Even that last review was fucking embarrassing.
These are two of the worst displays I’ve ever seen by England. Truly diabolical.
West Indies - really pleased for them and I hope they can use this as a platform.
Agree with everything that has been said about England, but full credit to the Windies a superb performance under the excellent captaincy of Jason Holder.
That was embarrassing. Several of them should hang their heads in shame. I know away tours are tough but we have very badly let ourselves down here. Giles needs to kick Bayliss out and sack those who think playing a part time bunch as a warm up for three back to back tests. I’m really unimpressed but fair play to the West Indies.
These are two of the worst displays I’ve ever seen by England. Truly diabolical.
West Indies - really pleased for them and I hope they can use this as a platform.
It's just like 1980s. Tony Greig will make them grovel era back on.
Another abject and frankly arrogant performance from an England team that I'm really struggling to like. They've underestimated their opponents to a level bordering on disrespect. They didn't prepare properly, they haven't applied themselves and they haven't learn from their mistakes. They've got exactly what they deserved.
Agree with everything that has been said about England, but full credit to the Windies a superb performance under the excellent captaincy of Jason Holder.
Yep, terrible stuff from England. Some the shots to get out were pretty embarrassing.
On the other hand, hopefully this can be a real springboard for the West Indies and they build on this series so far.
Another abject and frankly arrogant performance from an England team that I'm really struggling to like. They've underestimated their opponents to a level bordering on disrespect. They didn't prepare properly, they haven't applied themselves and they haven't learn from their mistakes. They've got exactly what they deserved.
I think you have it bang on when you say you're struggling to like them. I feel the same.
Gone are the days when every lost test felt like a punch to the stomach - my initial reaction these days is 'those bastards have let us down again'.
But as most have said, fair play to WI, they've thoroughly outplayed us and, unless we really up our game in the next test, deserve the whitewash.
In the good old days, we could respond to crushing defeats by simply dropping Ian Bell at the behest of the London press. (Bell, even now, is better than some of those who have taken his place).
What happens now, who knows?
This England team has far too many "all rounders" and that makes the top 6 a very poor international class line up. All rounders by it's very nature are adequate batsmen and adequate bowlers at international level. This is not what's required. The top 5 batsmen MUST be pure batters and absolutely world class. Currently not even Joe Root can be classed as that. Furthermore Root has proved to be a very poor captain. And next time please don't go to play another international team and treat it as preparation for Ashes series. This has happened too often and must stop. Due respect must be given.
Saw on Twitter this morning somebody arguing for an "Iain Bell type".
This England team has far too many "all rounders" and that makes the top 6 a very poor international class line up. All rounders by it's very nature are adequate batsmen and adequate bowlers at international level. This is not what's required. The top 5 batsmen MUST be pure batters and absolutely world class. Currently not even Joe Root can be classed as that. Furthermore Root has proved to be a very poor captain. And next time please don't go to play another international team and treat it as preparation for Ashes series. This has happened too often and must stop. Due respect must be given.
Root aside, we haven't got any world class top five batsmen and that is the problem. One by one, Strauss, Trott, Pietersen, Bell and Cook have gone and only Root has come in to the side in that period who is anywhere near the same kind of quality.
This isn't just a blip now, it's a serious problem and we need a rethink about test cricket. Broad and Anderson won't go on much longer so the whole set up needs to be addressed.
The thing that concerns me is that I just can't see where the replacements are coming from in the county game. Burns has one of the best recent records in county cricket, yet has struggled so far.
I can't see how test standard batsmen can come out of the county game when 4 dayers are shoved into April May and September. The ECB are only really interested in domestic one day cricket which is why we now have such a strong ODI side but very limited options for test batsmen. The current Top 3 options of Burns Jennings Denly Bairstow are abysmal.
I can't see how test standard batsmen can come out of the county game when 4 dayers are shoved into April May and September. The ECB are only really interested in domestic one day cricket which is why we now have such a strong ODI side but very limited options for test batsmen. The current Top 3 options of Burns Jennings Denly Bairstow are abysmal.
The thing is Burns has done brilliantly in 4day cricket for a few years. The issue, for me, is that our players rarely experience other conditions unless they play for England or if they get a Big Bash or IPL contract. We need to find ways of getting a lot more batsmen exposed to other conditions early in their career. I'd be looking at having 'youth' and B team tours be a much more regular thing and playing 5 day games regularly, I'd also have a clear progression through and stagger the tours so the Senior team is playing in conditions that the B team faced a year earlier. That way you'll have 13-14 players with recent experience in that environment.
It seems to me that outside of the tests there are no warm up games that are meaningful & Lions tours don’t seem to have any intensity so why not instead have the Lions in West Indies also for the two weeks before 1st test and play 2x4 day games AvB?? Surely the intensity will be there from Lions to want to prove themselves and work over the established players??
You do wonder if the young batsmen today see test cricket as the ultimate or whether they are focussed on the flashy stuff to get IPL or BBL £? We at Worcester have had Joe Clarke over the last few years (before he left to play for a test ground county) & he seems to have gone on 4/5 Lions trips (until excluded for current one after selection for his links to the Hepburn case) yet has not been called up for the main squad once - is it too cosy? Are they challenged enough to be smashing the doors down to be selected?