if you think it’s easier to build a batting average playing 5 for Zimbabwe than 7 for one of the greatest teams of all time then I’m not sure what to talk about next

I think Flower was a better keeper because I watched a lot of test cricket. Gilly got better but was never a particularly great keeper, particularly to spin

How old are you feel wrath if you don't mind me asking?

Sehwag and Gibbs for me as openers. I want to be entertained and people who can actually turn matches. Also Allister cook has to be considered for longevity.

Agreed. Yeah certainly don’t remember Gilly standing up to non-spinners which is the real sign of a great keeper

Kept up to the stumps for Bracken in ODIs after the first spell (who would be 125-135kph at the time).

I think Gilchrist's keeping was fine but below the peak of genuine keepers.

His average is definitely lower than someone like SR Waugh (the R stood for red ink)

I raised my bat for my half century last year

Gilchrist's keeping skills are the equivalent of Healy's by today's Australian standards.

Yep, it’s pretty bleak at the moment.

I’d have Alan Knott l, Heals and Jack Russell as the best glovemen I can remember. I want to add Derek Murray but I was honestly too young to really evaluate him - just remember him being brilliant

Fair play.

I'll take your word for it on Flower but I'm convinced I'm not 100% wrong about a good player in a bad team. Maybe just 80% wrong, but there's something there I'm confident.

it might even be less than that because not outs are definitely a thing. But Gilly coming in at 5-290 as opposed to Flower coming in at 3-32 or sth must surely be a better platform to score.

like…I can’t believe Root wouldn’t have scored more runs in the Ashes if there were guys scoring centuries at the other end

Take a bow, Jason Holder.
England needing 19 off the final over.

nb, dot, wicket, wicket, wicket, wicket.

not trying to take anything away from him but there's so much variance in these final overs

criminal overstep
good wide yorker
caught on the boundary
caught on the boundary
caught on the boundary
inside edge onto stumps from a #10

approximately 300 of Ian Botham’s 383 test wickets came from terrible balls. It’s quite the skill to bowl exactly the right kind of pie capable of taking a wicket

figured out a little angle on limited overs matches which works on william hill

find a game in which the first innings will be impacted by rain. you need the rain to arrive some time after play has started (ie it cant be raining to begin with).

the alternative over/under runs markets have a cashout option on WH. this is important. the main o/u market doesn't have a cashout option. must use one of the alternative lines for this.

bet the under on one of these alternative markets. if wickets fall early then WH will give you the option to cash out for a profit.

if runs are flowing, leave the bet alone. once the rain starts to fall and the overs in the game are reduced you'll get your money back.

heads i win, tails you draw

have been watching a lot of this u19 ODI tourney. there's a south african higher order batsman named Brevis who is the real deal.

lot of decent bats in the england side. we might be hearing from Bethell and Prest sooner rather than later. Bethell was born in Barbados and moved here when he was 12 and so looks set to continue the proud tradition of leading English cricketers that aren't English.

Bell is down the order and also looks like he has a good technique although on the downside he looks about 9 years old. dont know if ian bell has anything to do with him but they do look alike.

declaring now that one of our openers, george thomas, does not have the technique required to play at a high level - this is so that someone can langer me in 5 years time

england will be in the final unless afghanistan can pull off a worldie here, and will face either aus or ind

Pakistan seem to have uncovered a gem.
Captain, Qasim Akram comes in at 3 and hits 135 off 80 balls, then opens the bowling and so far has taken 3 for 7 from 2 overs.

He ended up with a 5fer

In other news Silverwood joins Giles in the dole queue

i might be witnessing the worst innings of the decade

Isaac Higgins batting 5th for the aussies in the u19 ODI vs afghanistan has 2 runs off 26 balls, and the 2 was from a dab that went gently to a fielder in the ring and the fielder let it go through his legs

if he gets out now its functionally no scoring shots off 27 balls in a limited over match by a middle order batsman

Just hit a boundary through the hands of backward point lol.

aussies making hard work of this. if we make a rule to say that they have to give the class of '22 a go in a future ashes series and maybe ban that bloke who can bowl with both arms we might win a test match against them

Did I read correctly that Australia are actually leaving their prison state and touring somewhere for the first time since forever?

They went to Bangladesh last year

Watching Higgins bat at 5am in the morning was extremely painful you can be rest assured

I'm going to assume it might be difficult for a few of you England supporters to accept the news if Bayliss becomes Australian coach.

Edit: also happy that Langer got the axe that despite the England result our performances last year against India at home really sealed his fate as we really ought to have won that last test match and we would have got into the test championship if we did.

I wouldn’t care if an Australian got the job at all. Not 0.1%

But I don’t think it’s much about the coach anyway. It’s about the cattle and England just don’t have them