Kent away Canterbury

adelaide wrote:

Jackers wrote:

adelaide wrote:

Jackers wrote:

Wokoval wrote:The ECB and the FA ( Football Association) represent everything that is wrong in this country. No consideration for the paying public.

The ECB are worse. At least the FA don't tell professional clubs that they can't pick who they want outside of the agreed international windows.

That might be because footballers are not on central contracts. Which in turn is because the clubs generate their own income, rather than relying on income from the FA. It really is a case of who pays the piper.

I would wager Surrey could match whatever the ECB pay this particular piper if they did not impose a salary cap to prevent us from so doing. Why does this hypocritical governing body not impose a salary cap on its own central contracts? They seem to be free to award as much as they wish to as many as they wish.

Seriously? Other counties, possibly excluding Lancashire, could not get close to matching what the ECB pay. Without a salary cap there would be little competition and surely nobody wants that? I know Surrey has to look after its own interests first but those interests surely include having strong cpmpetitors.

You rather miss my point. I am not suggesting that most other counties could match what the ECB pay, nor am I even suggesting that there doesn't need to be a degree of salary regulation in cricket. My point is that if the ECB are imposing it and setting the limits on counties then they also should subject themselves to salary limits on central contracts (including "incrimental" "developmental" etc) which would mean they can't just go round sprinking them round like confetti as they have increasingly been doing.

You might argue that they are never going to be as principled as to do so - I would agree, because they are determined to create an entitled elite of cricketers instead of seeing part of their role as nurturing the county game as well as promoting England, as the Test AND COUNTY Cricket Board once did.

I wonder if Durham, Lancs, and Yorks felt that Surrey would need to have Pope neutered in the interests of "fairness" given they have had Stokes, Anderson, and Root rested at various times, albeit for FAR better reasons (Stokes and Anderson especially).

You would therefore imagine Duckett, Crawley, Foakes, and Brook will be rested at some point then?

If England players really will be available for 5/7 county matches I think that is fair if counties can choose that availability.

You do have to question why all White ball players are allowed to play in the IPL before an international tournament with just a few days in between to acclimatise from India to the US/Caribbean. How exhausted are they going to be?

They said last week that Churchy was Uncle Dick so maybe he is still feeling under the weather.
Hope the great man gets well soon.

Massive anti Patel website give the lad some slack.

Yeah Ryan is a useful squad option. Remember he opened throughout 2022 and won the title.

Not a good idea for batsmen to rest at all. Bowlers maybe (depends on whether you are a bowler that needs overs, e.g Robinson 49 overs 4 wickets ave 35.50). England batsmen should play every game until the Tests.

Coatesy wrote:

Wokoval wrote:Is Key the former Kent batsman ( sorry batter) the person making these decisions like Pope not being allowed to play against er…..Kent?. The FA scrapping replays without consulting EFL and National League clubs is  similar to the ECB not consulting the counties on the Hundred. As for the paying public we have no say whatever it seems. I’m quite a placid person but this makes me very angry.

No Pope or Atkinson but Crawley is allowed to play. Strange that!!!!!

This point is being massively overdone. Yes it annoying we are missing Pope when the first 2 games have been weather affected and he hasn't done much but, all centrally contractedplayers are missing 2 of the first batch of Champ games. The club and player have been given an element of choice on which matches they play and which they miss. For example Kent have openly said it was Crawleys choice to kiss the first 2 games to give himself a solid break and essentially start the season later - even if it looks like a missed opportunity as the kookaburra ball served batsmen well. I imagine surrey looked at the fixtures and thought they would rather have Pope missing for a game against the relegation favourites in Kent than against Lancs, Somerset or Hampshire say. As for Atkinson with Worral back it makes sense although I believe the decision was made before Overton went down injured.

All the same to Cam Steel. He'd get wickets with an orange.

Winning is not an optional extra here. We can't afford to give Essex a two-win start.

Essex are ticking all boxes at the moment Elgar will probably score more than Sir Alastair.Strong varied Attack they may lack strength in depth if they lose Bowlers to injury.

I think Stewie announcing he is leaving has had the same effect that Klopp leaving Liverpool has had. Deflated the dressing room. Also Azhar Mahmood leaving and not being replaced is a mistake the bowling group will miss him.
We wont make it a hat trick you heard it here first!

VicNorth wrote:All the same to Cam Steel. He'd get wickets with an orange.

Don't give Rob Key any ideas.

He'll be sorting out a sponsorship with Jaffa as we speak

Key has done a good job but all his mates at Sky just suck his dick. Whenever he is interviewed its all going on about how he is the greatest thing since sliced bread. He got lucky with Baz as Ponting was his first choice as England coach and he turned it down.

What a keeper Foakes is, probably the worst thing about Bazzball is the treatment he's recieved by England

Steve wrote:Key has done a good job but all his mates at Sky just suck his dick.  Whenever he is interviewed its all going on about how he is the greatest thing since sliced bread.  He got lucky with Baz as Ponting was his first choice as England coach and he turned it down.

EH???

Key has been hideous. He’s just everything we as country cricket fans do not need. His cobblers about the hundred is annoying beyond belief and his tenure in charge of test cricket has seen England turn in to cosy men’s club, picking his mates.

I cannot think of one thing he has done that is good for cricket in England.

Thank god we've wrapped up the tail. Now the oportunity for Burns and Sibley to show Key what good opening batsman they are.

...and they are currently scoring at 5 runs an over

Don’t understand the Selection ruling Foakes played and kept in every in every Test Match in India and is allowed to keep playing.

Jhe10077 wrote:Don’t understand the Selection ruling Foakes played and kept in every in every Test Match in India and is allowed to keep playing.

Apparently counties have been given a degree of discretion in respect of all of their centrally-contracted red-ball players, ie they can choose which 5 of the first 7 championship matches they play in.

So, while it probably makes sense for Pope to miss a game like Kent (weakest bowling side in the division), it may also make sense to play Foakes for the first five consecutively, and then hand over the gloves until late September to (I hope) Blake.

I fail to logically understand why the "elite" England players don't play every game, all 7. Even if all games go 4 days, which they haven't yet, they get 3 days between each. I would have thought they all need the practice, and anyway sod England, it should be up to the county to decide like it used to be, not the wallies at the ECB. Freddie Truman played back to back 3 day games and then went straight into a Test match. To my knowledge he never got an injury that kept him out of a game. I bet you if you told the current softies they had to play 15 back to back T20s they'd all be fit and wouldn't argue. I wonder why?

Burns 50 from 67 balls

This is wonderful stuff from the openers, and at a good lick as well

Not good enough for England but good enough to score at over 4 an over against Kent.

I mean, both of them had a good go at it, and got found out against top international bowlers

But at this level, if they keep plugging away like this, other sides will have no chance