Roar Guru
Joined June 2020
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Robbed of certain victory by ongoing inclement weather throughout both of the first two tests of the 2001-02 home series against New Zealand, Australia…
I find it a great shame that with this historic return to Pakistan, most trips down memory lane regarding Australian series there are inevitably…
As a school teacher, I would write the following summation on the batting section of Alex Carey’s report card at the completion of his…
The real value of runs made lies in how they ultimately influenced your team’s chances of actually winning the match. Consider these four imaginary…
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I have drawn up four tables as a comparison between all Australian batsmen who faced the fearsome four-pronged West Indian pace attacks tween 1979…
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Moving onto the 1990s, the front runner for second best in the 1990s is actually the West Indies since they clung onto their crown,…
The West Indies were the dominant Test team of the 1980s, while Australia were clearly the best in the 1990s, taking over from late…
Read my comment above.
'Pure class': Maxwell run chase leads Australia to Sri Lankan victory
To be fair, Maxwell is, like Jones, Hayden, Warner and Finch, mostly a bat first specialist, and this exception wasn’t exactly well above par for chases in this current era.
'Pure class': Maxwell run chase leads Australia to Sri Lankan victory
DL is sh-t- when the number of overs is known beforehand.
Correct target for 42 overs would have been:
Par: 251
VBO (Virtually bowled out): 8 (wickets, par score after 42: 7 for 251)
Above Par: 0 for 229, 1 for 232, 2 for 235, 3 for 238, 4 for 241, 5 for 244, 6 for 247
Below Par: 8 for 268, 9 for 293
Blanket targets are as mathematically illogical as dividing a number by zero.
'Pure class': Maxwell run chase leads Australia to Sri Lankan victory
I wouldn’t know my BFF or bestie. I have only been following the scorecard.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
I only ‘liked’ your first two sentences just so you know. 😊
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
It’s a fizzle … it’s a fizzle … It’s a fizzle fizzle fizzle fizzle fizzle ….
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
The overall, raw, undissected, unadulterated averages has no meaning. Root’s, like most batsmen’s, is driven inaccurately upwards by innings such as his 180 not out at Lords in 2013, his ton at Trent Bridge in 2015, his ton last year in the match India were bowled out for 78, his 89 in Brisbane last Australian summer and even his 254.
He could have the greatest Ashes series ever by any player next year, but this would not change the fact that in his first six Ashes series, he has only played one solitary match defining innings in Ashes cricket, i.e. Cardiff in 2015.
He will never come close to matching Pietersen for impact, let alone outdoing him.
Superhuman Root will overtake Alastair Cook and become England's greatest ever batsman
An interesting alternate scenario – one finds me rather fond of them …
Say in this match, the scores had been 403, 389 and now 7 for 224 to leave New Zealand on their same score of 7 for +238, but at stumps on Day 3, rather than the penultimate Day 4 – this would see a draw completely out of the equation and the match delicately poised with the team batting in the 3rd innings requiring just one more good partnership to seal the deal ….
Now … let’s go back to Headingly 2019 (sorry JGK, it has to be done in the interests of effective analysis) … Stokes went balistic and chased the 73 down in only about 8 or 9 overs. Let’s imagine that 73 were needed when Leach joined him, but rather a mere 10 overs remained in the match on the final day – Stokes would not have chased them in a million years. He would have opted to attempt to play out a draw and may well have succeeded given that his first 2 runs occupied more than 50 deliveries.
But, because it was only the 4th day, the draw was well and truly out of the equation.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
Ah yes, that magnificent exhibition of stroke play when Tavare smashed Lillee, Lawson and Alderman all over the park for 89 glorious runs in only 466 minutes off only 337 deliveries … such special moments live in the memory forever ….
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
Fair enough, but last year they made no attempt to chase 250 odd in most of a full final day. NZ only have to last 12 overs at their current scoring rate and then the task will be 280 odd in around 75 overs – a magnitude not often resulting in success. I still think the most likely scenario is a fizzle with England comfortably batting out the final day in no real danger, but we shall see.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
I think the key comment last night was the one I made to the Sarge about the second innings of the match only finishing at lunch on Day 4 with the two teams less than 20 runs apart. It would be an entirely different complexion had either team scored 50 more in their first innings and the other simultaneously 50 less i.e. New Zealand now being 7 for +338 (instead of +238), with the chance to declare and grab an overnight wicket or two, or only 7 for +138 which would see them shot ducks.
The other alternate scenario is that both teams made 150 less in their respective first innings to therefore leave New Zealand on the same score as their actual 7 for +238, but rather at stumps on the third, rather than fourth and penultimate day.
Judging by the scorecard, New Zealand are trading off wickets to maintain a good scoring rate in a desperate attempt to conjure up a win, whereas England are probably just sitting tight and settling for a draw unless New Zealand gift them the match by trying overly hard to win a match they have to win. I notice there are two run outs, and no caught behinds, so as someone not watching the match, as you correctly point out, I would surmise that the England bowlers are not particularly earning the wickets, as New Zealand’s scoring rate is still good.
Some things for you to ponder …
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
Hey Homie, settle down big guy … unless England can knock over the last three wickets super quickly, a draw is the still a virtual certainty. If the lead has gone beyond 250 and they haven’t broken through in the first half an hour, then that will pretty much settle the issue. It is not unusual to get excited by 3rd innings that run the course of last night’s in such overall match situations.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
I do think though, first innings of team batting second only finishing at lunch on day four with scores less than 20 apart, it will be a draw more often than not, even in the modern 21st century era. One of the most horrible tests that I remember was the first of the 1982-83 Ashes series in Perth 1982-83 when i was only 10 years old and in only my second summer of international cricket as a fan.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
And I might add, if bowling conditions were so favourable, then they would create more chances soon after, but did they? And yet you are so screwed up that you would question my knowledge of cricket you corn brain.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
FYI it’s not unusual for batsmen to be regularly dropped in easy batting conditions. Any idea why? Because the fielding intensity drops and they are not ready for chances, even straight forward ones, when they come.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
You’re still upset that I squashed you about Boycs? So sorry to hear that. 😢 😂 😂 😂
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
I think in this situation the side batting in 3rd innings has most to lose though.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
Yeah, the odds of a win from here for either side are drastically better than back in the 1980s.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
Which any batsman of fundamental skill can do on an easy track.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
60% of the time in the game is gone, and only 37.5% of wickets have fallen … doesn’t bode well.
Pope and Root hit tons in England fightback
wrong. SL had full access to their maximum overs.
'Pure class': Maxwell run chase leads Australia to Sri Lankan victory