[GeeGee]

What on earth is going on at Headingley?

Yorkshire 677 for 7 declared v Durham 411 for 6.

I wish I'd been there, even though I guess it'll be a draw.

Geoff (Yorkshire-born, though my brothers were born in County Durham)

[jikl]

In the Melbourne newspaper today:

India about Hair umpiring in upcoming Tourney

Didn't know how widely this would have been reported.

Sean

[Walddk]

jikl, on Sep 27 2006, 11:38 AM, said:

Didn't know how widely this would have been reported.

Also to be read here ...

http://news.bbc.co.u...ket/5382732.stm

Roland

[akhare]

Pardon the pun, but I am sure that the Asian teams are glad that Darren is out of their hair.

Personally, I think it's about time that he was reigned in and I have never forgiven him for that famous "ball hitting the shoulder" Tendulkar incident. If you ask me, cricket needs more umpires like Benson (who recently retracted his own decision after consulting w/ the leg umpire) and less polarizing figure like Bucknor and Hair.

Of late, there have been numerous analogies of his ursine bearing, but his pig headedness and tendency to wallow in this own righteous interpretation of the laws seems more porcine to me...

[jikl]

So, any predictions for ICC Champions Trophy?

Sean

[Walddk]

jikl, on Oct 13 2006, 12:26 PM, said:

So, any predictions for ICC Champions Trophy?

Sean

Australia of course. I don't think I'll make a fortune from that prediction.

Roland

[jikl]

The odds here are:

Australia 2.75
England 13.00
India 4.50
New Zealand 13.00
Pakistan 6.00
South Africa 9.00
Sri Lanka 7.00
West Indies 13.00

Sean

PS: And congratulations to Bangladesh on their thrashing of Zimbabwe.

[Walddk]

With Australia and India in the same group, England can forget all about advancing to the semi-finals. I wouldn't be one bit surprised if the Poms finish last, regardless of whether West Indies or Sri Lanka will be the 4th team.

"We don't have the quality reserves to shore up the better players being injured," Geoffrey Boycott told BBC Sport.

"The reserves do the best they can but it does lessen the team's quality when you have too many fill-in players."

Sir Geoffrey knows this game better than most.

England reached the Champions Trophy final when they hosted the event in 2004 but since then have won only 16 of their 43 one-day games. This summer they were thrashed 5-0 by Sri Lanka before coming from 0-2 down to draw 2-2 with Pakistan.

Roland

[Dwingo]

On home soil, it will be difficult to beat the Indians. I will be rooting for them.

[the saint]

Sri Lanka are definitely worth a punt. The top order is in great form, they have quality spinners - ideal for the sub-continental conditions, and a decent opening seam pair too. Add in bags of experience in the side, and they are definitely in with a shout.

[jikl]

India vs England...

Oh dear.

Sean

[Walddk]

jikl, on Oct 16 2006, 07:57 AM, said:

India vs England...

Oh dear.

Sean

Yes, pathetic performance by the English batsmen. However, I think this is worse ...

http://news.bbc.co.u...ket/6054084.stm

On the other hand, why would it be any different in cricket than in other sports? The era of "cricket, the gentleman sport" is long gone. Big money at stake, and some cheat. Sad but true.

Let me emphasize that I'm not picking on Pakistan in particular. Shane Warne was the first player to violate the rules. I'm sure there are and have been others; they have just escaped until now.

Roland

[jikl]

I am fairly sure Warne wasn't the first Australian to test positive, but what I am thinking of is domestic cricket. For some reason the name doesn't come to mind as it was pre-2000 I believe.

I am sure there are many domestic cricketers that have tested positive but been hidden away and never heard of again.

Sean

[jikl]

As you would expect, the odds have changed dramatically:

Australia 2.75
England 26.00
India 3.75
New Zealand 8.00
Pakistan 11.00
South Africa 13.00
Sri Lanka 4.50
West Indies 17.00

Would have been nice to get on Sri Lanka at 7s.

Sean

[jikl]

Odds after Australia vs England:

Australia 3.25
England Not listed
India 3.50
New Zealand 21.00
Pakistan 6.00
South Africa 21.00
Sri Lanka 4.50
West Indies 9.00

Personally I think the odds for Australia are too small.

Sean

[EricK]

jikl, on Oct 16 2006, 08:04 AM, said:

I am fairly sure Warne wasn't the first Australian to test positive, but what I am thinking of is domestic cricket. For some reason the name doesn't come to mind as it was pre-2000 I believe.

I am sure there are many domestic cricketers that have tested positive but been hidden away and never heard of again.

Sean

In the UK, Ed Giddins was banned for a year and half for taking cocaine (which isn't a performance enhancing drug as far as I am aware). That was back in the mid 90s.

[akhare]

Looks like it's Hair be gone -- this is the kind that most cricket fans won't mind losing.

Any bets on the Ozzies vs. the Windies? I think India had an excellent chance of knocking them out before they lost the script (batting could have been better, but the bowling was brain dead)...

[Walddk]

Aussies for my money. They are unlikely to make the same mistake twice.

Roland

[the saint]

Now we have got that Mickey Mouse event out of the way - its almost time for the main event.

Score predictions please for Ashes 2006/7

[jikl]

The big talk over here at the moment is who will be Australia's fourth bowler. There are three obvious selections, these of course being McGrath, Lee and Warne.(Shane Watson will be playing as the teams second allrounder, Adam Gilchrist being the first allrounder)

The names being tossed around are (in order of likelihood):

Stuart Clark (17 overs 3/50 in current NSW vs England 3 day)
Nathan Bracken (14.4 overs 2/51 in current NSW vs England 3 day)
Shaun Tait (8 overs 3/21 Prime Minister's XI vs England OD)
Mitchell Johnson (Bowled very well in Champion's Trophy)
Stuart Macgill (Currently recovering from a strain but would be ready, prior to this suspended for an on-field incident)

Given it is at the GABBA they are much more likely to choose a seamer, so Macgill would seem to be out of contention. There is a small chance they might give the berth to Mitchell Johnson as he is a local boy. However I believe they will play it safe and go with Clark. Clark is a bit like a mini-McGrath, always in the right spot etc. Personally I would like to see them go with Shaun Tait who clearly rattled the English in the Prime Minister's XI game, with many deliveries above 150kph.

If any of you want to see some Australian reports of the series, I would recommend:

Australia's Cricinfo site

or

Melbourne's newspaper

I am sure this thread is about to get a whole lot more active soon.

Sean