West Indies squad
CH Gayle, D Ramdin, LS Baker, SJ Benn, S Chanderpaul, FH Edwards, RO Hinds, BP Nash, DBL Powell, RR Sarwan, LMP Simmons, DS Smith, JE Taylor
England squad
AJ Strauss, AN Cook, TR Ambrose, JM Anderson, IR Bell, RS Bopara, SCJ Broad, PD Collingwood, SJ Harmison, A Khan, MS Panesar, KP Pietersen, wicketkeeperMJ Prior, AU Rashid, OA Shah, RJ Sidebottom, GP Swann
Harmy will go back to Durham and find his form and bounce again, and will be back for the Ashes, he will then have one good spell then get tonked about the park and loose all his confidence again.
Sid needs to get his zip back again, wasn't Hoggard dropped for the same reason?
Khan needs to take his chance, and so does Shah. It seems that unless you make an immediate impression the the team like Bopara then you don't deserve to be in the team.
Hope Rashid plays well, boycs was talking about Monty coming back in but surely it makes more sense for Monty to keep working on his game, plus with Rashid you get the bonus of his batting and fielding.
But I'd stick with Tim Ambrose ahead of Prior - he came in and kept well and scored a Century. What more can we ask of him? With the best will in the World Prior has flown across the world twice and wil clearly have his mind on other things. It was his decision to go - he can't expect to just walk back into the team.
I could also make an argument for Bopara ahead of Collingwood but I guess they'll opt for experience...
I am with Loiners team with the exception of Bopara instead of Shah - dropping a bloke who scored a century in his last innings would be a poor signal to send out and whilst Shah has waited patiently for a chance he looks to offer little different to Bell - both seem to be similar characters and have the same faults whereas Bopara seems more of the extrovert, confident cricketer who has grabbed his chance.
Prior over Ambrose for me - don't think Ambrose kept particularly well in last Test from what I saw and the byes Prior conceded in the previous Test would have still occurred if we had three keepers and a backstop judging by the hastily prepared ground in Antigua.
I'd just like Prior to be in the Sussex team when we play them. Our batsmen could come down the track to the spinners and hit a few into where the Winter Shed used to be. There'd be very little chance of a stumping.
But the ball would get damaged on the crane...
I think Prior is a decent enough keeper but i was pleasantly surprised by the quality of Ambrose's batting. Even if he would be another player in the England team with a very un-English accent...
As someone who gets to see a fair bit of Essex, I have to put a word in for Foster. His keeping has been sublime for the last few seasons, you don't notice him at all, which is the true sign of a great gloveman. I'd actually put him as the top man in the country now, even above Read.
He's done well with the bat too, but that's against Div 2 bowlers, so jury still out on him for that...
Since England must win this match to square the series, I think they'll go with an extra bowler. Any two from Amjad Khan, Adil Rashid or Monty Panesar to boost their attack. And even Harmy is in the frame, considering the stakes.
I suspect they'll go with Khan and Harmison. Harmy will be innocuous, get dropped, and then there'll be a clamour to bring him back when we go behind in the Ashes. He'll be given another go, will disappoint agin, and then be dropped again.
Because that's the way we do things in English cricket..
Can't see Harmison or Sidebottom playing so to play 5 bowlers it's a straight choice between Monty and Rashid. Rashid will definitely bring more with the bat and in the field and has the potential to bowl a match winning spell. Up to England whether they are brave or not ...... I think we all not what will happen.
They've done exactly the opposite of what I would have done. How many England batsmen have scored centuries and been dropped in the next game? I'm willing to bet this is the first time two centurians have been dropped at once! (Unless of course Statman can prove differently....).
I can't see Monty taking any wickets - and we're putting an awful lot of faith in a debutant.
I think it's a disaster - which means that Monty and Khan will take five wickets each and we'll win in three days....
(To be honest, the only thing in our favour is the negative mindset of West Indies - who's selections are even more puzzling than ours...)
If we got 600 against them in the last test then we should get 800 plus in first innings in under 2 days now in view of their line up - only 4 bowlers one of whom is the hapless Powell, another is new boy Lionel Baker and then Fidel who will be carrying the attack on his own. Part time dibbly-dobbly stuff from Gayle, Hinds and Nash should not frighten any of our boys.
Strauss is proving to be a lucky 'tosser' as he keeps winning and batting but he now needs some luck with his bowlers and umpires
Strauss has certainly not allowed the weight of the captaincy to weigh down his batting. He was always going to be a better captain than Pietersen, but alas we've wasted valuable time in coming to the obvious realization that KP's ego was always going to trump solid decision-making.
A bit of a wobble by England. 159-2 (159-3, if Shah can't come back and bat) is hardly a strong position, especially with Pietersen out for 10, and against such a weak attack.
These days, 400 plus in a Test match is a barely competitive score, and England will be lucky to breach that benchmark at this rate. Hopefully, Strauss goes on to at least 150.
What a thoroughly boring day ... the only thing worth watching were the dancing girls ... what's worse is that West Indies are obviously playing for a draw so it might not get any better
It's the first time I've seen Amjid Khan bowl - what a strange action. In slow-motion at the point of release he seems to have a straight arm but in real time it does look like he chucks it.
Despite the 51, I don't think I'm too worried about England's batting.
The bowling, however, is a shambles, and needs a complete re-think. That will probably include giving Harmy yet another try and waiting see if Sids comes back to complete health. At the moment I can't see this attack worrying the Windies, let alone the Aussies. I think Rashid is about ready for a go.
