Cricket

JohnsonTV · July 28, 2023, 10:17pm

Australia managed to take a slender 12-run lead over England at stumps on day two of the fifth Ashes test. The Aussies were in trouble at 7/185 before Steve Smith (71), Pat Cummins (36) and Todd Murphy (34) led a fightback, reaching 295 before Cummins became the last batter out. The home side, with Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali unable to bowl due to injuries, still managed to take nine wickets during the day, with Chris Woakes the best bowler with 3/61.

In other news, next year’s T20 World Cup has been scheduled for June 6-30.

Radiohead · July 28, 2023, 11:39pm

Bazball = 283 in 54.4 overs (RR = 5.17)
Blockball = 295 in 103.1 overs (RR = 2.85)

I’ve never seen such a contrast in Test cricket! Slow and steady wins the race, perhaps - like the hare and the tortoise.

Labuschange would get kicked out of the England team with 9 off 82 balls!

But at least England’s fast scoring sets up a much better chance of a result.

JohnsonTV · July 29, 2023, 10:41pm

England regained control of the Oval test with another dominant batting display. They reached 9/389 at stumps on day three in just 80 overs, leading Australia by 377. The home side was again led by Joe Root (91) and Jonny Bairstow (78) who put on 110 runs for the fifth wicket, as well as opener Zak Crawley (73). Mitchell Starc took four wickets while Todd Murphy grabbed three.

After play ended for the day, England veteran Stuart Broad announced he would retire from test cricket at the end of this match.

Update 31/7
Australia bowled out England for 395 at the start of day four, with Jimmy Anderson (who turned 41 on the day) out lbw for eight, and Stuart Broad not out also on eight.

Australia made a bright start in their record run chase, with Khawaja and Warner putting on 135, before rain came during drinks break of second session. The players did not return to the field for the rest of the afternoon. Australia need to make another 249 runs to win the test match.

Sully · July 31, 2023, 2:51am

What a final day of Ashes! Weather forecast looks better now too. The unfortunate timing however is the Matildas vs Canada head-to-head.

dxnerd · July 31, 2023, 5:15am

I used to think that every raindrop had English citizenship, but this series has upended that notion somewhat.

I’m hoping that Australia can win the test outright, though.

JohnsonTV · July 31, 2023, 9:24am

MI New York won the inaugural Major League Cricket USA title, beating Seattle Orcas in the final.

Sully · July 31, 2023, 11:09am

Aussies have lost 3 very early wickets, very bad start here

JohnsonTV · July 31, 2023, 9:15pm

England won the fifth and final Ashes test by 49 runs on the last day, despite a 2.5 hour rain delay. The series finished 2-2, meaning Australia missed out on another chance to claim the series outright in England for the first time since 2001.

England’s Chris Woakes was named player of the match for his seven wickets. He was also named England’s player of the series and awarded the Compton-Miller Medal as the best player of the series. Mitchell Starc was named Australia’s player of the series for taking 23 wickets during the campaign.

Also, Ricky Ponting (who was a member of Sky commentary team) has called for an ICC investigation into the changing of the ball during Australia’s run chase.

UPDATE:
England spinner Moeen Ali told Sky Sports and BBC Radio after the match that he had officially played his last test. He initially retired from test cricket in September 2021, but returned to the squad in June this year to replace the injured Jack Leach.

foxyrover · July 31, 2023, 10:39pm

As he should. How the umpires looked at that new ball and thought “yep, that’s the same” is beyond me…

JohnsonTV · August 2, 2023, 10:32pm

In total the Aussies were docked 10 points while England lost a whopping 19 points.

Given 12 points are awarded for a win, four for a draw and none for a loss, it means the English didn’t even win a Test in terms of the standings - gaining just nine points for the series as a whole. The Aussies gained 18 points.

The Aussies were fined 50 per cent of their match fee for the fourth Test in Manchester, while the English were fined 10 per cent for the first Test, 45 per cent for the second, 15 per cent for the fourth and 25 per cent for the fifth.

dxnerd · August 3, 2023, 11:17pm

Australia A v New Zealand A series

First four-day match: August 28-31, Allan Border Field

Second four-day match: September 4-7, Great Barrier Reef Arena (D/N)

Australia A four-day squad: Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Jordan Buckingham, Ben Dwarshuis, Caleb Jewell, Campbell Kellaway, Matthew Kelly, Matthew Kuhnemann, Nathan McAndrew, Nathan McSweeney, Joel Paris, Jimmy Peirson, Mitch Perry, Josh Philippe, Mark Steketee, Mitchell Swepson, Tim Ward

First one-dayer: September 10, Great Barrier Reef Arena

Second one-dayer: September 13, Allan Border Field (D/N)

Third one-dayer: September 15, Allan Border Field

Australia A one-day squad: Wes Agar, Ollie Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Liam Hatcher, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Ben McDermott, Todd Murphy, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Gurinder Sandhu, Matt Short, Mark Steketee, Will Sutherland, Ashton Turner

JohnsonTV · August 9, 2023, 11:58am

Australia v South Africa will take place on October 12, while Australia v Bangladesh will now be held on November 11.

JohnsonTV · August 18, 2023, 11:33am

JohnsonTV · August 25, 2023, 1:15am

foxyrover · August 30, 2023, 12:13am