Topic: England’s Cricketing Summer 2019 - West Indies/Pakistan & The Ashes

[Yosser0_0]

So the first test match of 2019 for England starts this week, it's about time too as it feels like ages since England have played a test. I have to say that in the their last test series to get a 3-0 whitewash in Sri Lanka is very impressive. Next up is a tour to the West Indies, and a busy looking schedule as always seems to be the case nowadays.

West Indies V England Schedule

International Test Match Series

Wednesday 23 Jan 2019 - First Test Match
Venue: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, 14:00 GMT

Thursday 31st January 2019 - Second Test Match
Venue: Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound, 14:00 GMT

Saturday 9th February 2019  - Third Test Match
Venue: Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet 14:00 GMT


Sunday 17th February 2019 - One-Day Tour Match (University of West Indies Vice Chancellor's XI)
Venue: Three Ws Oval, Cave Hill 14:00 GMT

One Day International Series

Wednesday 20th February 2019 - First One Day International
Venue: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, 15:00 GMT
 
Friday 22nd February 2019 - Second One Day International
Venue: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, 15:00 GMT

Monday 25th February 2019 - Third One Day International
Venue: National Cricket Stadium, St. George's, 13:30 GMT

Wednesday 27th February 2019 - Fourth One Day International
Venue: National Cricket Stadium, St. George's, 13:30 GMT

Saturday 2nd March 2019 - Fifth One Day International Series
Venue: Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet 15:00 GMT

International Twenty20 Match series

Tuesday 5th March 2019 - First International Twenty20 Match
Venue: Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, 20:00 GMT
 
Friday 8th March 2019 - Second International Twenty20 Match
Venue: Warner Park, Basseterre, 20:00 GMT

Sunday 10th March 2019 - Third International Twenty20 Match
Venue: Warner Park, Basseterre, 20:00 GMT

A couple of highlights from last year:-

Century from Woakes in the second test against India, was lucky enough to be there to see this, so perhaps a bit of self indulgence here!

<a href="https://youtube.com/v/8QC1o2U7r-c" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://youtube.com/v/8QC1o2U7r-c</a>

Moeen Ali and Jack Leach sharing seven wickets as England win the first test against Sri Lanka by 211 runs.

<a href="https://youtube.com/v/PrHrS1Breh4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://youtube.com/v/PrHrS1Breh4</a>

[Fiasco]

It must be fun playing the West Indies in this day and age. You never know what version will turn up, they'll either be bad or very bad.


On a serious note - and this is for another thread - but I would keep an eye on them for the World Cup in the summer. They'll be outside odds but depending on the squad they name they could do better than expected. They're much better in T2Os but have the players in ODIs to maybe do something with a bit of luck.


Anyway, back on point. What are we anticipating for this series then? Anything less than an England whitewash considered disappointing?

[Yorkykopite]

Fancy being an English batsman and knowing you've got to spend the winter facing the likes of Marshall, Holding, Garner, Roberts and Croft on fast, green, bouncy wickets in front of partisan crowds baying for English blood?

That was the 70s and 80s. This is now. Chance for the boys to rack up some serious centuries.

[BobPaisley3]

Would love to do this tour, must be a great few weeks. England to win it 2-0.

[Zend...en the clowns]

Decent little write up ahead of tomorrow, Anderson commenting on the use of the Dukes ball for the series, which has been specially made to be slightly different to normal. Extra layers on it to keep it hard and swinging for longer on abrasive Caribbean wickets.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2019/01/20/james-anderson-love-prospect-facing-west-indies-dukes-ball/

There's a real chance for the top order to play themselves into some serious form and get big scores.

Think the bowling attack will have a field day, got to be a whitewash.

[JLStretton]

So everyone just sitting back thinking we going to spank them, and is the same from few years ago when we thought the same was going to happen but they stepped up

IS it going to happen again?

[CheshireDave]

Decent little write up ahead of tomorrow, Anderson commenting on the use of the Dukes ball for the series, which has been specially made to be slightly different to normal. Extra layers on it to keep it hard and swinging for longer on abrasive Caribbean wickets.

