The Cricket Thread

I’m ok with players being fair game if they’re out of their crease when the ball is in play. This one, in itself, looks a bit scummy.. he wasn’t trying to gain an advantage (not like batsmen starting their run early and then crying when they get Mankad’d). If his other wandering was the same kind of thing… just going for a stroll before the ball is officially dead… I’d definitely call it unsportsmanlike, and wouldn’t want my team to do it.

But if my team did it to tilt an Ashes test in their favour, I’d get over it. Rules is rules, innit.

I'm just going to leave this here.

At least we can be sure things will calm down swiftly, what with the next Test starting Thursday at the famously relaxed and even handed Headingley.

Oh god, they're still whinging about Haddin gloving Broad's edge to Clarke.

Both sides bitch and moan when it's not going their way, and both sides selectively quote the anomalous "spirit of the game" when the letter of the law doesn't suit their argument. Simply, Australia are 2 up, and they deserve to be.

Agree totally with this. England’s stupidity in both tests (the declaration at Edgbaston, the hooking at Lords) has helped Australia but they deserve to be winning. The Bairstow stumping was cheeky but he’s dumb for giving them the opportunity- this is supposed to be hard fought.

I think Bazball worked for a bit because it surprised people and the opposition got sucked into it but Australia are better prepared and able to watch England be unconventional, while still playing their own game.

I don't give much of a fuck about cricket and who wins what.

But Aussies are pretty universal cunts in a sporting context, bad winners and bad losers, so any chance to rile them is ok by me!

Is it a bit early to be throwing the Bazball out with the bathwater? Both tests have been entertaining and competitive and, against a side which is very strong all over, it feels like England’s bowling has been the weakness… as you’d expect with Jimmy being 41 in May, Stokes probably not at his fighting weight, even the below-par spinner missing, Archer made of glass, and really only Broad, who is also old enough to register for Talkback, an established and fit top-level threat.

Sure, some wickets have been thrown away… but playing the old way we’d probably have been tonked twice with only a couple of quality Root knocks to feel good about.

Since deciding Australia are my second team watching cricket has got a lot easier.

I'd probably air towards not in the spirit of the game but no where near enough to be arsed to defend that position. It made for a cracking hours telly though. Cross Stuart Broad is an excellent watch, a perfect balance of piss taking combined with genuine anger and aggression.

That’s fucked up. I’m a citizen, and and it’s still anyone but them. Well, except South Africa, obviously.

I am fine to be pleased for them and theirs in any sport that I don’t care about, or that they are not very good at. Olympic gold medal in the 423m Swimming Backwards Whilst Reciting Beat Poetry.. Go Aussies Go! Cricket?.. yeah-nah.

You can still get a healthy dose of righteous umbrage in NZ about Aussie sportsmanship by mentioning underarm bowling.

And in all my years of football watching, I've never seen such one-eyed refereeing villainy as in the Australian soccer league.

Bodyline was nearly 100 years ago Tricky. Pretty soon, no one will have been alive when it happened. Time to move on.

[Jardine clearly was a tosser though.]

Bazball is great at the right time, but you've got to have another tactic if the first one won't work. That's the problem with their implementation, not the idea of positive cricket per se.