*Official* Second Test at the Adelaide Oval

[GIMH]

I quite like this cricket lark

 

[hazsa19]

shot! Beautiful

 

[Xuhaib]

from a neutral perspective this has been a boring Ashes apart from little spurts of brilliance.

 

[Ruckus]

Obviously a long way too go yet, but I wonder what will happen to Ponting is we lose the Ashes. Will he lose the captaincy? Will he retire as a player altogether?

 

[hazsa19]

from a neutral perspective this has been a boring Ashes apart from little spurts of brilliance.

can't say i'm sorry

 

[Athlai]

Cook is on track to one of the biggest series for an English player in the Ashes ever.

 

[GIMH]

Cook's started this series like Ponting did the 06-07 one

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Bravo, Cook. Excellent work - though he looks totally spent. He'll need an early night to last through the first session tomorrow.

 

[pup11]

I think the consistentcy is the big issue with most of the Australian batsmen, Ponting, Clarke, Katich and Watson all seem to make runs at some time or the other but they aren't stringing big runs together like they should.
Hussey is example they should try to emulate, when he is in form he makes the most of every ounce of his good form whereas not many other Australian batsmen tend to do that, and that maybe because they don't have the fear of getting dropped.

 

[Dissector]

Given the quality of the Australian attack you have to wonder if Bradman's 974 is under threat. Especially if the pitches remain flat.

 

[Pothas]

Another wonderfull day for us, say what you want about how Australia but the last two days is the best cricekt we have seen from this England team. Cannot believe it is going to stay like this for the rest of the series but going to enjoy it for now thats for sure.

Brilliant rellentless stuff from Cook again, was thinking he has been on the pitch for pretty much the entire series, must have been off the field for what an hour?

 

[hazsa19]

What a day! What a couple of days. Pitch looked everything that everyone was thinking it would be; still can't get my head around australias innings.

Lets hope the pitch starts to deteriorate, the hot sun keeps beating down on the pitch and the aussies, and the rain stays away and we'll surely go 1 up.

 

[tooextracool]

I don't think Australia has the same kind of problem. The problem is none of our team is in sync at the moment - first Hussey and Ponting were badly out of form, with Watson, Clarke and Katich doing a pretty good job. Now Hussey seems to be in good form, but Clarke and Katich are suddenly having periods of bad form. Then you add to that, the more permanent selection problems like North (who just shoudn't be there), and the same kind of problems happening with our bowling attack.

I don't really know what the remedy is...but I don't think the problem is to do with a lack of talent.

This is an amazing comment really, if anything it seems to suggest even more so to me about he lack of talent in Australia. Are you seriously wondering why a 35 and 36 year olds are out of form and another 35 year old is in form?

I think there are real problems with Australian cricket at the moment. I don't think you can even think of 7 batsmen to play for Australia who are under the age of 33. If you did, they'd be comprising of players with sub par records like Ferguson. From the outside, looking in, Im sorry man but thats a serious lack of talent.

 

[hazsa19]

Another wonderfull day for us, say what you want about how Australia but the last two days is the best cricekt we have seen from this England team. Cannot believe it is going to stay like this for the rest of the series but going to enjoy it for now thats for sure.

Brilliant rellentless stuff from Cook again, was thinking he has been on the pitch for pretty much the entire series, must have been off the field for what an hour?

Think they were saying on TMS that hes been on the field for every over bar 11

 

[GIMH]

Another wonderfull day for us, say what you want about how Australia but the last two days is the best cricekt we have seen from this England team. Cannot believe it is going to stay like this for the rest of the series but going to enjoy it for now thats for sure.

Brilliant rellentless stuff from Cook again, was thinking he has been on the pitch for pretty much the entire series, must have been off the field for what an hour?

Eleven overs according to TMS

 

[Pothas]

Massive first hour coming up obviously. Think they might nick one of our guys out early on but if we can get through the first session one down then things are looking really good.

Cannot see X keeping the run rate down the way Swann did.

Very little dicussion negative or positive about Pietersen in the run up to this game, think this might be the day he hits the headlines again.

Love it when things go to plan.

 

[Goughy]

If the rain does save Aus then it is ok for Eng as they only need to draw the series to retain the Ashes but there is a sneaking feeling that that the better team ie England could lose the series as opportunities didnt fall their way eg The Aussies in the last Ashes and England in WI last time.

 

[pup11]

The biggest disappointment for me has been Bollinger, expected him to bowl a lot better. Maybe the injury is still bothering him but he just didn't have the same menace in his bowling.

 

[robelinda]

Well played England so far, hats off. Pitch looks and plays like 06 though, even with Warne and McGrath we only got 5 Pom wickets back then, dont see why we would be more capable now. Adelaide is pretty flat for the first 3.5 days at least.

 

[Swash]

Obviously a long way too go yet, but I wonder what will happen to Ponting is we lose the Ashes. Will he lose the captaincy? Will he retire as a player altogether?

Can't see him going quietly. He'll be too proud to stand down on his own, with the 2011 World Cup so near. The selectors might not want to change the captain with the World Cup starting in under 3 months either.

The best time for him to stand down as captain would have been after 2005 - sometimes being given extra chances to succeed ends up being more chances to fail ...