Good to hear. Think I will back Anderson to get the most wickets for us across the 3 tests. 11/4 currently. Weather for the first test at least looks hot and cloudy. The Duke ball should be hooping around with a bit of luck.

[Yosser0_0]

Decent little write up ahead of tomorrow, Anderson commenting on the use of the Dukes ball for the series, which has been specially made to be slightly different to normal. Extra layers on it to keep it hard and swinging for longer on abrasive Caribbean wickets.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cricket/2019/01/20/james-anderson-love-prospect-facing-west-indies-dukes-ball/

There's a real chance for the top order to play themselves into some serious form and get big scores.

Think the bowling attack will have a field day, got to be a whitewash.

Also a good chance of them failing, do we even have a top order considering that we invariably end up 70-4 in a lot of test matches.

So Anderson now has 565 test wickets, 600 could be do-able by the end of the year with any luck.

[Crosby Nick]

Only one series win in the Windies since the 60s and that was 15 years ago now. Should have won the last couple but found ways to mess it up.

Don’t think we’ll have it all our own way but we do seem to be on a good upward curve and we should have enough to win, especially in the bowling department.

[Frank Becton]

England squads:

England Test squad to West Indies
Jennings, Burns, Bairstow, Root (c), Stokes, Buttler, Moeen, Foakes, Rashid, S Curran, Woakes, Broad, Anderson, Leach, Wood, Denly

England ODI squad to West Indies
Roy, Bairstow, Hales, Root, Morgan (c), Stokes, Buttler, Moeen, Rashid, Woakes, Wood, Plunkett, Willey, T Curran, Denly,

They have a couple of young and useful quick bowlers, so I think our vulnerable top order may get exposed again.

Very important we bat well, with Australia in the summer any weaknesses will get put under a lot of pressure against their fast bowlers.

[Circa1892]

Mad that we have three top quality keepers and no top quality openers in the Test team.

[Yorkykopite]

Roach is their biggest threat isn’t he? One of the few West Indian quicks in the last 10 years or so who could hold a candle to some of their greats.

[Frank Becton]

Roach is their biggest threat isn’t he? One of the few West Indian quicks in the last 10 years or so who could hold a candle to some of their greats.

Yes, along with Shannon Gabriel. think Jason Holder has a decent home record for them too.

I think I read that Darren Bravo is available again, but not sure if he is in the squad I suppose also they have suffered a bit with some of their better players going off playing T20 all around the world instead
of playing for their countries, Narine is an example of that.

[Yorkykopite]

Yes, along with Shannon Gabriel. think Jason Holder has a decent home record for them too.

I think I read that Darren Bravo is available again, but not sure if he is in the squad I suppose also they have suffered a bit with some of their better players going off playing T20 all around the world instead
of playing for their countries, Narine is an example of that.

Bravo is in the squad I think.

And you’re right about T20. That’s the biggest challenge that West Indies Test cricket has to overcome. Their best players become T20 globetrotters.

[Crosby Nick]

Bravo is in the squad I think.

And you’re right about T20. That’s the biggest challenge that West Indies Test cricket has to overcome. Their best players become T20 globetrotters.

It’s funny, was chatting to the token dour Yorkshireman in our office about cricket. He’s not got Sky so doesn’t watch any more, probably doesn’t know many of the England team these days let alone the Windies yet we both could reel off the Windies batting line up from pretty much 1-11 from their early 80s side without struggling.

Still something magical about a tour to the Caribbean. Think it being the most viewer/listener friendly of the overseas tours helps (SA arguably better but still takes place in working hours, this is the only tour when you can get home and watch a few hours of play).

[Ziltoid]

Fancy being an English batsman and knowing you've got to spend the winter facing the likes of Marshall, Holding, Garner, Roberts and Croft on fast, green, bouncy wickets in front of partisan crowds baying for English blood?

