Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[FIFA worldcup]

The Ashes 2019
4th Test
Australia elected to bat and lost their first wicket for only one run LOL. Just tuned and seeing one down :-P
Warner failed again! How many more? Smith and Starc back, that's the good news.

My prediction still stands - Australia to win.

Edit:
Guys, battle between Smith and Archer is beautiful.

I was also expecting good battle battle between Smith and Archer but at the end Rain won and these both have to wait for next round of this battle which is going to be very exciting.

The rain did stop and we had a few overs but now again it is raining heavily at Manchester. The weather does not look good here. I think they should have an early lunch and tea break and hope for the weather to clear.

[erikalui]

They already lost 3.5 hours on the first day. Rain ran go away, come again another day... :-P

Since both  Smith and Marnus are playing, who has been dropped from this match? I don't blame Warner now as he suddenly outperforms and then goes back to scoring in single digits or gets out for 0. They'll need to give him rest till he gets in form again.

Edit: Labuschagne out. With Smith, 350 looks like a good target but if he gets out soon, 250 looks like all they can get.

[FIFA worldcup]

They already lost 3.5 hours on the first day. Rain ran go away, come again another day... :-P

Since both  Smith and Marnus are playing, who has been dropped from this match? I don't blame Warner now as he suddenly outperforms and then goes back to scoring in single digits or gets out for 0. They'll need to give him rest till he gets in form again.

Edit: Labuschagne out. With Smith, 350 looks like a good target but if he gets out soon, 250 looks like all they can get.

Finally it's tea break. I have been watching this match closely all day long. Australia is playing good and scoring at a good rate. Do you know only 4 overs are bowled maiden by the English bowlers in the two sessions. This shows how well the Aussies are batting today.

[Vishnu.Reang]

The first thing I checked was the Australian lineup for the match. Finally they included Mitchell Starc. It was always frustrating to watch the no.1 Australian bowler sitting out and the idiotic selectors giving chances to mediocre bowlers. I would have liked Lyon to be replaced by another pacer, but for now it will do. Smith seems to be in fabulous form. The only question is whether he'll be able to score the century today, or we need to wait until tomorrow.

Note: heard that rain has returned. So we may have to wait until tomorrow for Smith's century.

[JohnBitCo]

The first thing I checked was the Australian lineup for the match. Finally they included Mitchell Starc. It was always frustrating to watch the no.1 Australian bowler sitting out and the idiotic selectors giving chances to mediocre bowlers. I would have liked Lyon to be replaced by another pacer, but for now it will do. Smith seems to be in fabulous form. The only question is whether he'll be able to score the century today, or we need to wait until tomorrow.

Note: heard that rain has returned. So we may have to wait until tomorrow for Smith's century.

Was there any specific reason of why Mitchell Starc was kept out in the last 3 tests ? Any injury etc ?
If he was kept out of the tests without any reason, that's the worst decision by the Australian selection committee.

[Raja_MBZ]

After removing Usman Khawaja from the team, I guess Warner is definitely going to feel the heat. Today again, he didn't make a single run, and I guess the second inning of the ongoing test match is going to be the decider of his selection for the upcoming matches. Seriously, this whole Ashes series has turned him into ashes. Feelin' really bad for him.

[ene1980]

Was there any specific reason of why Mitchell Starc was kept out in the last 3 tests ? Any injury etc ?
If he was kept out of the tests without any reason, that's the worst decision by the Australian selection committee.

He was not picked in the team because they had a good bowling attack and Mitchell Starc was not that great in the longer format of the game, he is a force to recon in the shorter format of the game but he is yet to prove his worth in the Test squad. He is picked in the fourth test and lets see whether he could make an impact in this match.
Rain is spoiling the match and the weather is holding me back from making a bet in this match. Smith is still in the crease and looks like eyeing for another big score.

