England in the 90s

blockerdave

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I am going to try and play through the 90s as England, playing as many of their test series in order as I can. (I'll only be playing tests.)

At the start of the 90s, England hoped for a "New Dawn"... the 80s were a poor decade, returning just 20 Test victories from 104 matches, as well as seeing the rancour and division of 2 Rebel Tours, Sex and Drugs scandals, and home and away 5-0 "blackwash" defeats at the hand of the West Indies.

3 Ashes victories (2 home, 1 away) were among the few bright spots, but could also be explained by Australia experiencing a similarly troubled decade: the hangover of the WSC years still haunted them in the early years, and their own rebel-tour defectors souring the middle years. But Australia had shook off the doldrums to win the 1989 series 4-0.

The 80s finished with more controversy, not only was former England captain Mike Gatting leading another rebel Tour, but the Indians refused to accept the captaincy of the first Rebel Tour skipper, Graham Gooch, resulting in the cancellation of the planned tour of the first half of the 1989/90 winter.

Surely, as we head in to the last decade of the Millennium, England can emerge from the dark days of the 1980s and enter a new and more successful era?
 
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blockerdave

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ENGLAND TOUR OF THE WEST INDIES - JANUARY - APRIL 1990

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Graham Gooch leads a new-look side into the caribbean
The decade starts with a super-tough tour to the caribbean to face the still-dominant West Indies.

Shorn of the rebel tourists, new captain Graham Gooch makes a statement by leaving out veteran superstars Ian Botham and David Gower, proclaiming a demand for a new era of dedicated fitness-minded professionals. (Gower would later be called up as an injury replacement but not play in any tests or ODIs.) The uncapped Nasser Hussain, Chris Lewis, Keith Medleycott and Alec Stewart are all included. Lewis will compete for a place in the tests with fellow "New Botham", David Capel, and Medleycott will be back-up to experienced spinner Eddie Hemmings.

Squad: Graham Gooch (c), Rob Bailey, David Capel, Philip Defreitas, Angus Fraser, Eddie Hemmings, Nasser Hussain, Allan Lamb, Wayne Larkins, Chris Lewis, Devon Malcolm, Keith Medleycott, Jack Russell, Gladstone Small, Robin Smith, Alec Stewart. [David Gower and David Smith would be called up to the squad as replacements later.]

England are looking to fight fire with fire, with a bevvy of pacers in the squad - whether they can compete with a West Indies squad including veteran Marshall as well as Patterson, Ambrose, Walsh and Bishop remains to be seen.

 

blockerdave

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1st Test - Sabina Park
Umpires - Steve Bucknor and Lloyd Baker.
Debutants - Alec Stewart and Nasser Hussain, England.
Day One
England win the toss and bat first under bright skies, but on a pitch with a fair covering of grass. "We'll have to bat weill the first hour," says Gooch, "but then it should flatten out." Sounds easy enough.

Not against the West Indian pace battery of Patterson, Bishop, Marshall and Walsh. Gooch (6) and Stewart (2) fall early, and after an initial recovery England lose Lamb (21) and Smith (1) before opener Larkins finally finds support from debutant Hussain in seeing out the remainder of the session, going into lunch 89/4.

Larkins (40) falls early in the afternoon session, and Capel goes for a golden duck, but Hussain and Russell stabilise, with Hussain going to a valuable 50 in his first test knock.

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Hussain showing the fluency and 360-degree stroke making that would make him famous
However Russell (26) fell just before the tea break, and Hussain (74) and Small (1) would fall just after, leaving some lusty hits from Fraser (17*) and Malcolm (5) to take England over 200, eventually all out 206 in 64.0 overs. Patterson led the way with 5-54

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It's almost certain that this wicketless inns is why Courtney Walsh would later be passed up for a knighthood despite Curtley Ambrose getting one.
England would need to make early inroads, and thankfully Gladstone Small was up to the task, removing both Greenidge (6) and Haynes (3) to reduce the hosts to 22-2. But then an unbroken stand of 66 between Richie Richardson (44*) and Carlisle Best (29*) would see the West Indies to the close at 88/2.

West Indies will be much the happier at the end of day one, and England will need a huge bowling performance day 2 to stay in this match.

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England with it all to do at the end of day one.
 

blockerdave

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1st Test Sabina Park
Day 2 - England lead by 118 runs, West Indies 88/2

England need to break this partnership, and once again Small is the man with a double-wicket burst in his first spell, getting Best (36) caught behind, and then producing a slower ball that Richardson (46) hit back at him and needed a really smart catch.

Hooper and Richards shared a 50-stand that was broken by Capel catching Hooper (20) lbw with a smart cutter that straightened to beat the edge and would have been hitting the top of off-stump. Fraser then got Richards (39) thanks to a stunning slip catch by Gooch - West Indies 173/6 and England right in it.

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That fat bastard Beefy was never getting that, said Gooch.
Dujon was batting solidly, but without much support from the tail - Capel picking up 2 more wickets Marshall lbw for 13, and Bishop (4) caught behind. Fraser denied Dujon a half-century, forcing him to play on for 49, before getting a fortunate lbw decision to remove last-man Patterson (1). West Indies restricted to 237, a fine performance from an England side refusing to lie down.

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3 wickets for David Capel - who needs Botham?
England resumed a few overs before tea, and really needing to get through unscathed. Unfortunately, Larkins (1) couldn't control a pull from a bouncer off Patterson, top-edging onto his body and looping up to be caught by Richardson at slip.

Stewart put up a much better showing from the first inns, helping Gooch take England through to tea without further loss, and then going past 50 in the evening session.

