Ashes Test Cricket

[Octavious]

200... 7 wickets... and two days...

Well, it's not going to be a draw. The wicket still has life in it, although batting will be getting increasingly challenging as time goes on.

9 times out of 10 you'd give it to Australia, but there's hope.

[MajorMitchell]

This is an excellent Test match. England had a good first session today and moved to within about 100 or 120 runs of winning & only losing one wicket, so at the lunch break were much closer to a win. A few quick wickets and the balance changed to England at 7 for 260 odd needing 88 runs to win. As I watch, it's 7 for 277, 82 runs needed Stokes on 60 & Archer on 7. Stokes has started to "go for it" to try and score runs & that means taking a few more risks, but that's what he should do, Archer and the other remaining "batsmen" are "tail enders" & Stokes can't expect them to score most of the required runs. Archer just smacked two fours of Lyons so it's 73 runs required for England to win. 3 wickets needed by Australia to win. Excellent Cricket

[MajorMitchell]

Lyon strikes back, Archer had another "big swing at the ball" & has been caught in the outfield. 73 runs required for England to win. Two wickets needed by Australia

[MajorMitchell]

Chris Broad out lbw on the second ball he faced for a duck. 73 runs required, but Australia now only need one more wicket...

[MajorMitchell]

Stokes is batting brilliantly, now on 115 and only 18 runs needed for England to win. Given Stokes bowling performance in the Australian second innings, he is staking a strong claim on "man of the match"

[MajorMitchell]

Been Stokes hits a four to win the game. Stokes 135 not out & he would surely be "man of the match". England right back into the battle for the Ashes, the series now one win to each side. Australia made some mistakes in the final overs. Wasted a review on a Leash lbw off Cummins not out decision, then a run out when Lyon fumbled the ball & an lbw that should have been given out wasn't, and Australia had no reviews left. I also think Australia bowled too many short balls.
Brilliant cricket & great entertainment.

[teccles]

What an extraordinary finish. An amazing innings from Ben Stokes, playing carefully when the situation called for it before accelerating magnificently to hit 76 runs off 45 balls while Jack Leach played defensively from the other end.

[Octavious]

Never any doubt

[Octavious]

England have already announced their team for the 4th test.

1. Stokes
2. Stokes
3. Stokes
4. Stokes (c)
5. Stokes
6. Stokes (wk)
7. Stokes
8. Stokes
9. Stokes
10. Stokes
11. Leach

[BunnyGo]

That was the most exciting test match I ever remember.

And yet, I think it was yet another nail in Joel Wilson's coffin of being an elite. I doubt he'll be working many more top tests. It's been shameful. As great as Ben Stokes was, he was dead to rights one run shy. But blind Joel Wilson saved the match (and Paine wasting his review on stupidness).

[diplomat61]

Headingley '81, with a seemingly impossible victory, is the only match that is comparable to this in my memory.

My wife and I had to go out when there was about an hour to go. When I checked the score/result she refused to believe me, twice.

[diplomat61]

And yet, I think it was yet another nail in Joel Wilson's coffin of being an elite.

The umps have had a terrible series. Consequently they have lost confidence in themselves, which is sad to see.

As before, I was impressed with the reasonably quick, smoothly done, review process in cricket; which produces results that are shared with the audience and almost never arguable (were Root's fingers under the ball?).

Contrast that with the (much newer) VAR system in football that is totally opaque and often produces what appear to be downright wrong decisions.

[Octavious]

Bloody hell, but he can bat...

[BunnyGo]

Bloody hell, but he can bat...

Pretty ugly, but he makes it work.

[Octavious]

What's ugly is Overton batting so early. I've never been convinced by the logic of the nightwatchman, and I don't think I ever will.

[BunnyGo]

It doesn't make sense to me either, but I thought that was because I was an American who only recently discovered the wonder of the game. Is Overton less likely to get out than Root or Roy? Well, then what do you do when he gets out? Give them Leach?

I mean, I guess the logic is, better to lose 1 wicket with a batter that isn't going to score much anyways, than one who is'.

[teccles]

The logic is that a batsman is more likely to get out in the first part of their innings than later, because they get used to the bowling/conditions/something. I'm pretty sure that's true from patterns of scoring. So if you send Root in, he has to get used to the conditions twice - once at night and once in the morning - so he's more likely to get out early overall. Better to have that happen to Overton.

[Octavious]

Yeah, but it's far more likely to happen to Overton because he's a mediocre batsman in difficult conditions, and when it does the situation is very little improved. Put your decent batsman in and have confidence in him to bat sensibly until the conditions improve and he can turn it up a bit.

[Octavious]

Why are Australia still batting?!?

[BunnyGo]

Why are Australia still batting?!?

Fear of Stokes.