The Ashes 2013

agar gone for 2

 

It's going to have to wag pretty bloody hard.

 

It's OK, Swann's bowling ... Australia should be OK

 

104 for 9 .... the follow on beckons

 

What a great day. 104-9......wow.

 

He's one away from a Michelle now!

 

I would think England will bat again. Only two days in with the weather set fair and they wouldn't want to bat last chasing 100 or so. Bat them in to the ground like they used to do with us.

 

but he doesn't like Lords

 

And a Michelle it is. Brilliant effort

 

typical isn't it ! 32 wickets in 70 odd innings at Lords and then he pops up with 5 ! - i hate him


we just need to get to 250 and leave thm 480 and its game well and truely over. We still have Trott, Bell, Bairstow, Prior, Bresnen and Broad, all who can get a few. It just needs one of them to get a 70 or 80 and the others feed off of him and that will do

 

Why, why, why not make them enforce the follow on? Cook does annoy me sometimes with his non-attacking tactics (can argue his work most of the time though!).

Can't deny that for a morning though. Australia do have a decent bowling attack but blimey they have a shoddy batting lineup. I really wonder whether there will be calls for Ponting to play the last 3 tests for a final swansong at this rate

 

Why enforce it? The pitch will turn and the cloud will make it harder to bat at the weekend. Just build up a lead of 300 then skittle them out for 110. Plus it keeps the game going. We could force the follow on and win the match in 3 days. That's terrible for sponsors and fans.

 

Have to remember it's not easy fielding twice in a row in this weather. No problem in giving jimmy and co a rest for a day or day and a half let the pitch deteriorate more and then go at them.

 

Lead approaching 500, Root on 135*.

Great batting so far, and Bell has just made his 50 too, and was not given out on 3 in a close 3rd umpire call.

 

I'm a bit surprised with the lead at 525+, Root having got his 150 and Bell getting out we haven't declared and put them in tonight.

 

Did anyone see the Bell slip "catch"?

Gower and Co seemed to think it was a definite catch.

Am I alone in thinking it didn't carry? I thought it clearly hit the ground.

 

I thought it hit the ground too, it certainly wasn't 'clearly out' as they claimed!

It's nice to see us humiliate the Aussies like they did to us for years pre-2005, there's no rush, declare overnight and have 2 days to bowl them out. Root has batted brilliantly too, his confidence will be sky-high going into the final 3 tests which should be a massive benefit to the team.

 

I hope not, but it wouldn't surprise me if they bat on a bit longer. Maybe give Root a chance to get his double.

 

England batted again this morning in an apparent effort to get get Root his 200. Which was a total waste of time as they spent 4 overs farting around barely putting Root on strike and he just got out facing about his third ball. It's things like that that make me wonder if professional sportsmen actually know how to execute a simple plan. You can only assume Bairstow and Prior were told to let Root get his 200 as quickly as possible yet they kept taking the simple single at the end of each over which was exactly what Australia wanted them to do. Pointless.

 

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT. Bleeding hell the ECB really have found a gem in Joe Root. Near double century for the guy in his first Ashes series and now has taken two key wickets that could see us going 2-0 up in the series

 

I would have done so as well

 

I thought Strauss was a conservative Skipper , but cooky needs to get more aggressive ! criker if Border or Beefy was skipper of this side game would be over and the players in the pub !!

 

Agar was not out there! Another DRS mishap, if the umpires are just going to go on sound, all someone needs to do is whack a bit of wood together every time the ball goes past the outside edge.

Anyway, unlucky Aussies, hahaha!

 

I'm glad they didn't declare yesterday - as I've been there today. Was having nightmares yesterday they'd declare round tea and take say 4 wickets last night!

Shame we let the tail wag quite so long as my nipper got bored and we had to leave just before 9th wicket. Lucky bonus was a quick loo break at Beaconsfield services and seeing final wicket on big screen there!

 

I hope it's a draw. Best we can hope for.

 

emgland follow on, rattle up a lead of 136 and bowl aussies out in 33 overs on final day for 128

 

It would be interesting if we end up just over 200 behind if they enforce the follow on as I can't imagine they would want to bat last. Good start so far
Edit. The moment I posted this Root was out!

 

theyn have to win teh follow on is in no doubt, surely... and it is the aussies who generally play for a result..

as long as not too much os lost to weather -this could turn very exciting last day...

 

It will be a draw as the weather will win. After all...it is Manchester!