The Ashes

Booked 3 days off work to watch this (if I can keep awake).
Interesting to see how bt sports coverage goes.
Hopefully win the first test and then kick on

Gabby is traditionally an Aussie stronghold but currently 95-1 and coped well (SO FAR) with the bowling attack.

Think there will be at least 4 results in the series, ( 5 if weather is ok) and think we have a chance of retaining the urn

Decent day for England in the end 196-4. I think ali can score big and he is ussally a quick scorer so it will be interesting tonight how that goes.

First hour is massive tomorrow against the 2nd new ball. Get through it with no more than one more down and 350 should be achievable. I'm just worried that if they get a couple early on that they could blow us away for 250.

Me too Rodley.  Too many years watching England play cricket (and most other sports) has left me thinking we could easily be skittled for 250.  Even 350 might not be enough on this deck if the spin calms down.  I know Ball bowled well in the warm up games but I can't help feeling that this might be a decent deck to have played Crane on.  

Be a brave move to throw in a debutant 20 year old leg spinner who averages 45 in first class cricket. Think they've got the team right and hope Ball might just nag away at off stump and frustrate Warner and Smith. Going to be a good series by the look of it.

The Aussies are not as good as they are trying to make us believe. They are talking a good game at the moment but their batting line up is as sketchy as ours. Their bowlers are better and on home soil which should make them favourites but the opening day went quite well for us. Sickener for Vince to get out and if he'd hung around, day one would have belonged to us, but i make it about even stevens. As Rodley says, the first hour is massive. On the other hand, if they get their bowling slightly off line, Ali will be all over them.

A good old-fashioned England batting collapse, then.

Still, it seems the bowlers did well so it is still too close to call.

Brilliant test so far. Close and exciting - could go either way. Just how you want it - provided we get something of course. Got to bat well tonight and give them a score to struggle towards. With 2 down though, we might be lucky or grateful to get a 250 lead.

I think stoneman has done ok at the moment and we need root to have a decent score this second innings.

Credit to the Aussies - their bowlers came out firing and their hostility got us in trouble with two down. We need to match that when we're in the field. Let's hope we've got a total to defend.

The difference between the sides is that the best batsman in the world has performed, and so far the second best batsman hasn't. Time for Root to show his mettle.

Also, seriously missing Stokes. He could have tipped the series in our favour.

Quoted from ginnywings

The difference between the sides is that the best batsman in the world has performed, and so far the second best batsman hasn't. Time for Root to show his mettle.

Also, seriously missing Stokes. He could have tipped the series in our favour.

I think roots the best batsmen in England and Smith is defo the best in Australia, much more faster pitches in Australia than it is England but then you don't get the swing like you do in England.

We need a good 4th day with Root scoring a ton hopefully,

A draw looks the favourite unless we collapse or they do.

First blood to the aussies then

I don't know what's worse- getting hammered like last time, or giving us a bit of hope, only to collapse to a limp defeat like this time. We just don't have the mental toughness like they do and we have too many average players. Need to respond in the next test, but once the Aussies smell blood, they are ruthless.

Did somebody mention collapse  

Missed Ben stokes seems a ridiculous decision to not to take him.

It's going to be 5-0 again, isn't it?

I think so!

I don't follow the cricket particularly closely, but usually keep an eye on the England test match results.

The fact that I've never heard of half of the England players shows that it's not exactly a team chock full of experience, once you take a few of the big names out.

5-0 sounds entirely likely from reading the reports.

Chance of a draw now in this test?

We'll need to bowl them out very cheaply then have a couple of players get centuries to have a chance.

Very slim chance of a draw given our propensity to have batting collapses.

Don't think it'll be a draw unless there's rain. At least we're making a fight of it but can't see us chasing these.

Agree. 200 plus to get with 3 down does look a tall order and the draw a long shot without rain or bad light.
Tiny squeak though. At least we've made a game of this one.

Absolutely gripping stuff at the moment. Still think it's very unlikely but it's just great to see them putting up a proper fight.

Still extremely unlikely, I'd have thought. Root will need to stay in for a long time with support from the others with Moeen needing to get a good score. Maybe a 1 in 10 chance of an England victory? Perhaps a little less than that.

Credit to England for giving it a real go, rather than crumbling like I expected them to (helped of course by Smith not enforcing the follow on!). Hopefully Root can convert his 50 into a ton and go on, and if Woakes could stick around too (he's got an average of 30 so why not?) the Aussies will get nervy.

Half tempted to get up and watch it, although if I do that I'll probably see 2 wickets go down by 3.35!

I've got an early start in the morning as I'm off to the big smoke so I'll probably have it on from 5ish.  I just can't see us winning from here but to quote Keegan, I'd love it!

Would be a record second innings score to beat Australia.

On the plus side, records are there to be broken.

On the down side, there's a reason records aren't broken very often!

Quoted from Maringer

Would be a record second innings score to beat Australia.

On the plus side, records are there to be broken.

On the down side, there's a reason records aren't broken very often!

oooh that creosote will ruin your trousers not to mention the risk of splinters...

get off the fence man...will we or wont we ??

If we can nick this or even take a draw from it the Aussie's and their press wont be too chuffed.....all about a 5-0 home whitewash last week from their end.

I think our chances are pretty miniscule - perhaps one in ten or thereabouts, as I mentioned earlier in the thread. Would be very nice to put one over on the Aussies but I don't think we'll get too close. My prediction is we'll be all out with more than 50 to knock off.

Complete guess, but there you go.

Quoted from Maringer

I think our chances are pretty miniscule - perhaps one in ten or thereabouts, as I mentioned earlier in the thread. Would be very nice to put one over on the Aussies but I don't think we'll get too close. My prediction is we'll be all out with more than 50 to knock off.

Complete guess, but there you go.

Good call...

2 wickets down inside 3 overs, glad I didn't bother getting up for that!

If there is one thing the England team are good at, it's a batting collapse. We have that down to a fine art.

5-0 now for sure and that's 7 straight defeats in Oz.

Should've been looking at 500 which would've probably ruled out the 5-0, and given the scoreboard pressure, maybe given us a shot at a win. But it wouldn't be England without killing momentum by losing a load of wickets for sod all runs! If they could have a similar collapse that'd be grand but Smith will probably still be in when I get up!

Yep, as i already pointed out, there's always a batting collapse in the offing with England. Mentally weak.

To badly misquote Crocodile Dundee/The Simpsons: “you call that a batting collapse?”

138 all out is bad but not as bad as 6 wickets for 35 runs.

Quoted from Abdul19

Should've been looking at 500 which would've probably ruled out the 5-0, and given the scoreboard pressure, maybe given us a shot at a win. But it wouldn't be England without killing momentum by losing a load of wickets for sod all runs! If they could have a similar collapse that'd be grand but Smith will probably still be in when I get up!

You trying to bring your footballing predictions skills to non footy?

He could probably keep batting until Sunday morning against these bowlers. Pathetic and oh so predictable.

Yeah I was just about to post that he could bat for as long as he wants.

Ive learnt 3 things
Never Rely on Cook
Always Rely on Smith and Marsh (Embarrassing)
Always Rely on an England Batting Collapse at Some Point of an innings
6 wickets for 30 runs yesterday disgraceful
Forgot how much I cared about English cricket
Ashes Lost
Come on Town!!