James
World Star
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2006
- Runs
- 50,590
- Post of the Week
- 2
Christmas Day in the UK, and this most crucial of test matches has crept up on me for one - coverage begins 10.30pm GMT today, just half a day away, with the first ball due to be bowled at 11.30pm GMT. Contrary to media reports, this is likely to be a flat wicket that holds up well. It will do a bit early on, but not much more than that. As usual, win the toss and bat.
VERY difficult to see what will happen in this test. This is one of the final matches of the cricket calendar in 2010 - the Perth aberration aside, England have been in the far superior form this year, but Australia have all the momentum coming into the game.
This is surely one of the biggest games the two great nations have played in quite some time...
An England win will see them take a 2-1 lead in the series with 1 to play, and the Ashes will be theirs.
An Australian win will leave England under severe pressure, needing to win the final game at Sydney to tie the series and retain the Ashes.
To me, the draw here looks even money, if both sides hold their nerve. This will leave England only needing a draw at Sydney to take the Ashes, and all the pressure will be on Australia to win on a wicket which is expected to aid Graeme Swann significantly.
All the noises out of the England camp indicate that the batting lineup will be unchanged, with Bell staying at six and everyone giving Collingwood an admirable and friendly backing, although whether he deserves it or not is another matter. Well, I suppose they have usually known what they are doing in the past...
Bowling lineup will remain a party of four, but may see a change. Anderson has come through a fitness test, Tremlett has taken 16 wickets in 3 games on this tour so he will feature, and Swann will play of course, so the 4th spot is the only one up for grabs. Finn's wicket-taking ability is a proven asset in test cricket, but he has bowled a lot of overs on this tour, and he may be fatigued and carrying a niggle. Either Tim Bresnan or Ajmal Shahzad will be eager to fill in for Stephen on this occasion, and both can have success here given their tendency to pitch the ball up and make the batsman play.
Ponting will play for Australia, meaning the unfortunate Khawaja will miss out again this time, but his time will surely come soon. The team is likely to be unchanged from the XI that just crushed England at Perth - only possible change would be one of the seamers (Siddle I imagine) making way for Michael Beer to debut, as this is expected to be a slow and low wicket where the spin bowler will come in handy at some point.
The crowd on day one is expected to be anything up to a huge 91,000, given the unpredictability and excitement that has surrounded this series, and the potentially huge ramifications from the result of this match. Unfortunately, the extreme weather conditions in the UK have grounded flights, and will prevent some England supporters from reaching Melbourne in time, but I hope we will still add to the vociferous atmosphere that is likely to be provided by the Australian fans.
so.......is anyone else excited?!
VERY difficult to see what will happen in this test. This is one of the final matches of the cricket calendar in 2010 - the Perth aberration aside, England have been in the far superior form this year, but Australia have all the momentum coming into the game.
This is surely one of the biggest games the two great nations have played in quite some time...
An England win will see them take a 2-1 lead in the series with 1 to play, and the Ashes will be theirs.
An Australian win will leave England under severe pressure, needing to win the final game at Sydney to tie the series and retain the Ashes.
To me, the draw here looks even money, if both sides hold their nerve. This will leave England only needing a draw at Sydney to take the Ashes, and all the pressure will be on Australia to win on a wicket which is expected to aid Graeme Swann significantly.
All the noises out of the England camp indicate that the batting lineup will be unchanged, with Bell staying at six and everyone giving Collingwood an admirable and friendly backing, although whether he deserves it or not is another matter. Well, I suppose they have usually known what they are doing in the past...
Bowling lineup will remain a party of four, but may see a change. Anderson has come through a fitness test, Tremlett has taken 16 wickets in 3 games on this tour so he will feature, and Swann will play of course, so the 4th spot is the only one up for grabs. Finn's wicket-taking ability is a proven asset in test cricket, but he has bowled a lot of overs on this tour, and he may be fatigued and carrying a niggle. Either Tim Bresnan or Ajmal Shahzad will be eager to fill in for Stephen on this occasion, and both can have success here given their tendency to pitch the ball up and make the batsman play.
Ponting will play for Australia, meaning the unfortunate Khawaja will miss out again this time, but his time will surely come soon. The team is likely to be unchanged from the XI that just crushed England at Perth - only possible change would be one of the seamers (Siddle I imagine) making way for Michael Beer to debut, as this is expected to be a slow and low wicket where the spin bowler will come in handy at some point.
The crowd on day one is expected to be anything up to a huge 91,000, given the unpredictability and excitement that has surrounded this series, and the potentially huge ramifications from the result of this match. Unfortunately, the extreme weather conditions in the UK have grounded flights, and will prevent some England supporters from reaching Melbourne in time, but I hope we will still add to the vociferous atmosphere that is likely to be provided by the Australian fans.
so.......is anyone else excited?!
but ill keep flicking channels back and forth at the right times.
