The Ashes: (England tour of Australia)

Who will win the Ashes?

  • England

    Votes: 9 25.7%
  • Australia

    Votes: 26 74.3%

  • Total voters
    35
  • Poll closed .

Velocity

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... And that's a log time. However, realistically it only takes a couple of players to make a good stand to make a good difference England have had decent players but they chose to be good when no playing vital games or series.[DOUBLEPOST=1515940514][/DOUBLEPOST]
Batting is strong I just don't feel they have the power and pace to bowl big sides out.
I believe England still have a decent attack. Mark Wood was impressive with his pace, dont know why he didn't play in the Ashes, but Plunkett is also an excellent bowler and Moeen and Rashid are useful in the middle overs. I think Willey should come in for Woakes, he is also a good new ball bowler and adds variety to England's attack as a left arm seamer. I think England should persist with this attack.
 

ParkedTheBus

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Smith genuinely seems to have forgotten how to play in limited overs. It is probably the cost of his success in the test format (especially due to him becoming defensive and preferring to play a reactive game) and his lack of games/rhythm in the shorter formats. Gives the impression that he has (temporarily at least) lost his ability to score meaningful runs at a fast rate.

Some of the picks make no sense this series. What is the point of Cameron White? The team needs a player who can play a consistent, proactive game with Smith still trying to find his way at #3. White is not the answer. Mitchell Marsh is playing a spot too high at #5, same with Stoinis at #6.
 

Aislabie

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Some of the picks make no sense this series. What is the point of Cameron White? The team needs a player who can play a consistent, proactive game with Smith still trying to find his way at #3. White is not the answer. Mitchell Marsh is playing a spot too high at #5, same with Stoinis at #6.
It's a tricky one, because there really isn't anyone in Australia who has shown the ability to make any spot from four to six their own in one-day cricket recently. I don't think since the last World Cup any batsman has made more than one hundred in the middle order. Of those, I think the highest average over any meaningful sample size is Mitch Marsh with 36.

Here's the squad I'd be looking to nurture for the Ashes:

The Openers
:aus: :bat: Aaron Finch
- Basically picks himself in one of the opening spots, although he has found success playing a more measured role.
:aus: :bat: David Warner - Has to be the first name on the team sheet in one-day cricket. Simply the best opener going around.
(:aus: :bat: Travis Head - Looked very much at home when he opened the innings for Australia. He's the back-up opener.)

The Middle-Order (pos. 3-6)
:aus: :bat: Steven Smith
- He looks pretty lost at number three currently, but he's fresh off the back of 900 balls of grinding out Test runs. Give him time.
:aus: :bat: Shaun Marsh - It's a new role for him in one-day cricket, but he's certainly good enough to do it. Plus, some experience in the middle order.
:aus: :ar: Mitchell Marsh - Averages 36 at nearly a run a ball, which is decent enough for a number five batsman. He is at best half of a fifth bowler though.
:aus: :ar: Marcus Stoinis - He has started his one-day career with enough of a bang that he deserves a very long leash. The other half of the fifth bowler.
(:aus: :bat: Usman Khawaja - As a builder of big innings, he is the reserve for the Smith or Marsh role. Not much international success, but huge domestic numbers.)
(:aus: :ar: Glenn Maxwell
- The reserve for a Marsh or Stoinis role, but only two of them can play in the same team and they are the incumbents.)

The Wicket-Keeper
:aus: :wk: Alex Carey
- A very aggressive batsman and excellent keeper with only one weakness - slower balls that bobble through to him. Let him make a niche in the side.
(:aus: :wk: Peter Nevill - A more aggressive batsman than Paine and a better keeper than Wade; he should be the reserve for the ODI side for me.)

The Spinner(s)
:aus: :ar: Ashton Agar
- Having asserted himself this year in the Big Bash by only twice conceding more than a run a ball, I feel like he's earned a good go for Australia.
(:aus: :bwl: Nathan Lyon - If in doubt, maybe just go for the most skillful spinner? More than a wicket per game and a career economy under five is decent.)

