On 08/07/2023 20:16, John Hall wrote:
> In message <3e997cf5-302b-4373-88d8-3ad29dfb0056n@googlegroups.com>,
> Richard Dixon <richsdixon1975@gmail.com> writes
>> On Saturday, 8 July 2023 at 11:24:59 UTC+1, mike wrote:
>>
>>> thats if we get any play today. more rain & tstorms to come.
>>
>> It's a sort of no-win situation for England here - bowl Aus out in the
>> humidity and they then face the new ball in these conditions...
>
> The weather gods thankfully continued the bias towards England that they
> have shown all series, so that the sun was out before they came to bat.
>
> When play began at 4:45 and then it began to rain again after one over,
> I thought that was it for the day. By the time I discovered my mistake,
> I had missed Marsh's wicket.
>
> Given how much the ball was doing, I thought it was a mistake to bowl
> almost exclusively short at Head. I know they think he has a weakness
> against the short ball, but he dealt with it pretty effectively today.

Andy Zaltzman said (IIRC) that his Test average against short-pitched
balls was 49, which was higher than against both good-length and
full-pitched bowling.

--
David North

On Monday, July 10, 2023 at 5:05:06 PM UTC+1, David North wrote:
> On 06/07/2023 12:22, Andy Walker wrote:
> > On 06/07/2023 11:52, mike wrote:
> >> Oz inserted again: i wonder if any teams have lost 3 consecutive
> >> matches after winning the toss in each?
> >
> > As (a) winning three consecutive tosses is a decent chance, and
> > (b) losing three consecutive matches is reasonably common, esp in a
> > "shark vs minnow" series, I'd be amazed if (a) and (b) happening to the
> > same three matches was particularly rare. Perhaps roughly every other
> > year?
> It last happened to England in the first 3 Tests of the 2017/18 Ashes,
> and it also happened in England's 3 previous away Tests, in India in
> 2016/17.
>
> Previous occurrences for England were:
>
> The first 3 Tests of the 2002/03 Ashes;
> The 3rd Test in India and the Test in SL in 2002/03, and the 1st Ashes
> Test in 2003;
> The 2nd, 3rd and 4th Ashes Tests of 1901/02.
>
> There has been one instance when it happened to England in 4 consecutive
> Tests: the last 2 Tests of 1920/21 and the first 2 of 1921, all v Aus.
>
> There has also been one instance when it happened to Australia in 4
> consecutive Tests: in India in 2012/13. As with the England sequence of
> 4, they chose to bat first every time.
>
> If England had lost at Headingley, if would have been the first time it
> had happened to them in 3 consecutive home Tests.
>
> It has happened twice to Australia in 3 consecutive home Tests:
>
> The last 2 Ashes Tests, and the 1st Test v Pakistan, in 1978/79;
> The first 3 Tests v WI in 1988/89.
>
thanks and thankfully they avoided that ignominy. but england have had
the best of the conditions in the 3 matches so far and only won 1 out of 3;
gotta wonder what will happen when oz do win the toss. how would
englands bazballers coped on the 3rd evening at leeds? not well i think.
theyve yet to post 400 in 6 innings.

mike