Long Live Cricket!!

[Downward Spiral]

Did my eyes, ears and all other senses deceive me? Did England actually win a game? Jesus, God Almighty! (As JR would yell.) Good to see them restore what little pride they had left with a thumping win over the relatively uninterested Aussies. We were without Ponting and the series is won anyway, so does it really mean anything? I sure as hell would prefer this than England winning in the Ashes.

 

[Cyric]

Did my eyes, ears and all other senses deceive me? Did England actually win a game? Jesus, God Almighty! (As JR would yell.) Good to see them restore what little pride they had left with a thumping win over the relatively uninterested Aussies. We were without Ponting and the series is won anyway, so does it really mean anything? I sure as hell would prefer this than England winning in the Ashes.

Seriously, I nearly had a frickin' heart attack. I heard it in the car on the radio, I had the urge to laugh uncontrollably.

 

[Oasis]

woooo we Beat Australia i cant believe it wooooo

 

[NooDLE]

Cricket is lame.

 

[MidNight Rider]

Cricket is lame.

then is it necessary to post here ... good God almighty ...

I just can't wait for the world cup .... Pakistan fan here though and no I don't live there

 

[wotdoiput]

Was a very bad day and Night for the Aussies..... and as wrong as it may sound I am kinda glad that the English were finally able to beat the Aussies... perhaps stop them from thinking their too good..

The bowlers seemed largely disinterested to me.. Bracken didnt bowl well.. i dont think Clark is right for the One Dayers... I dont know why just seems to be too easy to get away... and Tait... why the hell was he playing? Im South Australian and cant stand this bloke... yes he may bowl some unplayable balls... but for the rest of the time it wouold be nice if half of them were on the pitch or at least bowled to sort of restrict the batsman!!! Not to mention the catch he dropped.... way to cost us another 100 runs Shaun!!!... Hilfenhaus has to be a better option than him!!

The batting was woeful as well.. Gilchrist got a beauty first up... Hodge.. why is he in the team?? Even with ponting not playing surely there is someone else... and Michael Clarke... bad shot... but the English did bowl well and built the pressure on Australia so they had to play some rash shots... but once Symonds went off injured that was it..... bit of a worry there...

I just hope that England can keep i up.. Hope Loye is fit to play in there next game as at least he adds some excitement... and I hope thye dont bring Collingwood back for Bophara

 

[wotdoiput]

hAHAH first off was made to seriously eat my words regarding Hodge on SUnday night... still dont like him.. but he played a great innings hopefully he can show that that wasnt just a one off... with Symonds out there is a spot up for grabs... and while id prefer Watson to come in so then at least Hogg could play.. perhaps Hodge is the answer.

Another guy im not a big fan of, Shaun Tait bowled brillantly as well.... was on target and not wayward as he normally is... a few players putting there hand up for World Cup berths which is good.

So on to today.... England and New Zealand for the right to play the Aussies... New Zealand have to start favourites.. their batting is reall clicking atm with Vincent in great form at the top, Fulton is in good form and Oram is outstanding... Styris looked good also.. their bowling has struggled a little.. Bond to me doesnt look fit.. Franklin has bowled well though.. and Vettori is Vetorri!!

For the English... not thrilled that Vaughan is back.... but i guess if Loye is nopt fit its fair enough.. but a huge risk... I just hope that Collingwood doesnt replace Bophara... Collingwood has been horribly out of form and a huge liability for the English batting... id like to see what Ravi can do with the bat.. he bowled handily the other night...

So i htink the Kiwi's will sneak a win in and meet the Aussies in the final...

 

[wotdoiput]

Well well well... Im glad i dont have money on any of my predictions cos i couldnt pick my nose at present!!... the Englih get the win and meet Australia in the CB final!!

After my crictsim played Hodge and Tait into form.. the same as happened with Collingwood... I say he shouldnt play.. he then rewards me by making a hundred.. bowling ten tidy overs and getting 2 wickets... as for Vaughan.. well he made a duck... but it was obvious how important his captainacy is for English... if not for the only fact it takes pressure off Flintof and lets him concentrate on his own game... which he did by bowling beautifully.

