Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[Vishnu.Reang]

If Shakib Al Hasan or Mahmudullah Riad were in the squad then maybe the Bangladesh team would have been able to perform better. At least if Shakib was in the team, the result of the match could have changed. Also, the top order batsmen of Bangladesh were not successful except Tamim. If the top order batsmen are not able to play well, it is difficult to win the match

Shakib al Hassan to Bangladesh is what Virat Kohli is to India and Steve Smith is to Australia. Without him, the team will always be lacking morale and fighting spirit. There is not enough depth in the player pool for Bangladesh, to win matches against quality sides in the absence of Shakib. Anyway, Bangladesh should concentrate on their next assignment, which is going to be the tour of New Zealand.

[eaLiTy]

Shakib al Hassan to Bangladesh is what Virat Kohli is to India and Steve Smith is to Australia. Without him, the team will always be lacking morale and fighting spirit. There is not enough depth in the player pool for Bangladesh, to win matches against quality sides in the absence of Shakib. Anyway, Bangladesh should concentrate on their next assignment, which is going to be the tour of New Zealand.

Shakib Al Hasan might be their best player but to loose a match without his presence is not justifiable as they never had a huge total and they are playing in their home turf and to loose a game just shows how West Indies played with a new team and performed well just like India did in Australia. This is the first time they won in a long time in Asian conditions and the props should go to the entire team.

[vella85]

India took full control of this test match now and can take their time to accumulate the runs needed for the win which I think is around 500 which then gives their bowlers enough time to bowl England out. India could actually bat all day on day 3 and give them 2 days to bowl England out but I think this match will be all over on day 4. What an amazing bowling performance by Ashwin, looks like his form has continued on from the Australian test series.

[Swordsoffreedom]

India took full control of this test match now and can take their time to accumulate the runs needed for the win which I think is around 500 which then gives their bowlers enough time to bowl England out. India could actually bat all day on day 3 and give them 2 days to bowl England out but I think this match will be all over on day 4. What an amazing bowling performance by Ashwin, looks like his form has continued on from the Australian test series.

I don't think that's, what you think that will exactly happen. But if that happens then India will undoubtedly win the match. I think India will lose all their wickets in 200-220. And will give England a target of over 400 runs. But 400 runs is enough for India to win if they don't make any big mistake. I don't see the possibility of the match being drawn. Maybe India will win or they will be defeated

[romero121]

This is true to say Current West Indies test team is far better team from the present Bangladesh team. They play such an good cricket in both tests. Due to poor selections and captain BAN lost by just 17 runs. Bangladesh were top choice yet failed severely. The way they lost it's not accepted, they have to work on it.

If the West Indies team is so much better, then why did they lose the ODI series 0-3? And they lost all of these matches by a very considerable margin. What helped West Indies in the test series was the absence of Shakib al Hassan in the second match and his injury during the first match. I really don't think that if he was present in the test squad for the second match then West Indies could have swept the test series.

I don't think Shakib's presence is a must or the reason for the loss. If Bangladesh could've avoided very few mistakes it might have won the match, because the victory is very near. Just a 17 runs win is a close one, anyhow everything is over. Maybe this learning can help with the upcoming matches. In the second innings Bangladesh have scored higher than West Indies which itself shows they're strong.

[Sithara007]

India took full control of this test match now and can take their time to accumulate the runs needed for the win which I think is around 500 which then gives their bowlers enough time to bowl England out. India could actually bat all day on day 3 and give them 2 days to bowl England out but I think this match will be all over on day 4. What an amazing bowling performance by Ashwin, looks like his form has continued on from the Australian test series.

So that means that most probably India would be the opponents for New Zealand, for the WTC finals at Lord's? Anyway, this is a 4-match series and now it may be too early to make predictions. India hasn't won an ICC championship for a long time under Kohli's captaincy, and if they manage to win this one then it will give a big boost not only for the Indian team, but also to Virat Kohli in person.

England looks to be in dire straits, but congratulations to them for avoiding the follow on. I don't know whether this is a good thing or not, as England need to bat later, when the pitch becomes even more unsuitable for batting. Ben Foakes added some valuable runs at the end. And this time, Axar Patel looked much better than Shahbaz Nadeem in the last match.

[7788bitcoin]

Seeing Australia's performance against India, I don't think Australia will be able to win a series if a series will be held between Australia and New Zealand. The New Zealand team is stable enough now. They are playing very well. So I think both teams will have equal chances to win the series. Players make a lot of mistakes on the ground. The players of the team who make fewer mistakes, they will win. Because both teams have enough talented players.

If Australia play against New Zealand it might be a complete story altogether. The matches were really close even though India won the series and they still have a good bowling unit and it will be a close series if they play rather than one sided dominance.
India is leading by 403 runs and when they are going to declare as they already have enough runs on the board. Ashwin once again rising to the occasion and he is frustrating the English bowlers with his innings.