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A 50 on debut for Stewart, same as Hussain. Will we ever have an unsuccessful debutant?
Gooch and Stewart batted sensibly, seeing off the new ball and the relentless pace attack to build a partnership of 96. Unfortunately just before the close, Gooch (32) misjudged an off cutter from Patterson and was bowled, however night watchman Angus Fraser (1*) helped see things out to close with no further loss, England 102-2, 71 runs ahead, and Stewart well placed on 65*

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England West Indies with it all to do at the end of day one two.
 
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blockerdave

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1st Test Sabina Park
Day 3 - England lead by 71 runs, England 206 & 102/2, West Indies 237

England started day 3 hopeful and dare I say confident of building a significant total of West Indies to chase. Unfortunately that hope and confidence evaporated in that quintessentially English way - in the rubble of a batting collapse.

Only Lamb's 26 showed any real application, although Nasser Hussain showed fight in occupying the crease for over 60-balls.

Ultimately, England could only set a target of 145, which never looked like being enough.

Although a stunning burst from Malcolm removed both openers in his first 2 overs, and neither Richardson nor Best looked comfortable, England perhaps sensed something sensational was on the cards.

Alas, it was not to be... Edges were plenty, but always short or in the gap, and though Smith engineered a run-out chance with some smart fielding, he threw it to the wrong end. Richardson and Best weathered the storm, and passed the 50 partnership.

Malcolm removed Best for 30 in the first over of his second spell, but Richardson and Hooper snuffed out any chance of an opening. Richardson bringing up his second 50 of the match.

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A streaky 50, all those edges through slip/gully.
There was a little late wobble, Richardson running himself out going for a third that was never there arfter fine work by Capel on the boundary, and Fraser nipping out Hooper and Richards, but Dujon and Marshall saw West Indies home for a 4-wicket win to take a 1-0 lead in the series.

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[DOUBLEPOST=1580810624][/DOUBLEPOST]Before we head to Guyana for the second test, a "moment of the match" from the 1st test.

Small dismisses Richardson in the first inns with a perfectly executed slower ball and sharp return catch... chapeau!

 
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blockerdave

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Famously, unlike my performance, in real life England won in Sabina Park and headed to Guyana 1-0 up.

They also left Guyana 1-0 up, as it was rained off.

But I’ve scheduled the whole tour, and am going to play Guyana.

What I have done however is tried to replicate the conditions by setting it to cold, rainy and starting with a grassy, heavy cracked day 4 pitch since one assumes the grounds man hasn’t been able to do much solid prep in this weather.

This has led to what can only be described as fairly challenging gameplay. Just finished day 2, reports to follow shortly.
 

blockerdave

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2nd Test - Bourda, Guyana
Umpires -David Archer and Clyde Duncan
West Indies lead 5-match series 1-0
Day One
With cold and rainy weather around, England take the opportunity to wear their MCC sweaters.

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If this doesn't get Gooch a contract with Man at C&A, nothing will
With the pitch looking poor, and cloudy humid weather, England skipper Graham Gooch has no hesitation in putting the West Indies in. "The forecast looks better days 2 and 3," says Gooch, "so if we bowl well today we can set ourselves up nicely."

England name an unchanged squad, with the West Indies making a single, enforced change with Ambrose replacing the injured Patterson.

England feel they've made an early breakthrough when Malcolm appears to trap Greenidge plumb in front in the 4th over, but umpire David Archer turns them down. 2 balls later he raps the opener's pads again, surely bang in front, but again Archer shakes his head. England are incredulous, Malcolm distraught, and Greenidge seems to have got away with not one, but two.

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With the benefit of 30 yrs of technological advance, we can now confirm both deliveries were missing both off and leg stumps.
Greenidge couldn't fully cash in, however, being bowled playing across one that seamed back from Small to go for 11. West Indies were struggling, no fluency from either opener or Richardson who replaced Greenidge at the crease.

The Windies batsmen maybe didn't have fluency, but they did have luck. England seemed to be finding the edge 2 or 3 times an over, but nothing was to hand either dropping short or going in the gaps. Soon enough the edges started leading to runs, and a scoring rate that was scarcely deserved but in the context of the pitch, highly dangerous.

England would take no more wickets in the morning session, and the afternoon session began in a simlar vein. The partnership between Haynes and Richardson passed 100, and still continued on. Both batsmen passed 50, and began to increase their aggression.

Capel and Malcolm both bowled long, tight in Malcolm's case aggressive spells, and at last the breakthrough came. Capel forced Richardson (64) to play on with one that bounced, and next over Malcolm trapped Haynes in front and was overjoyed to see umpire Clyde Duncan raise finger. Haynes went for 90, agonisingly close to the ton.

The door open, England rushed through it, mixing seamers and cutters to good effect on the grassy pitch and seeing the Windies line-up crumble from 168-1 to 210 all out.

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Windies showing they can even collapse better than England

Capel finished with 4-60, the pick of the attack, and Malcom's 2-69 was less than he deserved.
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Who needs Beefy? We've got the Capel Crusader.
Despite there being rain in the air all day, we didn't lose any cricket so England face 20 overs to bat.

It was very tough going, little value in any shots on a slow outfield and England didn't even benefit from any streaky edges through the slip.

Larkins fell caught behind off Marshall for a tortuous 1 from 25 balls, and Stewart was trapped LBW by Walsh for a 5-ball duck. With Gooch labouring 63 balls over 11*, Lamb's 8* off 27 was practically breakneck speed. England crawling to 22-2 off 20 at the close.

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Things have moved quicker in a Becket play.

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Marshall being tighter than a Scotsman the day before Giro

Day 2 to follow - can England get their rate up to 1 rpo?
 
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