The relevance of the current competition is that England are playing Australia and the rivalry goes waaaaaaaaay back. There is no “World Cup” of test cricket but different countries organise tours of other cricket nations and play a series of matches. These tours normally alternate home and away so Australia toured the UK last in summer 2009 and we are now down there doing our best to grind their faces into the dirt.
“test” cricket is a form of the game where each individual match takes up to five days and the whole series is “best of five”. I shan’t go into the intricacies here but feel free to ask questions.
These particular clashes between England and Australia are called “the Ashes” and for the last 20 years or so, Australia have been the best team and England have never come back from down-under as winners for a long time.
As we currently “hold” the ashes we only need to draw the series to bring them back home. Seeing as we are one-up in the series with 3 to play, the pressure is on the Aussies.
This, long form of the game is an immense strategic and tactical battle with the relevant captains juggling immense numbers of variables and options. These games play out like a fine novel, ebbing and flowing till they eventually come to their nail biting conclusions. Even a draw can be immensely satisfying and exciting.
So dip in, have a look through the usual sources for info and try and catch some action. There is a lot of jargon and a lot of technical complications that can be discussed (the hallmark of a proper sport if you ask me) but in essence it is fairly simple.
Ball is bowled to batsman (in various interesting ways),
batsman guards his “stumps” and tries to hit the ball (in various interesting way),
batsman runs and tries not to be “out” by being run-out or caught or have his stumps hit (plus some other more esoteric ways of being out)
After all the batsmen are “out” (or after an allotted number of “bowls”) the other team has a go.
When that team are “all out” as well, the team with most runs, wins.
that is in a real nutshell but knowing that is enough to get you underway I reckon.
Okay LouisB, as another of the smartest men you will ever know and a prospective teacher into the bargain I’m willing to have a go. It’s a bat-and-ball game not unlike baseball but with the following significant differences:
There are at most two innings per side.
The game is also limited by time; a full international such as the one being discussed lasts for five days. Owing to the different balance between bat and ball, an innings (not “inning”, in cricket) sometimes lasts for well over a day.
In cricket it is “one strike and out”, but a strike is not merely a swing and a miss; there is a target that must be hit. As it’s a ground-level target, there are rules to cover what happens if the batsman (not “batter”) gets in the way.
Other modes of dismissal, such as a catch or run-out, are similar to baseball equivalents.
Two batsmen out of eleven are in at a time and can score run after run until they are out. A “home run” is worth six runs in cricket and a hit which clears the edge of the playing area, but bounces or rolls first, is worth four. Otherwise, only whole runs are scored - there are no “bases” to advance.
When ten men are out, the side is out as the one man remaining has no-one to occupy the other end.
The bowler, unlike a pitcher, may take a run-up just as a javelin-thrower does. Like a javelin-thrower, he must deliver from on or behind a line; unlike him, but like a tennis server, the instant the ball is gone he is free to cross the line. He must not throw with a bent arm and usually delivers overarm - rather like a tennis serve without a racket.
The batsman need not run even if he hits the ball, but a hit anywhere on the field is “fair” - there is no foul zone. Although there are eleven fielders, they therefore have the whole field to cover, and while there are named fielding positions, there are not enough players to occupy them all.
Only the wicket-keeper (equivalent to the catcher) is allowed pads and gloves, though fielders close to the bat often use shin-guards, helmet and cup (“box” in cricket).
Six fair balls comprise one “over”, and when one over is complete, the next must be delivered from the other end of the 22-yard pitch, and by another bowler. A side must therefore include at least two bowlers, but for a number of reasons it is usual to include at least four, generally of differing styles, in a side.
A cricket ball is used for 80 overs before being replaced with a new one. Barring unusual damage, adapting to its wear and tear is part of the game.
England have used (Troy Coolidge and now David Saker) as their bowling coaches and their mantra is “seam balling is seam position”.
A lot of the difference is in the construction of Duke ball used in England v the Kookaburra ball used here, though harder pitches and less humidity are also elements in why swing bowling is more difficult to achieve here.
Colloquially, to swing a Kookabrra with it’s flatter and wider seam means you need to get everything right. A (new) Duke ball with it’s more prominent seam swings, and swings more, even if does leave the hand with a bit of a wobble.