That was the 70s and 80s. This is now. Chance for the boys to rack up some serious centuries.

those were the days, loved them

[Ziltoid]

It’s funny, was chatting to the token dour Yorkshireman in our office about cricket. He’s not got Sky so doesn’t watch any more, probably doesn’t know many of the England team these days let alone the Windies yet we both could reel off the Windies batting line up from pretty much 1-11 from their early 80s side without struggling.

Still something magical about a tour to the Caribbean. Think it being the most viewer/listener friendly of the overseas tours helps (SA arguably better but still takes place in working hours, this is the only tour when you can get home and watch a few hours of play).

Think my remembered team when i played Owzthat in the early mid 80s were

Greenidge
Haynes
Gomes
Richards
Lloyd
Dujon
Harper
Marshall
Baptiste
Holding
Garner

Substitute with possibly Walsh and Richardson

[Crosby Nick]

Think my remembered team when i played Owzthat in the early mid 80s were

Greenidge
Haynes
Gomes
Richards
Lloyd
Dujon
Harper
Marshall
Baptiste
Holding
Garner

Substitute with possibly Walsh and Richardson

Haha yep. I had Richardson at 3 and Ambrose and Walsh in there but then I think I am far younger than you.

[Ziltoid]

Haha yep. I had Richardson at 3 and Ambrose and Walsh in there but then I think I am far younger than you.

Far, far younger

[Crosby Nick]

Far, far younger

Owzthat though...what a game! Spent hours playing that in the school holidays, used to score it all in proper cricket scorebooks and work out averages at the end of each book.

Should really have made some real friends.

[Ziltoid]

Owzthat though...what a game! Spent hours playing that in the school holidays, used to score it all in proper cricket scorebooks and work out averages at the end of each book.

Should really have made some real friends.

Same with me, we could have been friends, we could have been together!! Used to go into my Wisden Almanac and replay the Test games over the season

[Crosby Nick]

Same with me, we could have been friends, we could have been together!! Used to go into my Wisden Almanac and replay the Test games over the season

You’re 9 years older. I was about 10. Bit weird.

[Kekule]

Fancy being an English batsman and knowing you've got to spend the winter facing the likes of Marshall, Holding, Garner, Roberts and Croft on fast, green, bouncy wickets in front of partisan crowds baying for English blood?

That was the 70s and 80s. This is now. Chance for the boys to rack up some serious centuries.

Aggers said something the other day that really hit home to him just how much it has now changed. He landed and at passport control the officer asked him his reason for visit. Aggers said “sport” and the passport control officer said “which sport?”

Aggers said he found that really sad as 15-20 years ago he never would have been asked that question. Cricket was sport in the West Indies. Nothing else was important enough to be classed as a sport.  Now it’s just as any other.

Anyway. I don’t think England will have it all their own way. It’s still Test cricket and it’s a series away from home. Whitewashes don’t grow on trees. Arguably better England touring sides have ballsed it up in the Caribbean against Windies sides not that much better than this one.  There’s a bit of pressure on the top order as they have to get it right or else they might not be about for The Ashes.

[CheshireDave]

used to score it all in proper cricket scorebooks and work out averages at the end of each book.

[Yorkykopite]

Owzthat though...what a game! Spent hours playing that in the school holidays, used to score it all in proper cricket scorebooks and work out averages at the end of each book.

Should really have made some real friends.

We used to have games in double chemistry, hiding the rolling dice behind the gas taps. It was just about possible to keep quiet while you were doing it, tho I remember there was a real outburst of cheering when Brigitte Bardot hit a century against the Australians. I think Lillee and Thomson were bowling too. Then one afternoon Mr Poulter, the chemy teacher got a hat trick, also against Australia, and the deal was we had to pat him on the back and say “Good bowling sir” as we left the classroom. Quite easy for the first kid to do, but really tough if you were the 4th or 5th.

[Kekule]

Still something magical about a tour to the Caribbean.

I'll never forgive some of the senior members of my former Cricket club.  They tour every year, but only to a different part of England.  One year, about 20 years ago, one of the younger chaps said he had a contact that could get us a very favourable rate, through a company that organises cricket tours to go to Barbados for 10 days - fortnight, out of season. We'd play 5 fixtures, one of which was a short game at the Kensington Oval.

