Comments on: Shall we all just agree to blame James Vince for absolutely everything forever?

By: A P Webster

A P Webster — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 18:53:47 +0000

Pakistan!

England doomed! Never mind!

Cricket!

By: Sam

Sam — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 18:37:48 +0000

Anyone got any new swear words for use over the next week or so?

By: Alec

Alec — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 14:00:07 +0000

In reply to North by West.

It’s hardly James Vince’s fault that he got selected to do Ian Bell’s job in 2015.

If anyone deserves criticism, it’s the selectors for thinking that the job required was Ian Bell’s from 2015

By: Bail-out

Bail-out — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 10:58:35 +0000

In reply to Bail-out. My mistake in the copy and paste and reordering. Sorry!

By: North by West

North by West — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 07:58:14 +0000

In reply to Sam. It's a tournament, and there's been a lot of rain. Curators haven't had time to go out there and bake the pitches. This has been good for the quality of the close contests (even though most matches have still been uncompetitive).

By: Ged

Ged — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 07:51:27 +0000

In reply to Kristian.

Ball 19.6 has already been corrected on the commentary: “TL Chatara run out (Seelaar/van der Merwe)”

What a pity. I preferred the “two Chris Mpofus” theory.

By: Kristian

Kristian — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 06:46:50 +0000

In reply to Bail-out. How did Chris Mpofu face ball 6, if he was bowled ball 5? Are there two Chris Mpofus?

By: Ameya

Ameya — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 01:33:16 +0000

Chin up, chaps! Still favourites to go through 🙂

By: Bail-out

Bail-out — Tue, 25 Jun 2019 22:13:35 +0000

Super Over alert!

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/19062/commentary/1188380/netherlands-vs-zimbabwe-2nd-t20i-zim-in-ireland-and-nl-2019

Zimbabwe thereby won their first match on this tour. They lost 2-0 in the ODIs, and this levelled the T20Is 1-1… not totally sure why they play a Super Over in a multi-match series, rather than a knock-out tournament, isn’t a tied match exciting enough?

The 20th over of the Zimbabwe reply sounds like great fun. Needed 12 to tie, 13 to win, with three wickets left, Chigumbura on strike having reached 17 off 14 balls, Kyle Jarvis at the other end.

19.1 Roelof van der Merwe to Elton Chigumbura: SIX

19.2 Roelof van der Merwe to Elton Chigumbura: SIX

19.3 Roelof van der Merwe to Elton Chigumbura: DOT

19.4 Roelof van der Merwe to Elton Chigumbura: WICKET (bowled)

19.5 Roelof van der Merwe to Chris Mpofu: WICKET (bowled)

19.6 Roelof van der Merwe to Chris Mpofu: WICKET (run out, Seelaar/van der Merwe)

Think I’d rather have been in Rotterdam than Lord’s…

By: Dane

Dane — Tue, 25 Jun 2019 21:26:35 +0000

In reply to King Cricket.

All valid observations KC, but it really feels as if Deets has a strong point too. There has been a horrible inevitability about all this (where “all this” = two avoidable defeats, Roy getting injured, Vince getting stuck in a role he’s blatantly not suited for, and more generally the imminent ignominy of failing to perform in a tournament for which they were favourites… losing to Australia in a World Cup is so crashingly obvious that it belongs in a class of its own). Whatever the reasons may be, England teams just don’t seem to be capable of rising to the big occasion.

In other words, yes they have made loads of progress (… from the side which insisted on opening with Alastair Cook), but however much progress they make, it doesn’t feel as if it would ever be enough to, say, win a World Cup. That seems to require a particular level of belief which the England players just seem to lack; India have acquired it, which proves it can be acquired (Aussies are born with it, which is why so many of us love to watch them fail).

I am more pessimistic than usual today, cos of what befell Somerset earlier on (shudder). But for all that “winning DNA” sounds like (and is) a load of bollocks, all such talk may nevertheless be pointing to a truth