Match summary: Pakistan trail England by 559 runs with 7 wickets remaining.
"England have played the best two days of Test match cricket that I've seen for a long, long time" Michael Vaughan
"No urgency by England at all. Root obviously doesn't want to win" Golfie
In fairness to Golfie he has a point. As soon as England reached 500 the chances of losing was almost zero. Had we declared an hour earlier then Pakistan could well have been 5 or 6 down instead of 3. With unsettled weather forecast for tomorrow this could be the difference between winning or drawing the match.
Match summary: Pakistan trail England by 559 runs with 7 wickets remaining.
"England have played the best two days of Test match cricket that I've seen for a long, long time" Michael Vaughan
"No urgency by England at all. Root obviously doesn't want to win" Golfie
In fairness to Golfie he has a point. As soon as England reached 500 the chances of losing was almost zero. Had we declared an hour earlier then Pakistan could well have been 5 or 6 down instead of 3. With unsettled weather forecast for tomorrow this could be the difference between winning or drawing the match.
Equally if we had declared an hour earlier it might have allowed their openers to settle before the light started to draw in and batting got harder. May well have helped them see out the day.
Match summary: Pakistan trail England by 559 runs with 7 wickets remaining.
"England have played the best two days of Test match cricket that I've seen for a long, long time" Michael Vaughan
"No urgency by England at all. Root obviously doesn't want to win" Golfie
In fairness to Golfie he has a point. As soon as England reached 500 the chances of losing was almost zero. Had we declared an hour earlier then Pakistan could well have been 5 or 6 down instead of 3. With unsettled weather forecast for tomorrow this could be the difference between winning or drawing the match.
Equally if we had declared an hour earlier it might have allowed their openers to settle before the light started to draw in and batting got harder. May well have helped them see out the day.
A fair point. Personally I would have liked to see an earlier declaration.
It’s all a matter of opinion if the declaration was late or good. The facts are that England took 3 wickets and will go again this morning with fresh bowlers. Score board factor will be telling.
england are in a strong position wether they batted too long or not
Match summary: Pakistan trail England by 559 runs with 7 wickets remaining.
"England have played the best two days of Test match cricket that I've seen for a long, long time" Michael Vaughan
"No urgency by England at all. Root obviously doesn't want to win" Golfie
In fairness to Golfie he has a point. As soon as England reached 500 the chances of losing was almost zero. Had we declared an hour earlier then Pakistan could well have been 5 or 6 down instead of 3. With unsettled weather forecast for tomorrow this could be the difference between winning or drawing the match.
Equally if we had declared an hour earlier it might have allowed their openers to settle before the light started to draw in and batting got harder. May well have helped them see out the day.
A fair point. Personally I would have liked to see an earlier declaration.
England need to bowl Pakistan out for more than 200 fewer than they scored, in order to ensure they are able to enforce the follow-on. If they attack, they could concede runs at 3.0+ per over. That means they have to bowl them out within twenty overs of the second new ball. Declaring sooner gives them fewer overs in which to take the ten first innings wickets.
The longer the game goes, the more the pitch wears and the more Bess comes into the game.
They can't control the weather. They can control how many overs they give the opposition.
Root got it absolutely right with his declaration. As shown by the scorecard. There's enough time to win this Test.
Match summary: Pakistan trail England by 559 runs with 7 wickets remaining.
"England have played the best two days of Test match cricket that I've seen for a long, long time" Michael Vaughan
"No urgency by England at all. Root obviously doesn't want to win" Golfie
In fairness to Golfie he has a point. As soon as England reached 500 the chances of losing was almost zero. Had we declared an hour earlier then Pakistan could well have been 5 or 6 down instead of 3. With unsettled weather forecast for tomorrow this could be the difference between winning or drawing the match.
Equally if we had declared an hour earlier it might have allowed their openers to settle before the light started to draw in and batting got harder. May well have helped them see out the day.
A fair point. Personally I would have liked to see an earlier declaration.
Three wickets down for only 20 odd runs, for me proves the declaration was made at exactly the right time.
a lot of pressure on Pakistan this morning, I can see this turning out to be an innings victory quite easily.
also, great to see jimmy answer his critics by showing just what a brilliant new ball bowler he still is.
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
I have looked after the head for the last 10 years under my boss George Alexander
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
My ageing memory may be playing some tricks on me but the following is pretty accurate.
Around 2003/4 Maidstone Grammar played Tonbridge in the semi-final of the Kent Schools Cup. They didn't play on The Head but a pitch up the top and batted first scoring a respectable but hardly challenging 140 or so.
