Ashes 2025-26.

[andy]

Australia have announced an unchanged squad for the second test...no pat Cummins!! I thought he was a certainty?! Unless the Aussies have decided no need to rush him back based on England's laughable batting!

[Durhamfootman]

based on England's laughable batting!

[sussexpob]

For the record , I have never been too confident of success in this series because I doubt the batting is quite up to it. But I hope I am wrong ; because I believe the basic philosophy behind the current approach is more likely to achieve overseas success than a retreat to a more timid method out of fear of criticism. (And I know that isn't what you are advocating , Sussex : you just want them to exercise their brains more at the crease) Well so do I . I just reckon we can have our cake and eat it if players are prepared to learn from their mistakes ; and am prepared to give them a little longer to see if they do.

I think we mostly agree, we just have different levels of faith as to whether or not England have the will to improve themselves. I do not have much faith at all left, Edgbaston this summer was a real moment where I had to conclude the team are so invested in plan A, they can't even consider plan B; it just literally doesn't occur to them. Even this week, Stokes was left giving a rather abrasive press conference where he dismissed suggestions of playing the pink ball warm up because they didn't plan for it.... we planned for ages, you know. The plan we made is infallible, it cannot be changed despite, er..... every single person in the world who played test cricket saying we should. The attitude of "we know better" prevails - its in everything they do, from the players all the way up to the Director.

The first part of fixing a problem is acknowledging you have one. I think the culture of Bazball has no room for this at all.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Presumably England's next batters are in among this lot. Can't see them going back to Sibley or Haseeb, who both scored well last season.

Despite all previous evidence, I don't expect they will persevere with Crawley's failures much longer. At least beyond the end of the series.

Ben McKinney

He's not playing against the PMXI. Though the team may change. But the Ashes players who didn't feature in Perth are named, except for Bashir and Jacks.

[Arthur Crabtree]

I have no problem with them continuing to proceed with a very aggressive game plan.

It's Bazball or die!

As I read posted somewhere.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Wood misses second Test with injury (!)

So presumably a spinner (Bashir) a fake spinner (Jacks) or Potts or Tongue will come in.

My guess is... Potts.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Leaving Wood out a long way from the game, so it may be a serious injury.

[GarlicJam]

Wood misses second Test with injury (!)

So presumably a spinner (Bashir) a fake spinner (Jacks) or Potts or Tongue will come in.

My guess is... Potts.

Watching a bit of the PM's XI game, Potts looks to be the most promising, the more threatening.

[andy]

I have no problem with them continuing to proceed with a very aggressive game plan.

It's Bazball or die!

As I read posted somewhere.

Reports suggesting tongue is the favourite...I wouldn't be against that to be fair...no need for Bashir to come in yet

[sussexpob]

Wood was clearly injured mid-game, because he served up 2 overs in the 2nd innings. I guess the team didn't want to admit straight after he was injured because it would highlight the brain dead decision to play him after he also pulled up in the warm up injured. At this point, Wood shouldn't even be on the radar to pick.... how can you trust this guy to bowl 40 overs in a test when he spent a year injured, and hasnt survived the games he's come back in?

I would personally play Potts and Tongue. I think both suit the wickets in Australia hitting the seam hard and getting bounce.

[sussexpob]

He's not playing against the PMXI. Though the team may change. But the Ashes players who didn't feature in Perth are named, except for Bashir and Jacks.

Is there anymore more current England than replacing a player who averaged low 30s in CC and was picked on nothing but hype, with another kid who was preordained a legend before he scored a first class run, and then had a horrendous year in CC where he averaged... oh right, the same as Zak Crawley does. Durham dropped McKinney down the order away from the new ball because he was averaging in the 20s to it over the whole year....

Nothing says you are ready for test cricket quite like your county not even trusting you to play that role, having a horrendous form, being the worst statistical opener out of the 3 in your team by a country mile, and only really proving in professional cricket you are damn well not ready to step up. But who cares about that. The Fat Controller will tell us what you do against all of the turd medium pace trundlers in CC is meaningless....

And who am I to question such a well thought opinion. Bowlers who take CC wickets arent actually any good but if a batsman cant lay a bat on their bowling its meaningless too.... Right. I guess you have to be a genius like Rob Key to understand that.

Us mere stupid mortals would probably suggest repeating the same thing gets the same results

[sussexpob]

Getting into epic rant territory now, but can someone also tell me why on god's green earth did Tom Haines bowl 12 overs as first change in this game? What is the thought process behind that? What value is that giving England?

The game is already scrubbed from FC records because we have played 12 players on Day 1, and yet we have bowlers sitting in the pavilion having travelled 20,000 kms to be there not doing anything, and a medium paced part-time pie chucker chugging through the longest spell he's ever bowled while other players who could realistically be called on in the next month to the full side tiddling their thumbs doing nothing.

It makes no sense at all to me. Whats the point of playing these games if you don't even take them seriously.

[sussexpob]

Meanwhile, Stokes is in the press trying damage limitations for the has-been comment. Apparently we should have known he didn't mean to say it, and it just slipped out.

When put to Stokes that some sections of the Aussie media seen the comment as arrogant, Stokes responds...

"I think arrogant might be a little too far.... Id rather they used words like Rubbish, but arrogance I do not agree with"

Thick as mince, this guy

[andy]

Just has the feeling of a series where the wheels are going to come off and it's going to be a horror show...can just feel it coming

[Arthur Crabtree]

Is there anymore more current England than replacing a player who averaged low 30s in CC and was picked on nothing but hype, with another kid who was preordained a legend before he scored a first class run, and then had a horrendous year in CC where he averaged...

I reckon James Rew is the only batter averaging over 40, or even with much of a fc record.

I thought it was odd Haines bowled so much. Or at all.

I see Rehan Ahmed is not playing, so maybe Hartley is ahead of him if Bashir is quietly shuffled out.