Adelaide forecast. Short answer: no.
I think they’ve decided against Symonds at the Test level. His offies are nothing much and his medium lacks a couple of yards. Hopes - maybe. I haven’t seen much of him, but he doesn’t strike me as quite sharp enough to bowl first change. White’s leggies aren’t quite good enough and even if they were a bit better you couldn’t pick him ahead of Warne and MacGill. They’re really after someone who can bowl a dozen overs at high 130km/h and bat six or seven. You know, an Andy Flintoff type. Put him in the current Australian team ahead of Clarke or Martyn (boy, does he need runs in Adelaide) and the Australian team looks pretty damn good.
But these blokes don’t grow on trees. Who was Australia’s last really good allrounder? Davidson?
I was thinking more of White in for Martyn and bat him at 6. But I’m also reading this Adelaide pitch won’t be the turner people have expected of it.
How about double centurion and home town boy Jason Gillespie? (ok now I’m mocking the Englishmen!) Andy Bichel? (stop it!)
I blame one day cricket, which made a virute out of mere adequacy
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He didn’t always bowl the Chinaman did he? I thought he started out as a left arm orthodox. But I could be wrong.
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England pick an unchanged side (ie no Monty) for the game starting this morning and the English fans are baying for the blood of Duncan Fletcher. We’ll have to wait an innings to find out whether they’re justified or not, as England have won the toss and are batting on what has been described as a “belter of a pitch” by Atherton. Should be a good game either way as only one Test Match in the last fifteen at Adelaide has resulted in a draw.
Four bowlers, none of them Monty. The King of Spain took 1/113 in Brisbane and was said to have bowled well. England took 9 between them. Adelaide is a flatter wicket which will turn heaps on days four and five. It just beggars belief.
Well, England got off to the best possible start by winning the toss, but they haven’t capitalised - two very soft dismissals - Strauss again very unconvincing. But, sow progress as it might be, Collingwood is looking pretty comfortable (I suspect he’s quite a good player, actually, and a good sort of #4) but Bell looks bewitched again - which is shame because he played Warne really well in I1 in Brisbane.
It’s a long road to go…
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Bell made 60 while looking unconvincing, which you’d settle for really. Pietersen tries to hit Lee into orbit off the last ball but one of the day but poor creaky old McGrath can’t get to it. A solid but unelectrifying first day, there’s plenty of time to come. Can’t call it yet or anything like it, but at least England haven’t pissed it away on Day One.
Yeah, England did well on day one. A way to go, but fine so far. Par score is about 520 IMHO. 650 and England couldn’t lose.
I just don’t see how they’re going to get 20 wickets on this surface. I can see Harmison getting back to being OK. But is there much there for Hoggard or Anderson? I really can’t fathom Anderson’s selection ahead of Panesar.
Simon O’Donnell.
Why? I just don’t get it. If White’s bowling and batting are average, why not play Martyn who can at least bat properly potentially?
Simon O’Donnell? Greg Matthews was a better “all rounder” than O’Donnell. Gary Gilmour could have been a contender, tho’
White is a very good batsman - not as good as Watson. He averages 37 with the bat, has a forst class double ton (a big one, heading towards a triple IIRC). Problem is he also averages 37 with the ball! His wirst spin, though, would have been more value than Watson’s nip and zip yesterday.
Good day for the Englishmen yesterday, despite the criticism of the scoring rate. I’d say they are good for 450, tho’ - I doubt things will be quite so completely to their advantage today.
The more I see of this Collingwood fellow the better he looks - ugly, winning ugly. Folks (Ian Chappell loudest amongst them) calling for a change in the English batting order, promoting Pitersen over Collingwood. That strikes me as silly, Collingwood is a hard working accumulator of runs and he protects England from it’s brittle top 3. His work isn’t as flashy as KP’s, but KP looks a lot better because of what Collingwood does.
20 wickets will be a huge job for England, tho’.
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Simon O’Donnell was a good ODI all rounder, but was a bit crap in test matches where it counts and hardly ever got a selection. Matthews was picked for his bowling, which was crap, but ended up batting fairly well. Australia hasn’t had a good all rounder who would be selected for either his batting or his bowling since Keith Miller.
