BUMBLE AT THE TEST
SMITH PASSES THE TEST
I DID the pitch report yesterday and it was showing signs of wear and tear but probably started too dry, with cracks starting to appear. It was a test of concentration, application and skill and Steve Smith passed with flying colours. It turned out to be slow paced but Smith made it look so easy.
BEWARE OF DAY FIVE
DAY FOUR actually turned out to be the best day to bat so far — perhaps because England’s spinner in Moeen Ali was so below par — and history tells you that is so often the case here. Stats for Edgbaston tell you wickets average 40 apiece on day four of a Test, which is higher than the first three. But it drops dramatically for day five!
LYON’S ON THE PROWL
ALL eyes will be on Nathan Lyon today. At lunch and tea he was inspecting the pitch and it does look tailor-made for him. Lyon (right) is the most accomplished finger spinner in the world and his perfect scenario is to have runs on the board to play with and England looking to survive on a worn pitch. He’s got the lot.
JOFRA CAN BOUNCE BACK
WHAT a player Smith is and all the talk in the commentary box was how do you get him out? Well, I reckon three who would have fancied themselves would be Glenn McGrath, Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh because they would have been relentless and deadly accurate bowling at the ‘fourth stump’. With extra bounce too. Enter Jofra Archer at Lord’s!
...BUT FITNESS IS THE KEY
ENGLAND will clearly want Archer to be 100 per cent fit for the second Test in 10 days’ time but he only seems to have been bowling left-arm spin in the nets here. At least he is playing a second team game for Sussex tomorrow and that will be crucial. If it’s not him it’s got to be Olly Stone (right) as England need that extra pace.
SNAP OUT OF IT, MOEEN
ENGLAND also might need another spinner because Moeen Ali has been completely out of sorts. I’ve never seen him so devoid of confidence. There’s been no snap in his action and it just seems he has something on his mind. It could well be England freshen it up at Lord’s with Jack Leach — Smith hasn’t got quite such a fantastic record against left-arm spin!
I’M HAVING A REAL BLAST
I’VE not been up to any antics during this Test because I’ve been rushing back to my hotel to watch the T20 Blast. I’ve seen a couple of cracking matches, too, with great crowds at Northants against Derbyshire and Lancashire against Notts. But there is one big problem with the Blast — it’s too long! This year’s total of 138 matches is far too many.