Its Summer! - the Fever Cricket Thread.

It'll be on TV. He'll be mindful of potential IPL scouts watching. He will have a slog and get out.

Anyone watch Swanny's diary?

Nup. Was it on the tele?

I want to see Collingwood get in the runs in this match. He's the only English player not have got really stuck in, by memory. A ton from KP would be a treat too, the Aussies (and most everyone else) hate him.

Controversy at the SCG.

From Cricinfo:

Beer to Cook, 1 no ball, 88.9 kph, Beer has a wicket! Or does he? Cook has gone for a big slog sweep and skied it to mid-on, where Hilfenhaus hovers underneath it and takes the catch. But Beer's celebrations are short-lived - Billy Bowden asks for the third umpire to check on a suspected no-ball - and Beer has overstepped! Oh, a horrible moment for the debutant!

Haha Beer!TopLeft072011-01-04 19:02:08

It's on youtube. It's brilliant.

I just loved the despairing Aussie faces. Brilliant.

You and me both pal.

Have now, cheers buff good laugh that. Did you send in a sprinkler vid? I want to see Bresnan celebrate a wicket with it.

Pollard hit 29 off one over just now in the Aussie Twenty20 comp, it was crazy, he had like 3 free hits, completely wild.

Yeah saw that then got out off an amazing catch. Then SA collapsed when they only needed about 40 off 30 to win. tomrewi2011-01-05 00:53:38

I hate the fact umpires can do that though.

Not really, don't know if you've umpired before but even just doing player umpiring, its almost always obviously not a no-ball, but sometimes you get a ball that a little late it clicks that 'oh sh*t, that was probably a no-ball'. It is to late to call it and you just hope that it doesn't get a wicket.If you can check when you have that nagging suspicion I think it is a good thing.

Obviously this should happen less to real umpires than joe schmo, but it can happen.

I have umpired before.

That was lucky by cook. Could have been out on 99

commentator just said: "It's clearly a much more difficult pitch when you bowl really well."

...good insight there, that explains why aussie were 189/8, it's harder to bat when the bowlers are better. :|

Made his ton, superb batting

Just on the no-ball thing. You can understand why Billy wasn't sure. Beer's foot was quite a bit off the ground so from behind it would be impossible to tell. In that case I think its a good thing to check, although it would be annoying if they started to go upstairs all the time.

To me, this seems to sum up the difference between the two bowling attacks -

"We always have this argument between batters and bowlers," Johnson said. "We always try to find a way to get behind the line. We all try and do it. Whether you feel enclosed with the nets being there, I don't know what it is. I still bowl half a foot over in the nets but I don't know how we're going to fix that...
...England's approach to over-stepping with David Saker, the bowling coach, is much more meticulous than Australia's sloppy method under Troy Cooley. "We think it's a very important part of our job to stay behind the line - even more so in one-day cricket," Anderson said."We try and practise it in the nets, and I hope we can replicate that out there."

Fair enough. I hope you are wrong, but you may be right. I do understand your point about the creep that seems to occour over time where these things are introduced. I just think more often than not, the umpire will know.

The other option is to get a system that calls them automatically like foot faults in tennis- don't know how that works though, so not sure if it is feasible. This would let umpires solely concentrate on what is happening at the other end.

Australia bowling attack 2007:



Australia bowling attack 2011:




Sums it up.

Don't think this would work due to the foot being in the air a lot of the time (e.g. Beer no-ball if he had been back 5 cms). Would only work if all their bowlers had their feet on the ground.

Collingwood anounced his retirement after his test.

Hilarious hearing the Australian commentators having a massive whinge about the English ones.

TopLeft072011-01-06 12:20:54

"Johnson - one of the world's great bowlers"

he'll still get them in ODI and T20

Bresnan ?

Fast becoming one of my favourite cricketers.

I'm loving this ashes series, apart from the 3rd test. So good! Wish I was there.

Anyone going to the NZ v Pakistan test in Hamilton?

3rd ton of the innings as prior looks on his way at 94 not out

I heart Cricinfo.  They come up with some gems.... 2ndBest2011-01-06 13:44:16

Johnson getting 22 smashed off his over by the number 10 and 11 batsman.

Loving this, Poms tearing the Aussies a new one.

Yep, i'll be there for some of it.

Will your boss give you the time off?

Watson run out

Hilarious run out as well. Complete balls up

Haha Clarke is out! 124/4