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I've been reading some of the articles and comments on the BBC cricket pages, there's panic on the streets, England written off, sweeping changes needed to the team selection, everyone is an expert selector now, Jimmy Anderson ruled out means we lose 0-5, deep rooted issues in the ECB's strategy etc...etc...etc.
Yes there are issues in the teams strengths and it appears that the current Aussie team are several percentage points better than the England team and may well retain the Ashes but I'm sure England will hold a good account of themselves overall.
Despite winning the CWC, England are not the best team in the world but they can win crucial games at crucial times and with a bit of scrappy luck with the weather, pitch conditions, umpire's decisions and just a little brilliance here and there may scrape some results.
There's time to turn this around and it's a little early to write them off just yet.
Just like it would take something special to avoid going out at the group stage of the world cup?
A little cup half full optimism goes a long way, probably in many aspects of UK life at the moment.
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You keep your sunny uplands and evidence-free optimism for the Brexit thread
The ECB tore up the FC schedule and made winning the World Cup the absolute number one objective. Test and T20 form didn't matter a toss. Had we gone out in the group stages, it would have represented perhaps the greatest concentrated English cricketing failure ever given the resources and scheduling and sacrifices made chasing that big ol' trophy.
Australia right now:
Their wicketkeeper is better than ours
Their spinner is better than ours
Their opening partnership is better than ours
Their talisman batsman is better than ours and they've got two of them as opposed to our one.
Their middle order is better than ours
Their pace battery, both selected and in reserve, is better than ours
Their coach is better than ours
Their domestic structure across both genders is better than ours
Their beer is still shit though.
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
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But never mind, we'll see how the next couple of test go to see how England fare.
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
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Never mind Jofra Archer, England will be calling Jeffrey Archer at this rate
Jake Ball is out of the picture. 14 wickets in 7 CC matches at 46 in a season that has been good for seamers isn't the form to convince selectors you should be in a Test team when your international average is currently 114. Olly Stone and Lewis Gregory are injured so they are out. Archer is bowling well but I would feel somewhat worried about picking a guy who played a long tournament in agony for a five day match when we've just had Jimmy pull up lame during a game.
TRJ is back to full fitness and has been bowling well. 19 wickets in his last 2 CC outings in July. Hat trick in the 20slog against Glamorgan. Lords is his home track and I'd have no worries about him going straight in there.
Personally I'd go with this line up:
Burns
Sam Curran
Root
Roy
Buttler (if he is absolutely blasted then give him a break. James Hildreth, Tom Banton, Sibley, Crawley, takes yer pick)
Stokes
Foakes
Woakes
Broad
TRJ
Leach
Only two of this side don't have first class tons: Curran and Leach. On paper, they can all bat. On a grass wicket in a Test match...
Steve James advocated Roy at 4. Sure, I can go with that. There is an argument that Denly offers a 2nd spinner option: I don't think you'll need that at Lords. The weather is up and down over the next week and I'm of the mind that Lords will be a bit handy for the seamers. Sam Curran opening! Yes! I've touted this before and I'll do it again. The guy can bat. If he could do half the job the SA allrounder Andrew Hall did against India and Sri Lanka when he covered for Herschelle Gibbs, we'd be onto a winner. Curran opening wouldn't make our opening partnership any worse than it has been and his bowling would be a greater asset at Lords than Denly's legspin.