[Clement Kaliyar]

India is leading by 403 runs and when they are going to declare as they already have enough runs on the board. Ashwin once again rising to the occasion and he is frustrating the English bowlers with his innings.

Ashwin scored a century in a pitch when the top order players are struggling and there is plenty of time left in this match and two days is more than enough to pick the England wickets, India is leading with 471 runs and they will try to frustrate the England players and they will be tired when they come back to bat and that is the plan as they keep on batting the entire day.

[bryant.coleman]

Ashwin scored a century in a pitch when the top order players are struggling and there is plenty of time left in this match and two days is more than enough to pick the England wickets, India is leading with 471 runs and they will try to frustrate the England players and they will be tired when they come back to bat and that is the plan as they keep on batting the entire day.

Ashwin is from the same city and he was probably accustomed to the ground conditions. The England bowlers (especially the spinners) lost it after the first 1-2 hours of play, when Kohli and Ashwin built the partnership. Ideally the England captain could have used the pacers (Olly Stone and Stuart Broad), but for some unknown reason he was reluctant to do so. In the end it was Olly Stone who got Ashwin out.

[7788bitcoin]

Ashwin scored a century in a pitch when the top order players are struggling and there is plenty of time left in this match and two days is more than enough to pick the England wickets

The target for England is impossible to achieve in the final innings and England already lost the first wicket but i wish the England players try to play a longer innings and frustrate the spinners by attacking them and force them to change their lengths by stepping out just like Ashwin played.

Ideally the England captain could have used the pacers (Olly Stone and Stuart Broad), but for some unknown reason he was reluctant to do so. In the end it was Olly Stone who got Ashwin out.

When Stuart Broad bowled the keeper was standing near the stumps and that says a lot about their energy levels and may be so is the reason the fast bowlers were not used.

[Vishnu.Reang]

When Stuart Broad bowled the keeper was standing near the stumps and that says a lot about their energy levels and may be so is the reason the fast bowlers were not used.

Out of the total of 86 overs that India batted, Broad/Stone bowled just 16. On the other hand, the spinners bowled the remaining 70 overs. I agree that the fast bowlers can't be used for long spells under such hostile conditions. But Joe Root could have given 10-12 overs each to the two pacers. If he had done that, then most probably they could have got the lead under 350-400. Now the match has slipped out of England's hand.

Just now England lost two quick wickets - that of Rory Burns and the night-watchman Jack Leach. They still need 430 runs, with just 7 wickets in hand. I won't be surprised if the Indian spinners wrap up the match before tea tomorrow. After such a great performance during the first test match, England was disappointing during the second match.

[ene1980]

Right time for Queen to return the Kohinoor as a protest to such treachery act from the Indians.   

I enjoyed English commentators meltdown thoroughly. 

It is a dream if they return the most prestigious gem, no idea whether they took it or got as a gift but the wicket looks like it is prepared for Ashwin as he was able to pick 5 wickets in the first innings and then score a century in the second innings and in the last two days he might even improve his wickets tally and he is the clear man of the match with his allround performance.

[bryant.coleman]

Right time for Queen to return the Kohinoor as a protest to such treachery act from the Indians.   

I enjoyed English commentators meltdown thoroughly. 

It is a dream if they return the most prestigious gem, no idea whether they took it or got as a gift but the wicket looks like it is prepared for Ashwin as he was able to pick 5 wickets in the first innings and then score a century in the second innings and in the last two days he might even improve his wickets tally and he is the clear man of the match with his allround performance.

Don't want to deviate from the topic too much.. but right now there is no rightful owner for that diamond. It was originally mined from the Kollur Mine around 900 years ago by the Kakatiya dynasty. When Alauddin Khalji defeated the Kakatiyas and looted their treasury, the diamond came under his possession. From Khalji, it ended up with the Mughals. In 1739, the diamond was stolen by Nadir Shah of Persia when he invaded Delhi. Ahmad Shah Durrani received the diamond in 1751 and his descendant gifted it to Ranjit Singh in 1813. Queen Victoria received the diamond in 1849, after the Brits defeated the Sikhs. With so many owners, who is the rightful one?

Now back to the match. Michael Vaughan made such a fuss about the pitch yesterday (and got in to an argument with Shane Warne). And today, the no.8 batsman from India scored a century on the same track. And let's not forget. This is the same Michael Vaughan who predicted 0-4 series whitewash in Australia for the Indian team (India won the series 2-1). 

[onrise]

When Stuart Broad bowled the keeper was standing near the stumps and that says a lot about their energy levels and may be so is the reason the fast bowlers were not used.

Out of the total of 86 overs that India batted, Broad/Stone bowled just 16. On the other hand, the spinners bowled the remaining 70 overs. I agree that the fast bowlers can't be used for long spells under such hostile conditions. But Joe Root could have given 10-12 overs each to the two pacers. If he had done that, then most probably they could have got the lead under 350-400. Now the match has slipped out of England's hand.