Tonbridge had a pretty strong batting line-up and a potential superstar at No 3. Maidstone got an early wicket and in came the superstar. First ball, a gentle prod on the offside and it raced away for 4. Second ball a clip off his legs that seemed sure to race away for a consecutive 4 until a swallow diving catch at square leg saw him trudging back to the pavilion. We heard him slam the door shut and he then must have thrown his bat in the dressing room as we heard it clatter around the walls!
Thanks to some very aggressive and fast bowling (that their coach was calling foul as every ball pitching just short of a length was going past at shoulder height) by James Iles, who a year or so later became the youngest ever to represent KCCC in a first class game, saw to the rest and a famous MGS victory. MGS went on to win the Cup for the third successive year.
One of the MGS parents turned to me and said 'That's the finest sporting achievement in MGS history.'. Less than a year later MGS, with a squad that included most of the cricket team (a very talented year), went to Twickenham and won the Daily Mail Rugby under 15s. I turned to the same parent and said, 'Richard, I believe this tops Tonbridge'.
A proud dad - my eldest was a member of both the cricket and rugby teams!!
Somewhat surprisingly for a bowler that has 597 wickets to his name, Anderson's best figures in an innings is 7-42 and in a match 11-71. With 4-16 so far surely he has a chance of beating those especially with these enforced breaks allowing him to put his feet up between spells.
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
I think you'll find that only two or three of the current Test squad didn't go to a private school. And not one of this squad that were raised in this country comes from an ethnic background.
The chances are increased hundred fold if you do go to a private school and for all the so called ECB initiatives the chances if you are a talented Asian or Black cricketer from a poor background of getting in the system are very slim. The affordability factor of playing cricket is massive as are the complications of getting kids from those backgrounds to games in other counties.
White privilege is dandy if it scores over 200 in a test match.
I'm surprised, not surprised, that cricket isn't put under the same pressure that football is for being wholly unrepresentative of society. It's actually worse than football. Much, much worse.
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
Yes, and I feel he has undermined Zak's performance rather than just commenting on the lack of opportunities at state schools . Zak also got a cricket scholarship for his 'private education'
White privilege is dandy if it scores over 200 in a test match.
I'm surprised, not surprised, that cricket isn't put under the same pressure that football is for being wholly unrepresentative of society. It's actually worse than football. Much, much worse.
The situation and issues are complicated and in recent years, the make up of the England team has been more diverse than it currently is. I guess the size of a cricket filed i.e. the expanse of real estate required) makes it more challenging economically for state schools to have their own facilities or even rent them from local clubs. Not all schools can offer all sports and there may not be the appetite for cricket so much in the same way as I don't imagine there are that many professional footballers who went to a private school
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
Yes, and I feel he has undermined Zak's performance rather than just commenting on the lack of opportunities at state schools . Zak also got a cricket scholarship for his 'private education'
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
Yes, and I feel he has undermined Zak's performance rather than just commenting on the lack of opportunities at state schools . Zak also got a cricket scholarship for his 'private education'
And he didn't even get Zak's score correct.
Typical of his ilk.
Writes for the Guardian and his wife is the director of a property development company - that last bit surprised me as sort of goes against the grain
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
I think you'll find that only two or three of the current Test squad didn't go to a private school. And not one of this squad that were raised in this country comes from an ethnic background.
The chances are increased hundred fold if you do go to a private school and for all the so called ECB initiatives the chances if you are a talented Asian or Black cricketer from a poor background of getting in the system are very slim. The affordability factor of playing cricket is massive as are the complications of getting kids from those backgrounds to games in other counties.
Will Hutton didn't mention ethnic background in his tweet, unless I have missed something completely. He said, apparently, "State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you".
It's an utterly ridiculous comment, given that England's best player, and the previous double-centurion, Ben Stokes was educated by the state. That England's second-highest scorer of all-time, Graham Gooch, was educated by the state. And that the two highest innings for England, at home, were scored by players educated by the state.
If he's implying that players who weren't educated privately will fail to excel, he's wrong. If he's implying something else, then I am not sure what that might be.
(However, Hutton's most egregious error in that tweet is misspelling Lord's).
All came back out for Pakistan's 2nd innings & even before anyone got into position the umpires got out the light meters.....which only meant one thing. Off for bad light & stumps.
I did hear that they do now have the authority to start at 10.30 am. The could have done so this morning but didn't. Don't suppose they will do so tomorrow either. Weather worsening & I don't expect much play (if any) on Tuesday so tomorrow is likely to be the last day.
Had my first matches last weekend boys this coming weekend outfield looks shit but will be back soon with weather changing
With respect, the outfield at Tonbridge School is still better than the square at most other schools that play cricket!
