Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Where is she?
Conference call
Switching the county championship from 2 divisions to 3 conferences is being mooted again and may well happen this time. It is something i could live with as long as there were semis and a final to decide the county champions (3 conference winners and best runner up). A 5 day grand final at Lords at the end of August could be pretty good. I disagree with Rob Steen though in that the conferences should be regionally based and not randomly drawn every season. After a few years it could get boring seeing the same teams over and over again.
Monday, March 29, 2010
We're off
The 2010 season is days away and the Bears are playing against Oxford UCCE in a 2 day match at The Parks over the next 2 days. Just in time for the cricket the weather has gone cold and wet after a few days of glorious Spring sunshine!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Homes to be demolished
The council is to ask the government to approve a compulsory purchase order so Warwickshire can buy 12 properties on the Pershore Road which will be demolished to make way for the new ground development. Some properties have already been bought by the club. It has been suggested that the gardens may be used for overflow car parking during big matches because of some spaces being taken up by building work. Carrots and onions today Fiestas and Jaguars tomorrow.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
England win - but do people want more?
A victory margin of 181 run with three hours of the final day to spare can be considered pretty convincing, but a spirited rearguard effort from Bangladesh and a flat dry pitch has turned this victory into a laboured win for England.
True England should be beating sides like Bangladesh by clear margins, but to dismiss the absence of key players and the growing confidence and development of the Bangladeshis as a factor in the weary nature of the victory would be naive.
This was a mixture of A-teamers and first choice England players with the emphasis very much on experimentation or, in Kevin Petersen's case, a desperate attempt to claw back some form.
New skipper Alastair Cook, leader in place of the absent and influential Andrew Strauss, made some tactical errors on the final day, admitting after the game that he was conservative in his field placing. But this is a nursery ground for his development as a skipper - the time to make mistakes is now.
By only playing three pacemen, two of them relative rookies at this level, England left themselves exposed should they not dismiss the opposition quickly and long hard sessions took their toll. This is exactly what happened as the likes of Junaid Siddique and Mushfiqur Rahim dug in to frustrate the bowlers. In the end it was the brilliance of Graeme Swann, who bowled nearly 79 overs in the entire match, who let his weary pacemen off the hook.
Speaking of Swann, the Nottinghamshire spinner entered the record books after becoming the first England off-spinner to take ten wickets in a match since Jim Laker took 19 for 90 at Old Trafford in 1954. It s fitting reward for a player who has grasped his second chance at an international career by the scruff of the neck and turned himself into one of England's most reliable performers.
Bangladesh meanwhile are improving as a Test playing nation and surprised many with their resistance in the final two days of the test. Siddique and Rahim in particular batted superbly as they stayed together for two sessions, just short of 70 overs, racking up 167 runs in the process.
Siddique himself hit a marvellous century while only a rush of blood from Rahim, bowled while charging down the wicket to Swann, cost him a three figure score.
In the end it was a game where everyone can be satisfied. A weakened England side did what was expected of them, while the hosts showed they can hold their own in the test match arena. The cricket odds make England strong favourites to win the second Test, but Bangladesh will certainly be able to take positives out of the series.
Meanwhile, in football news, England remain third favourites in the World Cup 2010 betting despite the fact a number of important players are struggling with serious injuries.
True England should be beating sides like Bangladesh by clear margins, but to dismiss the absence of key players and the growing confidence and development of the Bangladeshis as a factor in the weary nature of the victory would be naive.
This was a mixture of A-teamers and first choice England players with the emphasis very much on experimentation or, in Kevin Petersen's case, a desperate attempt to claw back some form.
New skipper Alastair Cook, leader in place of the absent and influential Andrew Strauss, made some tactical errors on the final day, admitting after the game that he was conservative in his field placing. But this is a nursery ground for his development as a skipper - the time to make mistakes is now.
By only playing three pacemen, two of them relative rookies at this level, England left themselves exposed should they not dismiss the opposition quickly and long hard sessions took their toll. This is exactly what happened as the likes of Junaid Siddique and Mushfiqur Rahim dug in to frustrate the bowlers. In the end it was the brilliance of Graeme Swann, who bowled nearly 79 overs in the entire match, who let his weary pacemen off the hook.
Speaking of Swann, the Nottinghamshire spinner entered the record books after becoming the first England off-spinner to take ten wickets in a match since Jim Laker took 19 for 90 at Old Trafford in 1954. It s fitting reward for a player who has grasped his second chance at an international career by the scruff of the neck and turned himself into one of England's most reliable performers.
Bangladesh meanwhile are improving as a Test playing nation and surprised many with their resistance in the final two days of the test. Siddique and Rahim in particular batted superbly as they stayed together for two sessions, just short of 70 overs, racking up 167 runs in the process.
Siddique himself hit a marvellous century while only a rush of blood from Rahim, bowled while charging down the wicket to Swann, cost him a three figure score.
In the end it was a game where everyone can be satisfied. A weakened England side did what was expected of them, while the hosts showed they can hold their own in the test match arena. The cricket odds make England strong favourites to win the second Test, but Bangladesh will certainly be able to take positives out of the series.
Meanwhile, in football news, England remain third favourites in the World Cup 2010 betting despite the fact a number of important players are struggling with serious injuries.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Angry man suffers injury setback
Darren Maddy has suffered a setback on his return to the team following a knee injury last year that saw him miss most of the season. He suffered a facial injury in a nets session during the Warwickshire pre-season trip to South Africa. He will now require an operation. Its not known when he will be able to return to the team. Get well soon Darren!
IPL-a-go-go
Three cheers for ITV4 as finally i have been able to see some IPL on TV and what i have seen so far has been pretty good. The excitement, the colour, the big 6s, the hot chicks in the crowd which the cameraMEN always dwell on. What is not to like?
Well the infamy of that last over bowled by Tyagi (who didn't even get to finish it as he bowled 2 over the waist height balls so he ended up with the superb figures of 1.5-0-39-0). What was Dhoni doing bowling him in the last over after his previous over had been so badly mauled? So my adopted team of the Chennai Super Kings didn't get off to a very good start (my great-great-great-aunt was born in Chennai in case you were wondering how i picked them).
Seeing the old stars like Shane Warne and some exciting new Indian players makes the IPL some excellent cricket in my opinion.
Well the infamy of that last over bowled by Tyagi (who didn't even get to finish it as he bowled 2 over the waist height balls so he ended up with the superb figures of 1.5-0-39-0). What was Dhoni doing bowling him in the last over after his previous over had been so badly mauled? So my adopted team of the Chennai Super Kings didn't get off to a very good start (my great-great-great-aunt was born in Chennai in case you were wondering how i picked them).
Seeing the old stars like Shane Warne and some exciting new Indian players makes the IPL some excellent cricket in my opinion.
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