cricket thread

[Randall]

Spin's certainly gonna be the key this series, and of course the dust bowl pitches after three days

teams always prepare pitches to suit themselves nowadays except of course england at egbaston in 95 against the windies.

[Randall]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/hi/english ... recard.stm

advantage india, need wickets early doors or we are in serious bother.

[M H]

Win the toss and post a decent score and there's no looking back on those pitches. This one's over already

[Randall]

its depressing when dravid and laxman have gone, tendulkar fails and they still diaspatch out attack to all parts,

[M H]

It's no coincidence that it's more than 25 years since England won a series there if my memory's correct. Our style of play doesn't suit the conditions

[Randall]

didnt a nasser hussein team win out there? ill have to check.

maybe pujara will be nervous having sat all night on 98, even then yuvraj is very dangerous.

[Randall]

76/77 appears to be the last time we won a series out there.

husseins team drew in 05.

[M H]

Longer than I thought then. India's strength is at home and English quicks always struggle on the slow wickets. As the ball will turn I can see a torrid time for the batters as well

[welsh]

I guess England had a bad day then..

[M H]

No worse than expected bowling first on that strip mate. Had they won the toss it could well have been different

[Randall]

not picking panesar is going to come back and bite them as well i suspect.

[M H]

Possibly but Swann and Panesar haven't done the business in tandem mate.

India will reach 400 + with ease as they play spin far better than England do. They can afford to go on all out attack when England bat and that's how they will win. Crowd the bat and force the mistakes which Cook didn't do.

The toss was crucial and India took advantage of the best batting conditions of the match. Where the fuck's Bopara when he's needed!

[Randall]

all 4 to swann, nothing to patel or the seemers. im not convinced we have the balance right.

trying not to lose rather than trying to win is the wrong approach.

[M H]

Again there's no real all rounder unless you count Prior. Broad by now I thought would have been a number 6 but his batting hasn't progressed as expected.

[Randall]

if patel is a test all rounder im the queen of sheeba.

lot is going to depend on cook and trott getting stuck in. batting last, if we get that far i dont fancy their chances.

[M H]

Batting last on that track's an impossible ask as the ball's gonna be going in every direction imaginable. By tea tomorrow the pitch will have deteriorated to the point that the Indian spinners will be begging for a declaration.

This one's gone

[Randall]

521-8 declared india, it could have been worse i suppose.

[M H]

Compton's gone. 26-1

[Randall]

41-3 at the close, trott gone for a duck and the nightwatchman out as well.

not good.

[M H]

I said yesterday that this match has gone mate. Only a matter of the extent of the loss