The Cricket Thread 2015-16

113/5. Fantastic morning for Hants!

 

Much better

 

A giant moth has just caused complete carnage in the commentary box! 2 of the 3 commentators ended up on the floor having stood on their chairs trying to chase the moth out of the window!

 

Ervine out for six weeks. Balls.

 

Off to the Ageas Bowl tonight for the T20, which starts at 7. What also starts at 7 is a severe weather warning for severe thunderstorms on the South Coast. Could get interesting...

 

Win tonight and we could move up 2nd, with a game in hand over 1st and 3rd.

Lose tonight and we could drop down to 7th, potentially just one point above 8th.

I know they were down in 8th place, but for me Surrey's last ball win Wednesday was good for no-one in this group other than themselves. They've joined the race for the top four now.

 

Vince really needs to consider his role as T20 and OD captain. He failed to bowl Briggs out despite him having figured of 2-13 from 3 overs and didn't bowl Arafat, one of the game's best death bowlers at the end. He should step down for this season to focus on his batting.

 

B mccullum 158 from 69 balls !

 

Ryan Harris will miss the Ashes. In fact he's retired. Good news for England but a real shame his career has been so badly affected by injuries.

 

First time I've been concerned about us failing to reach the QFs. We almost certainly need to win three of our last four games, and on current form - and with no Ervine (or Fidel) - that does not look likely at all.

God knows why we played Bird. And even more that, why on earth we gave him a 3rd over instead of giving Briggs a 4th.

One heck of a massive six days for us coming up now. Lose to Worcs in the CC and then to Surrey in the t20, and that would pretty much be that for both competitions. It would also be seven defeats in a row.

Just noticed that our t20 game against Gloucs is a 2.30 start on a Tuesday. Makes sense...

 

Three early wickets for Bird - either side of a rain break. He's just starting to get up to top gear, after his injury (well, in four day cricket at least).

Mitchell is still at the crease though, and he's the big wicket.

A possible season defining match, this one.

 

Worcestershire 25/3. Bird with all 3 wickets.

 

478 all out. Now we can finally get on with losing by an innings.

 

If we get bowled out twice by their ****e bowling attack we should just give up. We should make 400 on this pitch fairly easily.

 

And before anyone mentions Ajmal he's not the same bowler he was before his action was deemed to be illegal and he had to change it.

 

Well I'd have said before that if we concede 478 to their ****e batting line up we should just give up. Mitchell scoring runs doesn't bother me, he's class. But what we doing letting Clarke and Leach scoring 130 between them?

In terms of their bowling, this season Leach has turned from an overweight dobber, with no place in FC cricket, into some sort of wicket-taking machine. Only four bowlers in D1 have taken more wickets than him this season.

 

Ashes starts tomorrow .

 

Yup lets get it started, Got tickets for Saturday at Edgebaston on 1st Aug.

 

Don't have test tickets ,but Mrs j and me are going to the first ODI .

 

Here we go...