England Cricket 2024
- Thread starter littlebabyjesus
- Start date
Ted Striker
Foot's on the other hand
Yes I'm glad the stats got a boost, and therefore no-one will do a cold (though not entirely without legitimate consideration) analysis of his performance and evaluate him as ineffective. Fast is all well and good ...But nothing without accuracy, and if it's not effective enough (control, able to take wickets, brainspace to adapt to batter/match conditions) its vanity - and why we love Cricket is that stats can rarely lie in this regard, over a long enough window.
It's clear the Elite England coaches are going to show much more attention and support to faster bowlers - I don't think the next few years are going to be a good time to be an English medium Fast (c80mph) swing seamers, you'll need to be 'Australia' fast.
But that does leave less room for error. Elite batsmen can play Fast-Fast bowlers (and score well - any bat ball connection will race away). It's really only a few FastFast's that consistently regularly terrorise teams like you assume they will (Walsh/Ambrose/M Johnson to Eng).
Ted Striker
Foot's on the other hand
Yep, tbh he's one of my all time favourite sportspeople- he played (and talks about) the game as if he was one of us fans (and as revealed with his commentary, can explain decisions and reasoning behind lots going on in the game in a fairly easy-to-listen way).
Zapp Brannigan
Built like a steakhouse, handles like a bistro
Batters* can cope with 95mph when the only thing to judge is whether it's a short or length ball; duck or pull the short, straight bat to length.
Wood took his wickets in this last test making use of reverse swing on offer. There's not one human alive who can accurately judge variable swing at that express pace, the straight bat becomes a liability when you can't know what line the ball will be on when it reaches the crease.
Take Shaun Tait as an example. He was wildly erratic, but still a potent weapon for the Aussies because batters couldn't ever feel comfortable leaving outside off stump with his prodigious late in swing to the right hander. I'd guess his stats for played on must have been well above the normal, because of playing the wrong line to a ball that should have been a leave.
If Wood can keep consistent movement through the air with that frankly ludicrous pace, then the wickets will continue to come. And it's fabulous entertainment, the crowds have come alive with his short, hostile spells.
*Good batters I mean, not the likes of me who'd struggle with 72mph arrow straight.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
Yep. Wood struggled last winter in India. As you say, just being fast was not enough. England tour Pakistan again next winter. Will be interesting to see if he can get it to reverse there. Pakistan is the spiritual home of reverse swing. He might just be an old-ball specialist in those conditions.
I've read a fair bit about scientific theories on swing. The general consensus with reverse swing in particular is that you need higher speeds to achieve it than conventional swing. It's all about creating temporary differentials in turbulence around the ball.
Seeing a stump cartwheeling out of the ground is a marvellous sight.
I've read a fair bit about scientific theories on swing. The general consensus with reverse swing in particular is that you need higher speeds to achieve it than conventional swing. It's all about creating temporary differentials in turbulence around the ball.
Seeing a stump cartwheeling out of the ground is a marvellous sight.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
It would be interesting to analyse why Wood is so much faster than almost everyone else. He's not tall. He's not big and muscly. He does put absolutely everything into every ball. Don't think I've ever seen anyone strain their body to that extent when bowling. When you freeze on his delivery stride, it looks like he's going to snap his ankle.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
My favourite reverse-swing dismissal ever. 
Great commentary from Benaud.
Well outside off stump there... But not there.
Great commentary from Benaud.
Well outside off stump there... But not there.
planetgeli
There's no future in England's dreaming
Shaun Tait is a really weird example when you could have used Waqar or Steyn.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
They weren't wildly erratic.
But the example of Waqar is a good one to take forward to Pakistan. The difference in that spell yesterday was that he pitched either short or full, and it was the full ones that took the wickets. That's what he will need to do in Pakistan. In the past, Wood has been guilty of pounding the middle of the pitch too much. A good example was that absurd day when England lost the plot against Shami and Bumrah - almost none of the deliveries were hitting the stumps.
Tait was a t20 specialist mostly, mind. hard to get reverse swing in a t20 match. Watched him live in the Blast a couple of times. He was scarily quick.
planetgeli
There's no future in England's dreaming
Neither is Wood. The fact Tait was wildly erratic, well, I don't get the point of the comparison.
