It's all a load of Cannonballs in here! This is the virtual Arsenal pub where you can chat about anything except football. Be warned though, like any pub, the content may not always be suitable for everyone.
northbank123 wrote:
I thought that was a pretty ridiculous comment by Michael Holding about the ban. Seemed to have a real chip on his shoulder about Ramdin's ban for a completely different incident.
Aha, the same Michael Holding that wouldn't believe hawkeye showing Swann's lbw of Hughes (I think) pitching inside the line of leg stump. This wasn't the predictive element of hawkeye either, it was the bit that tracks where the ball lands. He was then shown the actual ball bowled in slow motion with a graphic added showing the line of leg stump and the ball clearly pitching inside the line. Still wouldn't believe it
As for the haddin wicket it was the sound that did it for him. I could hear the sound pretty clearly in real time and there was no chance he'd hit the floor, couldn't understand the commentators pessimism.
A cracking first test, the better and more experienced team just about won it. Australia battled hard and I think they knew they needed something from this test to have much hope of winning the series, my prediction now is for England to pull away but you never know
Haha he outrageously insisted that it had pitched "miles" outside leg stump - never mind the fact that Swann was bowling right arm around the wicket so would have had to been turning it at about 90 degrees for it to then be hitting middle/middle and leg. And then even in the face of Hawkeye AND zoomed in pictures still tried to defend his original view.
Exciting finish, you sense Australia could have been chasing 211 or 411 and it would be pretty touch-and-go at some stage. England have to take some comfort from the fact that their top 4 didn't really perform, Finn after his first few overs of the game was ineffective and the Aussie tail got serious runs both innings - chances of those things happening again are pretty slim you'd have to say.
Was watching it in a pubby place with no sound on the TVs, although HotSpot suggested he nicked it I'm not sure that alone would have been enough to overturn as the actual impact was obscured by Haddin's pads - seemed pretty obvious given the replays the 3rd umpire was watching that he was looking for a sound on the replays.
What a thrilling - if a little too nervous - ending!! I've always loved cricket from being a kid but if all Test matches had as many swings to and fro then it would definitely gain a bigger audience and more often, rather than only when the ashes were being competed for.
More failure from the top order on a pitch that now looks dead, England may well live to regret it. Bell again with a brilliant century to rebuild things. Bell got out to a beauty but as I type Bairstow has just thrown his wicket away caught & bowled by a part time spinner from a full toss.
Root needs to produce something as an opener in his next innings or perhaps they'll bring back Compton
Three fecking wickets for Steve Smith. Granted he's bowled well and the Bell delivery was an absolute beaut but absolutely criminal from Bairstow. Can't afford any more wickets before the end of the day and have to hope that Bres, Broad and Swann (not holding much hope for Anderson even if he is still there overnight) push them up to 350. And then hope the bowlers make the score look better than it really is on that pitch.
Equally as bad, if not worse, was Prior's dismissal to a ball much too close to be cutting!! Even more so given the time of day it was and the quick loss of a couple of wickets just beforehand.
Happy to get 361 from overnight score, last wicket partnership always adds some momentum too. Had Australia gone in for lunch at 42-0 this afternoon session would probably have panned out completely differently but again Watson throwing his wicket away.
As it is 91-6 and England are flying, nice to see the other bowlers all chipping in. They'll be hoping to wrap this up for less than 150 although I'm sure there'll be a bit of a fightback at some stage - whether or not it's now or by piling on a few runs in second innings.
Big if but if Australia don't make 161 then do England enforce the follow on? Think they might be tempted to have a bat again to give their bowling attack a bit of a rest given the heat and favourable batting conditions - not as though time is a huge worry with 3 days and a session or so left.
Well done Joe Root. Superb knock, Aussies looked clueless and deflated all day. Bodes so negatively for them for this series (and the next).
Absolute footnote on the day but I think Bairstow's knock speaks volumes as to his mental state. England looking to pile the runs on (as Root and Bell were) - he should have been playing shots or at least rotating the strike. As it was he failed to score off 36 of his 41 balls. Smacked of putting himself above the team imo - not that it'll have an impact on the game.
Despite getting lucky on 3, another excellent innings from Bell - to make significant runs in 3 ashes innings on the trot is pretty impressive, even if he was against dead bowlers and got out to a pie.
