ASHES 21/22

[st.byron]

You have to be forward thinking with your selection.

Khawaja is a 35 year old who has scored a couple of hundreds in essentially a dead rubber and has repeatedly failed when the heat is on. He averages 23 away from home. You need to invest time into test players and his time is up and has been for a while.

Play the youth at any cost.

It's true but apart from Pucovski, who is next in line? Hunt is building but tough to chuck him in now. Renshaw? Burns? Bancroft? All have been tried and failed. Cupboard is bare.

[The_Dud]

You have to be forward thinking with your selection.

Khawaja is a 35 year old who has scored a couple of hundreds in essentially a dead rubber and has repeatedly failed when the heat is on. He averages 23 away from home. You need to invest time into test players and his time is up and has been for a while.

Play the youth at any cost.

Khawaja averages 23 away from home, Harris averages 25 for his career!

Invest in youth, yes. But they’ve still got to be good enough for Test cricket.

[st.byron]

I'm thinking that a draw is the least likely result at the moment. Poms need 3.8 per over from here. Aussies 8 wickets.

[Ghost Like]

Play the best available for a Test match. Khawaja is clearly one of the best six bats in the country and can open. He's not a bottle of milk, there's no use by date, especially when you've just made two Test hundreds in your only opportunity.

If Harris is good enough, he can make it back but seems like so many, a very good Shield player but the spotlight of Test cricket has burnt too hot for him, to date.

In the next season or two it is highly likely Australia will have a brand new opening pair, so make, whoever that pair is, earn it.

[st.byron]

Play the best available for a Test match. Khawaja is clearly one of the best six bats in the country and can open. He's not a bottle of milk, there's no use by date, especially when you've just made two Test hundreds in your only opportunity.

If Harris is good enough, he can make it back but seems like so many, a very good Shield player but the spotlight of Test cricket has burnt too hot for him, to date.

In the next season or two it is highly likely Australia will have a brand new opening pair, so make, whoever that pair is, earn it.

Tend to agree. Warner is also 35 but because he's the incumbent he's treated differently to Khawaja. Khawaja has well and truly earned his spot, not just this test but in the domestic first class season he was clearly the best batter. Will be so wrong if Harris retains his spot and Uzzie has to make way for Head.

[perfectionist]

Harris is a poor fieldsman and dropped a catch which should have been taken. For some reason, short leg is not given the respect it deserves.

[The_Dud]

I think the draw was always the most likely scenario when play started this morning. The weather (which should have always been a consideration) has now basically just confirmed it.

Australia would need to have the Poms 5-6 down at tea to have any real chance I would think.

[saynta]

Harris is a poor fieldsman and dropped a catch which should have been taken. For some reason, short leg is not given the respect it deserves.

That dropped catch likely to have cost us the match

[st.byron]

I think the draw was always the most likely scenario when play started this morning. The weather (which should have always been a consideration) has now basically just confirmed it.

Australia would need to have the Poms 5-6 down at tea to have any real chance I would think.

Poms aren’t going after it. Thought they might. Gonna be a draw now.

[The_Dud]

They say catches win matches, as England have learnt so far this series. How many did Australia drop today, 3? Costly.

Great match.

[Ghost Like]

Great match! Catches do win matches and we let ourselves down. Carey needs to forget he's a left hander, makes him very one sided to right hand bats.

Harris cost us at short leg, unlucky but that was the catch that cost a result. He owned two specialist spots, I'm guessing he lost both.

[saynta]

Carey also f***ed up a certain runout.

[mr six o'clock]

Imo the biggest let-down of the test was Lyon.
He's a good spinner and he gets crucial wickets but once again on the final day of a test . On a flat worn pitch when he should be the man who wins the test for us , he fails to deliver.
He has been in this position many many times over the years yet only led us to victory on a few occasions.

[Ghost Like]

Imo the biggest let-down of the test was Lyon.
He's a good spinner and he gets crucial wickets but once again on the final day of a test . On a flat worn pitch when he should be the man who wins the test for us , he fails to deliver.
He has been in this position many many times over the years yet only led us to victory on a few occasions.

I would agree with what you've said for a lot of his career but to be fair this was not a spinners wicket, it was a paceman's wicket with a new ball on a pitch that had not been rolled.

Lyon needs batsmen to play shots on a pitch like that. Perfect for a Warne, a Murali or an Ashwin.

This was lost with dropped catches. Stokes chewed up time he was not entitled to. After him were the injured & bowlers.

[B.M]

Smith - the last over?

To a renowned cat in Anderson?

[Ghost Like]

Smith - the last over?

To a renowned cat in Anderson?

Was it a light issue?

[B.M]

You’d wanna hope so

[Mr Magic]

The umpires advised that the last 3 overs had to be spin - no pace due to the light conditions

[st.byron]

Imo the biggest let-down of the test was Lyon.
He's a good spinner and he gets crucial wickets but once again on the final day of a test . On a flat worn pitch when he should be the man who wins the test for us , he fails to deliver.
He has been in this position many many times over the years yet only led us to victory on a few occasions.

I would agree with what you've said for a lot of his career but to be fair this was not a spinners wicket, it was a paceman's wicket with a new ball on a pitch that had not been rolled.

Lyon needs batsmen to play shots on a pitch like that. Perfect for a Warne, a Murali or an Ashwin.

This was lost with dropped catches. Stokes chewed up time he was not entitled to. After him were the injured & bowlers.

Yep harsh to judge Lyon in a bad light on that wicket. He played his part. Thought Starc might have had more impact. Still, they just scraped by the Poms, Outplayed once again.

[B.M]

Is that a fact?

[The_Dud]

Yeah bad light meant spin had to be bowled for the last 3 overs. Worked out well because the leggies were coming into the left handers forcing them to play. Curious how both Broad and Anderson bowl right but bat left.

Bit harsh on Lyon, took 2 big wickets in Malan and Stokes. Dropped catches and bad weather were what cost us the Test.

[shanegrambeau]

Cummins's first mistake.

Declaring six overs too late!!!!

Waiting for Khawaja's milestone and giving Green a chance..

Weak!

Helping the NSW franchise!

(But he's still brilliant...)

[bangaulegend]

Harris is not a short leg is very slow to react looks like a deer in the head lights. Marnus would have taken that catch & it has probably cost us a victory but hey we have the Ashes already so still pretty happy

[Gabba]

Cummins's first mistake.

Declaring six overs too late!!!!

Waiting for Khawaja's milestone and giving Green a chance..

Weak!

Helping the NSW franchise!

(But he's still brilliant...)

He could have brought it in a bit earlier but with the weather so hard to predict it was tricky - I'd say not a huge error. Really, in the end our fielding (esp. dropped catches) and more expectedly lost time with the weather cost us on the final day.

[St Plugger]

Err, um, Greens not from NSW, he's a Sandgroper!