England in the 90s

[blockerdave]

Did I say 144/7 at lunch?

A typo. I of course meant 148 all out just after.

 

[Ed Smith]

You lost 3 wickets for 4 runs?

 

[blockerdave]

You lost 3 wickets for 4 runs?

Yes. Actually i lost 5/13 because i was 135/5 at one point.

 

[Ed Smith]

Ooft. Hope you got that on video. Don't know how you managed it

 

[blockerdave]

Ooft. Hope you got that on video. Don't know how you managed it

Yes you can - with several bowleds and lbw b Mushtaq. He took 6/29 in 13 overs!!

I took a wicket with the first ball of the chase, game on...

Then had them 79/4 at tea and 84/5 just after (they slumped from 77/2 including Salim Malik run out without facing...)

Got a little excited, but Mutjaba and Wasim brought it home.

3-1 loss.

 

[blockerdave]

Well, that is really the end of an era.

Botham, Gower and Lamb will not play for England again. Botham and Gower have been bit-part players really - Botham with just 5 test appearances in the 90s, and Gower with 11. But Lamb had been a stalwart, starting the decade as vice-captain and actually captaining in 3 tests when Gooch was injured in the West Indies and at the start of the Ashes. He appeared 23 times for me (1 more than in real life, because I played the Guyana match in the West Indies tour, which was abandoned without a ball bowled).

Derek Pringle would also never be called on again, ending a 10 year test career. Another bit-part player appearing just 9 times and in and out of the side, the story of his career. The 2 test matches each for Neil Mallender and Tim Munton would also be the only ones they would ever play, but sadly the 2 Ian Salisbury played were not.

With the next test not played until January 1993, that completes my 3rd calendar year of Test Cricket.

My record so far is fairly poor, and both better and worse than the real story.

1990

• 5 match away tour to West Indies - lost 3-2 (real life lost 2-1)
• 3 match home series vs New Zealand - lost 2-1 (real life won 1-0)
• 3 match home series vs India - won 2-1 (real life won 1-0)

1990/91

• 5 match Ashes series in Australia - won 3-2 (real life lost 3-0)

1991

• 5 match home series vs West Indies - won 2-1, 2 draws (real life drew 2-2)
• 1 match series vs Sri Lanka - lost (real life won)

1992

• 3 match away tour to New Zealand - lost 2-1 (real life won 1-0)
• 5 match home series vs Pakistan - lost 3-1, 1 draw (real life lost 2-1)

Overall record then is played 30 matches, won 12, lost 15, drew 3. Played 8 series, won 3, lost 5.

Yes, somehow I won the Ashes and defeated Richards and Marshall in their final series.

Individual player records are horrendous.

Highest Run Scorers

1. Graham Gooch - 27 Matches, 52 Inns, 1,971 runs at 39.42, 5 centuries, 9 half-centuries, highest 159
2. Robin Smith - 29 Matches, 55 inns, 1,284 runs at 24.69, 1 century, 5 half-centuries, highest 108
3. Allan Lamb - 23 Matches, 46 inns, 1,177 runs at 27.37, 2 centuries, 5 half centuries, highest 154
4. Alec Stewart - 23 Matches, 43 Inns, 1,003 runs at 23.88, 1 century, 4 half centuries, highest 124
5. Michael Atherton - 19 Matches, 36 inns, 962 runs at 26.72, 0 centuries, 6 half-centuries highest 98
6. Jack Russell - 25 matches, 46 inns, 944 runs at 22.48, 1 century, 4 half-centuries, highest 104.)

(Mark Ramprakash is the only batsman other than Gooch to score more than 500 runs at >30. He has 527 at 31.00 with 1 century, 2 half-centuries and a best of 108 from 9 matches and 17 inns.)

Century makers

1. Graham Gooch - 5
2. Alan Lamb - 2
3. Alec Stewart, Robin Smith, Jack Russell, David Gower, Chris Lewis - 1

(Michael Atherton and Derek Pringle both have highest scores in the 90s.)

