New Zealand tour of England - May/June 2015

[bigred]

I'm still not convinced by Finn to be honest. He's still bowling at around 82/83mph and is bowling too many wides.

I've been very impressed by Rashid though. Ali's test spot could seriously be under threat.

 

[richowebbo]

I thought Finn bowled well today as did Rashid.

I hope we can keep this form throughout the series. Only change I'd make is Taylor in for Billings. Be good to see if Roy can make some runs in the other matches.

Butler is for sure one of the best we have.

 

[grkrama]

very good win from england, if only they had played half as good as this in WC

Wait Finn is playing

and he takes 4

 

[cricket_icon]

I'm still not convinced by Finn to be honest. He's still bowling at around 82/83mph and is bowling too many wides.

I've been very impressed by Rashid though. Ali's test spot could seriously be under threat.

I agree, Finn's pace is/was down but he looked to be putting more effort in and was showing more confidence. His demeanor just seemed better than he has in months.

In terms of Rashid and Ali, no reason why England need to have one or the other. In terms of ODIs, Ali has done a better job than most as opener and in all honesty, he is classy enough to be given a run as a top 5 batsman in the test team. He is wasted at 7 or 8 and being played as a bowler who bats a bit. If anything, it's the other way round. Ali is a top batsman and Rashid is a good bowler/bat, they both deserve to be in the team.

 

[Chewie]

England were impressive today

Our problems were batting first on a good pitch, no Southee and with Mills/Vettori retiring it means we have no economical bowlers (apart from NcCullum and he isn't very consistent) and no one to bowl at the death so England could score big, especially as Boult was bowled out really early. Then there was too much scoreboard pressure combined with some decent bowling from what I've heard (I only watched the first ten overs of our innings before bed).

 

[Nikhil V]

Why was Corey Anderson not playing? He is a complete package. Can score at quick rates, may not be a strike bowler like Southee or Boult but can take wickets when crucial. Is also very good with bat and can be an excellent finisher or a partnership builder when situation demands.

 

[Chewie]

He's injured

 

[bigred]

I agree, Finn's pace is/was down but he looked to be putting more effort in and was showing more confidence. His demeanor just seemed better than he has in months.

In terms of Rashid and Ali, no reason why England need to have one or the other. In terms of ODIs, Ali has done a better job than most as opener and in all honesty, he is classy enough to be given a run as a top 5 batsman in the test team. He is wasted at 7 or 8 and being played as a bowler who bats a bit. If anything, it's the other way round. Ali is a top batsman and Rashid is a good bowler/bat, they both deserve to be in the team.

There's no way Ali is good enough to bat in England's top 5 in test matches. You're basically saying that he's better than people like Taylor, Vince and one of Bell/Ballance, which definitely isn't true.

I agree that there's a place for both Ali and Rashid in the limited overs side. Ali has got enough credit in the bank to take Roy's place back. The next big tournament (t20) is in Asia, so having both spinners in the team would be a good idea.

 

[LiveLoveABD]

I'm still not convinced by Finn to be honest. He's still bowling at around 82/83mph and is bowling too many wides.

I've been very impressed by Rashid though. Ali's test spot could seriously be under threat.

Ali doesn't warrant a place in the tests as the lead spinner, regardless. As for Rashid? It's one thing to have four-five variations in the ten overs you bowl in an ODI, quite another in a test match. I hope he gets a test call, for his and his fans sake, but my instinct tells me he's a limited overs cricketer. I'll be glad to be proven wrong, but that's my instinct.

As for Finn? Scoreboard pressure got him a lot of wickets yesterday. He should be given a couple of series to prove himself. Let's not draw conclusions after one game. For his sake, I hope he has evolved a bit to give the captain an option at the death. From what I've seen of him, he's someone a lot of batsmen fancy in the end overs.

 

[LiveLoveABD]

There's no way Ali is good enough to bat in England's top 5 in test matches. You're basically saying that he's better than people like Taylor, Vince and one of Bell/Ballance, which definitely isn't true.

I agree that there's a place for both Ali and Rashid in the limited overs side. Ali has got enough credit in the bank to take Roy's place back. The next big tournament (t20) is in Asia, so having both spinners in the team would be a good idea.

This is the crux of the problem with English fans. The team just smashed the runner up at the WC and you're still calling for heads. When change is needed, you guys root for stability. I was one of the mob that was saying that England were playing in the 90's. If you see ODI cricket around the world, you will know that the era of bits and pieces cricketers is practically over. It's apt to have more dimensions to your game, but, you must be an absolute specialist in one field. I'm sorry, but Ali is neither at this stage. I think he's an okay batsman and an okay off spinner. He doesn't come across as your OUTRIGHT match winner. There's something about Roy. I think you need to give him time at the top.

