[Cricket] Third test: England v India at Southampton, Jul 27-31

[Titanic]

England 53-1 (13.5 overs)

Lead 292

India won't be in a hurry to bowl overs between now and a declaration at or soon after tea... so England will need to keep a good rate going thoughout.

 

[Pavilionaire]

There are times to enforce the follow on, but this isn't one of them. Exactly like you say, batting again is essentially taking the possibility of losing out of the equation. And like Titanic put it, if we can't set a score and bowl them out on 5th day wicket then we were never going to win it. This has definitely put us in the driving seat.

But this assumes England are able to judge how much of a lead we require and how much time we need to bowl them out. England are SHITEHOUSE at this and have also forgotten how to win test matches in the last 12 months. With this bowling attack we need a bare minimum of 4 clear sessions at them - given that we've batted on I'd be looking to declare an hour after lunch, so in 20 overs time. We've already 292 in the lead, at an achievable run a ball we'd be up by 412 with them batting by 3pm.

 

[Triggaaar]

given that we've batted on I'd be looking to declare an hour after lunch, so in 20 overs time. We've already 292 in the lead, at an achievable run a ball we'd be up by 412 with them batting by 3pm.

We're 1 wicket down, and you want us to play the first half of a 20-20 game on a 4th day pitch? I don't think it'll be that easy.

 

[jakarta]

Don't understand why we need more than a 350 lead, I can't imagine that Dhoni will be interested in any sort of run chase.

Time is being taken out of the game by India's snail like over rate - why not biff another fifty or sixty and get them back in shortly after Lunch?

 

[Titanic]

Don't understand why we need more than a 350 lead, I can't imagine that Dhoni will be interested in any sort of run chase.

Time is being taken out of the game by India's snail like over rate - why not biff another fifty or sixty and get them back in shortly after Lunch?

Seriously? Set them 350 in 140 overs? Why on earth would you even think of doing that??

 

[Titanic]

50 partnership for Cook and Ballance (65 balls)

73-1 (lead 312)

 

[dazzer6666]

I think it's a decent decision to bat again. The feeling is the pitch is only going to get worse, so we definitely don't want to put ourselves in a position we could lose by letting them get ahead and then having to bat on bad track. If we treat it like a 50 over game, go out and get 170 to 200 quickly (unless they tear into us, and then we change it slightly), we could have 4 sessions at them on deterioating pitch.

Agree with this, good decision not to enforce the follow on, particularly with only two main bowlers who are both fatigued I'd think. Quick runs this afternoon, then have a good go at them after tea after a longer rest and then another fresh start tomorrow on a 5th day pitch. If we still had a Swann we'd be almost home and hosed, but lack of a test quality spinner might make it harder.

 

[Pavilionaire]

We're 1 wicket down, and you want us to play the first half of a 20-20 game on a 4th day pitch? I don't think it'll be that easy.

I said go at a run a ball and amass 120 in 20 overs. That's not exactly 20-20, you wouldn't win too many matches with a score of 120. Anyway, you have to factor in form - Ballance, Bell and Buttler are all playing well and should find that rate no problem. It doesn't matter if we get it 6 or 7 down provided we get it fairly quickly.

 

[spring hall convert]

England chose not to enforce the follow-on. Is that the right decision?

Yes

If all our bowlers were firing OR we had a super reliable Swann type spinner to go with Anderson and Broad we could have enforced.

As it is, give Broad and Anderson a nice rest, give ourselves 130+ overs to bowl them out and give Mooen Ali every chance of getting the best out of the facilities.

I'm normally shouting out for the follow on but today wasn't the day.

 

[Triggaaar]

I said go at a run a ball and amass 120 in 20 overs. That's not exactly 20-20, you wouldn't win too many matches with a score of 120.

Sorry, you're right, I wasn't thinking.

 

[spring hall convert]

Quality bowling from Kumar.

I think we need to stick by Robson. Opening is an a real mental test, and we are ejecting far too many potential openers without giving them a real chance. I've seen enough from him to think he can get through this stuttering start - although 1, 19, 127, 24, 59, 17, 7, 13 isn't altogether particularly bad.

I agree. By all accounts he got a snorter today - that happens when you open up. He looks like he has an excellent temperament and a decent technique. The technique is easier to work on I'd suggest.

 

[spring hall convert]

Don't understand why we need more than a 350 lead, I can't imagine that Dhoni will be interested in any sort of run chase.

Time is being taken out of the game by India's snail like over rate - why not biff another fifty or sixty and get them back in shortly after Lunch?

You are grossly underestimating the ability of this inexperienced but supremely talented batting card.

 

[Titanic]

Lunch on Day 4

Ballance out for 38... missed it

Yet another SHOCKER from the umpires.

England 80-2 (20.5 overs)

 

[pasty]

Yet another appalling umpire decision. Balance was nowhere near that

80/2 at lunch - technically 319/2

 

[Pavilionaire]

Ballance has done his job there, 5 fours and a six has signalled to the rest of the batsman it's there to be hit - good positive knock.

 

[KZNSeagull]

Another very poor decision to get rid of Ballance. 80-2 at lunch. Another 100 in the next session and get India in before tea.

 

[Simster]

Poor old Ballance - victim of competence TWICE from the same umpire in ONE test match.

 

[dazzer6666]

Hopefully this will go some way to DRS being enforced. Might not be 100% foolproof but it's about reducing the number of obviously incorrect decisions. Getting rid of Erasmus will also help.

 

[Titanic]

Hopefully this will go some way to DRS being enforced. Might not be 100% foolproof but it's about reducing the number of obviously incorrect decisions. Getting rid of Erasmus will also help.

Erasmus and Tucker as the best argument for DRS possible. Perhaps it was a ploy by ICC ??

 

[Mackenzie]

Both Agnew and Vaughan would have followed on.

I think we'll win either way.