Still trying to work out how NZ lost though.... after that wild start by Plunkett and Mahmood I thought NZ would be able to settle down and get the win... but they lost key wickets at crucial times and had no urgency to lift the run rate in the middle overs..... and a big part of the blame should rest with Fleming imo... yes he batted very well and made a hundred... but at not time did he look to accelerate his scoring...

Now for the finals.. Australia and Englad... and seeing that my predictions seem to do the opposite i wont make one... ok ok i will.. Australia... should win.. but as we have seen cricket is a funny game

 

[Shadowmancer]

Goddamn those Poms. We were doing so well until the collapse. At least there will be payback at the World Cup later on this year. This will be one of the few times I Ever support Aussie in anything sport related. My usual motto is that i Support Two teams New Zealand and anyone playing against Australia. This is not the case now but I see Aussie winning the Tri-series by either 5 wickets or by 30 runs depending on the toss.

 

[Shadowmancer]

Flemming was good he just screwed up by running out Ross Taylor. Bond may not look fit but he is still the only pure paceman that doesn't have a slightly suspicious BOwling action (Shoab and Malinga) Brett Lee has something suspect mentioned about him somewhere but thats minor.

the Black Caps also didn't need to do that much after the first 20 overs just getting singles and twos. It was mainly poor shot selection that did them in. Also when they lost a wicket they fell into the behind by a lot so we need o get 6's and 4's to win mentality that happens with NZ's mmiddle order batters. Its just as bad with craig McMillan opening to a big Run chase.

But I don't understand how england had a Daryll Tuffey over that early in the match though. How did they do that many wides i have no idea.

 

[Downward Spiral]

Glenn McGrath takes a wicket with the last ball of the innings, in his last ball in Australia. Who could have scripted it better? He takes a wicket with his last ball in Test Cricket and now this. It is a true tribute to a phenomenal cricketer and he deserved the ovation that left not a dry eye in the house. Well done Glenn. And you saw it and it mattered because it was really an important moment in the history of cricket, and it is the last you will ever see him after idolising him for years. What a great career and he deserves every accolade he gets. What a career.

A funny note is that I was on this computer and I went to the other room to get a drink (I am typing this just after he got the wicket) and I looked at the TV and stood frozen on the spot because I saw McGrath running in and the crowd roaring and Lawry saying it's his last ball in Australia. So by pure luck, I saw one of the greatest moments in one day cricket. Getting a wicket with his last ball, who could have thought of that?....

 

[Downward Spiral]

The Aussies lost the series to England...I am speechless. Who'd have funk it. Well done to them. The Aussies were poor in defeat though and don't deserve excuses. Well fought back by England to come back and prove the critics wrong. Even though this was a shocking tour, that was some consolation. We haven't been beaten in the finals of that for a LONG time. Rain delays nonetheless though, they still played better. Great moment for McGrath though, but his team let him down. Let's hope they improve for the World Cup. 3 in a Row!!!

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I dont like Cricket but I heard England defeated the Aussie's. Seriously you're country should try to be the most dominant in another sport. Possibly Curling.

 

[Downward Spiral]

New Zealand clean sweep us in the series. What a load of crap. What is the world coming to when a side that makes 330 and 350 can not hold that total when they are bowling? Australia were outplayed by NZ, no doubt about it and showed that they desperately need Lee and Symonds and the other guys that performed in the ODI's in the past and shows the lack of depth that is glaringly obvious just weeks out from the World Cup. Not good signs and I hope that they didn't care about this series because they played crap and have now lost 5 ODI's in a row. Not looking good for the world cup and it was definitely not the side that thrashed the poms for 99% of the Summer and guys that should have been performing were not and that is a disappointment. The bowlers need to drastically improve because these are totals that should be easily defended, even on those NZ grounds. Matt Hayden was the only shining light with a mammoth 180 not out and Hussey has got to be disappointed at his side for showing a complete lack of decency in the series and I hope they improve for the World Cup because they definitely do not have time to be improving as a team.

Injuries are attacking the side now, and this comes back to strenuous training and workload that they don't deserve and it is causing them definite problems. Good to see them lose though, but they had all the chances to win but were too poor. It's a shock whenever they lose and a cleansweep is a rarity.