If this was any other ground, the two years to redo the block wouldn't be a problem. Anywhere else with this bounce so early would start getting games taken off them
@Donsteppa said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
If this was any other ground, the two years to redo the block wouldn't be a problem. Anywhere else with this bounce so early would start getting games taken off them
From the air that block is huge. Excuse my ignorance, but couldn't they redo half or a third of the block and still play on the remainder?
Quality catch. What a shame, Conway was looking a little better, but never convincing. Punished for playing the ball hard and early. At least he showed some fight
Smith goes. Unlike England on their abortive Ashes tour, I hope our boys don't get golfing days off between tests. Or at least not until they put in a shitload of work before the next match.
Nothing to do now but have a whack
@Donsteppa said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
The nonsense of Philipps batting lower than Blunder continues...
Blundell shouldn't be batting at all!!!
And it's over. We were let down by poor top and middle order batting and poor fielding. All the batters should stay behind and get some net practice. England a little less shit and the pitch was just too poor to deliver a better test match
Flush the dunny and move on as best they can is the only thing they can do.
Does Tickner come in for the second test in the only change given Henry appears rooted ?
Nathan Smith unlucky not to be MOTM. Doesn't always have to come from a winning team and he was brilliant !
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Got more than Kane or Ravindra 
Nathan Smith is one of those guys who looks like he has a useful technique but he has no ability to hang around for long periods so it doesn't matter.
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
We've got bigger problems than Smith batting at 8 at the moment. How about the top order batsmen score some runs?
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.
@Bovidae said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
We've got bigger problems than Smith batting at 8 at the moment. How about the top order batsmen score some runs?
How about we get to bat on a test pitch not that fucking mess which was Lords before we bag proven test players.
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Bovidae said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
We've got bigger problems than Smith batting at 8 at the moment. How about the top order batsmen score some runs?
How about we get to bat on a test pitch not that fucking mess which was Lords before we bag proven test players.
Some of these proven test batsmen haven't scored many runs in recent seasons. There is no time like now to do it.
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.
Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.
@KiwiMurph said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith is one of those guys who looks like he has a useful technique but he has no ability to hang around for long periods so it doesn't matter.
We've got a bunch of guys that fit that description
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@KiwiMurph said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith is one of those guys who looks like he has a useful technique but he has no ability to hang around for long periods so it doesn't matter.
We'veworld cricket has got a bunch of guys that fit that description
Fixed
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.
Remind me what position Timmy used to bat?
@mariner4life said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@KiwiMurph said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith is one of those guys who looks like he has a useful technique but he has no ability to hang around for long periods so it doesn't matter.
We'veworld cricket has got a bunch of guys that fit that descriptionFixed
Blame T20
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.
Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Remind me what position Timmy used to bat?
To fucking high
To me, that pitch was a piece of shit, The bowlers get a pass for getting out cheap. I would have liked to have seen more fight from the top and middle order. The poor catching in the field is criminal
Between Smith, Jamieson, and Henry we have three guys who would all ideally be at about number ten in a Test batting order.
Batters on Day one struggled with the line, but after that the variable length added too much into the mix.
Fielding has fallen away over the last few years it feels like, mainly accuracy - but effort too at times.
@Donsteppa said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Between Smith, Jamieson, and Henry we have three guys who would all ideally be at about number ten in a Test batting order.
Batters on Day one struggled with the line, but after that the variable length added too much into the mix.
Fielding has fallen away over the last few years it feels like, mainly accuracy - but effort too at times.
Na, number nines at least. Again, do we stack the team with part rounders just to lengthen the batting order ? Fuck no.
AI says that the best number 8 batsmen of all time are Wasim Akram, Daniel Vettori and Ravi Ashwin. Averages of 22, 30 and 25 respectively.
We'll see if Smith can match that long term !
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
Santner we don’t need 4 quicks in most tests
Blundel is too high at 6 he can’t score test runs anymore with a weak 8 the top 7 in compromised
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
Santner we don’t need 4 quicks in most tests
Blundel is too high at 6 he can’t score test runs anymore with a weak 8 the top 7 in compromised
I forgot about Satnav. If he's fit, why not?
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
Santner we don’t need 4 quicks in most tests
Blundel is too high at 6 he can’t score test runs anymore with a weak 8 the top 7 in compromised
I forgot about Satnav. If he's fit, why not?
Whilst his efforts in Pune will live long in the memory as one of the greatest individual performances ever I don't think he'll reach anywhere near those heights again.
Batting average of 25.83 is too low apparently anyway
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
Santner we don’t need 4 quicks in most tests
Blundel is too high at 6 he can’t score test runs anymore with a weak 8 the top 7 in compromised
I forgot about Satnav. If he's fit, why not?
Whilst his efforts in Pune will live long in the memory as one of the greatest individual performances ever I don't think he'll reach anywhere near those heights again.
Batting average of 25.83 is too low apparently anyway
A bit like home, the wicket didn't suit spin. I guess the failure of the top and middle order, along with our poor fielding, makes us look even worse
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
Santner we don’t need 4 quicks in most tests
Blundel is too high at 6 he can’t score test runs anymore with a weak 8 the top 7 in compromised
I forgot about Satnav. If he's fit, why not?
Whilst his efforts in Pune will live long in the memory as one of the greatest individual performances ever I don't think he'll reach anywhere near those heights again.
Batting average of 25.83 is too low apparently anyway
A bit like home, the wicket didn't suit spin. I guess the failure of the top and middle order, along with our poor fielding, makes us look even worse
Santner plays if Phillips doesn't.
