The International Cricket Thread

[PaulWinch again]

Pope gone already.

[PaulWinch again]

Also, and I don’t blame Pakistan for this as it’s within the rules, but you shouldn’t be allowed to play back to back Test’s on the same pitch.

[Meanwood Villa]

Now Root

[PaulWinch again]

England have roughly lost 13-160.

[Villan For Life]

Also, and I don’t blame Pakistan for this as it’s within the rules, but you shouldn’t be allowed to play back to back Test’s on the same pitch.

I imagine that the ICC will ban it soon.

[PaulWinch again]

It’s a rough pitch but England’s performance since being about 220-2 has been pretty rough, both with bat and ball.

[olaftab]

Also, and I don’t blame Pakistan for this as it’s within the rules, but you shouldn’t be allowed to play back to back Test’s on the same pitch.

I imagine that the ICC will ban it soon.

I hope not because overall this win by Pakistan is great for Test cricket. Test cricket was literally dying in that Country , especially, after their crushing two test loss to Bangladesh. Winning this will hopefully reinvigorate team and public. They played to their strength, spin and pitch, and that's what every Test match nation does or at least tries to do.

[Villan For Life]

Also, and I don’t blame Pakistan for this as it’s within the rules, but you shouldn’t be allowed to play back to back Test’s on the same pitch.

I imagine that the ICC will ban it soon.

I hope not because overall this win by Pakistan is great for Test cricket. Test cricket was literally dying in that Country , especially, after their crushing two test loss to Bangladesh. Winning this will hopefully reinvigorate team and public. They played to their strength, spin and pitch, and that's what every Test match nation does or at least tries to do.

I get your point but feel that Pakistan cricket needs to consolidate. In two years time when we tour there again you can almost guarantee that they will have a new coach, a new captain and virtually a new team. They need to stick with a core nucleus of players and stick with them.

As for England, when we are good we are very good, when we are bad we are awful. Only Stokes looked to have any idea of how to play spin, we need to fix that fast.

[LeeB]

I love seeing England win, but given the format is dying in front of us and the 'big three' dominate to the point of sucking the life out of it, I don't think it hurts a proud cricketing country like Pakistan get that win today.

[Chris Smith]

Also, and I don’t blame Pakistan for this as it’s within the rules, but you shouldn’t be allowed to play back to back Test’s on the same pitch.

I imagine that the ICC will ban it soon.

Maybe but England really can’t complain as conditions in this country are different to pretty much every other test playing nation giving us a natural advantage for home tests.

[PaulWinch again]

Yeah but there’s a difference between variable conditions and playing on exactly the same pitch in back to back games.

I’m happy enough for Pakistan, and overall they played the better cricket. But a new match should have a new pitch.

[paul_e]

The problem with reusing the same pitch is that it makes the game pretty much decided by the toss.  England did well early in the first innings to pile on runs whilst we could but once it started to break up it became harder and harder to play. It's no great shock that the innings scores went highest to lowest through the match.

[olaftab]

I get your point but feel that Pakistan cricket needs to consolidate. In two years time when we tour there again you can almost guarantee that they will have a new coach, a new captain and virtually a new team. They need to stick with a core nucleus of players and stick with them.

lol... yes as always. Totally agree as no country destroys precocious young cricketers like Pakistan do through mismanagement.

[PaulWinch again]

See Shaheen as a prime example.

[tomd2103]

The problem with reusing the same pitch is that it makes the game pretty much decided by the toss.  England did well early in the first innings to pile on runs whilst we could but once it started to break up it became harder and harder to play. It's no great shock that the innings scores went highest to lowest through the match.

It's not really a done thing in decent club cricket, let alone test matches.  Added to that, I heard it mentioned in one of the post match interviews that the heavy roller had somewhat conveniently stopped working as well.

The England camp were very diplomatic about it in public, but I bet they were seething in private.  As I say, any team playing a decent level of cricket would be unhappy if they turned up to face a spin heavy team on a used track that hadn't been rolled.