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2nd Test at Adelaide - 16 to 20 Dec

SteveNZ

Cricketer Of The Year
Anyway...

What's the verdict on England's XI for Melbourne?

Wood has to come back in, and Leach probably has to play too (or Bess). It'll be a very England thing to do to pick Woakes again because he scored 44, even though he took 1-150. But he's got to get the axe, and Robinson - as well as he's bowled at times - can have a rest. And I wouldn't be changing the top seven - pick the same guys and spend 5 days in the nets figuring out how the **** to stop nicking off in the channel. Leave better, be more patient, wear Australia down a bit more than in the present moment when they think they could take a wicket outside off stump at any time.

So same top 7 plus Wood Anderson Broad Leach.
 

SteveNZ

Cricketer Of The Year
Such an English thing to do to keep changing bowlers when batsmen cant put up 200.
Very true, but as I said earlier in the thread - that's only because there's options. Ollie Pope is cooked, but you'd be replacing him with Dan Lawrence who is loose as hell outside off stump from what I've seen at Test level. And if you're dropping one of the openers, you get Crawley - whose record since his double ton is akin to Chris Martin's. And Bairstow has been sub-par for years/is only in the squad because he can wear keeping gloves.

They might make one of those changes, and fair enough. But it's only shuffling deckchairs - I'd be more inclined to stick for one more Test, and try and actually earn my keep as a coach/part of management and get these guys to approach a Test innings in Australia properly. These management guys plot and plan, dribble on their iPads with numerous stats etc but don't seem to be able to prepare a proper game plan to compete overseas (unless the players are completely inept at following it). It's not all technique - Buttler showed, albeit slowly, that when you're prepared to play a certain way, you are capable of having success.
 

wpdavid

Hall of Fame Member
Anyway...

What's the verdict on England's XI for Melbourne?

Wood has to come back in, and Leach probably has to play too (or Bess). It'll be a very England thing to do to pick Woakes again because he scored 44, even though he took 1-150. But he's got to get the axe, and Robinson - as well as he's bowled at times - can have a rest. And I wouldn't be changing the top seven - pick the same guys and spend 5 days in the nets figuring out how the **** to stop nicking off in the channel. Leave better, be more patient, wear Australia down a bit more than in the present moment when they think they could take a wicket outside off stump at any time.

So same top 7 plus Wood Anderson Broad Leach.
fwiw I'd play Bess, Robinson, Wood and Anderson from 8 to 11.
And I could make a case for playing Woakes at 7, dropping Pope and promoting Buttler to 6. No great difference in the runs scored, but more opportunity to use Robinson, Wood and Anderson in shorter bursts rather than bowl them into the ground.
 

halba

International 12th Man
Anyway...

What's the verdict on England's XI for Melbourne?

Wood has to come back in, and Leach probably has to play too (or Bess). It'll be a very England thing to do to pick Woakes again because he scored 44, even though he took 1-150. But he's got to get the axe, and Robinson - as well as he's bowled at times - can have a rest. And I wouldn't be changing the top seven - pick the same guys and spend 5 days in the nets figuring out how the **** to stop nicking off in the channel. Leave better, be more patient, wear Australia down a bit more than in the present moment when they think they could take a wicket outside off stump at any time.

So same top 7 plus Wood Anderson Broad Leach.
leach? are u kidding. hittable. tried and he got spanked and already dropped. dom bess has to come in.

overton for woakes(like for like) and wood for ollie robinson(rest)
 

TheJediBrah

Request Your Custom Title Now!
leach? are u kidding. hittable. tried and he got spanked and already dropped. dom bess has to come in.

overton for woakes(like for like) and wood for ollie robinson(rest)
You've had some very entertaining takes, I have to say, and in the context of everything else you've said this isn't that controversial but do you really think Bess would be less hittable than Leach? Bess has less control, and historically these Aussies have been better against off-spin than left-arm spin. If Leach would get spanked, Bess would get double-spanked.
 

morgieb

Request Your Custom Title Now!
Oh look at that, its that time of the year where people randomly decide Craig Overton is what they need for no apparent reason whatsoever.

Seems to happen every Ashes now, so bizarre
I admire Overton’s guts but there’s at least three other bowlers out of the team I’d pick before him.
 

SteveNZ

Cricketer Of The Year
fwiw I'd play Bess, Robinson, Wood and Anderson from 8 to 11.
And I could make a case for playing Woakes at 7, dropping Pope and promoting Buttler to 6. No great difference in the runs scored, but more opportunity to use Robinson, Wood and Anderson in shorter bursts rather than bowl them into the ground.
There's definitely merit in what you're saying about Woakes at 7 if you're talking about a one-off Test or in the context of short-term gain.

But it would be mental, having been bowled out for 230, 190, 147 and 297 to send a signal to the batting in your squad that you have so little faith in them that you're playing one batsman LESS when the series is, let's be honest, ****ed. You have to at least try to get runs out of someone - whether that's Pope, Lawrence, Crawley whoever - because those are the guys you have to believe might at some stage become dependable Test batsmen. Playing Woakes at 7 at 2-0 down when Ray Charles can see the Ashes are gone is just an expression that our batsmen are so **** and absolutely no chance of buying a run, so we'll play Woakes because he averages 27. Oh and also averages 54 with the ball away from home, just so we're aware.
 

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