England Lions in West Indies

[Woodster]

Before I go into any great debate regarding this tour, can anyone suggest a live stream for it?

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

Cricket Windies website has the live stream

 

[Woodster]

Cricket Windies website has the live stream

Thank you very much, had a very good stream off it for the last hour or so. Solid start from the Lions, ball turning a fair bit for a day one pitch.

 

[Isura]

This spinner for the the Windies A is a big boy

 

[Isura]

Before I go into any great debate regarding this tour, can anyone suggest a live stream for it?

What's the backstory here?

 

[Woodster]

What's the backstory here?

Yes sorry, didn't mean to make it sound like I have a raging point to debate, I've just been meaning to set up a thread about this tour for the last week or so because I think there's quite a few interesting points to discuss (maybe interesting is a loose term), mainly around the make-up if the Lions side.

Presumed they were going to squeeze two spinners into the side, especially having seen how this pitch is playing today and with that being the case didn't expect them to go with just two seamers in TRJ and Porter. So with Paul Coughlin included the composition of the batsmen was going to be interesting and Joe Clarke's 80 odd in the warm-up must have tipped selection in his favour over Dan Lawrence.

Rahkeen Cornwall is indeed a big fella!! Been very economical so far today so was looking forward to seeing how Livingstone played him, after a couple of circumspect shots to him he then skipped down the pitch and hit him in the cow corner region which then got mid-on shoved back to the edge for him to milk. Should be an intriguing contest.

 

[Woodster]

Pitches like this in the Caribbean (or anywhere for that matter) do make it difficult to produce really entertaining cricket. Free flowing strokeplay is difficult, the outfield is long and so value for runs isn’t there, and there’s isn’t a great deal in at all for the quicks.

It’s a real grind where patience for the batsmen and bowlers is paramount.

Patience that just ran out for Livingstone as he tried to smash Cornwall into next week!

 

[Woodster]

Lot of starts for the Lions yesterday, Keaton Jennings (49), Nick Gubbins (50), Liam Livingstone (21), Ben Foakes faced 79 balls for his 16, and now Paul Coughlin is still unbeaten on 51. Perhaps symptomatic of the pitch, a slow deck where you really have to grind your runs out and you're never properly in and set. It seems a pitch that you can survive comfortably on, against the seamer in particular, but run scoring is much more taxing. Spin is WI's main weapon here and I'm really looking forward to seeing how England's attack goes on this.

My first look at Coughlin in a first-class game with the bat, I thought he looked very organised and played in a patient manner, barring one or two rushes of blood which he got away with. Definitely a look of his old Durham teammate Paul Collingwood, he waits for anything straightish to work away through the legside and is disciplined enough to wait and play to his strengths. He's the man that the Lions will hope can drag them towards that 300 total, looks a long way off though.

 

[SeamUp]

Coughlin was rather impressive under the radar in Australia too.

Good sign for Notts.

 

[Woodster]

Coughlin was rather impressive under the radar in Australia too.

Good sign for Notts.

Looking forward to see where his bowling's at aswell. Not that he'll get much out of this deck.

 

[theegyptian]

This is a big tour imo. With WI and SL away next winter this is a perfect opportunity for the players and the coaches.

Just wish they'd given Bayliss the sack by now from test cricket. Could have had the new coach out with the lions right now whilst Bayliss concentrates on the t20 and 50 over stuff.

 

[Beamer]

Really intriguing match so far. England Lions looked really solid against most of the Windies bowlers but struggled against Rakheem Cornwall, who got yet another 5 wicket haul. The man is an outstanding cricketer, they just have to pick him, size or not.

The Lions then bowled impressively, dismissing the top order for next to nothing and even bouncing a couple out on this slow pitch. However, Dowrich played an outstanding knock to leave the match evenly poised.

From a Windies perspective it is great to see Dowrich back at his best with the bat.

 

[JRC67]

Looking forward to see where his bowling's at aswell. Not that he'll get much out of this deck.

I haven't seen him bowl for a couple of years. Is he still very much medium pace. He always seemed more of a bet as a batsman who could give you a few overs rather than as an all rounder.

 

[Bijed]

Really intriguing match so far. England Lions looked really solid against most of the Windies bowlers but struggled against Rakheem Cornwall, who got yet another 5 wicket haul. The man is an outstanding cricketer, they just have to pick him, size or not.

Since I discovered he existed about a year or so ago, I've kept an eye on him and been impressed.

As for his size, well, imagine Herath being a think and yet still not selecting a spinner because he's fat

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

Warrican with a 7-wicket haul, and Rahkeem with 3 more to his 5 in the first innings dismantled the Lions

 

[Woodster]

I haven't seen him bowl for a couple of years. Is he still very much medium pace. He always seemed more of a bet as a batsman who could give you a few overs rather than as an all rounder.

Didn't manage to see him bowl at all during this first game, so still not sure where his bowling is at. I'm sure he'll keep his place and continue to offer the side some balance in the next game so hopefully get more of a look at him then.

 

[Beamer]

Since I discovered he existed about a year or so ago, I've kept an eye on him and been impressed.

As for his size, well, imagine Herath being a think and yet still not selecting a spinner because he's fat

I totally agree. He keeps piling up ridiculous stats not only in FC cricket and on our pitches but in both home and overseas A tours. He also beasted our List A tournament. They can't hold him back any longer.

Good win for the A team against a strong Lions team but there are some circumstances that should be taken into consideration:

1) The pitch was a bunsen burner yet again, meaning that spinners were in charge from the very start. These pitches do not help us develop.

2) We might have won but as a development exercise it was close to useless. We know Dowrich can bat he just needed confidence. We know Cornwall is a hell of a talent. We know the spinners should take wickets against any English team in these conditions. But the spinners opened the bowling in the 2nd innings. We are trying to develop pacers and hardly saw anything of Keon Joseph, who has looked pretty good whenever he does bowl and is on the cusp of senior selection. None of the batsmen on the fringes scored any runs at all.

3) The umpiring was disgraceful the whole game. I would say mostly in favour of the Lions to be honest, at least that is the definite opinion of West Indies A management. A number of plumb lbws weren't given in that second innings and batsmen were sent packing with a few howlers. That doesn't excuse the behavior of some of our players though, who were making their opinion of the umpires well known throughout the match.

If we actually want to develop and test our players on the fringes of the senior team we need them to play in better conditions and with better umpiring than this. It was good that they got to face the likes of Porter and Roland Jones who did look decent, but it would be nice if we could face them in conditions where the ball carries above ankle height. I want to see what the likes of Campbell and Brooks are made of, how they play the short ball and how Joseph and Louis bowl with a little bit of assistance.

 

[S.Kennedy]

Coughlin was rather impressive under the radar in Australia too.

Good sign for Notts.

If he isn't on the treatment table.

 

[Beamer]

England Lions 145 all out, windies a 150/4.

8 wickets for Warrican. Decent spin bowling by all accounts but it does look like the next generation of England players are awful against finger spin. Rubbish pitch again though.

 

[social]

Some of the pitches in the WI are just diabolical and really arent doing their own players any favours