There may be troubles ahead: England selection issues.

[backfootpunch]

Even as a Lancashire fan, I'm getting a little fed up with the hype surrounding Hameed, a single good season does not make a great player.

Most of the plaudits seem based on his age, yet it seems to be missed that most of the top players over the years went to university whereas Hameed didn't. He's not even the most prolific opener in Division 1 this year. He needs time to develop his game, he's fantastic defensively and has great patience, but internationally he's going to struggle to score at all. Wasn't there seria concerns over the years about having a defensively minded opener alongside Cook?

He may come in and do well, but we've had a fair few openers at Lancashire who've been talked up then disappeared from international consideration just as quickly.

It does seem too early for him

[Making_Splinters]

Well Jennings carried his bat against Surrey, making 200 in the process. The next highest score was 38.

I wonder if he will finally get the same press that Hameed is getting? It's not as if he's scored 400 more runs or close to 20 runs more this season or anything.

[m@tt]

Well Jennings carried his bat against Surrey, making 200 in the process. The next highest score was 38.

I wonder if he will finally get the same press that Hameed is getting? It's not as if he's scored 400 more runs or close to 20 runs more this season or anything.

I imagine some will see him as "another Saffer" so he was unlikely to get masses of attention. And a large part of the press Hameed is getting is because of his age - if he was 5 years older the press would be less interested.

[Arthur Crabtree]

The squad is announced tomorrow. Here are Vic Marks' predictions from the Guardian.

Possible Test squad A Cook (capt), H Hameed, J Root, T Westley, J Roy, B Stokes, J Bairstow, J Buttler, Moeen Ali, C Woakes, A Rashid, S Broad, M Wood, S Finn, J Leach, J Anderson.

Possible ODI squad: J Buttler (capt), J Roy, B Duckett, J Root, J Bairstow, B Stokes, Moeen Ali, L Dawson, C Woakes, D Willey, L Plunkett, C Jordan, A Rashid, M Wood.

Six pace bowlers feels a bit much. Hope Rayner makes it ahead of one of them. And I bet Roy and Westley don't go (Ballance will be there).

The ODI squad looks fairly familiar. But again, six seamers is too many and they're a batter light (who is replacing Morgan in this squad?).

[Dr Cricket]

Lol Ecb Lions set up is a joke they naming a squad on Monday but don't know if they will play any games yet since Ecb haven't finished having discussion with Sri Lanka and Afghanistan about possible games, also how is two substandard tours going to help when essentially Sri Lanka don't have the players and resources to be a good or top side especially when you probably facing they 3rd or 4th team.

Also quite funny about dobell statement about England selectors often liking the players to play lions games before the debuts in the format but then noted England lions haven't play a first class game for a long time and if they do play it is usually 1 or 2 a yr nothing like what other countries play.

Really if Ecb want the lions they should sod the counties and start making deals, even making arrangements with Sri Lanka is hard lol.


Really sounds like Sri Lanka is only used because they need a close by squad to get replacement into India quick and them having some game time in spinning/low conditions.
Wonder where they will have the camps though since Sri Lanka facilities are not that great and UAE might be a bit too far for a base for India.

[m@tt]

The squad is announced tomorrow. Here are Vic Marks' predictions from the Guardian.

Possible Test squad A Cook (capt), H Hameed, J Root, T Westley, J Roy, B Stokes, J Bairstow, J Buttler, Moeen Ali, C Woakes, A Rashid, S Broad, M Wood, S Finn, J Leach, J Anderson.

Possible ODI squad: J Buttler (capt), J Roy, B Duckett, J Root, J Bairstow, B Stokes, Moeen Ali, L Dawson, C Woakes, D Willey, L Plunkett, C Jordan, A Rashid, M Wood.

Six pace bowlers feels a bit much. Hope Rayner makes it ahead of one of them. And I bet Roy and Westley don't go (Ballance will be there).

The ODI squad looks fairly familiar. But again, six seamers is too many and they're a batter light (who is replacing Morgan in this squad?).

Marks' squad is very different to what the rest of the papers are saying.

Despite weeks of saying Dawson was in the Test squad and growing rumours that Leach would be a fourth spinner, word is now that Batty and Ansari are picked instead and that Duckett may be in both squads.

