quite a bit at the moment.
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Is this the worst England team since 1999? (and as much as I defend the 90s England side, I don’t bother doing so for the 1999 lot)
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At which point does the media focus turn from being downcast about this team to the party line that the team is knackered, most tests get to results now so series outcomes are skewed, and in any case, we won the World Cup.
This could make the 4-0 Ashes defeat last time out look tame. Oh, yes, it was. We didn’t get whitewashed and his highness made 244 not out.
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Üh, in what universe ought Denly end up with the second highest contribution of the innings for England (certainly true among the specialist batsmen; Bairstow and the tail might h? Nice to see that at least Burns continued his decent returns from last game (and honestly, a 50 in these conditions can hardly be considered a failure).
But rest assured the passengers won’t disembark anytime soon. Some England players are hostage to their own hype.
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* Bairstow and the tell might have a say and contribute some runs *
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For anyone who hasn’t managed to watch, Hazelwood’s figures don’t flatter him – and they are very good indeed.
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Woakes having all sorts of problems with the short stuff.
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Ah. And put. Not claiming any prescience there. I think everyone saw that coming.
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I’d be more comfortable if Archer had an arm guard. I think Nasser just said the same. Very nervous.
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If I have that right, Cummins just bowled 10 short balls in a row. I love test cricket.
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Even proper batsmen are better off with one. Ross Taylor found that out 7 years ago when facing Morne Morkel. And I don’t think Cummins is that much worse than Morkel, nor that Archer is that much better than Ross Taylor.
There is a difference between facing medium pace and fast pace bowling …
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So the guy who has topscored for England this year thus far, barring one innings by Burns is batting at eleven.
I could say how little sense that makes, but since this is England, it is probably not even par for the course.
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251/9. Thank god. Our best batsman is at the crease. Finally!
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258 all out. Happens when the best batsman of the side is stranded with the tail.
Still, given the weather forecast England are still in this.
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Jonny batted well. Nothing spectacular, just… batting. I’m not sure he needed to play the shot he got out to though. It might not seem a big deal, but didn’t the Aussies show just how important squeezing everything you can out of an innings is?
Good performance form Aus. All steady, and Hazlewood was bowled very well. He found the right line and lengths and stuck to it, getting just the kind of movement he was selected for on this pitch. I don’t mean to be ungenerous to the Aussie bowling, and it was certainly good. However, I a clear day, that wasn’t a 250 pitch. The Aussies bowled like Jonny batted: very well, but not spectacular. Three drops too.
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He particularly didn’t need to play it given that the no 11 he’s batting with made 92 in his last Test innings against an attack that had bowled the entire team out for less than that in the first innings. Sure, Murtagh–Rankin–Adair–McBrine is really not Cummins–Hazlewood–Siddle–Lyon, but I think Bairstow was playing according to Leach’s position rather than his abilities there.
Interesting given that SL have been squeezing out the runs today with the last decent batsman batting with Suranga Lakmal, who’s probably no better than Leach (and who must be getting vertigo from batting at no. 9!)
I think in some ways it exemplifies why England aren’t doing better generally–and it’s a failure of tactical thinking as much as batting.
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The issue with England is generally not the lack of talent or ability, but the brain trust. It is astounding how a team with so many resources, can keep shooting itself in the feet with the consistency of a Swiss watch.
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That’s a good point. And yes, the infuriating way we don’t help ourselves grinds my gears something fierce.
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Not sure why Woakes is not opening the bowling here …
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Maybe because there isn’t much swing? Also to get Archer in the game? Weirdly, I thought Archer got Warner – but now Broad has!
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One of the commentators (can’t remember which one) made the argument that Woakes needs the new ball more than Archer does. I reckon Root is just as keen as everybody else to see what Archer can do.
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God I love Broad.
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450 Test wickets and people still don’t rate him. Astounding.
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I think the three tests so far, I really think Broad has been the class of the field. Some good, some very good, and some unplayable deliveries already today.
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