England 'A' in the UAE etc

[tooextracool]

To be fair to the big fella he averages over 54 in FC cricket, over 10 runs more than IRB.

Bell had an extremely productive 2004 & has certainly the more classic technique of the two, but KP has been the model of consistency for Notts for the past 4 years. KP has a wristy technique & goes aerial maybe more than is sometimes prudent early in his innings, but I think Gilly has proved (to most reasonable observers anyway!) that you can play your shots & still be v effective in tests.

Against Bangladesh I don't think it would actually be too fanciful to see both Bell & Pietersen playing. Fred certainly won't be risked. The only other option I see would be Collingwood & he's extremely unlikely to feature in The Ashes.

personally i think england need someone with pieterson's temperament and aggression far more than they need someone like bell in the ashes. i simply cant see pieterson backing down to mcgrath, gillespie and kaspa.

 

[tooextracool]

Yeah, but when mahmood played for the full england side he was crap. Whereas bell has already made a name for himself. the "a" team is full of rejects. Dawson, Shah, Mahmood etc.

bar dawson the other 2 played how many test matches again?

 

[twctopcat]

bar dawson the other 2 played how many test matches again?

I think he meant england ODI rejects.

 

[tooextracool]

Please refer to his batting record.

an average of 37, how great is that?! something thats been getting worse of late too.

 

[tooextracool]

I think he meant england ODI rejects.

and this is not a limited overs game is it?

 

[twctopcat]

and this is not a limited overs game is it?

Well it's a four day game at the moment, but yes they had limited overs matches in UAE previously.

 

[tooextracool]

i dont know what he was referring to, the post was made yesterday, and he said that bell had made a name for himself, so i presumed that he was talking about test cricket and then switched over to ODI mode.
personally dawsons selection baffles me, has he ever looked like being test class in any form of the game?

 

[Richard]

well they must be doing something in some form of cricket, otherwise they wouldnt get picked.

Like I say - Clarke isn't actually the worst batsman in the First-Class game.
He can't bowl to save his life, and he's a woeful one-day batsman and to pick him for ODIs was about as stupid as any selection ever.
But he can bat in the First-Class game.

 

[Richard]

personally dawsons selection baffles me, has he ever looked like being test class in any form of the game?

Nope.
He was just selected because of the "you've got to have variation" thingy again.
Even if the variation means giving away 60 runs per wicket...

 

[Richard]

an average of 37, how great is that?! something thats been getting worse of late too.

And, alarmingly, there aren't many doing much better who aren't playing Tests - even with the incredibly flat pitches of the last 4 seasons.

 

[tooextracool]

Nope.
He was just selected because of the "you've got to have variation" thingy again.
Even if the variation means giving away 60 runs per wicket...

so theres seriously no better off spinner in all of english cricket?

 

[tooextracool]

Like I say - Clarke isn't actually the worst batsman in the First-Class game.
He can't bowl to save his life, and he's a woeful one-day batsman and to pick him for ODIs was about as stupid as any selection ever.
But he can bat in the First-Class game.

well hes never looked capable of holding a bat when ive seen him.

 

[chris.hinton]

Clarke is Talented Enough to play for England so he cannot be bad

 

[chris.hinton]

Well Done to the England A for Winning against Sri Lanka

 

[marc71178]

Clarke is Talented Enough to play for England so he cannot be bad

No, he was selected for England.

There's a big difference.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Clarke is Talented Enough to play for England so he cannot be bad

That's just crying out to be put into someones signature

 

[Richard]

so theres seriously no better off spinner in all of english cricket?

Apart from Robert Croft, no.
There are plenty as bad, but no-one significantly better.
That Gareth Batty was the next one tried should tell you that.

 

[Richard]

well hes never looked capable of holding a bat when ive seen him.

No-one would ever claim he could bat in one-day-cricket, his game is too based around hitting boundaries.
He didn't exactly distinguish himself against Bangladesh, either, but at least he didn't totally disgrace himself.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Apart from Robert Croft, no.
There are plenty as bad, but no-one significantly better.
That Gareth Batty was the next one tried should tell you that.

Good figures from Swann today. Admittedly the wickets he took were all tailenders (which I guess suggests they may've been having a bit of a mow), but I think he's probably in the box seat for one of the spinning bearths for Pakistan & India next winter. His batting will appeal to big Dunc.

Of course his duck in the 1st innings rather deflates my talking up his batting...

 

[Richard]

I've never, ever rated Swann as a batsman but he can bowl, yes, don't know how on Earth I forgot him.
He's not as good as Crofty, I maintain, but he does rise above the ranks of mediocrity that perpetuate most of the county scene.
Mainly because he plays for Northants, one of the few counties with a square that offers fingerspin a chance (another being Glam, coincidentally enough).