Doonan wrote:

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Yes but Im sure Ben Foakes would have done.

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Foakes, Woakes, Stokes ....  far too complicated for me

As I said during the first Ashes Test, I've been generally coming round to Bazball thinking.

So evidently was Phil Tufnell. But from 185/1, as Pope was just the first of 3 suicide victims, he seemed right to me: "I agree with Bazball but you've got to have a brain."

The ball had been hardly moving off the straight, Duckett and Pope were moving merrily along, not playing outrageous cricket. Oh, and Lyon had just left the field with a potentially serious looking calf injury.

So the 'deep thinkers' in the Australia camp came up with a cunning plan. Let's get rid of all our close in fielders, put half of them on the boundary, and bounce England and they won't be able to resist taking it on and a fair chance they'll hole out

Geez !!!

-- Edited by indiana on Thursday 29th of June 2023 05:52:00 PM

For some reason I quite often have that the first issue  I had there when I mean to write "general" or "generally". I guess two letters are beside each other

In context. I have just about saved worse sounding lines than here 

All a bit lost on me - the ball wasn't dead, the English guy had wandered out of his crease, he gets stumped, this is an English team that used the most foul language a few weeks ago, I mean, Ollie shouts out loud at the Australian guy, F*ck off you f*cking pr*ck, when he gets him out and then says 'if you can't handle that, what can you handle?'. And now I'm supposed to be angry that the Australians are not 'fairplay'?
And, yes, I know there was Aussie ball tampering and whathaveyou before, but it just seems like 'more of, more of'....

Since clearly the over can't have been called, it's out

Australia could have called it back. But they didn't (.I rather think they should have ) and it's ...

Australia 2 The Harlem Globetrotters of Cricket 0

Pity about the Bairstow dismissal ( and great innings by Stokes ) but let England not get away wirh using it as a deflection tactic from the kamikaze events on Day 2 ( when Bazball jumped the shark )

Duckett in particular seemingly not getting it with just ridiculous comments about them having to keep reinforcing a message and that it was a shot he played ( well, how about sending a message that we do have brains and at times I won't play that shot ).

Yes, legend Stuart Broad - all the best to him.

And re my earlier comments, fair play to England for reigning in the OTT excesses of Bazball as the series has progressed and playing it more sensibly, but still entertainingly.

Most folk will probably think they deserve to at least draw the series. Got to still win this match though and like Bob I wouldn't rule out the Aussies.

Hope England win though with a wicket or two for Stuart Broad.

It's still essentially the same game, chasing a certain number of runs in a certain number of balls. There can't be any excuses for their performance today.