Malacandra, I won’t quote your entire post, or not yet anyway. You’ve given me a much better idea as to the game than my previous ‘teacher’ did. I think I’ll start with Google and Wikipedia and then try to find a few dozen videos; after that, I may well return and ask a few questions of you. Who knows, I might even locate some locals who play the game; if I actually saw cricket being played, I’d probably understand it better. After all, Flashman (a man after my own heart) loved the game; if he enjoyed it, I might enjoy it as well.
Thanks for the answers; even though my question was a sort of jab at cricket fans, your answers have awakened an honest interest.
So Australia shuffle the pack. Hughes to open, no suprise there. Looks like Haddin will probably bat at 6, with Smith at 7. The selector’s spiel on Beer made me laugh. “…we expect he will bowl very well against the English on his home ground”. He’s only played 3 games there, less than some of the England squad (whe n you include tour matches and ODIs). I guess they will take a good look at him in the nets before deciding on whether to play him, but I think they will go with a four-man pace attack, backed up by Smith and Watson.
It all seems a bit of a shambles from here, from the 17-man squad for the opening test, to picking spinners with no track record, to the on-again off-again love-in with the pace bowlers. I’m reminded of England’s selection chaos during the late 80s and early 90s.
I just hope England can keep up standards from the last couple matches. The danger for Australia is that if England get on top they could go to pieces again. On the other hand, a burst of wickets or a couple good partnerships could put a very different complexion on the series. It’s only 1-0 with 3 to play after all.
My theory is that it was a bet between Pietersen and Warne. “I bet three bottles of re-grow you can’t talk them into selecting Beer…”. Or possibly he has been selected for his sledging abilities. Half was through the 1st test he twittered “The Barmy Army are the only Poms who are performing.” At least the tabloid headline writers will be happy.
He did take 5 wickets against England in the first warm-up match, but he also went for over 200 runs, at a rate of 5 per over. Since then, our batsmen have found their form.
Some very old black-and-white footage towards the end of the last - I think that may be Larwood hitting Woodfull on the 1932-33 Ashes tour. Overall though I think you focus too much on batsmen getting hurt; there’s plenty to admire in cricket without acting like a spectator at a bear-pit.
Can’t find any footage of the time Pakistan threw their toys out of the pram and forfeited a match against England…
Oh yes. But Batsmen dominate so much today, it is nice to remember a time when the shoe was on the other foot.
Can’t find any footage of Oval 2006, true, but plenty of footage of England yelling “Cheats” like sore loser after having been reverse swung out of inter alia three test series and oh yeah a World Cup Final. Wasim Akram to Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis.
Not a great warm-up game for England against Victoria, with some catches going down and the replacement bowlers struggling for wickets. Good that Prior got some practise though, chances are he will be called upon to do some serious batting before the series is over.
This is Australia’s best chance to get back into the series, if the pitch at the WACA bounces as promised. The England batsmen don’t have as much experience with hard pitches as the Australians, and that makes shot selection difficult. Expect to see at least a couple get out trying to cut the wrong ball.
Does seem petulant, but bear in mind the selectors couldn’t have given him a bigger slap in the face. He’s posted career best figures with bat and ball in his last few games, and instead they have gone for a complete unknown who has never taken more than 3 wickets in an innings, and went for more than 6 an over in the second innings of the tour match. He’s not a big spinner of the ball, his job is containment. The selection of Beer may work out OK, but it’s a complete punt, there is no evidence he can perform consistantly or under pressure. It’s wishful thinking to say he’s likely to do a better job than Hauritz, every commentator and ex-selector is completely shocked. It seems that the selection has nothing to do with form, and everything to do with personalities.
We can’t know exactly what has been going on, but I’m guessing that Ponting and Hauritz had a pretty big falling out in India. Hauritz probably feel like he was made a scapegoat for that loss. Better spinners than him have struggled in India, Warne and Murali included.
It could just be the press trying to drum up a bit of drama. Here’s another piece which has some actual quotes from Hauritz, saying he’s desperate to win back his place and for Australia to suceed.
True, but Aussies have always preferred guys who bowl quick or turn it square. Bowl a tight spell in the first innings before the new ball comes available, sure. But you are expected to burn through the tail and wreck havoc like a scythe on the last day.
Has there been an Australian off spinner who’s captain has had faith in them since Ashley Mallet?
