There is so much we could say, we just don’t know where to start. So we won’t. It’s over to you – please air your views and comments about today’s events below.
We’re guessing you’ll have a lot on your mind. But don’t forget, this match isn’t actually over yet…
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i want to say get rid of cook as captain as his form with the bat has declined considerably and his ‘brand’ of cricket is not posetive and attacking enough IMO. But I just can’t think of anyone to replace him…is there anyone in this english side who can handle the burden with an imaginative and confident mind?
Cook will never be a good captain even if he carries on for the next ten years. He needs to resign before his form gets so bad he can’t keep his place in the side. He has no idea tactically and his comments on Shane Warne before the game show the pressure is getting to him.
Morgan…Captain in all three formats…just the right sort chap, will bring plenty of “Englishness” back in the game…words fail me…Cook nailed his colours to the ECB mast, so I think it’ll be interesting to watch the buggers squirm. Nevertheless, a sad day for the game I love :-(
Well that was a shocker…
First off congrats to the Sri lankans for taking advantage and pressing it home – fine play from Mathews with the bat and a brilliant spell by Prasad…
In the words of Peter Moores, not a single positive to take from today. The last 2 days have represented some of the poorest play seen from an England team in a while…actually hold on a minute that’s not strictly true is it…go back to the SA series a couple of summers ago, the tour against Pakistan in addition too the “Difficult Winter” and it’s a continuation of ongoing trends:
Overbowling Broad/Anderson
Not trusting the spinner not called Swann
Bowling short of a length to all batsmen from 6 onwards
Failing to press home advantages
Not adapting to changing conditions of play
Having a number of plans rather than a plan
Some what churlish behaviour
Moaning
Not fronting up and admitting mistakes
Failing to honestly appraise glaring weaknesses
Terrible fielding
I could go on…and on
For the sake of his sanity and future career Cook MUST resign.
Wouldn’t it be lovely if Giles Clarke and Paul Downton also decided on very sudden career changes…?
That should read having only one plan rather than a variety
Wouldn’t it! Fat chance, though. Many thanks for your excellent comments.
Desperately clutching at straw but… Did Flower have a very poor start as England coach and then do great things…
Moores has already had a very poor start as England coach…if we fail to beat India at home, he’ll probably have to go too
There is the chance that every team can have a shocking day like today, it’s just it seems that it is just yet another symptom of the horrible malaise that has crippled the England team in the last 9 months.
Peter Moores had a poor start to his first spell, then went on to achieve nothing … But got his job back anyway :-)
Yet again Cook exposed – no Plan B with the ball, woefully out of form with the bat. Drop him and bring KP back as captain – he and Moores would get on famously :-)
Cook is obviously out of his depth as captain; unfortunately there is literally no one capable of taking over within the team…Never mind Cooks form with the bat, his tactical ability is non existent its almost as if he needs the commentators in his ear to help him decide what to do. Either seriously change his tactical approach or carry out the most dramatic turnaround in history and send Cook/Moores packing and roll the red carpet out for Pieterson’s return!
I have been a KP supporter all along but now I feel for Cook too. I still don’t have much sympathy for the ECB crowd and their sycophantic journalists and former captains and pundits. But the match is not over yet and who knows…?
I think people are missing the point when they say there is no obvious candidate to replace Cook. He is such a bad captain that anyone in the team could replace him and do a comparable job. What we certainly can’t replace is Cook the player, all the more reason to relieve him of his duties in the hope we’ll get that world class player back. I can’t believe he’s kept the captaincy this long. Compare him to Vaughan and consider the following – management of star players with big egos, positivity, dealing with the media, getting the best out of senior players, declarations, over rates, field placings, selecting who to bowl etc etc. The comparison is embarrassing on every point you care to think of. And people who go on about winning in India that was in spite of captaincy not because of it. He didn’t even pick Panesar for the first test!!
I completely agree – the ‘no alternative’ argument is a little facile, because you can’t imagine how anyone else as captain would achieve less than Cook currently is. England have lost virtually every match they’ve played since Durham last summer.
Oh sorry one comparison that does favour Cook, he’s of much better stock than Vaughan. Also did anybody notice than when Flintoff was captain and failing it was ‘poor old Fred’ ie. ‘he’s a bit thick’ and a very patronising tone from the cricket media. However when Cook shows even less aptitude as captain the cricket media blame the public because it’s us who are all a bit thick.
I understand your disappointment Maxie, I totally do, but let’s all be very clear here – the fat lady is hoarse, game over and a superb team performance by SL, lead by the inspiring underrated Anglo Mathews!
