is this the first test? What channel is this on please?
Bt sport as was...
Cheers Bud, used to have BT sports before i went on Holiday but gave it up and didn't bother adding it. paying £37 for minly prem league football when i am either working or at footbalI knew if i wanted to I could dd BT sports on the sky platform. Used to pay direct to sky.
Bashir really isn't the best of fielders. We've seen him drop the odd sitter in previous Tests (or not attempted the catch in one case of one instance) and today he's given away four overthrows and then let one through him from a hard hit drive.
We've had 4 no balls so far. Always a pet hate of mine even more so if/when it costs us a wicket. As Michael Holding has always said - there is no need for it.
Win toss & insert. Should be looking to get them 3 or 4 down. Instead the last 45 mins we've been serving up pies & NZ are going at more than 4 an over.
104-2 (24) at lunch. NZ's morning and a distinctly average over rate from us.
So how many overs are we going to be short changed with today ?? With the way it's going we are looking at bowling 72 overs after 3 full sessions. Probably more like 76-78 if Bashir bowls. Maybe 82-84 if another 30 mins is played (no idea what the light is like in NZ).
319-8 (83) at close. Bashir with 20-1-69-4. Until England bat we won't know how good a score that is but, certainly, we have had to work hard for our wickets with any number of them down to their "pilot error" rather than the pitch itself so probably both sides will be reasonably happy even if at 252-7 we might be disappointed not to have wrapped up their innings by now.
Went to bed with NZ just 3 down, so to wake up to them being 8 down at the close is better than I had anticipated. Although once again we cant polish off the tail.
Comments
4-1
Latham is batting like he's New Zealand's answer to Bazball with 36* off 41 whereas Williamson is doing his best Boycott impression with 1* off 14
62-2 (14)
Stokes is struggling massively with the foot holes and has gone for 19 off 2 overs as a result
Bashir gets Ravindra caught at mid wicket
Williamsom scored 93
blundell 13 not out
Phillips 2 not out
Bashir with his second as blundell is caught by Atkinson for 17
There have been 13 previous games at the Hagley Oval:
Average first innings score in Christchurch - 284
Matches won after batting first - 4
Matches won by chasing team - 8
Matches drawn - 1
Last match there was in March this year:
NZ 162 & 372
Australia 256 & 281-7
Australia won by 3 wickets
South Africa 191 all out
Sri Lanka 42 all out (Jansen 6.5-1-13-7)