It's baffling that a ball clipping the stump was umpire's call and would have been out if given out lbw and yet I have seen reviews where the ball is predicted to hit more of the stump, the umpire said no and would have stayed no?!

There is a simple solution to this. If it is clipping the stumps, its out full stop or if it umpire's call, you don't lose the review.

At the moment we have a daft vague area where in one scenario, 5% of the ball hits the stump is given out and in another where 49% of the ball is hitting the stump is given not out.

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Agree with that. That is the one change I would make to the current system.

 

I know there is this apparent inconsistency that if given out, and it's just clipping, it stays out versus if it's given not out, but 49.9% of ball is hitting leg, it stays not out,... but the principle behind this is that the on-field umpire who should have the call unless it's a clear error, and the Hawkeye thing has to have a margin of error somewhere.

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An utter shambles by England so far this Test.

Just woeful

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It's been poor, however, if we can keep the lead under 100, I still think England have the edge in this test. It's going to be a bit of a pig to bat last on this wicket.

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Just back from a long weekend up in the snowy mountains so not seen a ball of this test as yet. Need a couple of quick wickets obviously and as you say keep the lead no more than around 120 max.

The only reason we are 2 up is because the Aussies played like 3 year olds in the first 2 tests

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Don't forget, we only won the 1st Test by a midge's todger.

We may have stonked them in the 2nd - but we were 28-3 in the first innings until Bell dug in.

 

England's batting has been absolutely crap in the main, with just a few individual performances in most of the innings masking a generally inept display. The worst part is that it's not been our batsmen getting out to good balls, but mostly getting themselves out through poor shot selection and execution.

A major difference between Tests 1&2 and Tests 3&4 is that Anderson has looked like a different bowler at Old Trafford & C-le-S. He's gone from looking like the world's best, to a Sunday League trundler. Baffling, as other bowlers from both sides are still getting some swing.

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Good start Haddin gone. We need to get them out for less than 300 as are batting is turd at the moment. Its truly amazing that we are 2-nil up in this series considering how crap we have played.

 

 

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That's because they are shite with the bat. It wasn't by accident that we retained the Ashes already, and it wasn't by accident we were overwhelming favourites. We are far superior to them, and it says something that we've played poorly and still won easily.

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Now Rogers gone.

 

Phew

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Back on top. Only Siddle has any idea how to hold a bat on a regular basis.

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He didn't have to hold it for long. A wicket for Jimmy. Lead a meagre 7

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We've been shocking at bowling the tail out this series would be very surprised if we get them out for under 300.

 

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I wouldn't be surprised if they were out for under 260. These two can't bat and neither can bird.

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Although if Broad keeps bowling pub balls a foot outside off stump then they'll have a lead of 200. What part of "bowl straight at tail enders who cannot bat" is so difficult to comprehend?

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And there you go. Anderson proving the point.

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Good comeback this morning. Harris can bat too so job not done yet.

 

Someone needs to sit Broad down and make him write down 1000 times "Top of off, top of off, top of off". he's not doing that this morning and has just been spanked for 12 valuable runs in 3 balls.

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Broad has reverted to type. Bowling like an absolute lemon this morning

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That's more like it and Broad as a Michelle. He is so maddeningly inconsistent!

Really good comeback from the boys this morning to knock the other half of the side over in 75 minutes when Aus must have been confident of getting a lead of 100-150+ with plenty of time left in the game.

 

I know Aus have a slight lead but I think we just have the edge in this match given the Aussies have to bat last. We need to bat properly now.. if we do and set them upwards of 300, we have a great chance of winning this. Evidence of OT and Friday suggests we may be lucky to see that. We shall see.

 

Crucial, crucial couple of sessions coming up here. Lets see what England are made of.

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Root fails again can we play him at 6 please next Test he CAN NOT OPEN. Get Compton in and Bairstow out.

 

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Harsh.

THat delivery was an absolute peach with that movement off the seam to clip top of off. I really don't think that there was much anyone... Cook, Compton, Gooch, whoever, could have done about that one.

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It was a good ball but the fact is its another failure. I dont think Root and Cook have had one 50 partnership yet this series so we are always up against it when batting.

 

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Get Root out of the side and back to county to score some runs. The England innings is getting off to the worst possible start everytime because of him. He's a liability. 😒

The delivery was good but he just completely missed it, by miles, and that doesn't excuse the dross he's served up in all but one other innings this series, and he could have been out cheaply several times in that innings.

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I think dropping him would be the wrong move.   Maybe put him back down the order in place of Bairstow.

That still leaves the question of who opens with Cook?  Do you want to try Compton again?  I'm not convinced that's the answer either.

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Top 3 fail yet again we are in a world of merde, its going to take a miracle now to save this match. Pietersen needs to play a blinder.

 

 

 

 

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