Highest Wicket Takers - seamers

1. Devon Malcolm - 21 matches, 71 wickets at 32.31, econ 3.17, strike rate 61.08
2. Phillip Defraitas - 18 matches, 49 wickets at 39.08, econ 3.15, strike rate 74.47
3. Gladstone Small - 12 matches, 47 wickets at 23.87, econ 2.94, strike rate 48.68
4. Chris Lewis - 14 matches, 36 wickets at 40.78, econ 3.00, strike rate 81.44
5. David Capel - 5 matches, 23 wickets at 21.39, econ 3.20 strike rate 40.13
6. Angus Fraser - 9 matches, 23 wickets at 39.30, econ 3.29, strike rate 71.74
7. Ian Botham, - 5 matches, 19 wickets at 25.79, econ 2.68, strike rate 57.79

And to finish on a high note, the highest wicket takers (spinners)

1. Phil Tufnell - 10 matches, 68 wickets at 16.71, econ 2.42, strike rate 41.35
2. Eddie Hemmings - 7 matches, 34 wickets at 17.97, econ 2.25, strike rate 47.94
   
3. Graeme Hick - 11 matches, 20 wickets at 17.15, econ 2.00, strike rate 51.55
4. Richard Illingworth - 2 matches, 15 wickets at 16.60, econ 2.15, strike rate 46.33
5. Mike Atherton - 19 matches (bowled in 4), 5 wickets at 27.4, econ 2.24, strike rate 73.40
6. Ian Salisbury - 2 matches, 4 wickets at 29.50, econ 1.97, strike rate 90.00

On to India!!

 

[blockerdave]

The tour to India was the most controversial and quintessentially 90s tour of all.

The controversy started with the non-selection of David Gower which was raised in parliament and led to a vote of no confidence in the MCC selectors which they lost in “on the day” votes, but won once postal votes were counted (yes, really). Adding to the controversy over Gower’s omission was the fact that the reason given for not selecting a batsman who averaged over 50 vs Pakistan was that he was “too old”. This despite Gower being younger than the captain Graham Gooch, he was also younger than John Emburey and the same age as Mike Gatting both selected at the first opportunity after their bans for touring South Africa had expired (so was Paul Jarvis).

Dermot Reeve was supposed to be Gower’s replacement. He played in the one day series but didn’t feature in the tests, although when the team scorer fell ill Reeve’s Mum stepped up into the role, arguably contributing more to the tour than Reeve.

Emburey was one of just two spinners alongside Phil Tufnell. Ian Salisbury was then added as a net bowler, and with Tufnell and Emburey bowling rubbish in the warm ups Salisbury ended up playing the first test as the only frontline spinner alongside 4 seamers. Yes, 4 seamers, in India.

With a punishing and intensive itinerary made worse by an air traffic control strike meaning England travelled either by train or flown by strike breaking pilots from Uzebekistan in hastily chartered planes, the tour was a disaster with humiliating defeats in all 3 tests, and although they did manage a couple of wins in the ODI, that series was lost too. Gooch played his hundredth test in the 1st test, but missed the second after sharing a “dodgy prawn curry” the night before (Gatting was unwell but played).

Ted Dexter blamed the smog, and was going to commission a report into the effects of pollution on cricket, to which the Indian sports minister said he was commissioning a report into the effects of smog on Indian spinners trajectories...

On the way home, England lost to Sri Lanka to complete a miserable tour.

Facing questions over his position and an inquiry at home after such a disastrous tour, Ted Dexter emerged all smiles from his grilling by the MCC Committee to really grasp the nub of the problem.

There is a modern fashion for designer stubble, and some people believe it to be very attractive. But it is aggravating to others and we shall be looking at the whole question of people’s facial hair.

Yes, he really said that.

So yeah, I’m pretty crap at this game, but I’ve got to do better than that, surely?

 

[wasteyouryouth]

Graeme Hick 2/1 to top the bowling charts.

 

[Wavelberry]

Graeme Hick 2/1 to top the bowling charts.

I'll bet £5000

 

[blockerdave]

I believe he was at least in the first test

 

[Ed Smith]

The tour to India was the most controversial and quintessentially 90s tour of all.

