data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 Posted that at the end of the England innings.
Ten men went to Mo - went to Moeen Ali
Running out of superlatives for this guy - overall a great test match but, 7 for 43 is all too familiar and has been an Achilles heel for way too long now.
England v South Africa: Scrap stump mic after Rabada ban - Michael Vaughan
Saw this story.Ridiculous.Can you imagine if there were mics all over a football pitch.
Every game wouldn't even finish with 5 a sidedata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7//static.avforums.com/styles/avf/smilies/facepalm.gif
Second test at Trent Bridge - can't see this lasting the full quota either. England 3/2, both openers gone and 335 suddenly looks a good score. Unimpressed yesterday with Wood's bowling (again). Overcast conditions today will aid the South African bowlers; England will need to apply themselves to get past the 300 mark.
England are regularly in this situation though, someone always gets them out of a hole.
... and these days it's Root - just passed 50 and quickly too.
At lunch, England 85-2.
Root is out for 78 data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 and 143/4 isn't looking too rosy. All down to the middle order now to make a fist of things.
England v South Africa: Joe Root suffers first defeat as Test captain
Seven defeats in the last ten is worrying actually. Jonathan Agnew said there are no more excuses for England's 'champagne' cricketers. But I'm more concerned about the less fizzy. I thought Jennings was a schoolboy book series in the sixties. Where is Saeed, given his successful debut on the tour of Bangladesh and India? And when you consider what happened to Sam Robson, one can see that an opening partner dilemma is the tip of the iceberg. Why pick Dawson when Rashid was the obvious spin choice? And with Wood only offering pies, what other options are there in the fast bowling department? Where's Footitt (not so long ago hailed as the next best thing)?
It seems to me also that England just pick players who've stacked up runs in the county game. Nothing wrong with that but there is when you play them out of sequence. Ballance ought to be batting at five as he does for Yorkshire; he just doesn't cut it at three.
As for the opener issue, England would perhaps do better to throw someone like Hales back in. The overall problem though, as Boycott rightly points out, is application and mentality. The one-day ethos is too prevalent in our test team and how I would love to see a return of more obdurate batsmen like Randall and Tavare.
I'm afraid our current crop are not capable of batting for one day, let alone two as they were asked to do at Trent Bridge.
Good result for the girls today , down to the wire !!
Too many passengers on the side. There's a core of seven quality players, the others aren't up to it. The Dawson and Ballance selections in particular are just baffling.
I meant Hameed data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Meanwhile fortunately (or unfortunately) Ballance is out of next week's pivotal third test with a broken finger.