The Ashes 2013(4)

You only know how good a pitch is when both teams have batted he mutters in a Boycott-esque style.

Panesar and Swann together would have been a bold pick but look how Australia fared against spin in India.

I'm off to Durham for the 4th Test next weekend, hoping for sunshine!

Bruce

Aus 527/7 Dec

England now need to grind it out without loss until stumps to begin to get the phycological advantage moving back in their favour.  Its imperative they forget the day & 2 sessions slogging in the field & just give Aus a dose of the same & then some. The top 5 need to get 100's or close to it while the pitch is flat.    

I think this is good stuff. England have actually batted inconsistently so far this series, and Cook, Pietersen and Trott now have to deliver.

Bruce

52/2 at the close !!!!   Not a great start lads

Night-watch-man Bresnan did not review his dismissal, surly he must have known he didn't hit it. 

Even after a chat with Cook they decided against a review - Cook that was a bad move.  

Its time the DRS was dropped,  its not all conclusive like Hawkeye is with tennis,  it looks like both teams confidence in it seems to be equal only to the farce that its brought to this series.

A bad morning for England 119/4 at lunch

Trott gone very cheaply for 5,  Cook gone for 62 is not what we hoped for or what he needs as a captain that is not coming up with the goods in a number of ways

Its up to Pietersen & Bell now, just watching the last 20 minutes before lunch I am not at all happy with Pietersen, he looks to be taking too many risks,  what was he doing with that one armed drive ??? 

We cannot afford another loss in the next session,  that has to be the final balwark & all we have to look forward to is the ignominy of the follow-on.  

Eng 294/7 at the close - not a great day for England  !!!!

The Aus bowlers seem to be able to fool the bat most of the time & for sure have the upper hand. 

Follow-on target is 328 & based on how England are batting at the close, I don't see that being an easy reach.   We can only hope for a seriously better 2nd innings from England & hope that the bowlers can have some red letter results when (if) Aus get to bat again. 

A draw at this stage will be a good result for England unfortunately. 

I just saw the Pietersen dismissal & it looks to me he had a touch on the hot-spot - I refer the house to my previous statement on DRS.

..and 'snicko-meter' seems to show the ball hit the inside edge.

Follow-on will be key, I think. If England pass 328 Clarke will have real conundrum: set too big a target and England will hunker down and go for the draw (all they need), so he might be tempted to set a competitive target, which would make things really interesting. 

Looks like it gonna be all in vain for both sides

Rain is forecast for this afternoon & tomorrow,  at best it'll be rain interrupted.

So when will the declaration come? A lead of 350, perhaps?

Aus 172/7  - 331 ahead & bad light stopped play

Surly they must declare,  if the light does improve it won't be that good & a few fired up overs at England before the close in the gloom will really turn the screw.   

Its raining,  I guess thats it for the day & the match

WX says rain tomorrow until 13:00 then showers

With the weather forecast it's hard to see a positive result on Day 5, unless something quite extraordinary happens. Pity really, given the first four days.  Cook will be happy with a draw, of course, but Clark will feel a bit cheated that his chances of securing a victory are fast disappearing.

MDS

Australia have won the majoirity of the session to date-but I'm not sure that lyon and Co. would have won it today. Shame, I'd have wanted us to retain the Ashes on the field not under a brolly.

Here is hoping for better weather, and perhaps a more intresting wicket in Durham (although I cannot really see either happening).

Time for Trott to start scoring too. Onions for Bresnan?

Bruce

Oh dear. Three down and I can see why Pieterson is grumpy. No hot spot evidence that he got an edge. Maybe it is the Aussies day? 

Eng 35/3 at lunch

Looking for 332 runs but maybe a better idea is to look for rain

Not watching but reading the bloggs,  seems Pietersen didn't get a hotspot touch but there was a snick noise.  I again refer the house to my previous DRS remark

Good to see a garbage DRS decision going back the other way 

Do the powers to be really think as DRS stands now it is they way to go ? 

Don't you just love Cricket?

I don't want it to rain-this is great stuff.

Suddenly the game turns, every ball is a spitting hand grenade and runs are impossible to score. Batsmen are transfixed, fielders cocky and expecting a wicket with every ball.

No game like it-to play or watch. We had our opposition on Saturday 15 for 5 from 11 overs at one point.

DRS does appear in crisis. To overturn the onfield umpire call seems to me to require significant burden of proof when a snick is suspected. Rather like overturning LBW when more than half the ball must have hit (or missed) to over-rule. Like the Rugby 4th official, the question should be any reason not to.. rather than basically saying if it referred the whole decision goes to the TV umpire.

Bruce

Snicko clearly shows a touch so the original out decision for Pieterson seems to be right but of course snicko is not part of DRS. So with nothing showing on  'hot spot' how does the third umpire conclude that the original decision is right? Isn't the benefit meant to go with the batsman? I can see why players get frustrated with DRS and I suspect in private the umpires do too.   

Would be interesting to have the umpires view of the current system. The onfield umpire seems to have the worst of both worlds; his decisions challenged then lack of respect in the outcome of that challenge.

Several players have correctly commented they can understand and accept onfield umpires malking a live call and getting it wrong. The issues is making sure that referred decisions are right according to avaialable technology and rules/laws.

Match Drawn - so England retain the Ashes.  Durham next.

Durham - Durham - Durham Durham Durham

BARMY ARMY