Players you thought would make it

[Richard]

Thought Rob Key showed some good things out here in 02-03, but hasn't been able to cement a spot.

That's the thing, though - he showed some good things. He showed the ability not to be overawed... but he didn't really demonstrate the ability to score runs, despite ample opportunity.

What's more, he's an opener and he was batting at five in that series, which never made any sense.

[iamdavid]

Matthew Nicholson is another guy. When he took 7/79 or something like that in a warmup match against England he was seen as the next big thing. Played a couple of tests and I thought we went well in them. Lost form in Shield Cricket and wasn't given another chance.

If I remember right he had a virtually constant run of injuries for a couple of seasons there which really put him off the rails, by the time he was consistently back on the park it was 2003/04 n he was nearly 30...even then his name was doing the rounds in the papers about a possible call up against India...think he played for the A team that summer in a four day game. Alas they preffered Brad Williams

[aussie]

Greg Blewett - After his brilliant start to his test career didn't really cash in.

Stuart Law - After seeing this bloke bat so much times @ OT i am 100% convinced he would have been a top test batsman if he wasn't Australian.

Phil Tufnell - Obviously not old enough to have seen Tufnell when he was younger, was at his peak & many people were hailing him as English great spin hope since Underwood. Don't know what happened to him.

Simon Doull - He was a top bowler for the Kiwis, but injuries damn

Geoff Allot - What a talent, easily the second best left-armer i've seen after Wasim (all due respect to Vaas) if the Kiwis could have had him Doull & Bond, O'Connor, Nash, Cairns all fit. Potentially the Kiwis could have a great pace battery at the start of this decade.

Azhar Mahmood - Started brilliantly as an all-rounder, but unfortunately for Pakistan faded away very quickly.

Michael Bevan - even though he had his problems in test & confined to ODI specialist (probably the greatest ever), i find it really hard to think that he couldn't have galvanised a good test career. Another unfortunate aussie in a great era.

Dominic Cork - Always one of the best bowlers in England, did not end up with a bad international record, but i always felt he could have done more especially when i see Hoggard today as England's best swing bowler

[Xuhaib]

Greg Blewett - After his brilliant start to his test career didn't really cash in.

Stuart Law - After seeing this bloke bat so much times @ OT i am 100% convinced he would have been a top test batsman if he wasn't Australian.

Phil Tufnell - Obviously not old enough to have seen Tufnell when he was younger, was at his peak & many people were hailing him as English great spin hope since Underwood. Don't know what happened to him.

Simon Doull - He was a top bowler for the Kiwis, but injuries damn

Geoff Allot - What a talent, easily the second best left-armer i've seen after Wasim (all due respect to Vaas) if the Kiwis could have had him Doull & Bond, O'Connor, Nash, Cairns all fit. Potentially the Kiwis could have a great pace battery at the start of this decade.

Azhar Mahmood - Started brilliantly as an all-rounder, but unfortunately for Pakistan faded away very quickly.

Michael Bevan - even though he had his problems in test & confined to ODI specialist (probably the greatest ever), i find it really hard to think that he couldn't have galvanised a good test career. Another unfortunate aussie in a great era.

Dominic Cork - Always one of the best bowlers in England, did not end up with a bad international record, but i always felt he could have done more especially when i see Hoggard today as England's best swing bowler

He just had one good WC but apart from that he was quite mediocre

[gettingbetter]

Jimmy Adams: he could of been the perfect foil to Lara, but things weren't to be.

Balaji: with Indian seamers going in and out, I thought he was one who found some form and consistency in his play.

[Richard]

Phil Tufnell - Obviously not old enough to have seen Tufnell when he was younger, was at his peak & many people were hailing him as English great spin hope since Underwood. Don't know what happened to him.

Saying someone is the best spinner since Derek Underwood is par-for-the-course. Truth is, wickets these days are covered - there will never be another Underwood as long as covering remains.

[pietersenrocks]

Chris Read

Geraint Jones

[DaViet]

I thought Cullen would be hussled into the side and do well, I never did like Hauritz, but I liked him after meeting him

I also though Sami would be the next big thing, that average of around 40 is proving me wrong. Another bowler was Fidel Edwards, very disappointed with him, he could move the ball at great pace, but he has poor thinking skills

I always hoped Tait would make it, and he's doing okay

[cover drive man]

Geraint Jones.
Andrew Flintoff.

[Richard]

Well Flintoff hasn't done too badly (he's still England's best bowler and is always a possible for some quick runs down the order) and though he hasn't kicked-on the way we'd most of us hoped since summer 2005 (not entirely his fault, the ankle has been extremely unhelpful) he's done rather better than poor old Geraint Jones.

[iamdavid]

I've been sick these past couple of days and Ive spent a bit of time watching the DVD of the 05 Ashes series, a few things have been refreshed in my memory...

- Just how well Geriant Jones batted and how poorly he kept, he looked every bit a test batsman for most of the series even if he did not make huge runs, technically he seemed at home and some of his shots especially through point were pure class, handled himself in the face of everything Australia threw at him, looked a completely different player from the poor sod who showed up in Australia 6 months ago. His keeping on the other hand was woeful, particularly at Old Trafford.

- How overhyped Harmisons role in the series is, I know Richard has had a fair bit to say about this and I didnt pay a whole lot of attention to him, but after watching the dvd again I must admit I almost completely agree, apart from the first session at Lords and the slower ball at Edgebaston Harmison really didnt show up for England at all in this series, plenty of short, wide, innocuous crap at decent pace. And plenty of wickets through balls gloved down the leg side or which the batsman simply missed through their own error, this was overlooked because of exactly how well Jones and Flintoff bowled. His last over at Old Trafford in particular was very very dissapointing. I will remember to avoid crediting Harmison when this series is mention in future.

- Exactly how inspirational some of the bowling from Jones and Flintoff was and how little the Australian middle order actually did wrong. Martyn, Katich, Clarke and Hayden were widely critisized after this series and Martyn dropped, watching the dvd I really dont think they could have played much better, Katich and Martyn in particular were very composed and efficient at the crease, they copped some poor decisions and they were up against possibly the best combined seam bowling effort of the 2000's

- How well Lee bowled (some of the time), there was plenty of innocuous trash in there aswell (ie first day at Edgebaston), but when it was all one the line (towards the end of the third and fourth tests and with the bat at edgebaston) Lee really stood up and was counted, showed what a clutch performer he is.