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England aren’t kidding anyone
By Will 2 months ago Leave a comment on this post
Judging by the way England’s batsmen pottered and tottered today, it’s clear their self belief has reached a depressing new low. Even Kevin Pietersen, for all his bravado in saying his 131-ball 42 was “one of his best innings”, struggled more than I can ever remember and New Zealand’s patience paid off. They nagged and nagged and waited and waited and each England batsman succumbed. Daniel Vettori bowled beautifully - and I’ve always rated Jeetan Patel, who looks like he belongs in Test cricket - but rare was the sight of a spitting delivery off a length. It was all about patience. New Zealand had plenty, England none. Their brand of aggressive Australian-style batsmanship, born in their successful run-up to the 2005 Ashes, is so utterly misplaced nowadays that when they encounter a low-and-slow surface, they have no answer other than to block.
Patrick Kidd wondered the other day what England’s lineup might be for next year’s Ashes, but I’m rather more concerned with the selection dilemma they face for New Zealand’s return trip here next month.
Tags: daniel-vettori, england, england in new zealand, jeetan patel, kevin-pietersen, new-zealand |
5 Responses to “England aren’t kidding anyone”
March 7th, 2008 at 12.02 pm
March 7th, 2008 at 3.32 pm
No patience? They didn’t score much, but they only lost four wickets in an entire day. That’s pretty good going; England might not have lost the Sri Lanka series so easily if they’d showed such staying power.
March 7th, 2008 at 5.12 pm
Maybe thinking about a series that is more than 14 months away isn’t the most healthy way to prepare for matches against the rest of the test nations.
March 7th, 2008 at 8.28 pm
We lost against India at home, Sri Lanka away and now the first test against New Zealand looks in dire state.
Why can’t anyone see the current team is not working, the last test win was against a very poor West Indian side, players who the selectors constantly stick with like Ian Bell and Harmison are just not delivering, they have had plenty of chances, what harm is there in trying players which have performed in ODI, Shah and Broad for instance.
March 8th, 2008 at 2.39 am
I think the main problem was that the bowlers (aside from Sidebum who is worth every cent of his central contract) weren’t reliable, NZ racked up a big score, and the England batsman went into their shells, frightened of getting out.
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