: Thu Apr 30, 2009 12:10 pm  

Andy Gilder wrote:

Would also mean you'd need to find 10-12 overs per day from the likes of Bopara or Pietersen, and if one of your seamers gets injured in the game itself you're stuffed...

Exactly, we've done 'bits & pieces' cricketers before, it doesn't work. The top six need to get the runs, and get bowlers who take 20 wickets. I'm not a Bresnan fan really, unless he's come on tremendous amounts from the Sri Lankans literally smacking out of the park ball after ball. Onions has been probably one of the most consistent quick bowlers for the last couple of years on the county scene, so deserves his chance.

It's up to these fellas to take their chance now, do a Richard Johnson.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 12:16 pm  

Andy Gilder wrote:

Would also mean you'd need to find 10-12 overs per day from the likes of Bopara or Pietersen, and if one of your seamers gets injured in the game itself you're stuffed...

Why would it? We'd still have 4 top line bowlers in the line up, which presumably would include a spinner. Other countries do that on a regular basis with no issues, Australia built their domination on that split. OK, we've nobody within light years of Warne and McGrath, but I'd prefer us to go that way at the minute.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 12:36 pm  

Lord_Percy wrote:

Why would it? We'd still have 4 top line bowlers in the line up, which presumably would include a spinner. Other countries do that on a regular basis with no issues, Australia built their domination on that split. OK, we've nobody within light years of Warne and McGrath, but I'd prefer us to go that way at the minute.

If the pitch isn't a turner - and in England in May/June that's a distinct possibility - it puts the onus on your three quicks turning out 20+ overs a day. If your spinner gets smacked out of the attack, where do you go then?

The difference with that Australian side is that they could throw the ball to Warne for 25-30 overs a day and rotate the seamers around him. Their downfall in 2005 was that they couldn't back McGrath up consistently, and only having four bowlers meant that when Gillespie/Kasprowicz/Tait struggled they ran out of options.

: Thu Apr 30, 2009 12:52 pm  

Andy Gilder wrote:

If the pitch isn't a turner - and in England in May/June that's a distinct possibility - it puts the onus on your three quicks turning out 20+ overs a day. If your spinner gets smacked out of the attack, where do you go then?

If it's not a turner then don't play a spinner.

: Fri May 01, 2009 2:30 pm  

Vaughan injured playing football.

Vaughan injured playing football.

: Sat May 02, 2009 10:13 am  

the artist wrote:

Owais Shah should be miles from the england test team - right decision
lot of time for bopara though - think he could develop into a good test batsman

He has already proved he is a good player in ODI's and Twenty20. His 86 for Kings Punjab XI in IPL showed he will be in England team for years to come.

: Sat May 02, 2009 11:29 am  

Good fantasy comp here for the Tests and ODIs. http://www.cricketweb.net/fantasycricket/

Good fantasy comp here for the Tests and ODIs. http://www.cricketweb.net/fantasycricket/

: Sat May 02, 2009 11:31 am  

Onions or Bresnan seems to be the big choice in that team. Personally I'd go with Onions, those 6 wickets for Durham will give him loads of confidence going into the first team.

: Mon May 04, 2009 11:08 pm  

I like the look of our battling line up with Bopara at 3 and Prior at 6. Even when Flintoff is fit Prior should stay at 6 as he's the superior batsman and can score plenty of hundreds for England.

As for the bowling i think thats where the problem is going to be when it comes to taking 20 wickets against the West indies and especially against Australia. I like Anderson and Broad who've both developed nicely but i don't see either really cleaning a team up, Flintoff when back is obviously world class but doesn't take enough wickets and Swann is another who i just can't see rattling through a line up.

We'll have one bowling spot open imo and we could do with a real pace merchant who takes wickets. A player that may go for a few runs but will get you wickets like Simon Jones did in the last Ashes series.

A player like that would give the attack good balance.

: Tue May 05, 2009 12:04 pm  

~ No1 Saints Fan ~ wrote:

Onions or Bresnan seems to be the big choice in that team. Personally I'd go with Onions, those 6 wickets for Durham will give him loads of confidence going into the first team.

Both will play and one of the spinners (probably Panesar) will miss out.