[Off Topic] The Ashes Thread

[ruff_hi]

And to make this post relevent to the thread: Australia got a little hurt today I think...

A little hurt! That is like saying that Templars know what they are doing civ4-wize. Australia got thumped ... or, maybe more accurately, out thought.

[LiPing]

Neato, the three sports I regularly watch (cricket, formula 1 and baseball) are all mentioned in this thread

And yeah, 156/8... looking really good for England, expecting the follow-on to come up tomorrow.

[Edit]Also, hi everyone.[/Edit]

[sunrise089]

Just out of passing interest, who?

And to make this post relevent to the thread: Australia got a little hurt today I think...

Metallian. MissLadyLuck told him about it, and together they believed it was a bug and an exploit

[ruff_hi]

bah!!! Expect the last 3 aussie batsman to each score double centuries (in my dreams ). Also, your location says Adelaide but your nomenclature (156/8) says British ... it should be 8/156 - what gives?

[LiPing]

Originally my mother and grandparents lived in England for some time before moving, and also we got used to following games that weren't covered on TV on cricinfo (which is most of them), so I'm more familiar with that method.

[Sullla]

I'm previewing some empire-themed movies this week for the British Empire course that I'll be teaching in August. One of the ones I'm going to show to my students is called Lagaan, which is an Indian film about... cricket! It's also a good introduction to Anglo/Indian relationships in the Raj of the 1890s, but the subject is amusingly relevant to this thread.

And now I know enough about cricket that 156/8 is not a particularly good score for Australia. Sorry Ruff! Good luck on those double centuries, heh heh.

[Swiss Pauli]

I note sooooo is being extremely quiet: he must be trying not to jinx things before his visit to HQ on Sunday

[Krill]

Metallian. MissLadyLuck told him about it, and together they believed it was a bug and an exploit

Wow. Just had to jump onto teamspeak and call him a noob for that...the great Metallian doesn't know something that simple. Just wow.

[darrelljs]

Is this the "official" ladder? If so, it bolsters my belief that the SP and MP communities have surprisingly little overlap. I don't recognize any SP players from Apolyton, RM or CFC in the top 20. Speaking of which, where are sunrise089 and Atlas ?

Darrell

[sunrise089]

Yep, that's the right site. Imhotep, myself, and Speaker are all there, though we're all down in the 50-100 rank area.

[sooooo]

Australia all out for 215 so England have a 1st innings lead of 210. Slightly suprised we didn't enforce the follow-on but good news for people like me who have a ticket for tomorrow .

[ZPVCSPLFUIFDPEF]

I hope you have a good time, sooooo! I also hope you bring your own lunch

I'd have done the same thing as Strauss wrt the follow on, I think. There is plenty of time left in the game, and I believe the received opinion is that when you win the toss and the sun is shining at Lords, you bat. It was looking sunny earlier - so I'd also have batted in the 2nd innings.

[ruff_hi]

A thrilling day at the cricket. England declared at their overnight total (311/6). Australia has 2 day to bat, needing 522 runs while England need 10 wickets. It will be a record 4th innings total for victory if Australia manage to pull it off.

The day started poorly for Australia ...

3.1 - Flintoff to Katich, OUT, got him! Flintoff pitches it nice and full, drawing Katich into a loose drive - his feet moved too late - and though he timed the leather off it, it was struck aerially to Pietersen in the gully who took it low and in front of his chest, rocking backwards

SM Katich c Pietersen b Flintoff 6 (5b 1x4 0x6) SR: 120.00

and then ...

9.2 - Flintoff to Hughes, OUT, gone, got him, gone! Is he? Hughes edges it to Strauss at first slip who claims this low, scooping catch. Ponting sends Hughes back, asks Strauss if he caught it. Koertzen's given him though. This will run, and run, and run...

PJ Hughes c Strauss b Flintoff 17 (34b 2x4 0x6) SR: 50.00

However, there was some controversy ...

Oh dear. "Monstrous no-ball!" says Miller of the Flintoff wicket. "Well done Rudi, you'll never set foot in 'stralia again."

Apparently, the first wicket fell to a no-ball (bowler oversteps on the delivery and the batsman generally cannot get out) but the ump missed it.

Further ...

Replays show, well, it did look like it might have bounced. Or did he get his fingers underneath? It's impossible to say. It's important to note that Strauss immediately claimed it, but to me it did look like it was grassed just before he got his fingers underneath. Sheesh - it's such a tight one. But Koertzen sends Hughes packing

Two tough decisions go against the Australians but that is the nature of Test cricket - you wear the rough ones and accept the good ones.

At Lunch, England had Australia at 122/4 and just after lunch it got worse ... 128/5. Most of the specialist batsman gone and Australia needing just under 400 runs - a very very difficult ask and England with their tails up.

Then a fightback from the Aussies - an unbeaten 185 run partnership between Haddin and Clarke. At the close of play, Australia are 313/5, England still needing 5 wickets and Australia needing another 209 runs.

England are definitely in the driving seat in this game, but the current partnership must be starting to annoy them. It'll be over one way or the other tomorrow.

[sooooo]

The good thing about being at the game is that you don't see any controversy in the wickets . I didn't notice the no-ball and from where I was sitting Hussey gave a simple edge to slip. Obviously when I watched the highlights later things seemed a little different.

Need to get Clarke out asap today. He played very well yesterday.

[ruff_hi]

well done England. Won by 115 runs. Australia will have to show some grit now to win the series.

@sooooo - I have 40g for your winnings