Ashes II - 2013/14 - In Australia

NinjaFletch said:
I hope Borthwick gets no where near the team down under.

It's not that he's a bad spinner, although I can't say I've ever thought he's good enough as the only spinner in a Test side, but whats the point of exposing him to the Aussies?

They pretty much wrecked Kerrigan's international career, and even the far more experience and wily operators like Swann and Panesar have been expensive over this series.

What good does it do anyway to put Borthwick in the side and watch him get smashed around for 10 overs before Cook decides he can't bowl him?
Click to expand...

I'm sorry but thats really harsh. The point can be argued what was the point of sticking with Stokes and yet he came good? You can't stop giving players a chance because you are afraid they will fail, instead you give them a shot on their talent. I think they will go with Panesar anyway as he has more experience but Borthwick is a good talent and I hope he gets given a shot soon.
 
TheGame said:
I'm sorry but thats really harsh. The point can be argued what was the point of sticking with Stokes and yet he came good? You can't stop giving players a chance because you are afraid they will fail, instead you give them a shot on their talent. I think they will go with Panesar anyway as he has more experience but Borthwick is a good talent and I hope he gets given a shot soon.
Click to expand...


Stokes they were lucky with, but even he is an international veteran compared to Borthwick. Oh and he's not a spinner.

It's not the way to nurture young talent. We've got a, probably, sedate test series against Sri Lanka next. It's a far better environment to nurture the future of English cricket.
 
NinjaFletch said:
I hope Borthwick gets no where near the team down under.

It's not that he's a bad spinner, although I can't say I've ever thought he's good enough as the only spinner in a Test side, but whats the point of exposing him to the Aussies?

They pretty much wrecked Kerrigan's international career, and even the far more experience and wily operators like Swann and Panesar have been expensive over this series.

What good does it do anyway to put Borthwick in the side and watch him get smashed around for 10 overs before Cook decides he can't bowl him?
Click to expand...
I'd reluctantly pick him as a second spinner, if Sydney desperately requires such.

But, yeah, I agree with your points and think Swann's 'selflessly stepping aside' has left us in a further mess.

EDIT: Just seen Tredwell's been called up. Much rather he played.
 
On a side notw, how bad is the condition of spin bowling currently? Ajmal and maybe Ashwin are the only decent ones left (Is Sunil Naraine good in tests?). If Nathan Lyon can get into a test team, it just proves how badly starved of quality spin we are - especially the kind that can deceive the batsmen with the loop, guile and variations.
 
zing said:
Harris and Siddle are currently Nos. 5 and 6, Johnson No.15, Lyon No. 21 and Shane Watson No.38, but the Australians also have James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird, Pat Cummins and Ben Hilfenhaus all returning from injuries.

Should any of Australia's fast bowlers struggle for fitness ahead of the Boxing Day Test, the selectors would look to Doug Bollinger and Nathan Coulter-Nile as the two standby fast men in the squad.

Incredible depth..
Click to expand...

That is some impressive depth, especially if those bolded (I think they're pretty young tbh) can recover from their injuries and develop as expected.
 
If Coulter Nile hadnt dropped that, England would've been in deep trouble..
 
I feel sorry for Jonny Bairstow here :lol:

Back in the team after a long time, new ball that's a couple of balls old, Mitchell Johnson and a 91k strong crowd cheering him on.
 
I figured we would bat first and give the crowd something to cheer, but putting the Poms in seems to have been a good decision so far.

What was up with KP? Did he swallow a fly or was he battling a stomach bug or something?
 
That card basically sums up why England have thrown the Ashes away. Everyone gets a start, everyone chucks it away.
 
Good start with the pill for the Poms. I didn't see Warner's wicket but Watson's dismissal was very weak. Some nice cut off the deck from Stokes for that one.
 
Warner looked like a player who had been given time off to go and play T20 cricket for a BBL team.

Funny that.
 
Can't wait to see Piers Morgan in the nets with Brett Lee.

Hardly anyone in Australia knows who Piers Morgan is though.
 
Have to say Bailey looks nothing like test class. Was completely wrong about it. Shouldn't be judging technique on ODI performance.
 
That looked absolutely plumb.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.