2016 Hampshire Thread

[Making_Splinters]

Wickets starting to go down regularly now. Should get a 350 run lead by the end of the day though, leaving you lot 2 days to save the game.

[Making_Splinters]

Just shy in the end, but Adams out first over.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Better day for Tino. Given Hampshire's injuries, they could do with a break- like Best replacing Edwards effectively.

[budgetmeansbudget]

Didn't bother checking the score last night, what would have been the point.

See this morning Adams lasted a couple of balls. Can't see it lasting past today unless the weather intervenes.

Can't imagine Bayliss is still there to watch Vince in block mode today.

[mikesiva]

Better day for Tino. Given Hampshire's injuries, they could do with a break- like Best replacing Edwards effectively.

5-90....

[budgetmeansbudget]

Better day for Tino. Given Hampshire's injuries, they could do with a break- like Best replacing Edwards effectively.

5-90....

He did perform well in the second half of the Lancs innings, but it was effectively too little too late for this game.

Hopefully he has now found his rhythm and fitness and this will benefit Hants in future games.

[budgetmeansbudget]

Great start to the day, Anderson nicks out Carberry.

[budgetmeansbudget]

39/2 after 31 overs.

Will Smith finally off the mark after 43 balls.

[st_brendy]

Well this Manchester weather is helping us quite substantially! Fair play though for the way that Vince and Smith dug in. Saved us from being, say, 100-4 when the rain came.

I'm still expecting us to lose this if we get a totally dry tomorrow, but at least having eight wickets in hand gives us some sort of chance (as well as just the obvious fact that digging in one for one day wont sound like quite as daunting a prospect as digging in for two days does - easier for the batsmen to see light at the end of the tunnel; that such digging in much actual pay dividends, as opposed to just delaying the inevitable).

[budgetmeansbudget]

Vince out early, probably the game and his England chances gone.

[budgetmeansbudget]

151/4 at lunch, just about hanging in there.

[budgetmeansbudget]

7 down, we've had it.

[budgetmeansbudget]

Vince has made it into the test squad to play Sri Lanka and looks set to play.

Probably a lack of options has enabled him to be picked rather than his current form, but great news all the same.

[st_brendy]

Very handy week to have off. Gives the likes of Ervine and Wood another week of recovery, and Best and Andrews the opportunity to increase their fitness levels further.

That said, there's a real risk that we'll be putting out one awful XI in our t20 opener on Friday:

Unavailable: Vince (international duty), Berg (injury), Topley (injury), Fidel (injury), Sammy (joins up for our second game, unless this has since changed)

Possibly unavailable: Shah (not heard whether he's returning to us this season), Jimmy (not heard whether he's willing to resume playing t20 cricket, or if infact he's basically retired from the format now), Ervine (injury), Wood (injury), Taylor (injury), Stevenson (injury - I note that he captained the 2nds this week, but again still didn't bowl so presumably is still injured at that front), Best (fitness/desire for us to play him in this format), Andrews (fitness/desire for us to play him in this format), Afridi (injury/fitness - he pulled out of a Pakistan training camp about a week ago, but stated he hoped have regained fitness in time to join up with us), McLaren (availability - he is not due to play t20 for us, due to the two overseas limit, but theoretically we could register for this one game and not breach the cap. Then again, I think the intention was also that he could go away and rest himself up for these matches, due to him otherwise playing a full county season with us)

So even if we were to say that Afridi, Wood and Ervine will all be available, that still leaves us with an XI which looks something like this:

Carberry, Afridi, Wheater, Ervine, Dawson, McManus, Smith, Wood, Crane, Wheal and one other - maybe Alsop, maybe Tommo, maybe one of the kids. Or maybe we will decide to play Andrews, to be a bits and pieces option with bat and ball. Either way, it's a very poor XI. (I know we have said that Afridi has been signed to bat in the middle order, because we were weak there last season, but unless Alsop is the 11th man then I'm struggling to find an opening partner for Carbs in that side. And Afridi did do a half decent job there when we used him in that role last time).

[Yet with everyone available, it looks a pretty special XI. Carberry, Vince, Wheater, Ervine, Afridi, Dawson, Sammy, Smith, Wood, Topley and either Shah (if returning), Berg, Crane or Fidel - the 10 by themselves already have batting and bowling pretty much covered, so I can see merits in any of those four]

[st_brendy]

Not sure why I thought we were part of the opening round of fixtures. Guess I'd just assumed. Thankfully we're not though, given our injury list. Not that it will help Wood mind, given that he's now joined Fidel in being injured for the rest of the season. I've pretty much given up caring about our latest injury hit, they're hitting us so often this season. Who next, Wheater?