THE ASHES 2010

[transcebu]

Well done to the English team, twice as good as our blokes this series, literally, if we'd got 2 innings to England's 1 we would have struggled. Our bowlers can't pressure and our batters can't handle the english bowlers. If it weren't for Hussey going well in a few innings, it would have been such a mis-match as to be laughable.

I guess we're due for a wake up call and you poms have had enough days in the shade to deserve and enjoy the recent successes.

[guydesavoy]

I wonder if Geoffrey will be as fulsome in his praise.

[daveduke007]

 Sir Geoffrey please  

"You never really thought the Australian bowlers would get England out. I didn't think they would get any bugger out. In the end England just got themselves out chasing runs. My Mum could have belted Australia around"

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport....il.html

[daveduke007]

(daveduke007 @ Nov. 22 2010,01:54) Im going with Freddie Flintoff's prediction of 3-1 to the Pom's so couldn't vote    

I just wished  I had gone to BetFred looking at the situation now  

Fifth Test, day four, Sydney. Australia (280 & 213/7) trail England (644) by 151 runs.

Looks like I'll be up at 6am tomorrow and off to Witherspoons here in Pattaya to see the lads wrap it up

[daveduke007]

(guydesavoy @ Jan. 04 2011,10:16) Will Collingwood fail again ?   I think he needs a positive innings or it could be his swan song..

Collingwood has announced he is to quit Test Cricket, he has been a good servant in my eyes    

http://news.yahoo.com/s....ingwood

[guydesavoy]

From Sir G's blog....

What might happen next: Steve Smith saves his Test career with a valiant innings of 175 as Australia save the match and salvage some pride. He gets valuable support from Michael Beer (4 not out), whose defiant three-hour vigil sees him immediately promoted to opener. "AUSTRALIA WINS 1-2", reads the headline of the Herald Sun on Saturday morning.
...and what probably will: After England wrap up a series victory, the nation is seized by triumphant, Aussie-bashing euphoria, culminating in David Cameron performing the sprinkler in front of Julia Gillard at the G20 summit.

I'm betting on the second scenario  

Goodbye Collingwood.   Not even TT could save you this time  

Enjoy your 'breakfast of champions' Dave  

[daveduke007]

I did thanx guy

[katoeylover]

RIP Australian Cricket

0.59 GMT 7th January 2011

not that i am gloating, well actually I am, and after 24 years its GREAT!!!

Rugby, Soccer, and now Cricket - are you lot down there good at anything right now?

[pacman]

Are we any good at anything?        

I've never seen such great displays of hand wringing, fence sitting, name calling, passing the buck...   etc, etc...

With defeat comes this glorious display of who-to-blame & what-do-we-do-next?

We might have been gloriously thrashed on the playing field but oh, what a splendid performance in denying the bleeding obvious...

[transcebu]

Some stats of interest!
Discounting Hadden (keeper) and Beer (The newbie), here are the stats for the fifth test for the specialist batsmen v the specialist bowlers.

Batsman: (Watson, Hughes Khawaja, Clarke and Hussey): Average 27.5 Runs per innings.
Bowlers: (Siddle, Johnson, Hilfenhaus and Smith): Average 26.375 Runs per innings.

Now I'm no genius, but if our PROFESSIONAL batsmen are almost statistical identical to guys who happen to swing a bat a bit, over a pretty fair sample of 10 v 8 innings, then they really aren't too flash as batsmen. This makes me wonder what was the biggest factor, the English bowlers being better, or just that our selected batsmen are playing like panicked school boys.

[daveduke007]

As we digest the final action of this magnificent Ashes series, there is a very British temptation to play down England's achievement on the basis that they were up against a weak Australian team.

So were Australia that shite and England that good

[guydesavoy]

(daveduke007 @ Jan. 07 2011,13:38) So were Australia that shite and England that good  

That's always the $64,000 question.