995 runs and 13 wicket in three days. Is this what they call a "bore draw?" If it is it will kill Test cricket faster than the Twenty20 ever will.
The West Indian authorities should be investigated and fined for bringing the game into disrepute. Canceled matches, bore draws, Stanford: what ever has happened to West Indian cricket?
England are closing in on two Test Match records now. Matt Prior is now just 3 runs behind the byes record (currently held by FE Woolley for England against Australia in 1934).
England are also only 4 extras shy of the most extras in an innings record (76 conceded by India against Pakistan, December 2007).
This message has been edited by RanasHairPiece on Mar 9, 2009 4:34 PM
I was going to point out for younger readers that Woolley was actually a batsman filling in as a wicketkeeper, but then I suppose from James Foster or Chris Read's point of view, this is equally true of Prior (and Ambrose).
South Africa need 302 on the last day to knock off 546 against the Aussies - sopunds like a tall order but they are 244-2 (effectivley 3 if Smith does not bat but I bet he would come out if they get close)
The Aussies bowling line up may not look as strong as it once was and it lacks any decent spinner so I suspect the Saffers may still be interested in looking for the win with two batsmen well set
Good luck to South Africa - but what a terrible turgid excuse of a series we're witnessing dribbling out into a dull draw in West Indies.
It does no-one any good whatsoever.
When will cricket's administrators realise that they're in the entertainment industry?
Am I the only one asking what the (censored) is going on over this referal system. We have batsman who look as thought they've hit the ball (Chanderpaul & Straus) given not out & then Cook doesn't look as though he's hit it & given out. I agree that 'predictive' Hawkeye shouldn't be used ... but snicko & hotspot would have made the decisions far more reliable.
Get as many as possible (250+) and start to bowl 10-15 mins before lunch, likely outcome draw they wouldn't even think about going for it (we couldn't bowl WIndies out in 160 overs never mind 60)
Set them 180 in about 75 overs and take the draw out of it, We would probably lose but the only way to force a win IMO, Strange things can happen when chasing down a small target.
The way they've approached the game thus far, I don't think they'd be tempted by any target - especially with Gayle apparently unavailable. And yet, as they say, cricket is a strange game sometimes.
There is absolutely no point in us worrying about the draw - so why not go down in a blaze of glory. It may be of no consequence to cricket administrators, but at least it would be entertaining for the poor buggers who've paid to go and watch it...
Having recently returned from a wonderful holiday in Antigua and Barbados, I do not consider myself in the category you describe - our three days at the fourth test (or was it the third!) were most enjoyable, despite "bat dominating ball".
Of course, after the pitch problems, the Antigua test was very exciting - we should have won if we had bowlers who could bowl at the stumps of tail enders!
I thought the glove work of Ambrose was very poor in Barbados, but Prior has also had a scrappy game in Trinidad. I believe Shah should not have played in Trinidad - Bopara made a much better all round impression in Barbados. Maybe Pietersen should go in at number 3 if the openers make a good start (unless MV regains his place for Ashes) as he is like a caged lion and when kept waiting, he tends to lose his head!
I think Strauss (and advisers) made three poor calls with declarations - too late in Antigua and too early in Barbados and Trinidad. Leaving West Indies only 10 overs to bat on the second days would have put them under more pressure, preserved newness of the ball for the third mornings and had second new ball some 20 overs old for the fourth mornings. Strauss is stereo-typed in his captaincy and I would not appoint him for the Ashes until after we have see more of him, and consider options - plenty of matches beforehand. Certainly, he has batted very well - albeit on rather "up and down" tracks.
Above all the bowling has been inconsistent in West Indies - both Taylor and Edwards have shown what is possible as did spinner Benn - incredibly dropped!
It may well turn out to be a draw - but at least Engalnd have shown a bit of intent and commitment. I still fear that the West indies will reject any target no matter how tempting we make it. Then again, if they lose a couple of early wickets, panic might just set in...
At the very least we've given ourselves a chance. However small...
We've been down the road of having the keeper open in onedayers, mainly because it was trendy and Australia did it, but this time it might be right. We certainly can't have the captain and vice captain plodding away in the powerplay overs. To be honest, I can't see how the vice captain gets a game. Problems for another day I suppose.
And Sarwan's gone.
I don't think we'll lose now.if we can find a way through the immovable object that is Chanderpaul we might evn win this. Will/Can Gayle bat.....?
Alas, with the series in the bag, and 3 wickets down ...the Windies will likely try to bat out. After all, that's why the groundsman laid down this sort of wicket. They wanted a draw and they'll get it unless there is a monumental bowling performance by England.
Well apart from one poor session in the whole series, I thought we batted consistently well (admittedly on great tracks) and despite the last 4 tests being draws we had plenty of excitement, controversy and talking points.
2 of the drawn tests were nailbiting finishes so not bore draws.
The referral system, the abandoned Antigua Test, the hastily rearranged Test, the will he won't he selection of Rashid, Priors keeping, Strauss captaincy etc all gave plenty of things to talk about.
its also a great location for Test cricket as the time zone maximises my viewing potential around work hours!
Last night I managed to even convince the rest of the family to stick with the cricket despite Liverpool football match and Holby City being more appealing to others
Am I the only one who thinks Amjad Khan is just a rerun of Sajid Mahmood .... can bowl some sharp deliveries but any good is totally undone by the wayward deliveries
Martin McCague is a good shout ... I'll never forget him trying to 'do' Moxon with pace at Headingley. Martyn didn't play most balls & hit others for 4 ... it ended when McCague had to retire from the field after pulling something.
Not so sure abour Silvers ... he was more of a English seamer.
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