Bracewell plays if neither of those two does.
like it or not Blundell plays the next two tests and probably bats six.
....and yeah sounds like the fielding was dogshit.
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@canefan said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@Chris said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
@MN5 said in Black Caps Test Tour to England & Ireland:
Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith should not be batting at 8 he is nowhere good enough for that position.
Not much of a test career to sample but a first class average of just under 27 indicates that he is.
Not for me he doesn’t first class average of 27 is poor for a test 8
It's more than Mitchell Starc or Pat Cummins.
Number 8 is the spot where you put the specialist bowler who is the best batsman. Plenty of guys in history have averaged in the high teens ( or in many cases lower ) batting there. Otherwise you put a bits and pieces type player there who might not have made it on bowling alone, fuck that at test level.
But yeah, runs ( or lack of ) from number 8 is pretty low down the list of problems which start from 1-6 from this match.
He won’t average 27 in a test match no way he is not a decent enough test bat he is a weakness at 8 .
I think the pitch was the main problem let’s see how we perform in the other test before we bag proven test batsmen.Yeah but more pedigree than Jamieson or Henry who have both batted 8 in tests. You need bowlers in a team, any batting talent is a bonus.
Seems a weird and harsh nitpick for a guy who bowled better than anyone too.
We are not talking about his bowling ability are we.
8 is important in test cricket I want a better option there.Fair enough. Who then ?
Bear in mind with Henry broken and Jamieson and O'Rourke in constant danger of doing so Smith becomes all the more important in the lineup.
Santner we don’t need 4 quicks in most tests
Blundel is too high at 6 he can’t score test runs anymore with a weak 8 the top 7 in compromised
I forgot about Satnav. If he's fit, why not?
Whilst his efforts in Pune will live long in the memory as one of the greatest individual performances ever I don't think he'll reach anywhere near those heights again.
Batting average of 25.83 is too low apparently anyway
A bit like home, the wicket didn't suit spin. I guess the failure of the top and middle order, along with our poor fielding, makes us look even worse
Santner plays if Phillips doesn't.
Bracewell plays if neither of those two does.
like it or not Blundell plays the next two tests and probably bats six.
....and yeah sounds like the fielding was dogshit.
No you can play Phillips and Santner Phillips holds his spot at 7 should be 6 as a bat and fielder..
Phillips bowling is a bonus on the 4 th and 5th day if it turns.
Ben Stokes set to be left out of England squad for second New Zealand Test https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jun/09/ben-stokes-set-to-be-left-out-of-england-squad-for-second-new-zealand-test?CMP=share_btn_url
it is now well documented that Stokes cannot handle his piss, and he's led his country's national team down the same road. Flog.
Should have been dropped for good back in 2019, right before a certain WC Final that didnt happen but was able to happen with a different result.
Cut and pasted from FB, I found this quite amusing if very harsh. This was written before the latest incident.
For what its worth he seems to be a very good team man who doesn't pad his stats like Kallis did.......but he's not as good as the great test all rounders, lets be honest. The English press have a lot to answer for in that regard.
If this is the end of his career it's a sad way to go out.
Ben Stokes is playing Test cricket purely for the vibes. 
Can we finally stop pretending Ben Stokes belongs in the England XI? It’s 2026, and the guy is the ultimate definition of captaincy tax. If he didn't have the captain's armband, he wouldn't even make the squad. His batting is completely finished, his bowling is permanently pending on fitness, and his captaincy is massively overrated.
He loves crying to the media about the IPL and T20 cricket, claiming he’s prioritizing the purity of Test cricket, only to show up, make a duck, and look absolutely useless.
Let's look at the actual facts of the most overrated cricketer of the decade:
The Headingley Myth: His entire Test career depends on one single innings in 2019. An innings where he was dead plumb LBW, but got saved because Australia had already burned all their reviews. Pure luck.
The World Cup Fluke: His whole ODI legacy rests on the 2019 final, which everyone knows England won on pure, unadulterated luck and a freak deflection off his bat.
The Invisible Man: The moment he leaves his comfortable home tracks, he disappears. He has never consistently performed in Australia or India.
The Glass Body: Permanently injured since a young age, using his knees as a built-in excuse the second his form falls off a cliff.
The Drama King Reactions: Watch him get cleaned up by a completely normal, straight delivery. He’ll pull a massive, shocked face just to make the casuals think it was some unplayable ball from another planet.
He has become a total walking wicket and a massive liability to team balance.
Meanwhile, Ravindra Jadeja is light years ahead of him as an actual world-class all-rounder. Honestly, being compared to Jadeja is easily the biggest achievement of Stokes’ entire career.England needs to stop running a charity for a past reputation. Strip the captaincy, hand it to Harry Brook so the team can actually progress, and drop Stokes.
Change my mind. 
#Cricket #BenStokes #Ashes #INDvENG #SirJadeja #HarryBrook #CricketTwitter
@MN5 Something tells me that's from an India fan... However like all good stories it does have a grounding in truth. His more recent form has been very hit and miss. He still makes the odd good score and often at critical times and takes a few wickets "just when needed" - ie to break a partnership when nothing else is really working. But overall - lucky to be there on purely cricketing impact. However, he has, along with McCullum and Key transformed England into a much more attacking side which is great IMO. Since he was made captain in 2022 he has 24 wins, 16 losses but crucially only 2 draws.
We never die wondering with this England squad that's for sure.