Imagine that. A chance to play at Test Match venue.

The older players bottled it and said no, convinced the opposition were all going to try and knock their heads off and they'd be out for 0 every game.  Chickens.  I was an off spinner, they'd have been trying to hit me into the sea every ball (and probably would have) but what better place in the world to get utterly thrashed?!

We toured Oxfordshire/Bedfordshire and stayed in fucking Banbury instead. 

[Crosby Nick]

Problem?

[Yosser0_0]

It’s funny, was chatting to the token dour Yorkshireman in our office about cricket. He’s not got Sky so doesn’t watch any more, probably doesn’t know many of the England team these days let alone the Windies yet we both could reel off the Windies batting line up from pretty much 1-11 from their early 80s side without struggling.

Still something magical about a tour to the Caribbean. Think it being the most viewer/listener friendly of the overseas tours helps (SA arguably better but still takes place in working hours, this is the only tour when you can get home and watch a few hours of play).

Agreed, I'd love to go to an England tour of the Caribbean. I went to the Ashes in Australia back in 2013/2014 and it was an amazing experience, the Caribbean sounds equally appealing.

[Yosser0_0]

.....He was a train spotter too!!

[Yorkykopite]

.....He was a train spotter too!!

“Look dad, there’s the 4.29 from Widnes, Class B Arkwright and Bulstrode engine, copper camshaft. Oh and by the way dad Neil Fairbrother’s batting average in my book stands at 16.4”

[Crosby Nick]

“Look dad, there’s the 4.29 from Widnes, Class B Arkwright and Bulstrode engine, copper camshaft. Oh and by the way dad Neil Fairbrother’s batting average in my book stands at 16.4”

Wrong on both counts. I always used to allow my favourites an extra life or two (DRS ahead of its time!) so Harvey would always have averaged 50+ through all the books I reckon.

I draw the line at train spotting though. Far too social an activity for my liking!

[voodoo ray]

Cricket motherfuckers.

After the recent tour of SL we should win easily, but then again you could say the same thing the last 3\4 times we've been over there.

[BobPaisley3]

Still remember the 46 all out. As a youngster getting into cricket, I didn’t know it was possible for a team to be skittled for double figures.

[Crosby Nick]

Still remember the 46 all out. As a youngster getting into cricket, I didn’t know it was possible for a team to be skittled for double figures.

We’d actually played really well up to that point. Needed somewhere around 150-170 to win I think. One of José inspired spells from Ambrose who was incredible to watch.

[Ziltoid]

Nick, I've still got this and a few others.  bought as i was a massive West Indies fan back then - mainly down to watching Richards and Holding

[BobPaisley3]

We’d actually played really well up to that point. Needed somewhere around 150-170 to win I think. One of José inspired spells from Ambrose who was incredible to watch.

Yeah definitely, the guy was unreal. First saw him during the 91 tour of England, what a bowler. Terrifying pace and bounce.

[Yorkykopite]

Nick, I've still got this and a few others.  bought as i was a massive West Indies fan back then - mainly down to watching Richards and Holding

Me too. I already liked Lloyd, Kallicharran, Boyce, Fredericks etc from the '72 tour. But when the team of '76 rolled round....It's all tied up with my youth and that endless summer, but I still think of that tour as one of the greatest sporting events I've ever seen. Most of it seen on BBC tv of course, in the company of Benaud and Laker. And Michael Holding on that featherbed at the Oval has got to be the greatest fast-bowling performance in the history of Test cricket. 

[sinnermichael]

West Indies win the toss and have decided to bat.

No Broad for England.

[Frank Becton]

England will play with two spinners - Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid - while Sam Curran is included at the expense of Stuart Broad.

Odd as I don't think Windies have picked a spinner at all.

[scouseman]

England will play with two spinners - Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid - while Sam Curran is included at the expense of Stuart Broad.

Odd as I don't think Windies have picked a spinner at all.

they have but he is an bit part spinner