Just now England lost two quick wickets - that of Rory Burns and the night-watchman Jack Leach. They still need 430 runs, with just 7 wickets in hand. I won't be surprised if the Indian spinners wrap up the match before tea tomorrow. After such a great performance during the first test match, England was disappointing during the second match.

The day ended up where England lost 3 wickets for 53 and still trail by 429 runs. So tomo the match should be over the series will be level by 1-1.  Ashwin is having the best time with bat and bowl and will be the player of the match unless England produce some miracle in batting and happens to win the test match from here. England performance might be other way around if they would have won the toss and bat first. Might be India would be under pressure in such situation just like now how England is in pressure of losing it.

[Haunebu]

Ashwin is having the best time with bat and bowl and will be the player of the match unless England produce some miracle in batting and happens to win the test match from here. England performance might be other way around if they would have won the toss and bat first. Might be India would be under pressure in such situation just like now how England is in pressure of losing it.

England winning at this stage? I doubt it. India have pretty much claimed this one by outperforming England in literally every single department. I have no idea why they decided to replace Anderson whose reverse swing helped a lot.

Also, the toss doesn't always decide the outcome of the match. If that were the case, I would probably earn millions by placing live bets after viewing the toss result. It all comes down to luck and performances at the end of the day.

[7788bitcoin]

Now back to the match. Michael Vaughan made such a fuss about the pitch yesterday (and got in to an argument with Shane Warne). And today, the no.8 batsman from India scored a century on the same track. And let's not forget. This is the same Michael Vaughan who predicted 0-4 series whitewash in Australia for the Indian team (India won the series 2-1). 

Michael Vaughan is good at predicting and he has proved that  . Ashwin is playing well and he keeps on pushing his boundary as a batsman every time he goes out to bat and he showed his resilience in Australia to draw a Test match and here he was able to score a century when all the other batsman are struggling to score runs.

England already lost 2 top order batsman and the night watchman faced only one ball.

[bryant.coleman]

The day ended up where England lost 3 wickets for 53 and still trail by 429 runs. So tomo the match should be over the series will be level by 1-1.  Ashwin is having the best time with bat and bowl and will be the player of the match unless England produce some miracle in batting and happens to win the test match from here. England performance might be other way around if they would have won the toss and bat first. Might be India would be under pressure in such situation just like now how England is in pressure of losing it.

In the first innings they made just 134 runs. Do you really expect them to score 482 in the second innings? I expect them to go down by 300 plus runs with another 5-wicket haul for Ashwin. This guy is just unstoppable in Indian pitches. And surprising that after all these years, England hasn't mastered to bat against him. England should focus on the next test, which is going to be a day-night match.

[aysg76]

~

In the first innings they made just 134 runs. Do you really expect them to score 482 in the second innings? I expect them to go down by 300 plus runs with another 5-wicket haul for Ashwin. This guy is just unstoppable in Indian pitches. And surprising that after all these years, England hasn't mastered to bat against him. England should focus on the next test, which is going to be a day-night match.

I think tomorrow will be the day of Axar. He will take his maiden 5 wicket haul and will lead India to victory.
But Of course, Ashwin will be Man of the Match because of his fantastic performance.

[onrise]

The day ended up where England lost 3 wickets for 53 and still trail by 429 runs. So tomo the match should be over the series will be level by 1-1.  Ashwin is having the best time with bat and bowl and will be the player of the match unless England produce some miracle in batting and happens to win the test match from here. England performance might be other way around if they would have won the toss and bat first. Might be India would be under pressure in such situation just like now how England is in pressure of losing it.

In the first innings they made just 134 runs. Do you really expect them to score 482 in the second innings? I expect them to go down by 300 plus runs with another 5-wicket haul for Ashwin. This guy is just unstoppable in Indian pitches. And surprising that after all these years, England hasn't mastered to bat against him. England should focus on the next test, which is going to be a day-night match.

I am sceptical myself if they can pull it off but just if they then nothing less than miracle as considering all the situation and batting 4th is never easy. It requires 1 of the players to make double century from here to help England win the test match and seems only if someone could make that may be Root or Stokes, provided if they can stay on pitch for longer time tomorrow.

[Clement Kaliyar]

~
Ashwin is from the same city and he was probably accustomed to the ground conditions. The England bowlers (especially the spinners) lost it after the first 1-2 hours of play, when Kohli and Ashwin built the partnership. 

Ashwin is accustomed to his home ground and played a great innings but he played a long innings in Sydney to help India avoid the defeat and it was an impressive innings as well even though he did not score much runs but showed his solid defense and props to Kohli and Ashwin for building a good partnership and then Kohli allowing Ashwin to reach his century because i thought they will declare once Kohli got out.

The target for England is impossible to achieve in the final innings and England already lost the first wicket but i wish the England players try to play a longer innings and frustrate the spinners by attacking them and force them to change their lengths by stepping out just like Ashwin played.

Three players did not stay in the crease for a long time, 7 more to go and lets see if they could play a longer innings  .