Monday 4 November 2013

ODI Series v West Indies

Random thoughts on England's 2-0 ODI Series victory:
  • The talk of England having "made history" is a little overstated - the "history" in question (West Indies' last home series defeat) only goes back 10 years. Moreover, it is a little arrogant to be crowing over anything when you've just lost a T20 "rubber" 3-0 to the same opposition!
  • The New Zealand fan who called Sarah Taylor "criminally overrated" during the Tri-Series has some humble pie to eat now; but it does have to be admitted that Sarah is frustrating, because this wasn't a "return to form" - she is always this good, leaving you too often feeling that she's giving her wicket away, as happened a few times during the T20s.
  • If the selectors have any sense, they will spend the next month in church - praying that Heather Knight is going to come back with her form intact. The word on the street is that she is pretty-much recovered from her injury and that's good, because the batting is looking desperately short of backbone without her.
  • Holly Colvin had a poor summer by her standards, with her return from injury not going smoothly; so I hope I'm not jinxing her when I say that she's BACK! Obviously the wickets in the 3rd ODI were great; but for a player whose game has always been about landing it on the proverbial sixpence, I'm more excited about the six maidens she bowled in the previous match.
  • Whether Katie Cross has done enough to put herself on the plane to Australia is an open question. As Laura Malkin pointed out on Twitter, there are several other bowling options coming back from injury (Brunt, Shrubsole, Marsh, Elwiss) and England have maybe invested too much in Farrant not to take her to Oz, even if she doesn't play. (The irony being that (if I recall correctly) Cross was in exactly Farrant's situation on the last Ashes tour down-under, when she traveled more for the experience rather than any expectation that she would actually get a game.)

1 comment:

  1. Keep up the good work. Don't always agree with you but keep those blogs coming.

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