2 minute readWe don’t believe you can draw meaningful conclusions from players’ debuts – but we report on them anyway. Craig Overton looks like a big fast bowler. Then he humphs in and dobbles it like a good ‘un. Dobblery is not a craft that is highly regarded in Test cricket, but
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England have (apparently) been lacking motivation
2 minute readThe Ashes, you know, it’s hard to really get up for. Hard to get up at 5am or whatever and hard to get up in the ‘come on, let’s give it everything’ sense too. Or at least that’s the way England have been painting things. James Anderson said the tourists
Continue readingChris Tremlett’s shirt and Jonathan Trott’s listening face
< 1 minute readThe latest instalment of ‘seemingly random screengrabs from ECB videos’ brings us Chris Tremlett busting out of a black shirt and Jonathan Trott either fed up with his cold, pondering his own mortality or drifting off into a coma or something. Just look at the strain on those poor buttons.
Continue readingThe very obvious way in which England can add variety to their bowling, lengthen their batting and improve their fielding
< 1 minute readPaul Collingwood! When a bowling attack’s a bit fast-medium, people always hanker after “genuine pace” – but what about genuine medium-pace? That brings variety too. If Paul Collingwood were to play instead of Jake Ball say, they’d not only benefit from some devastating dibbly dobbly military medium, they could also
Continue readingWe’re pretty sure we know why Jonny Bairstow headbutted Cameron Bancroft
2 minute readYou can fight hard for a couple of innings, but when all seems lost it can become really hard to summon the enthusiasm and make any real effort. You can’t judge people too harshly on what happens in these circumstances. You might consider that a comment on England’s later efforts
Continue readingAre England on the brink of defeat or the verge of defeat?
< 1 minute readJudging by the headlines, this seems to be the main question remaining from the first Test. Brinks are outnumbering verges from what we’ve seen. We’re yet to see a cusp. Despite fielding fewer bowlers than England, Australia have had a greater number of effective ones in this Test. Chris Woakes
Continue readingBT Sport are doing a free daily 10-minute Ashes highlights package
< 1 minute readIt’s Ronseally named The Ashes Catch-Up Show and it’s available on their website from 7pm each day. 10 minutes isn’t exactly life-changing but it’s better than the proverbial kick in the teeth and far, far better than a literal kick in the teeth. It’s also a very dense, action-packed ten
Continue readingSteve Smith named man of the series as Australia fans laud captain’s attacking approach
2 minute readFans and pundits alike are agreed that Steve Smith will be the difference between the two sides in this year’s Magellan Ashes (movement rate of all ships is increased by two). He has therefore been named man of the series, even though we’re barely halfway through the first Test. Some
Continue readingSteve Smith erodes delight
2 minute readSteve Smith is a very boring batsman these days. There’s so little jeopardy about his play that it’s hard to feel interested. For much of the latter part of the day, events progressed along a railroad with no possibility for detours. Some would say he’s the best batsman in the
Continue readingMassive weaknesses and massive strengths – the first few pages of the story of James Vince and Australia’s bowling attack
2 minute readOn the first day of the first Ashes Test, James Vince made what Reese described to us as ‘a daddy 30’. No-one expected Vince to make 83 and what’s so marvellous about that is that it undermines a number of pre-series certainties to leave us all watching a nice, unpredictable
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