The controversy started with the non-selection of David Gower which was raised in parliament and led to a vote of no confidence in the MCC selectors which they lost in “on the day” votes, but won once postal votes were counted (yes, really). Adding to the controversy over Gower’s omission was the fact that the reason given for not selecting a batsman who averaged over 50 vs Pakistan was that he was “too old”. This despite Gower being younger than the captain Graham Gooch, he was also younger than John Emburey and the same age as Mike Gatting both selected at the first opportunity after their bans for touring South Africa had expired (so was Paul Jarvis).

Dermot Reeve was supposed to be Gower’s replacement. He played in the one day series but didn’t feature in the tests, although when the team scorer fell ill Reeve’s Mum stepped up into the role, arguably contributing more to the tour than Reeve.

Emburey was one of just two spinners alongside Phil Tufnell. Ian Salisbury was then added as a net bowler, and with Tufnell and Emburey bowling rubbish in the warm ups Salisbury ended up playing the first test as the only frontline spinner alongside 4 seamers. Yes, 4 seamers, in India.

With a punishing and intensive itinerary made worse by an air traffic control strike meaning England travelled either by train or flown by strike breaking pilots from Uzebekistan in hastily chartered planes, the tour was a disaster with humiliating defeats in all 3 tests, and although they did manage a couple of wins in the ODI, that series was lost too. Gooch played his hundredth test in the 1st test, but missed the second after sharing a “dodgy prawn curry” the night before (Gatting was unwell but played).

Ted Dexter blamed the smog, and was going to commission a report into the effects of pollution on cricket, to which the Indian sports minister said he was commissioning a report into the effects of smog on Indian spinners trajectories...

On the way home, England lost to Sri Lanka to complete a miserable tour.

Facing questions over his position and an inquiry at home after such a disastrous tour, Ted Dexter emerged all smiles from his grilling by the MCC Committee to really grasp the nub of the problem.



Yes, he really said that.

So yeah, I’m pretty crap at this game, but I’ve got to do better than that, surely?

So that was "we lost this tour because I don't like beards" then? Wow

 

[blockerdave]

Ian Salisbury bowls 11 overs 0-37, Hick comes on and 2nd ball gets Tendulkar bat pad.

Howling with laughter.[DOUBLEPOST=1609674984][/DOUBLEPOST]

So that was "we lost this tour because I don't like beards" then? Wow

Yes, it really was. Beards and smog.

 

[Ed Smith]

Ian Salisbury bowls 11 overs 0-37, Hick comes on and 2nd ball gets Tendulkar bat pad.

Howling with laughter.[DOUBLEPOST=1609674984][/DOUBLEPOST]

Yes, it really was. Beards and smog.

Wow, I mean even for 90s England thats batshit crazy

 

[i.n]

Now Then Lads . I have Decided to scrap the Pakistan tests 90s . only realised that when Pakistan were batting in that first test they were on veteran so quit that and decided to do the England v west indies 1991 5 test in England. So as Have mentioned as above I am England . so Match Report . First Test 1st Day Headingly West indies won the toss Chose to bat first on dry wicket . West indies made a good start 1/70 When Haynes went for 43 lbw to pringle .Richardson came in and made a good partnership with Simmons 170 . Before Simmons went for 127 . When Malcolm bowled him. Then Richardson Was Run Out For 78 Good Throw Back to Stewart who came in for Russell . The 4 wicket Stand 16 Between Hooper 22 Richards 12 overnight . that left the west indies 307/3 @ Stumps . England's Bowling Was Not Good . Only Pringle Can come away with some praise - Figures 25/8/61/1. Malcolm 21/1/79/1 defraites 14/2/54/0. Botham 11/0/50/0 Tufnell 16/1/60/0 . RR 3.50 For The West Indies . England need wickets on the 2nd day Early or this Test will be lost Which wont be Good Start . Will report Back tomorrow for the 2nd day report thanks guys .

 

[blockerdave]

Looks like Azahruddin was scouting my travails against Mushtaq in the Pakistan series, as he’s brought on Kumble in the 7th over.

Oh, and I’m already 7/2.

This after India made 311 having been 187/7, because I forgot to bowl Graeme Hick. Vinod Kambli made 192* after I rage quit and restarted when the AI ran him out for 99.

The wheels have come off already.