The Seamers
:aus: :bwl: Mitchell Starc
- Two wickets per game demonstrate the potency of his yorkers. Hell, he took four yesterday and still looked a bit off the boil.
:aus: :bwl: Pat Cummins - He'd be in the side to be a right-handed version of Starc in effect - a fast, scary bouncer-yorker bowler who swings it.
:aus: :bwl: Josh Hazlewood - Hazlewood the ODI bowler has never really impressed me, but he still has world-class stats. And who is there better than him?
(:aus: :bwl: Jhye Richardson - He's your reserve for the spot of fast-angry-yorker-bowler. Inexperienced, but highly promising in that role.)
(:aus: :bwl: Peter Siddle
- He's reinvented himself for this year's Big Bash, and is a skillful bowler to back-up Hazlewood in the accurate-with-slower-ball slot.)

Other guys I'd want floating around the setup are Jake Weatherald, Ashton Turner, D'Arcy Short, Harry Nielsen and Will Sutherland. Even if most of them don't play much, I'd want them playing occasional games so that they get the feel of international cricket so that they know what they might face in say the 2023 World Cup.
 

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Weatherald is an interesting shout although the team seems pretty set as far as openers are concerned. Warner and Finch complement each other nicely and will do in the short-medium term. Heazlett and Labuschagne are worth keeping an eye on too but they might be too raw at this point. For the time being Handscomb and Maxwell seem to be the best options in the middle order, a damning indicator of the dearth of middle-over batting options. Former could also keep if the need arises.
 

ParkedTheBus

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The Spinner(s)
:aus: :ar: Ashton Agar
- Having asserted himself this year in the Big Bash by only twice conceding more than a run a ball, I feel like he's earned a good go for Australia.
(:aus: :bwl: Nathan Lyon - If in doubt, maybe just go for the most skillful spinner? More than a wicket per game and a career economy under five is decent.)

Did you exclude Zampa on purpose? Feel it's always useful to have a wrist-spinner in modern limited-overs cricket, their ability to change games in an over or two is invaluable.

It's a shame Lynn's body is so fragile, he could've been an amazing middle-over batsman in all three formats. A great loss to Australia and cricket in general.
 

ParkedTheBus

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As if Australia have conceded a seventh-wicket partnership of 80 runs in 10 overs (and counting)... This team can lose games in so many ways, it's startling.
 

ShamiLoverGlipGlops

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What a 100 from Butler. England post 2015 WC has been one heck of ODI team to beat. Its not easy to win ODIs in Australia after having lost the test series. This is some special stuff from English team. Well done.
 

Aislabie

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Did you exclude Zampa on purpose? Feel it's always useful to have a wrist-spinner in modern limited-overs cricket, their ability to change games in an over or two is invaluable.

It's a shame Lynn's body is so fragile, he could've been an amazing middle-over batsman in all three formats. A great loss to Australia and cricket in general.
I'm quite biased in favour of finger-spinners because I am one myself. And while you can get away with an inferior wrist-spinner just because they're a wrist-spinner in Twenty20 cricket, I feel you need more consistency in the two longer formats.

That and I don't really rate Zampa.
 

Umair7

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WTF was that MITCH MARSH :/
 

AliB

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What a comeback by England! 4-0 reverted to 0-3. Definitely best ODI side currently.
 

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The series scoreline right now is a perfect indicator of where the two teams stand. 0-3 completely reflects the reality. Australia's middle order is nowhere near good enough for the modern game, not consistent or fast enough. While other teams have moved on, Australia are still sticking to a template that was last effective 5 or 6 years ago. Stoinis has been impressive amidst all this, his maturity is very encouraging.

Wouldn't have made much of a difference probably but what a thoroughly nonsensical decision to dismiss Smith. Shouldn't have used the soft-signal, there simply wasn't enough evidence that the ball did not bounce.
 

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Wonderful performance by England. They have atleast took their revenge in the shorter format.
 

zimrahil

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Wonderful performance by England. They have atleast took their revenge in the shorter format.

Revenge is too strong a word imo. Nothing can make up for another 4-0 ashes loss......
 

Velocity

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Superb stuff from Aus reducing England to 8/5 on this seaming deck. This is reminding me of the time England were 20/6 against South Africa last summer.
 

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