As I nurse my injured knee back to health, I have had the opportunity to watch most of this series and the most glaring issues I see with the England team is the subjects of Cook and the lack of urgency in England’s play.
Now Cook I have been fairly vocal about through this forum recently, and without bashing him again, I thought Cook was a standout cricketer and leader when he was captain of the U21’s and had followed him ever since – basically a fan, but this is a whole lot different now. I would assume the ECB is giving him support, a lot of it, but he has to make the running at the end of the day. A few observations in this series I have seen is he doesn’t like making too many decisions himself, always discussing what the options are with others. Not too many test captains out there will do this – he should make the decision, tell the bowler, then place the field, not “what do you think?”. Too much chat with Broad (he is defo injured) and Anderson (who has looked very sulky this test – is the end in sight?). When a captain is asking many questions, the players must think he is not capable surely? I watched him bat yesterday, and his technique has become so flawed on his front foot, it lacks rhythm and control. Maybe a move down the order without the new ball perhaps?
England are not taking games by the scruff of the neck, and when they are in a strong position, they lack the ability or conviction to take the game away. This test, like the series, has ebbed and flowed wonderfully and England have been in winning positions many times but not seen it off. India will not be so accommodating. Forcing the pace whilst batting and being decisive in the field, creating urgency, that’s what England need.
I honestly believe Cook will not be captain for the Indian series, just can’t see it. They will likely hand it over to Bell for the short term, or Prior. Speaking of Prior, I have said before he should not be in this side, and he has had a poor test (I think he is injured also). Broad is not a very good captain, and besides, injuries are starting to become all too common for him these days. Time to send Prior out and bring in Buttler or Foster, probably Buttler. Stokes has to come back in, either for Cook or Ali.
My 1st Test v India line up –
Robson
Balance
Bell
Ali
Root
Stokes
Buttler
Jordan
Broad (if injured, I have no idea who is bowling well in County cricket, Onions?)
Tremlett
Anderson
What a mess!
Many thanks to all of you for taking the time to contribute – very much appreciated.
During the afternoon session, heads were down, runs were leaked, Sri Lanka actually played with us as in a naughty child type of way. Move the fielder, they play it somewhere else. Move the fielder back… This was obvious when Moen was bowling. He had THAT ball when Mathews was on 99 – what happened next was utterly unbelievable. Even Nasser commented on it – we virtually LET him get his century. At times, you have to do the unthinkable – Cook could have got Ballance to bowl, or put him behind the stumps and let prior roll his arm over. Probably not very productive, but at least it would have been different. We simply have no aggression or imagination. I note that while Warne is over here fullfilling his media commitments, the Aussies have brought in Murali to work as a consultant with Nathan Lyon. That is the type of thing we should be doing, bringing somebody in to work with Moen, or to get Monty’s head right, or bring on youngsters such as Patel and Riley. Everybody is always on about Swannie, so why isn’t he in the coaching set up? We have quite a few younger batters, why isn’t KP or even Tres in the coaching set up? When you look at how Boof transformed a pitiful Aussie outfit, almost overnight, it beggars belief that we let people retire, or sack them, because they don’t fit the mould of the “right sort of chap”. Not much wonder Headingly is nearly empty!
OK try this. In 1981, England’s captain had utterly lost form and England were losing match after match. In came Mike Brearley, a skilled captain, Botham got his form back and England won the series.
There are at least 3 excellent county captains out there – Read and Gale (sitting at 1 and 2 in the Div 1 table) plus Foster. Two of them are better keepers than Prior could ever hope to be so another improvement.
Too old, you say? All are years younger than Brearley was in 1981.
I agree Benny, I did ask this question some time back about who in County cricket is capable of captaining the England side. I never got a response from anybody, but Rob Key was one of my suggestions. Foster sounds like an interesting option – I have always rated him as a keeper and was never sure why they got rid of him all those years ago.
Cook has to step aside, no shadow of a doubt, so it will be interesting to see how the ECB play this out in the evening’s press conference.
Ian Bell should start clearing his throat…………….
They won’t even go near Rob Key – he never got a proper go when he was in th squad. Maybe it’s because he smokes – I’d have thought apart from that, he would be the “right sort”
Joking apart, out of the current team. it has to be Bell.
I like Rob Key but he doesn’t seem to be the batsman he used to be. Certainly he should have been England’s ODI and T20 captain for many years – streets ahead of anyone else. Key, Read and Foster all abused by England selectors #sigh
Maybe the rain will have the final say – and save Cook’s neck.