So the stats have come in for the 2nd ENG vs NZ test. In summary:




A - Luck
B - Sheer dumb luck
C - O'Brien drops
D - Bad calls against Monty's bowling
E - Dentistry

Regional County leagues?

When I was at school I generally hated sport, and was picked last. Always. Unless Steven Bond (no relation of Shane's) was there too. I didn't like competing, and so now maybe I have found my calling by playing in the County Championship. Yes, who wants to have to compete after all? It's pretty ungentlemanly and also frowned upon by many a former bed wetting child psychologist.

Regional teams. Super, so it's no longer about getting the best at all, just about filling up time and doing theory. Reduce it back the tree days and you don't need to ever even have a result at all, let alone allow the best teams to compete against each other.

Three leagues could make sense, but not regionally. I mightn't have the slightest bit of respect for them, but footballers from over 100 teams regularly travel the length and breadth of the country to play just for 90 stinkin' minutes multiple times a week. Cricketers somehow can't even manage this?

If three leagues were to be used as a tool to reduce the amount of County cricket played for the EPL then that's a seperate story, and potentially also as bad, but if you want blocks of 6 teams, as opposed to the current 9's then surely those teams should be of equal quality nationally? Indeed wouldn't that be a way to get towards something like a 6 major team thing, a la city franchises? Give more money / support to the top league, and those teams should surely start to rise above the others and become counties for any england wannabe to try to get into. And once you have three leagues, why not allow other leagues, minor counties to tag on the bottom, for 6 national leagues in total?

It's pretty underhanded I admit, but hey, that's the ruthless world of Cricket. Cut throat business these days.

Anderson fornever

I'm really struggling to understand why James Anderson keeps getting selected. He's become semi-incumbent, which seems like an odd place to be. When Harmison was still a regular pick there was, for a long time, no sway from the England camp in his pick, and now he's dropped and probably never coming back, but Anderson has always been in the same position but a few rungs down the ladder, so if there's no one instantly better, it's Jimmy without a second thought.

I don't get it.

I missed his first golden boy period around 2003, but since returning after the demise of Jones et al, the only thing he's been consistent at is being inconsistent. He reliably gets pasted for 10+ on a couple of overs each day of a test and even more so in an ODI.

His figures for the NZ first innings ended up OK on paper, but then he only cleaned up the tail really, I had to have a life yesterday with Jake, but the start of the first innings he was atrocious, compared to Sidebottom being superb... And I'm happily aware of that thing about one end getting the wickets, the other being discplined to apply pressure, but that's been Sidebottom and Broad each time that's been around.

Before the series started I picked Hoggard over Anderson and was dissapointed, if Harmison hadn't crippled Hoggard I reckon we'd have had a different line up this time. I'd have still probably picked Skeletor Tremlett anyway.

But then he did perform some savage dentistry...

My son is a traitor!

Watching the first morning of the 2nd test reminds me of the fact that my 2yr old little boy seems to be an NZ supporter, largely as they have Hairy Maclary on their shirts as he cleverly observed during the overseas tests...

Personally I see more of a likeness to Jason Gillespie

Darrell Hair preparing for the 2nd test

Nice to see Darrell Hair getting right back where he left off during and England net session...



My history with Darrell in person actually goes way way back to the very day before *that* day, and before his reputation was cut to shreds by his actions and then buried, dug on, spat on and then burned before being buried again by his request to be bribed to keep quite was largely along the lines of "meh." which was a pretty controversial opinion to hold in 2006 with the war effort, rationing and such.

Swollen balls?

Only 20odd overs into the 2nd innings on Monday morning England manage to get the non-swinging ball swapped for another one, apparently on the ground that it's swollen and wet. This was then conspired to by Steve Bucknor with his little metal ring thing. Pansies. You try playing with a ball 10 minutes after taking guard against my dog Wicket...

I didn't have a cantaloupe melon handy for comparison...

Exclusive: Edgabaston moorings now available!

Am I only one to find Edgbaston's pavilion and members stand just a little too... "marina-ry" for a test venue? Roll on regeneration / move to brand new megacomplex.

That's Ramps checking out a new sailing yacht he plans to buy with pure liquid smugness, Freddie relaxing / hiding in his power yacht with his blacked out windows (helps with the hangovers you know) and for unclear reasons, Hulk Hogan in the speedboat.

LBW out of your crease

OK, anyone able to explain the logic for me here? Yesterday at Lords we had Brendan McCullum coming down the wicket to Broad and co, hitting a pair of sixes and a whole heap more before Monty bowled him for 97. Now he's happily coming down the track and out of his crease, not least because when he's that far down it's near impossible to be given LBW. Why is this? Fundamentally I know it's because it's so much further between his pads and the stumps, but surely this should give the benefit of the doubt to the bowler, not the batsman?!?! The batsman is the one being crazy and outlandish, surely if a ball hits him after pitching in line and all, then he should even *more* at risk of having the umpire say it would have gone on the hit, not less...

Seems like this would really address some more of the bat vs ball inequalities too.

Or conversely maybe stumpings should be changed to only allow you to be stumped if you're still in your crease...

What's a dayboo?

Aaron Redmond just caught by Cook off of Anderson for 0. His first test innings in his life and also apparently he is on his "dayboo". Is that another word for Honeymoon? I've heard Vettori use it quite a few times too this year. Is anyone with more worldy knowledge than me able to interpret this strange other-side-of-the-world word?

Adrian back from the IPL

So Adrian Macarena is back from the IPL. I really hope he's glad to have been able to have such a magic experience doing his allrounder magic in front of 55,0...

oh... really....?

So he didn't actually get a game. Not one. Did he even get to carry drinks? I know not, as I think I lost interest in actually watching the IPL commentary online at about game 19. But well, good on you Dimi, hope you get over the Delhi Belly soon enough. Only bowler to not take a Surrey wicket today, maybe you were too worried about getting carried away with the celebrations. All that white clothing and nowhere to hide...

-----

OK, so erm.. yeah seems he did play one - 9 runs, 2 wickets. *ahem* I think that means a am finding IPL even more boring than I thought without Setanta.

The Chris Read New Hat Appeal

King Cricket Wrote:

Chris writes:

“This bugged me last season and it seems it’s going to continue to bug me this season too. Can I suggest a whip round to buy him a new hat? That’s what, a tenner? So £2 per King Cricket reader.”

That was my writing, and that's my photo taken of my Sky+ box on my crappy TV on my Nokia N73, so I'm taking it back. nerrr. I have to fill this page somehow.

So as was pointed out, the buy has been whoring himself out to the ICL for a while now, and can always sell off his england caps if they are indeed physical hats (recalls a photo of Ambrose getting one from the devil man....) so why the insistance on keeping this tatty old thing going? Maybe it's lucky? Not that they won anything for a while. Maybe it helps keep Swann at arms length with some mystical powers... Something tells me I'll never find out the answer to this, one of the worlds most pressing issues.

4.5 Inches of wood

Well then, another cricket blog. Why a cricket blog? Well I like cricket. Unfortunately I generally know very little about the thing. I know a beamer from a bouncer and I know Muttiah Muralitharan from Mutya from The Sugababes. Past that though things largely tend to slide. Difference between a pull shot and a hook shot? No idea TBH. Hopefully others will maybe whop me into shape.

OR

I get bored very quickly. And stop. I'm not the greatest writer, but this sounds like a laugh. if the other bloggers will play.