Thursday, September 20, 2007

Crash, Bang, Wallop

Random thoughts on a week of international 20/20.

- What on earth did Flintoff say to Yuvraj before Broad's fatal over. Obviously there's a future for Freddie on the 'motivational speaking' circuit once he's finished playing.

- If I'd have been Broad I'd have thrown the sixth one waaay down the legside - hit that for six then! Trouble is, Yuvraj probably would have done.

- Some of the six hitting reminds me of the Crash Davis quote in Bull Durham - 'Most things that fly that far normally have a stewardess on them'

- Talking of stewardesses, the new Australia kits look like they've been designed by the same person who came up with the Easyjet uniform.

- Are the most EXPENSIVE tickets for the final really only eleven quid? If that's true, it would actually be cheaper to attend the 20/20 final than the Rugby World Cup Final in Paris, even including travel costs!

- Talking of tickets, the SA sales policy has certainly created a fantastic atmosphere - to the extent that the loud music seems a bit un-necessary. So loud that you can hardly hear them booing KP.

- The four people dressed in combats and vests, apparently high on a cocktail of kick-ass drugs, dancing maniacally on the roof of the dugout at every opportunity. What's that all about?

- Like to see them try that in front of the Peter May Enclosure.

- Fred is now going to miss the Sri Lanka one day series - but Peter Moores is still clinging to the idea of getting him back for the test series. So the gameplan now seems to be, damage the ankle, let him have a couple of months to recover, then damage it again, then recover - lather, rinse repeat.

- It was pretty clear in last five overs of the South Africa run chase that a 'six hitter' was required, yet Mascarenhas went in after after Jeremy Snape - who spent eleven balls scoring seven. Imagine what Mascara could have done with those eleven balls? Then, against India, England managed to contrive a situation where he went in after Shah and Luke Wright, and didn't face a single ball.

- File this under 'extremely worrying'... Charles Colville is talking a lot of sense.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Aaaah, the batting order.

Clearly, Mark, you have never played International cricket, and therefore never learnt exactly why it is that a number 7 couldn't possibly be expected to go in at, say, 5, should the situation demand it. Or indeed vice versa.

It is my understanding (never having "graced" anything above club level) that the exalted species of International Class bat-wielders (sub-species: English) occupy such a rarified atmosphere that their God-given ability to hit a ball is a fragile gift, and one which must not - under any circumstances, and certainly nothing so grubby as a run-chase - be unbalanced by unpredictability. it would therefore be totally reckless to start asking guys to go in for a swish when it wasn't their turn.

And it would've been dreadfully bad manners to have asked Snape to step down a rung or two.

I trust that clears the matter up.

Anything else troubling you? I suspect matters of such delicate sensitivity don't occur too often down the Den.... ;-)