< 1 minute readAhead of the third Test between South Africa and Australia, Hashim Amla has said: “There’s a lot riding on the last Test and fortunately we’ve got a bit of momentum.” Let’s very quickly examine how ‘momentum‘ has influenced the series thus far. Australia won the first Test and thus gained
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Shaun Marsh holds up South Africa
< 1 minute readNo, he did. One of the three deliveries he faced in this Test match didn’t see the fall of his wicket. He really hung around. When Shaun Marsh was brought back into the Test side, we wrote: “Whether you think he’s good or not largely depends on whether you consider
Continue readingHow Steve Smith makes the most of what he’s got
< 1 minute readWe’ve not actually seen it yet, but we’re hearing great things about Quinton de Kock’s dismissal; that maybe it was the stupidest in a winter which has seen its fair share of stupid dismissals. It’s surely no coincidence that Steve Smith was the bowler. Much is made of the fact
Continue readingDean Elgar will probably be out by the time we’ve finished typing this
< 1 minute readCricinfo are making reference to ‘toss drama’ but don’t be misled. The second Test between South Africa and Australia demands your attention in a relentless, whinging, shirt-tugging way. We briefly wondered why we hadn’t really latched onto the Under-19 World Cup or why we didn’t feel moved to write anything
Continue readingRyan McLaren out due to brain rattle
2 minute readOrdinarily we don’t report on injuries – and not just because we don’t report on anything in any meaningful sense. However, Ryan McLaren’s rattled brain is more significant in that it will shine a light on the impact Mitchell Johnson has had on the South Africans. We’re not talking about
Continue readingHow to react to a Johnsonning
< 1 minute readIt’s not just England then. South Africa have been forcefully Johnsonned and are probably already considering reverting to a more conservative team for the second Test. Five bowlers is great when you’re top of the world and full of confidence, but let’s just see what happens now that they’re rattled.
Continue readingAustralia add boring partnerships to their repertoire
< 1 minute readIf there’s one thing Australia have been lacking, it’s dull, steady, three-an-over partnerships in the middle order. Today they got one and they look like a proper team again. Even while gaily twerking atop England’s comatose body, there was a fragility about the Aussie Test team. How odd that they
Continue readingOff the pace – an alternative South Africa v Australia preview
2 minute read“We’ve got the best fast bowlers.” “No, we’ve got the best fast bowlers.” “Not being funny, but actually, I think you’ll find we’ve got the best fast bowlers.” “Yeah, right, whatever. Have you even seen our fast bowlers?” The build-up to what promises to be a fascinating Test series between
Continue readingTravelling without wheels
2 minute readIt’s hard to pinpoint precisely when the final wheel fell off. It was probably a couple of months ago, but England’s cricketers have had to continue shoving “it” along anyway. No wonder they ended up going round in circles. It’s not been the best tour. In a vain effort to
Continue readingWhere are we up to with ‘the draft proposal’?
< 1 minute readWe ask that not even knowing whether it’s still a draft or not? When does a draft proposal become an official proposal? When they actually come to vote on it? Presumably that’ll only happen once everything’s been thrashed out, in which case official proposal status will be a transient and
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