Nasser Hussain says the hard conditions shouldn’t conceal the fact that England’s bowlers had a day in Old Trafford.
Let us be fair, England were bad today. But I think you have to set it into a bit of context, it’s been a very, very tough day for bowling. Any bowler who has played windy conditions, it was icy cold also, will tell you have difficult it is to get into any sort of rhythm.
A day like this has been hard work and it also looks somewhat flat. The pitch is an absolute belter and also after what occurred in the Headingley, what will seem a bit flat. You’ve gone from 1 extreme to another.
Just the body language to get a freezing cold day like this – and it was arctic cold out there – gamers do wander around with their hands in their pockets so it looks somewhat flat, since you’ve got handwarmers in your pockets.
You need to give it a little context but doesn’t eliminate the fact that I believed they were poor.
I thought it was wrong that Jofra Archer bowled seven chunks prior to the lunch break at Steve Smith, although a brilliant spell bowled.
This was the contest that was crucial and Joe Root had 2 choices: to keep Archer moving after he had already bowled five overs and bowl him for a longer bout, nine or eight overs, and go , once Smith had been at. Or take him off and then put him before lunch, you have given a rest to him so then you can ask him to really steam for four or even three overs of hostility.
We got that enabled Smith to listen and we know once he settles he is a rock .
He has not really looked bothered at all has there really been a period of hostility at him? Has anyone gone across the wicket at him? Has anybody really targeted him? Just a small bit but not quite, and it is a pitch to play on the short ball.
Smith stated himself on vacation this morning as it does go through, he was looking forward to batting on it, it’s a little bit like an Australian pitch. It is not fast so when it does go in short, you can escape the way in it but you can trust the bounce.
Some of these other pitches in this show are two-paced and you don’t know whether to duck or sway. I think they’ve changed their technique slightly as well, Smith and Marnus Labuschagne were all rocking to attempt to prevent Archer’s bouncers but since he nips the ball at the chunk was following them what they’ve done now is phased out of the way, offside of it and also allow the ball go.
As for me, I would like to have a bit more of an explanation on Chris Woakes and he was left out. He’s a good cricketer and England may know something he is entering the’zone’ or his knee however, in my side, a fit Woakes would be for me. That’s nothing from Craig Overton, he’s a great cricketer today and he’s done.
The chunk to get Labuschagne was an absolute beauty, a great deal is not in the pitch and what I have said during the day about the conditions applies to Overton as it will to everyone else and Archer – .
I was surprised they didn’t have the thick bails in Old Trafford. I could not believe that, with the forecast and particularly here what it was.
I have played in many a match where they have known for the significant bails and the other afternoon I was watching my child play at the Essex league where they simply took the bails off, just as they did now, so I have seen it at club cricket although not in cricket earlier!
For a little while, conditions were dreadful; it was cold, crisp packets breeze, and the bails were falling off all of the time, and also at one stage a beach ball blew across the ground.
This was a very, very tough afternoon and play into the spectators who watched all of that because you’ve got to be a cricket buff and a soul to do that and stumbled through it.
See day two of the fourth Test between Australia and England from 10am on Sky Sports The Ashes.
Read more: http://www.olcayreklam.com/betnow-review/