2009 Ashes

[TheChipPrince]

Boycott is different gravy, class...

[Matt50]

Boycott is different gravy, class...

Is he still batting.....

[Matt50]

Aussies looking at 550+ by Saturday lunchtime then some real pressure on our 2nd innings.

Ponting ton looking very likely.

[Longy]

Aussies looking at 550+ by Saturday lunchtime then some real pressure on our 2nd innings.

Ponting ton looking very likely.

I love an optimist.

[AndrewT]

With the amount of spin in the pitch, you've got to like England here (weather forecast not too bad).

I've emptied my Betfair pennies on them.

gg pennies

[Matt50]

Aussies looking at 550+ by Saturday lunchtime then some real pressure on our 2nd innings.

Ponting ton looking very likely.

I love an optimist.

Unfortunately Longy for this series it is more about the money than me being patriotic, and i have lumped on the Aussies to win the series big time.

[ X ] England's bowlers are performing as i expected.

[TightEnd]

It's not high tide til 9.28pm tonight. Explains why the pitch is doing far less today.

[Matt50]

Fuck me Rich i know that England's cricketers like to look for excuses but that takes the biscuit.

[TightEnd]

Fuck me Rich i know that England's cricketers like to look for excuses but that takes the biscuit.

Yesterday high tide was mid afternoon. Helped get more moisture into the pitch, and the ball wobbled a bit in the last 40 overs

Today the pitch is bone dry, hence less help to the bowlers


That said, we're disappointing. Expected the spinners not only to spin it a bit more (Swann is bowling too flat) but also excercise more control

[AndrewT]

Fuck me Rich i know that England's cricketers like to look for excuses but that takes the biscuit.

Yesterday high tide was mid afternoon. Helped get more moisture into the pitch, and the ball wobbled a bit in the last 40 overs

Today the pitch is bone dry, hence less help to the bowlers

From the Guardian OBO commentary.

Monty is pulled out of the attack and Anderson is brought back in. Now is the time for someone to start spouting guff about the tide coming in in Cardiff Bay affecting the climatic conditions and making the ball swing.

[TightEnd]

The groundsman himself swears by its validity

[Josedinho]

Aussies rolling along very comfortably now. We need somebody to get a wicket and hopefully they will kick on. If not i can see us relying too much on Freddie.

This was nearly 3 hours ago. Things have not changed.

[Moskvich]

Hmm, the groundsman's only been there since February...

Swing or lack of it prompts a lot of conjecture at most grounds - whether it's affected by weather or tides or building a new stand on one side or whatever. I don't think much of it stands up well to scrutiny. In a way it's remarkable how little is understood about swing, conventional or reverse, even by top boffins with easy access to wind tunnels. Though then again I suppose it's not that surprising, given the enormous number of variables at work, with different bowlers in form or out of form, different weather, variable hand-made balls etc.

What a satisfyingly depressing partnership this is. Looks like it could be turning into a proper traditional Ashes summer. Not like that nonsense we had four years ago.

[kukushkin88]

The ball will swing more, when other conditions are equal, if the tide is in. Marginally greater humidity = greater resistance on the seam/rough side of the ball. It is a minor consideration in the general humidity of the air though, which is the majorfactor in swing bowling.

[TightEnd]

Still, the telling factor could be our batsmen getting 50-60 and getting out and theirs, with ruthless effiency, converting 50-60 into 100+...getting a first inning leads and in effect making us bat last

Tomorrow morning is cruical, need wickets or we're sunk. In the bay. With swing.