This is what the Head of Tonbridge School said:
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
Wow! That's someone with a serious chip on his shoulder. I suppose this means that Joe Denly, Mark Woods and Ben Stokes will never get the opportunity to play for England.
I think you'll find that only two or three of the current Test squad didn't go to a private school. And not one of this squad that were raised in this country comes from an ethnic background.
The chances are increased hundred fold if you do go to a private school and for all the so called ECB initiatives the chances if you are a talented Asian or Black cricketer from a poor background of getting in the system are very slim. The affordability factor of playing cricket is massive as are the complications of getting kids from those backgrounds to games in other counties.
Will Hutton didn't mention ethnic background in his tweet, unless I have missed something completely. He said, apparently, "State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you".
It's an utterly ridiculous comment, given that England's best player, and the previous double-centurion, Ben Stokes was educated by the state.That England's second-highest scorer of all-time, Graham Gooch, was educated by the state. And that the two highest innings for England, at home, were scored by players educated by the state.
If he's implying that players who weren't educated privately will fail to excel, he's wrong. If he's implying something else, then I am not sure what that might be.
(However, Hutton's most egregious error in that tweet is misspelling Lord's).
Up until the age of 12 Ben Stokes was educated in New Zealand where his foundations of playing sport were laid. Not here. His father was then a professional sports coach here which is where further connections were established. Graham Gooch came from an era when cricket was very different to what it is today.
Cricket does have a significant issue with the lack of cricket played in state schools, my impression is that fast bowlers are more likely to be state school educated?
Anderson, Woakes, Wood, Stokes, Flintoff, Harmison, Hoggard, Finn, Plunkett were all state school educated for example
Comments
As soon as England reached 500 the chances of losing was almost zero.
Had we declared an hour earlier then Pakistan could well have been 5 or 6 down instead of 3.
With unsettled weather forecast for tomorrow this could be the difference between winning or drawing the match.
Personally I would have liked to see an earlier declaration.
england are in a strong position wether they batted too long or not
The longer the game goes, the more the pitch wears and the more Bess comes into the game.
They can't control the weather. They can control how many overs they give the opposition.
Root got it absolutely right with his declaration. As shown by the scorecard. There's enough time to win this Test.
a lot of pressure on Pakistan this morning, I can see this turning out to be an innings victory quite easily.
also, great to see jimmy answer his critics by showing just what a brilliant new ball bowler he still is.
" Tonbridge is lucky to have a fine cricket ground, known as The Head, right in the centre of the school and first used in the 1840s. Many fine cricketers have developed their careers on this ground, including Colin Cowdrey, the most distinguished of them all. But Tonbridge cricket also prides itself on the depth of cricketers it nurtures, with up to twenty teams taking the field on Saturday match days."
And this is what Will Hutton, economist and writer, who went to my old school (Chis & Sid - the same one that my youngest goes to) tweeted last night:
"Congratulations to Zak Crawley and his epic 274 for England today. But as former England captain Ed Smith says Tonbridge school (where Crawley was privately educated) has best cricket ground after Lords in the country. State school cricketers cry your eyes out. No 274s for you."
The chances are increased hundred fold if you do go to a private school and for all the so called ECB initiatives the chances if you are a talented Asian or Black cricketer from a poor background of getting in the system are very slim. The affordability factor of playing cricket is massive
as are the complications of getting kids from those backgrounds to games in other counties.
I'm surprised, not surprised, that cricket isn't put under the same pressure that football is for being wholly unrepresentative of society. It's actually worse than football. Much, much worse.
Typical of his ilk.
It's an utterly ridiculous comment, given that England's best player, and the previous double-centurion, Ben Stokes was educated by the state. That England's second-highest scorer of all-time, Graham Gooch, was educated by the state. And that the two highest innings for England, at home, were scored by players educated by the state.
If he's implying that players who weren't educated privately will fail to excel, he's wrong. If he's implying something else, then I am not sure what that might be.
(However, Hutton's most egregious error in that tweet is misspelling Lord's).
I did hear that they do now have the authority to start at 10.30 am. The could have done so this morning but didn't. Don't suppose they will do so tomorrow either. Weather worsening & I don't expect much play (if any) on Tuesday so tomorrow is likely to be the last day.
Up until the age of 12 Ben Stokes was educated in New Zealand where his foundations of playing sport were laid. Not here. His father was then a professional sports coach here which is where further connections were established. Graham Gooch came from an era when cricket was very different to what it is today.
Anderson, Woakes, Wood, Stokes, Flintoff, Harmison, Hoggard, Finn, Plunkett were all state school educated for example