Cricket

Who comes in for Denly though? Vince???

I'm not sure I would drop him, just think they will feel the pressure to drop someone and he's the last one in.

Think denly is averaging 21 after 4 tests so would give him another go. Think leach in and maybe bring in a proper keeper, no point having a part time keeper that doesn't score any runs

Foakes for Bairstow? Tell Bairstow to go get some runs in county cricket and find some form
Also, why no Rashid in the equation?

So team for Lords:
1 Burns
2 Roy
3 Root
4 Denly
5 Buttler
6 Stokes
7 Foakes
8 Leach or Rashid?
9 Woakes
10 Broad
11 Archer

Rashid injured. I would definitely be dropping Denly, Ali and Jimmy. Bring in Leach, Foakes (to keep and bat) and Archer. Move Stokes to 4, Bairstow to 5 (he's lucky on form, but has enough in the bank), Foakes at 6, Buttler 7 and Woakes 8...

If there was a convincing option to open (never seen Sibley, he's having a decent season, wouldn't be against bringing him in) you could make an argument for dropping one of the JB's, moving Roy to 5 and shuffling the order accordingly...

Not sure Rashid is fit, otherwise he'd be a good shout.

I don't think you can play him as the lone spinner. Admittedly, Mo didn't do that job well at all in this test, but you're asking Rashid to do something he's never shown the ability to do (holding up end to allow the other bowlers to rotate) and that can't be good for his confidence. He's an attacking spin option who can be devastating, especially against the tail, but I'm not sure I ever want to see him picked as the sole spin option again...

Thinking about it again, the changes I'm advocating are extreme. I really can't see the management wanting to make more than a couple, and with Jimmy enforced I imagine it will be Archer and Leech in for Jimmy and Mo. I'd not be unhappy with this. They may even stick with Mo. Who I love. So it would just be fingers crossed time and hope he remembers how to get it down there with some spin on it...

Archer can spin with his wrong arm apparently, surely a couple of steps and spin count as a rest between fast spells!

So who's giving them a bollocking root or Giles....

That's half the problem though, a lack of pressure on places from below and the fear of making too many changes. Players are getting away with really poor decision making because of it.

Foakes and Leach should be in for Bairstow and Moeen; depends on if the selectors pull rank over what Root wants. Roy's brainfade tells me he's not an opener in any way whatsoever

The three worst elite umpires in the world, statistically, are the three used in this Test. Wilson has a 40% overturn rate ffs.

Not that you can blame the umpires for the result, but they were so poor.

Saw Aggers tweeting a bit about Smith/ the others who tampered... where do people stand on here?

Cheats. Always will be cheats. Also, stupid - how could they imagine not being caught? Very slightly more sympathetic to Bancroft, as they used the newest player and the most insecure in his position to do the dirty work, in a Hansie Cronje stylee.

cheating cunts, but somehow they are just this side of hitler on the evil stakes, when all the other cheating cunts in the past have got fairly minor fallout

Tricky, without actually knowing how widespread it was throughout the game (the Armstrong defence...). But I think, assuming not many other teams were doing anything quite so extreme, it's pretty much reprehensible.

This is also pretty thought-provoking: https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/opinion/109728513/starc-decline-statistics-show-why-the-english-are-cynical-about-the-last-ashes-series

Ali took the most wickets in a test calendar year last year. Although, the amount he bowled for us I am not surprised - I would like Leach to have a go. I think he's great. Not sure Foakes has got the runs he needs to push Bairstow out. Roy should be given a chance up at the top, although I agree his dismissal does ask questions.

Not really - Cronje got a life ban, the Pakistan spot-fixing in 2010 resulted in a bunch of prison sentences and 5-10 year bans for some no-balls. That's not minor fallout. These Aussies were some of the world's best players, most aggressive and nasty competitors, were treating the rest of the world like mugs with 70s style cheating tactics and are England's greatest rival - it's no surprise their behaviour and cursory punishments got a bit of focus.

so thought provoking that no-one else has brought it up except an nz hack writing for a lad's mag.

comparing avgs of a series you win 4-0 against shit opposition with a 2-1 drubbing at the hands of arguably the best team in the world.

must be ball tampering

if i am not allowed to compare bottle tops, zippers, mints, biting or stepping on the ball with using sandpaper, there's now way in the world you can compare rubbing sandpaper on the ball with actually throwing a match!

:)

These Aussies were some of the world's best players, most aggressive and nasty competitors, were treating the rest of the world like mugs with 70s style cheating tactics and are England's greatest rival - it's no surprise their behaviour and cursory punishments got a bit of focus.

I put it to you that this is the reason everyone wanted them strung up, not the ball tampering...

[edit - fwiw, i (and most of the aus public) wanted them strung up, for bringing aus cricket into disrepute. most people could overlook the nonsense and sledging, etc (which went too far, for me, at times) as being part of agressive cricket. to then get caught cheating, so fucking stupidly is unforgivable.]

Jofra playing for Sussex 2s today, 3 wickets and trying to take heads off. Yeah, he's in for Lords

The world's premier reverse swing bowler seemingly less successful now his teammates aren't sandpapering the ball to encourage reverse swing? Yeah, seems entirely unreasonable to even consider whether there's correlation...

He's scored a ton as well. Ah.