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Bashir picked again in starting 11 for 3rd test. Wow!
I’m with you on both, but the only thing I would counter is that they have both performed against the best opposition - admittedly very infrequently. Bashir on the other hand is simply not good enough. His selection is nothing but complete stubbornness - in my view.
think bashir will have a lot of overs to bowl this game, must be one of bens mates to get picked though
If he declared out of deference to Lara's record then he should have batted on to 399 and then declared for greater effect.
Yes that's right, just like the Qing dynasty's Qianlong emperor abdicating the throne after 60 years so he wouldn't rule for longer than the Kangxi emperor.
England very unbazball like today - they batted when they won the toss and have spent two sessions going along at a little over three an over to reach 153-2. I’m old enough to remember when three an over was considered quite racy![]()
4th innings on this wicket is going to be difficult. Let's see what Bashir can do.
He's had little or no rough to bowl into so far as the pitches haven't deteriorated as Stokes and McCullum had hoped. Lords should be different so hopefully it'll make a difference. Otherwise, who knows.
But as Geoff Boycott said in today's paper, it's harder to get dropped from this team, than it is to get in it.
Stokes id say very unlikely to bowl.
Archer of course fully fit is an X factor bowler but he needs to be looked after after such a long time out.
The England attack looks very weak. Bashir and probably Root as well will need to bowl a lot of overs.
Need to bat most of today but getting 20 wickets will be a challenge.
Bashir at 21 has taken 66 Test wickets. 4 five fors. In 18 Tests and at 21 despite playing less Tests than Robert Croft did in his entire career he has taken more wickets and more 5 fors than Croft did.
(Im not saying Bashir is better than Croft because he isnt)
While id have been trying to persuade Rashid to play red ball cricket for years and I agree he is lucky to be playing I dont think Bashir deserves to be completely written off.
To be fair to Robert Croft's generation, I think players were a lot less willing to throw the towel in back in the 80s and 90s. It's strange, the standard of late order batting is far better nowadays, yet sides (it's not jiust England) fight a lot less hard to try and save games compared to their elders.
Based on the little I saw of him playing for Glamorgan, Bashir's a better bowler in test cricket than he is in the county game. He also benefits from this group of selectors' obsession with picking tall bowlers. Liam Dawson, who played against Glamorgan last night, is a far better bowler than Bashir in my opinion, (there's co comparison. between the two when it comes to batting as well), bnt he's about six inches too small for England's liking.
On throwing in the towel in his book Phil Tufnell tells the story on how he came out to bat under Goochs captaincy facing Merv Hughes. Gooch instructed him to battle it out and fight for his wicket. Tufnell said no problem. Hughes bowled fast aggressive bouncers and Tufnell said Hughes said he was going to feckin kill him. He eventually gloves a bouncer behind but he said to his horror the umpire didn't raise his finger. So Tufnell took things into his own hands by yelling in pain youve broken my feckin finger. Umpire gives him out Gooch unimpressed.
Wicket maiden and 90mph plus from Archer.
Come on India.