How is 2.2 fair? Without 2 days of rain there is no doubt we would have won in Manchester.
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The Ashes
- Thread starter cheshiregreen
- Start date
Apart from Broad claiming the last wicket, it was also very fitting that it was Carey, caught Bairstow, after the earlier controversy.
Only cricket does this.
Only cricket does this.
Turns out that the Bairstow stumping isn't all he'll be remember for after all!
A new era of English cricket approaches on the bowling front. Broad retired, Ali re-retired, Anderson in the dusk rather than the twilight of an exceptional career, Woakes and Wood probably won’t be around by the time of the Ashes down under which leaves opportunities for younger players to step up.
Robinson, if fit will warrant a place, Tongue and Potts will have a role. Fast Bowling wise there are few candidates apart from Archer that come to mind.
Spin bowling is also sparse Rehan Ahmed is raw. Will Jacks could fill the batting all rounder role and Liam Dawson is a fine cricketer.
With no test cricket until India it will be interesting during the next round of County Championship games to see if anyone can “toss their hat into the ring”.
Robinson, if fit will warrant a place, Tongue and Potts will have a role. Fast Bowling wise there are few candidates apart from Archer that come to mind.
Spin bowling is also sparse Rehan Ahmed is raw. Will Jacks could fill the batting all rounder role and Liam Dawson is a fine cricketer.
With no test cricket until India it will be interesting during the next round of County Championship games to see if anyone can “toss their hat into the ring”.
Amazing series that will live long in the memory. Chris Woakes finally getting the recognition he deserves, he is an absolutely superb cricketer.
Anything less than 2-2 would have felt like an absolute travesty, i cant help that feel, that despite the obvious issues with retirements, that it will be the Aussies who have the bigger shake up. There is no way they will tolerate playing cricket on the back foot as they did this series, 9 men on the boundary should be for exceptional circumstances, not something you see almost every test. Cummins is a fantastic player, not a skipper. Boland had no answer when players attacked him, Lyon turns 36 in a couple of months time, Hazelwood & Starc are 33 & 34 this winter, the former had more than his fair share of struggles with injury. The opening batters both 36+, i'm sure it will be a very different 22 in Brisbane November 2025.
Our batting at least seems to have answered alot of the questions over it, Crawley and Duckett have had decent series, Stokes if he doesn't bowl can move up to 3 if Pope's injury proves worse than appears. Root and Brook are solid selections at 4 & 5, with a number of young talents waiting in the wings, Jamie Smith, Rew, Bean and Bohannon.
Finally, Stuart Broad got the send off he deserved, he has been a game changer so often over the years, particularly against the Aussies, his bowling at left handers in the last 5/6 seasons on par with anything i've ever witnessed in test cricket.
Anything less than 2-2 would have felt like an absolute travesty, i cant help that feel, that despite the obvious issues with retirements, that it will be the Aussies who have the bigger shake up. There is no way they will tolerate playing cricket on the back foot as they did this series, 9 men on the boundary should be for exceptional circumstances, not something you see almost every test. Cummins is a fantastic player, not a skipper. Boland had no answer when players attacked him, Lyon turns 36 in a couple of months time, Hazelwood & Starc are 33 & 34 this winter, the former had more than his fair share of struggles with injury. The opening batters both 36+, i'm sure it will be a very different 22 in Brisbane November 2025.
Our batting at least seems to have answered alot of the questions over it, Crawley and Duckett have had decent series, Stokes if he doesn't bowl can move up to 3 if Pope's injury proves worse than appears. Root and Brook are solid selections at 4 & 5, with a number of young talents waiting in the wings, Jamie Smith, Rew, Bean and Bohannon.
Finally, Stuart Broad got the send off he deserved, he has been a game changer so often over the years, particularly against the Aussies, his bowling at left handers in the last 5/6 seasons on par with anything i've ever witnessed in test cricket.
Woakes has recently said that he doesn't want to play tests abroad, given his record away that's not a bad thing. At home he should be at an automatic pick:
Chris Woakes admits overseas days are numbered as he targets career longevity
England allrounder expects to bow out of ODIs after World Cup, happy not to play another away Test
www.espncricinfo.com
Probably should, with huge thanks and legend status!
I know Stokes doesn't do hindsight but if only Woakes had played in the Lords Test .....
With his record, you have to wonder why he didn't. A bizarre call, by the same token, given how Tongue performed, i'm astounded he didn't get another game in the series.
Not really.
4 very close matches which swung one way then the other but at Old Trafford, England dominated the first 3 days and we're in a great position to win until 2 days of rain intervened to save Australia. It was shaping to be a different sort of contest compared to other 4 games which were so close.
The Aussies - and in particular, their Captain - looked absolutely clueless to stop England during the onslaught led by Crawley and Bairstow. I can't imagine the likes of Ian Chappell or Alan Border setting fields with 9 guys in the deep, as was the case with Pat Cummings.
To their credit, the Aussies players and supporters admitted that the rain had saved them from almost certain defeat. They knew it was a very fortuitous and anti-climatic way to retain the Ashes.
I think that at the start of the series Australia were the slightly better side, but I think that had changed around by the 5th Test.
However, it will be back to square one for the next Ashes series, with no doubt 2 much-changed sides.
The Old Trafford test might have got a result if England had declared earlier.
Rain was forecast after all.
Then England would have had to bat again. No its the weather wot won it. The Ashes.
