It’s tempting to just blame Cook. He’s an easy target. Few people seem to like him. He’s going through another one of his batting malaises (they’ve happened before and they’ll happen again) and his captaincy yesterday was lamentable. However, let’s not forget that Cook’s captaincy is simply a product of the Andy Flower era. Under Flower’s iron fist, England became utterly dependent on stats and pre-determined methodologies. Plans were determined before games and Flower’s captains stuck...
C’est la vie – Day 5 at Lord’s
So what did you think? For me it was a match that didn’t quite make sense. The pitch was lifeless (a poor one for test cricket) yet the match ended in compelling drama. Both attacks spent most of the match aiming at the batsman’s head – even though there was no pace and bounce to speak of – and Alastair Cook set some pretty creative fields on day five. I know this was because runs weren’t an issue, but it was still jaw dropping to see. Maybe they put something in his water at...
Moores of the Same? England’s final XI will be telling
The first test match of the English summer starts on Thursday. Anticipation is in the air. The Lord’s groundstaff are making their final preparations, the MCC staff are polishing their champagne glasses, and somewhere underneath the stands Alastair Cook is hurried cramming Mike Brearley’s The Art of Captaincy (or at least I hope he is). As a fan I’m eagerly awaiting the announcement of the England XI. Picking the right squad (or what was the right squad in my eyes) was only half the job. The...
Worrying signs as Moores makes abject start
On the face of it, a nine run loss to the World T20 champions doesn’t sound too bad. England made a game of it, at least. I should stress, therefore, that my headline refers to the performance of the England head coach yesterday, rather than the players’ efforts. Let’s not beat around the bush here. England lost this game because of poor selection, a poor batting strategy, and a catastrophic dropped catch by a player that should not have been playing (so again, a mistake arising from poor...
And so the “new era” begins
Peter Moores’ second stint in charge of the England team begins in earnest on Tuesday night with a T20 match at The Oval. The Full Toss will be in attendance, of course, to sample the atmosphere and gauge enthusiasm for the new regime. Although we won’t be able to read too much into the crowd’s response to Moores’ England, as T20’s at The Oval tend to attract a lot of casual fans who are more familiar with Paul Dowton’s career in The City than his past life as a wicket-keeper, it will be...
Time to Move On
They say moving on is hard to do. They’re wrong. It’s bloody hard. But, alas, we must. Moaning isn’t fun anymore and it won’t do us any good – unless someone, somewhere, does actually have a plan to storm the barricades at ECB headquarters. The uncomfortable truth is the ECB have got away with their dastardly deeds and there’s nothing we can do about it. It’s not the first calamity the ECB have overseen and it won’t be the last. What’s more, now the initial anger has relented I can actually see...