The problem for England is that Stokes is very much the 5th bowler, if not the 6th, so the plan was to have a 4 man attack of 3 quicks and a spinner who could "tie up an end", which isn't the role for a rookie or an expensive "mystery" spinner. Indeed it's debatable how well Leach can do that role, if you compare him with someone like Ashley Giles, never mind the far more threatening Swann.
Which points to a 4 man pace attack plus Root, or someone like Dawson as a "safe" spinner.
England’s plan (such as it was) for the Ashes is now in disarray Leach’s ability to tie up one end hasn’t been great but that’s gone with no experienced deputy to call on Captain Stokes is fooling only himself about his left knee. He ain’t gonna bowl against Aus not if he wants to still be walking at the end of July His batting isn’t up to just being the No6 Will they ask JB to open and keep to accommodate 5 bowlers and Stokes? On one leg Stokes struggles to justify selection He’s well liked and his brand of captaincy is refreshing but England risks an almighty beasting off the Aussies if/when they get the selection wrong
Why is Adil Rashid not mentioned , is he too shit now /never been that much of a Test player , I’m sure he retired from red ball so maybe not a runner . fuck off italics , they stopped themselves 🤷♂️
Umpiring and occasionally turning out for Folkestone in the second tier of the Kent Cricket League. More successful with the bat than the ball - 128 runs at an average of 64 with the bat and figures of 29-1-124-2 with the ball.
Full list of English spinners who have taken 35 or more wickets over the course for the last four and a half seasons:
No clue about spinners but looking at those stats Parkinson seems the best choice. More wickets and average and economy better than almost all the rest.
They've rather brutally removed him from their thoughts. If his stock ball was...3mph quicker? they'd have kept him around. He needs serious numbers in the CC to get back in
Don’t think he troubles good players with that action. Suspect when he’s played it’s been on helpful wickets against average players
1968 - each county played 28 three day matches. That's 84 days of CC. Now we have 56 days and play more than half of those 14 matches when conditions are least suitable for opening batsmen and spinners. And we wonder why England can't produce either. Those red ball players are having to play 2s T20 cricket just to keep their eye in!
Why is Adil Rashid not mentioned , is he too shit now /never been that much of a Test player , I’m sure he retired from red ball so maybe not a runner . fuck off italics , they stopped themselves 🤷♂️
While I think it's slightly misquoted, and it's basically Stokes saying right now we're looking for quick scorers not Sibleys etc, if he's genuinely of the opinion that Cook and Trott couldn't walk onto problem positions at 2 and 3, then that's a nit barmy.
There's more than one way of putting pressure on bowlers, yes scoreboard pressure does it, but not being able to make any inroads into getting a Cook or Trott out still tires bowlers.
Moeen will be 36 next week. He hasn't played a Test for almost two years. It isn't the fact that he has come in so much but, in that happening, we have effectively admitted that we had no one pushing Leach for a place - so Leach could have been a disaster in the first two or three Tests and we would have had to have kept him in the side or played without a spinner - not a single viable alternative. We know how and why that has occurred.
Ignoring the South Asian countries where producing spinners is a way of life, let's compare ourselves to our Ashes opponents who have Lyon, Murphy, Swepson, Agar, Zampa and Kuhnemann. But we have The Hundred and they don't.
Like anything moeen related it could go one of two ways. He either takes a 5 for or slams a handy 70 or he chucks pies for 0-150 and gets out single digits.
Moeen balances the batting better too, as none of our bowlers are number 8 batsmen
There is an issue with red ball spinners, as if I was a spinner I'd want to be concentrating on my white ball skills, as every T20 side needs a couple of spinners. And bowling in white ball cricket is all about variation, and the batsman getting out attacking the ball, whereas in red ball cricket, you have to winkle them out.
Moeen balances the batting better too, as none of our bowlers are number 8 batsmen
There is an issue with red ball spinners, as if I was a spinner I'd want to be concentrating on my white ball skills, as every T20 side needs a couple of spinners. And bowling in white ball cricket is all about variation, and the batsman getting out attacking the ball, whereas in red ball cricket, you have to winkle them out.
But as I've pointed out above, Australia have half a dozen alternatives and they all play both red and white ball. The difference is that they are allowed to learn their craft in red ball.
Yeah there isn't really a ready to go alternative for Leach - it's either young inexperienced spinners like Ahmed,Carson or Patterson-White who need to be learning their game in county championship or going back to spinners we have tried before like Dom Bess. Not sure what the situation is with Matt Parkinson at Lancs.
Yeah there isn't really a ready to go alternative for Leach - it's either young inexperienced spinners like Ahmed,Carson or Patterson-White who need to be learning their game in county championship or going back to spinners we have tried before like Dom Bess. Not sure what the situation is with Matt Parkinson at Lancs.
Parkinson has been on loan at Durham for the CC where he has taken 1-69 this season. Ironically, prior to that, Durham had the Aussie spinner Matthew Kuhnemann as an overseas but he had to withdraw following a back injury having taken 12 wickets at 22.58 in his 3 matches
Comments
Which points to a 4 man pace attack plus Root, or someone like Dawson as a "safe" spinner.
Leach’s ability to tie up one end hasn’t been great but that’s gone with no experienced deputy to call on
Captain Stokes is fooling only himself about his left knee. He ain’t gonna bowl against Aus not if he wants to still be walking at the end of July
His batting isn’t up to just being the No6
Will they ask JB to open and keep to accommodate 5 bowlers and Stokes?
On one leg Stokes struggles to justify selection
He’s well liked and his brand of captaincy is refreshing but England risks an almighty beasting off the Aussies if/when they get the selection wrong
fuck off italics , they stopped themselves 🤷♂️
It's one thing getting picked because someone is injured
Slightly on the same note.
While I think it's slightly misquoted, and it's basically Stokes saying right now we're looking for quick scorers not Sibleys etc, if he's genuinely of the opinion that Cook and Trott couldn't walk onto problem positions at 2 and 3, then that's a nit barmy.
There's more than one way of putting pressure on bowlers, yes scoreboard pressure does it, but not being able to make any inroads into getting a Cook or Trott out still tires bowlers.
Edgbaston 53.70%
Headingley 45.00%
The Oval 41.35%
Lord's 39.58%
Old Trafford 38.55%
Trent Bridge 35.38%
Australia win percentage at each of the same six grounds (vs England):
Edgbaston 26.66%
Headingley 36.00%
The Oval 18.92%
Lord's 41.66%
Old Trafford 26.66%
Trent Bridge 31.82%
Ignoring the South Asian countries where producing spinners is a way of life, let's compare ourselves to our Ashes opponents who have Lyon, Murphy, Swepson, Agar, Zampa and Kuhnemann. But we have The Hundred and they don't.
There is an issue with red ball spinners, as if I was a spinner I'd want to be concentrating on my white ball skills, as every T20 side needs a couple of spinners. And bowling in white ball cricket is all about variation, and the batsman getting out attacking the ball, whereas in red ball cricket, you have to winkle them out.