IMO, England were just too good. Whichever way you look at it, cricket is a funny game, and you make your own luck. Time and again, England out batted Australia, and when they took the ball, you'd think it was a different wicket. England got it to swing (Anderson, Bresnan...) any time..Australia only once in Perth with Johnson. That turned out to be a blip, not a revival.

Batting wise, England were disciplined. Leaving the wide balls and biding their time. Australia in contrast were nervous and always eventually worn down by the England bowling strategy. Peg them in, then tease them...wicket   Australia's bowling, length wise, was inconsistent and not creative enough.

The batting ? The stats speak for themselves. Suffice it to say that anyone can have a form slump. But 5 Tests ? Ample time to step up.
If the opposition let you...

Therein lies the rub. Still plenty of talent in the Aussie side to have made a drawn (at the very least) series possible. But it just didn't happen. Because England were just too good and thoroughly deserve this convincing (crushing ) victory      

I love Cricket, and in particular the Test Match form. As depressing as it was seeing great players and new players not perform on the Australia side, it was so exciting to watch England play so well as a solid unit.

I'm not into this Pommy or Aussie bashing game. It's just bloody good cricket  

[titleist]

(daveduke007 @ Jan. 07 2011,13:38) So were Australia that shite and England that good  

Bit of both i think, although most of the aussies i work with will be reluctant to praise a very well balanced and prepared english squad, i do feel Australia is in the start of a downward spiral.......who would'nt be when you look at the quality of players they have lost in the last few years.....Hayden, Langer,Warne, Mcgrath, Gilchrist, Martin, Lee, Gillespie to name a few, no side can lose players of that calibre and expect to retain a winning team. I am sure they will be a force again in test cricket in a few years time.

[Guest]

Lot's More Ashes Cricket Coming Up

DOUBLE DOSE OF ASHES
England & Australia are set to play 10 consecutive Ashes Tests in 2013-14 after Cricket Australia confirmed they intended to move their next home series forward by 12 months.

England are due to host the next five-Test series in the summer of 2013 with the subsequent tour of Australia usually 18 months later.

But with Australia due to host the 2014-15 World Cup during that time frame, CA have opted to reschedule the Ashes to avoid two of cricket's flagship events clashing.

That will mean the winner of the 2013 series in England could potentially hold the Ashes urn for just a couple of months.

"It is our intention to play the series back to back," CA spokesman Peter Young told Press Association Sport.

"The plan is in place for that so at the moment, it is written in the Future Tours Programme for anyone to see, all that needs to be done is the formalisation of the dates."

While seemingly not an ideal situation there are a number of unique factors that have forced CA to reschedule, in consultation with the England & Wales Cricket Board, including the timing of the 2012 London Olympics.

A proposal to also push England's home series forward, and maintain the usual 18-month gap, was ruled out because that would clash with the Olympic Games.

Young said that another key factor was the concern that England would be required to tour Australia for five months, a period of time deemed too demanding, if the World Cup and Ashes were played back-to-back.

"England had a fair concern that they would be in Australia for five months and that is just too long for a team to be touring away from their country," Young added.

"It would be a taxing schedule and it could impact on England's ability to play at their peak.

"With the Olympics the year before, which we did not want to compete alongside, we have not had much room to move.

"We say that planning the Future Tours Programme is like playing chess in 3D, it is a very difficult task and at this stage we have had to plan for back-to-back Ashes series."

England batsman Kevin Pietersen said playing 10 Ashes Tests, in what would be a seven month period, would be difficult for the players.

"Two back-to-back will be tough on both teams," he said.

"But it's amazing cricket Ashes cricket, as a player you love playing Ashes series."

[Bumpa STIKKA]

Five tests over the course of a few weeks is enough for me.

I doubt I can keep the energy alive over the course of a year no matter who is winning... then again I'm one of those fair-weather fans who doesn't even understand what the commentators are on about when they stuff like 'Silly mid on' and 'Get your wide slip off!'