Yesterday, England were 200/6 after a rollicking start. There will be days that you get bundled out for 230 when you play with the mindset they played with and there will be days like yesterday or probably a bit worse. England fans must be patient. You will obviously see the kind of brilliance you saw yesterday, but you will also see some brash, immature and stupid cricket. If these guys are given confidence, they will eventually blossom. If you're impatient, no matter who you pick, it's a ticking bomb. Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Sam Billings, Adil Rashid etc. need to be given and judged on 3-4 series over a year. Chopping and changing will lead no where.

You have the basis i.e talent. Now let's see how it's managed.

 

[_Sam_]

Still think Taylor should have been in ahead of Billings in the first place to be honest, the fact that even Willey has 150 more county runs than him this season in less games is probably a bit embarrassing.

 

[Deleted member 149013]

It was a great performance by England yesterday and the fact there was 400 + on the board will mask the skill of the bowlers because New Zealand came out under pressure, had New Zealand batted first then it would be interesting to see which seamers would have been effective.

Sam has mentioned Willey and I think he would be good addition to the squad and would add an extra option to the bowling department. I am also not convinced yet with Finn and too be honest can’t see what is good about Jordan apart from his slip catching I would say both are average bowlers at best without trying to sound too negative about them.

All said and done we are going in the right direction, I would of opened with Hales and Buttler yesterday with Root at 3 and Taylor 4 then Morgan with Billings now in the team. Maybe Roy would be better for T20's.

 

[bigred]

This is the crux of the problem with English fans. The team just smashed the runner up at the WC and you're still calling for heads. When change is needed, you guys root for stability. I was one of the mob that was saying that England were playing in the 90's. If you see ODI cricket around the world, you will know that the era of bits and pieces cricketers is practically over. It's apt to have more dimensions to your game, but, you must be an absolute specialist in one field. I'm sorry, but Ali is neither at this stage. I think he's an okay batsman and an okay off spinner. He doesn't come across as your OUTRIGHT match winner. There's something about Roy. I think you need to give him time at the top.

Yesterday, England were 200/6 after a rollicking start. There will be days that you get bundled out for 230 when you play with the mindset they played with and there will be days like yesterday or probably a bit worse. England fans must be patient. You will obviously see the kind of brilliance you saw yesterday, but you will also see some brash, immature and stupid cricket. If these guys are given confidence, they will eventually blossom. If you're impatient, no matter who you pick, it's a ticking bomb. Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Sam Billings, Adil Rashid etc. need to be given and judged on 3-4 series over a year. Chopping and changing will lead no where.

You have the basis i.e talent. Now let's see how it's managed.

Who's head did I call for? Roy is only playing at the moment as Ali has been asked to go and play some 4 day cricket in preparation for the Ashes. That number 1 slot should still essentially be Ali's as he's done pretty well in that position for a few months. I don't care about Roy getting a golden. But the fact is, he's still a reserve at the minute if England pick their best, most balanced eleven.

England will have to score 350 in every match they play with that bowling line up. Finn, Plunkett and Jordan are 30 overs of proper bowling, but are all inexperienced. Rashid, Root and Stokes are making up the other 20, but if one of the main seamers has a stinker, there's not many places to turn. I'd feel much happier if there's an extra bowling option in Ali.

 

[Deleted member 149013]

This is the crux of the problem with English fans. The team just smashed the runner up at the WC and you're still calling for heads. When change is needed, you guys root for stability. I was one of the mob that was saying that England were playing in the 90's. If you see ODI cricket around the world, you will know that the era of bits and pieces cricketers is practically over. It's apt to have more dimensions to your game, but, you must be an absolute specialist in one field. I'm sorry, but Ali is neither at this stage. I think he's an okay batsman and an okay off spinner. He doesn't come across as your OUTRIGHT match winner. There's something about Roy. I think you need to give him time at the top.

Yesterday, England were 200/6 after a rollicking start. There will be days that you get bundled out for 230 when you play with the mindset they played with and there will be days like yesterday or probably a bit worse. England fans must be patient. You will obviously see the kind of brilliance you saw yesterday, but you will also see some brash, immature and stupid cricket. If these guys are given confidence, they will eventually blossom. If you're impatient, no matter who you pick, it's a ticking bomb. Alex Hales, Jason Roy, Sam Billings, Adil Rashid etc. need to be given and judged on 3-4 series over a year. Chopping and changing will lead no where.

You have the basis i.e talent. Now let's see how it's managed.

Why are you suddenly an expert of what English fans should or shouldn’t feel? You misread the comment and turned into a negative one. Stupid and immature cricket? What game were you watching?

 

[blockerdave]

Ali has done a better job than most as opener and in all honesty, he is classy enough to be given a run as a top 5 batsman in the test team..

This is absolute bull. Ali is in no way good enough to bat top order in the test team. if he ends up with a test average north of 35 i'll eat my hat.