[Making_Splinters]

If Jennings doesn't get a look in for the Test squad it will show how little domestic performance matters in Test selection. The hype around Hameed is ridiculous, he's the third in the openers in terms of runs scored this season, yet just because he's 19 he's the next coming of Sutcliffe.

I get the fact that he's an exciting player but it's a single season he's performed in, how many other players have had massive seasons but been ignored or failed over the years, Lyth was just last year.

Even if you want to argue about picking players in form, Jennings has close to 400 more runs and plays at the Riverside which is a damn site harder to score your runs at than the featherbeds OT has rolled out at stages this summer.

If he goes to Bangladesh and fails it will be a waste of a hugely promising player.

As for Dawson, he's got 15 wickets at over 40 this season, how can anyone think he's the third best spinner in England? Supposedly he's a good guy to have in the dressing room, but it's really taking the piss if he gets on tour, let alone plays. Just for a little context, Samit Patel has 28 at 35. Yes, we're going to pick a spinner who is decidedly worse than Samit Patel, it beggars belief..

[Arthur Crabtree]

A bit of a wild hunch with Roy or Westley. Roy hasn't had a stand out season, and a lot of openers have done well in CC1, without looking at CC2. My guess is that Ballance will go, and Duckett as back up, picked to be part of the squad, as Root was last time. Sadly, I suspect batter/spinners will prevail and Leach is wishful thinking on Marks' part.

[Arthur Crabtree]

As for Dawson, he's got 15 wickets at over 40 this season, how can anyone think he's the third best spinner in England? Supposedly he's a good guy to have in the dressing room, but it's really taking the piss if he gets on tour, let alone plays. Just for a little context, Samit Patel has 28 at 35. Yes, we're going to pick a spinner who is decidedly worse than Samit Patel, it beggars belief..

England seem locked into a self fulfilling prophesy whereby they're convinced no spinners are good enough, so they pick batters who bowl, who prove their prejudices by coming up short. They're convinced they can do better in India with pace, as they were in the first Test in India last time.

[m@tt]

If Jennings doesn't get a look in for the Test squad it will show how little domestic performance matters in Test selection. The hype around Hameed is ridiculous, he's the third in the openers in terms of runs scored this season, yet just because he's 19 he's the next coming of Sutcliffe.

A lot of papers/sites are saying he's in contention with Duckett for the spare batting slot.

It may be against him that he's had 3 mediocre seasons before this and when coupled with his ineligibility until this summer may have meant he wasn't on the radar at all until recently, and England like to monitor their potential players over a few years. Whereas Hameed may well have been known to some through age group international cricket, even if they weren't expecting to be promoting him at this stage.

[Making_Splinters]

As for Dawson, he's got 15 wickets at over 40 this season, how can anyone think he's the third best spinner in England? Supposedly he's a good guy to have in the dressing room, but it's really taking the piss if he gets on tour, let alone plays. Just for a little context, Samit Patel has 28 at 35. Yes, we're going to pick a spinner who is decidedly worse than Samit Patel, it beggars belief..

England seem locked into a self fulfilling prophesy whereby they're convinced no spinners are good enough, so they pick batters who bowl, who prove their prejudices by coming up short. They're convinced they can do better in India with pace, as they were in the first Test in India last time.

Sorry, but even on the batting argument Dawson is averaging around 20 this season. You simply can not argue that a bloke who averages 40 with the ball and 20 with the bat is a Test quality player. It is beyond ludicrous, you could pick almost any spinner in England and they'd probably have better figures than that. We are seriously going to select a poor man's Samit Patel as a bona fide spin option for a sub continent tour. England have lost the plot.

[Arthur Crabtree]

I agree with you! But, that's what they went for in UAE. And though it didn't work, they didn't look any further than a batter/spinner in SA or this summer. I'm not convinced Rashid is a front line spinner in first class cricket either.

[Arthur Crabtree]

It's a bit of a deflating thought that they will go with three of Mo, Rashid, Dawson, Batty, Patel or Ansari.

[Dr Cricket]

They taking 4 to india and bangladesh and probably 3 in standby in sri lanka if ECB can finalise the deal for the lions tour.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Roy's fca, practically all of which will have been in CC2, is 37, with eight tons in 120 innings. He goes past fifty every five innings, rather than the preferred three. He averages 38.5 (two hundreds) this year in CC1.