So, England get up a fantastic total but gee, it was a long time coming. Let’s see how the ultimate flat track bully, Matt Hayden, swings into his work!!
Immense effort by Collingwood and how amazing to see Pietersen out for 158 yet again! It’s good to see England nip out a wicket at the end and we’ll have to see how the third-day track plays. Agreed as to the rate of scoring but after the First Test I think England needed a big score as a confidence-booster. Now maybe it’s game on.
Bob Cowper definitley could have been that kind of player.
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I had to go down the surfcoast to do a view of some development site with my wife and daughter. It was a good day to be driving with the cricket on the radio. It was kind of dull, but it was a day that set up the match beautifully. England batted well and the series is well and truly alive.
In the circumstances, Flintoff’s declaration was right. But Australia is in the game if they bat well. The negative bowling tactics mean that England can lose this game. Some scenarios (not in any particular order):
- Australia have two good days batting, and put on 700. England goes in close to stumps on day 4 needing to put up a decent target/ bat out enough time.
- Australia put on 450 to 500. England need to make quick runs to give themselves enough fifth day time to bowl Australia out a second time without risking a loss.
- Australia declare behind in the hopes of putting pressure on England. Say if they make 480-520. I don’t think Ponting’s got the balls.
- Australia make around 350. England should win.
What was notable about today was how long ago Steve Waugh’s era seems. Australia went negative after tea on the first day and stayed that way. Waugh just would’ve attacked the whole time. He might’ve had a few more wickets, but if he hadn’t Australia would have been in a much worse position.
I thought Flintoff went on a little too long, or didn’t take enough risks in getting to where he got. Had the Australians been in on that pitch they would have had 600 by tea - and that said, Australia don’t have to winbthis game - England do
Good analysis. I think #3 is very likely - or a slight variant - the Aussies get motoring today, and an hour after lunch tomorrow declare at 552 (slight psychological points there). Does Freddy have the errrr… gumption to go the slap and then back his bowlers to knock over the Aussies in two sessions without the Aussies tonking off whatever runs he puts on. Or does he kill the game and go to Perth which he nows is going to be a deathtrap?
Gotta defend Punter here (and this comes largely because I think S Waugh was way over-rated and should never have been captain in the first place, but thats my own private tinfoil hat theory). It was up to England to make something of the game - and he was largely sucessful in seeing they did not. Had they made their runs at the “Australian” rate, they would have a much greater advantage. Punter may have lost wickets but he gained time.
Have a great day at the beach! Oh and to the Englishfans - that rain you were praying for in Brisbane came today! 
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Oy, Giles dropped Ponting on 35 and he went on to make a ton. Otherwise it’s been a slow day from Australia, for all the mouth-flapping about 5-0 wins it looks like they may be happy to just sit on that lead.
Surprise of the day must’ve been Jones standing up to the stumps to both Hoggard and Anderson. Duckworth and Ames used to stand up to Tate and Hammond, and Evans to Bedser, but Hoggard and Anderson are a tad quicker. He did okay at it too apparently.
I was worried about the slow scoring rate, too. We need to move positivley for three hours tomorrow - and lord knows, if they get their eyes in Gilchrist and Clarke can do that, and let Flintoff make the decisions about closing down the game or giving us a sniff.
How many test runs has Ponting scored this calendar year?
There have to be huge questions over Damien Martyn right about now. I’ve always had a grudge against him because he replaced Dean Jones! He doesn’t look out of nick but he doesn’t look like he’s capable of applying himself to an innings. He looks like a man who knows Shane Watson is getting fit.
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Wish I was off tomorrow as I expect Adam Gilchrist will, as he usually does when it matters, play one of those innings that make the up thread call for his dropping a complete nonsense. I was at work when he scored his 0 in Brisbane and people thought I was a genius for predicting it, but he never uses the opportunities to bludgeon a beaten team like I hope he will. However he has only played 9 Test innings this year and they include:
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coming in 5 down with Australia 229 behind South Africa and being last out for 86 having added 137 including 37 with McGrath who contributed 1.
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24 off 9 balls with 5 fours so Ponting could declare before stumps in Durban.
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batting 6 coming in a 4/61 and falling to 6/93 before putting on 73 with Lee(15), 73 with Gillespie(26), 30 with Clark(0) and being last out with 144 of the 208 added against Bangladesh