2 minute readYou’ve got to break partnerships in Australia. You’ve got to somehow take wickets when the ball ain’t doin’ a right lot. This Australia bowling attack seems ill-suited to the task. Today one wicket fell – to Marcus North. No matter how flat the pitch, no Australian bowling attack should completely
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Batting partnerships in Australia and breaking them
< 1 minute readJames Anderson started with a blinding spell to Mike Hussey, but as we said yesterday, the cricket after the new ball matters too. It’s easy to look on the first hour of the third day as being England’s chance to break the Hussey-Haddin partnership, but Test cricket in Australia is
Continue readingThe cricket after the new ball matters too
< 1 minute readYesterday’s theme was of how bowling success can be about playing well frequently rather than extremely well occasionally. You remember great bowlers for the occasions when they took 7-20; when the ball was swinging or turning a mile. But often those performances aren’t what made those players’ reputations. It’s often
Continue readingA fact and a question from the Gabba
< 1 minute readWhat we learnt last night: Stew is not a stimulant And here’s a question for you: Shouldn’t Mitchell Johnson’s tattooed arm be ‘the doing arm’?
Continue readingListen to the tin!
< 1 minute readUnsure how to approach opening the bowling in the Ashes? Simply consult ‘the tin’. “Jimmy does what it says on the tin – he swings it both ways at pace with the new ball.” – Peter Moores The tin is clearly very wise.
Continue readingAshes contradictions and how we think the series might pan out
< 1 minute readWe have written a piece for Cricinfo about how we are massively pessimistic about England’s chances no matter what the evidence in front of us. We have also said that England will win 3-2 over at World Cricket Watch. The truth is that we are pessimistic by default, but hate
Continue readingIs the lead-up to the Ashes the best bit?
< 1 minute readWe sometimes wonder, because in a way, it’s when Test cricket’s shown at its best. No-one’s actually playing, but the fact that we still have so much to talk about despite that highlights what makes Test cricket better than every other sport. Even luge. Will the humidity in Brisbane aid
Continue readingMedia cheat sheet for England cricketers
< 1 minute readThe Ashes is all about propaganda, so we have produced a handy media cheat sheet for England’s cricketers. It is over at Cricinfo. The article currently seems to be ‘big on Facebook’. We’re not on Facebook, so we don’t really know what that means. As far as we can tell,
Continue readingHow many times will England become airborne?
< 1 minute readWe only ask because they’re hitting the ground running with alarming frequency. After Ben Hilfenhaus looked forward to a sprint landing last week, some of you questioned our assertion that cricketers no longer know what ‘hit the ground running’ means. Well, consider this new evidence. England’s captain’s had a go
Continue readingDr Pietersen, he talks with the animals, talks with the animals…
< 1 minute readLike most people, we’ve always assumed that Kevin Pietersen was a trained zoologist. That was proven this week when he offered this insight into the workings of the animal kingdom when talking about the Australian cricket team: “They’re a wounded animal at the moment and you know what happens when
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