The Ashes 2023

[WhyLikeThis]

Note there’s a high likelihood of change tomorrow (see synoptic chart).

 

[Idaho]

Watching highlights for the last couple of days - the number of inside edges that came within a whisker of playing on is crazy.

 

[Santino]

2:45 start. Here we, here we, here we fucking go...

 

[Petcha]

Tomorrow

Old Trafford - BBC Weather

14-day weather forecast for Old Trafford.

www.bbc.co.uk

edit. that doesnt link directly to sunday but im sure you genuises can figure it out. they're gonna need to knock them over today.

 

[Petcha]

They just had the BBC weather guy on TMS saying tomorrow's fucked. The whole country will be brighter. Except..

 

[WhyLikeThis]

Where is the Beard that’s Feared?

 

[pbsmooth]

Who was talking about the Aussies wasting time? Stokes and Co barely going any faster.

 

[Spymaster]

These two are batting very well together.

 

[Cerberus]

I can accept the draw and the Ashes disappearing a bit more now there’s been some play today. Aussies have dug in well and played shots too

 

[WhyLikeThis]

I’m not minding having the spinners being forced to bowl.

 

[Spymaster]

I can accept the draw and the Ashes disappearing a bit more now there’s been some play today. Aussies have dug in well and played shots too

A bit more palatable but it would still suck balls.

 

[Cerberus]

I can accept the draw and the Ashes disappearing a bit more now there’s been some play today. Aussies have dug in well and played shots too

Thank me later

 

[Elpenor]

Nelson does it again

 

[WhyLikeThis]

Green hasn’t looked too clever against spin either.

 

[brogdale]

Bairstow held one!

Now, ftlog, please just Bounce. The. Tail. Out.

tbf, that was a reasonable take

 

[Spymaster]

We can get into them here

 

[Spymaster]

tbf, that was a reasonable take

Surprised the umpire gave it not out.

 

[brogdale]

No sarnies for Aus; they're all up there praying for the rain to return

 

[WhyLikeThis]

Surprised the umpire gave it not out.

Surprised the umpires were complaining about the light yet both wearing sunglasses.

 

[brogdale]

No sarnies for Aus; they're all up there praying for the rain to return

the fuckers

 

[WhyLikeThis]

 

[QueenOfGoths]

Latest info from the BBC

 

[Petcha]

In total agreement with Root here. Who the fuck is actually making these rules. Stokes and Baz are doing their absolute best to make test cricket viable and then we have this absurd situation

Joe Root has been doing the media rounds this morning, and has been speaking to the BBC's Test Match Special about the frustrations of losing overs across this week.
"There's a number of different ways you could look at it," Root said. "It doesn't get dark until 10 o'clock here in the summer. Why can't we just keep playing until we bowl the overs? There's been a lot of talk about over-rates and guys getting fined, but there's still opportunity to play because the light is still good enough.

"[There is] talk about Test cricket and trying to keep it as the pinnacle of the game. Well, if you're fining the best players for playing it with a slow over-rate, it's not going to encourage guys coming in or on the periphery to go down that route. There are so many different ways of trying to find opportunities of getting as much play in as possible. I feel like, at every opportunity, you should be trying to find ways of getting the game on.

"It's easy to say when you're in a position of strength like we are now, but just in general. You look at that Edgbaston Test: we went out and played in similar conditions, if not worse conditions, batted before the rain hit us, and ended up losing two wickets at the start of that second innings. But that's cricket.

"In England, it doesn't get dark until 10pm. Why not start earlier? Whatever it is, if you need to make overs up, instead of punishing teams for being slow on over-rates, can you find other ways of maximising play and finding chances of getting as much cricket in as possible? Why do you have to have hard and fast rules: why not play until the overs are done?"

 

[planetgeli]

Bit annoying when I've been staring at sunny blue skies all morning. You'd get 90 overs in today here.

Tbf, it never stopped raining here yesterday, all day. You'd have got no play at all. But today...

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Bit annoying when I've been staring at sunny blue skies all morning. You'd get 90 overs in today here.

Tbf, it never stopped raining here yesterday, all day. You'd have got no play at all. But today...

Yeah, same in the South East.

 

[Spymaster]

We've got 3 club friendlies being played today in lovely sunshine.

 

[Elpenor]

Doesn’t look like there’ll be any play does it?

 

[JimW]

If Australia had any decency they'd declare.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Looks like it's done. Raining hard, puddles on the outfield.

Still an important match at the Oval. A drawn series keeps England's 20+ Ashes home unbeaten run going.

Aus were defensive and timid here, packing the batting, turning to damage limitation with the ball very early. They've been rattled, no doubt about it.

But this isn't so different from 2005. When Simon Jones was injured for the Oval, England opted for Collingwood over Anderson (!! he's been around for ever) to replace him and were similarly doing rain dances to hold on for the draw.

I think Jimmy Anderson could be done now. Three matches, four wickets at 76. I don't see how England can pick him for the Oval. There are surely better options for what is still a must-win game.

 

[Santino]

Looks like it's done. Raining hard, puddles on the outfield.

Still an important match at the Oval. A drawn series keeps England's 20+ Ashes home unbeaten run going.

Aus were defensive and timid here, packing the batting, turning to damage limitation with the ball very early. They've been rattled, no doubt about it.

But this isn't so different from 2005. When Simon Jones was injured for the Oval, England opted for Collingwood over Anderson (!! he's been around for ever) to replace him and were similarly doing rain dances to hold on for the draw.

In 2005 they also lost a whole day at Old Trafford, without which delay I believe Glenn McGrath would have eventually been prised from the crease to give England a victory.