The point surely is accurate reverse swing. Waqar practically invented it, Steyn got pretty good at it, which is where we are now hopefully with Wood.
I think Tait holds some sort of record for the most wides conceded in one of the best bowling analyses.
Zapp Brannigan
Built like a steakhouse, handles like a bistro
I went with Tait because he was 6 or 7mph faster than Waqar or Steyn ever were. Nowhere near as controlled or as accurate as either, but someone who made good use of being erratic.
I don't think Wood will ever be a metronomic "top of off" bowler or a controlling user of swing, but someone who allies blistering pace with a limited but useful other skill-set.
Monkeygrinder's Organ
Dodgy geezer swilling vapid lager
I suspect there'd be some sort of element of genetic freakery in there somewhere. I've no idea what it might be - unusually flexible tendons or something, I don't know - but some sort of natural attribute which others don't have.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
I agree with geli, though, that Wood isn't erratic. Direction-wise, he's actually very consistent. He doesn't do that Devon Malcolm thing of flinging the odd one miles down leg for four byes/five wides.
Zapp Brannigan
Built like a steakhouse, handles like a bistro
That's fair. I may be guilty of taking my thinking of "he's not Mcgrath landing it on a sixpence" to the nth degree and coming up with the most extreme example.
Roll it back to my original point - pace on its own is a limited weapon, ally it with other skills and it's unplayable!
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
yeah, I suspect that as well. I remember reading something about fast bowling and a coach saying that, essentially, 'you can't teach speed'. Steyn was another - not particularly big or physical - and he was specifically picked up as a teenager because of his speed. At the time, he sprayed it all over the place. The coaches were wise enough not to try to beat that out of him as he would have lost his speed.
England have had a history of picking bowlers and then having them lose their speed. Steven Finn comes to mind. Hopefully they've wised up a bit now.
planetgeli
There's no future in England's dreaming
Won't last. never does
Joe Root goes to No. 1 on the ICC rankings for Test batters
It is the ninth time that he has been at the top of the table
Something else that doesn't last but is good. It's his 9th time there.
Wood is in the top 20 bowlers for the first time.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
Knew he had had health problems. England's only world-class batter for a period in the 90s. Winning in the darkness of Karachi probably the highlight.
surreybrowncap
“Those who believe in telekinetics, raise my hand"
Even sadder now that it has been revealed that Graham Thorpe had taken his own life...
He had suffered severe depression and anxiety for many years..
RIP Graham...
He had suffered severe depression and anxiety for many years..
RIP Graham...
Yeh. Very sad. I've had a coupla mates end their own lives when on the surface things were fine. Really feel sorry for (both) his families - I think he had 4 kids from two different marriages?
Some of the excerpts from his book ring very true with myself actually. Very sorry for the pain he was feeling.
Some of the excerpts from his book ring very true with myself actually. Very sorry for the pain he was feeling.
surreybrowncap
“Those who believe in telekinetics, raise my hand"
Live cricket if anyone interested..
England Lions v Sri Lanka..
England Lions v Sri Lanka..
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
He's considering giving t20 franchise a go. That's not a comeback. He's never done it. Four overs a day. He can manage that. Why not?
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
Bold move to replace a batting allrounder with a bowler. Might they have been tempted by two spinners at OT? I like Potts and that's a strong-looking bowling line-up. I think they must really rate Smith as a batter, and why not?
I expect SL to give England a good challenge. Lots of quality in their team. They'll be hoping for some heat, though.
I expect SL to give England a good challenge. Lots of quality in their team. They'll be hoping for some heat, though.
planetgeli
There's no future in England's dreaming
Lawrence is opening. Mmmm.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
Be interesting to see what happens if Lawrence scores runs. He may even get to have a twirl, and boy does he twirl.
When Crawley comes back, the obvious player whose place Lawrence would be challenging would be Pope, the current captain.
When Crawley comes back, the obvious player whose place Lawrence would be challenging would be Pope, the current captain.