[vella85]

The England summer this year has been terrible with the rain stopping play not only in the Ashes but it also played a big part in the World Cup where we could of seen a different result. Anyway I thought Australia have batted well to get to 170 runs off just 44 overs and only losing 3 wickets and the danger man Smith is still at the crease so if he can get going on day 2 then Australia can make 400+ runs. Australia have found another great player in Marnus Labuschagne who continues to score runs and looks like he has cemented his place in the team long term. Warner has to be dropped now, I said after the 3rd test match that he should of been dropped and Finch come in but again the selectors continue to go with Warner which isn't working so Finch must come in for the 5th test match no matter what the result is in this test match.

[Haunebu]

The England summer this year has been terrible with the rain stopping play not only in the Ashes but it also played a big part in the World Cup where we could of seen a different result. Anyway I thought Australia have batted well to get to 170 runs off just 44 overs and only losing 3 wickets and the danger man Smith is still at the crease so if he can get going on day 2 then Australia can make 400+ runs.

I doubt they will even reach 350. Once Smith departs, the English bowlers will focus on the tail enders and they will continue chipping away until there is no one left to bat.

Warner has to be dropped now, I said after the 3rd test match that he should of been dropped and Finch come in but again the selectors continue to go with Warner which isn't working so Finch must come in for the 5th test match no matter what the result is in this test match.

I disagree. Warner is someone worth backing even after consecutive failures due to his batting prowess(Especially in the shorter format of the game). I applaud the selectors for backing him without ever giving up on him.

[Little Mouse]

BAN vs AFG- 1st Test
Did I see any match without Tamim Iqbal? I have forgotten to be honest.
Shadman Islam is replacing Tamim Iqbal, Shadman is a new player, played 4 matches till now. If I am not mistaken, his batting is good enough. His 1st class stats are looking great. Let's see if he can replace Tamim forever  
Afghanistan has lost 3 wickets however, Rahmat is looking confident and he will be playing a long innings.

I doubt they will even reach 350. Once Smith departs, the English bowlers will focus on the tail enders and they will continue chipping away until there is no one left to bat.

350 seems easy from their current situation unless match interfered with rain.

[Avirunes]

BAN vs AFG- 1st Test
Did I see any match without Tamim Iqbal? I have forgotten to be honest.
Shadman Islam is replacing Tamim Iqbal, Shadman is a new player, played 4 matches till now. If I am not mistaken, his batting is good enough. His 1st class stats are looking great. Let's see if he can replace Tamim forever  
Afghanistan has lost 3 wickets however, Rahmat is looking confident and he will be playing a long innings.

Glad to see board making decisions to replace Tamim for someone new and promising player. It's a good to replace players from time to time. I guess it brings the out form player to push himself more to get back into team and protect his position.

I doubt they will even reach 350. Once Smith departs, the English bowlers will focus on the tail enders and they will continue chipping away until there is no one left to bat.

350 seems easy from their current situation unless match interfered with rain.

I think it is easy 350 if Wade gets settled on crease and put up a partnership on with Smith. I have no doubt about Smith's current form but Wade is running on decent form but at least better than the top order.

I think this one's gonna end up in a draw.

[ene1980]

Afghanistan has lost 3 wickets however, Rahmat is looking confident and he will be playing a long innings.

I have not seen any Test match played by Afghanistan and considering they are playing in Bangladesh i placed a small bet on Bangladesh to win since Test matches always favor the home condition unless it is a top team but Afghanistan is playing well scoring 258 for the loss of 5 wickets and not even heard about Rahmat Shah who scored a century and another player cruising on to his century. The match depends upon how Rahid Khan can trouble the Bangladesh players whether he could repeat the same level of success in Test matches.

[erikalui]

Lunch now. They have already scored 245 and if Smith can get a decent partnership of 50+ runs with Paine and/or Cummins 350 runs would be enough but if Smith doesn't last till 150, they may get less than 300-320 max which is less. On this pitch where rain is a threat, England may not be able to chase down 300+ score as Starc too has come back. England's chances of winning have reduced now as they have always failed to take Smith's wicket.

[Little Mouse]

I was a fan of Smith when he was an alrounder for the team and entered into the team mostly as a bowler. Now I'm being die-hard fan of this guy.
144
141
92
101*
After coming back, this is his stats.

What's wrong with cricbuzz? Smith's profile is missing.

I this one's gonna end up in a draw.

Probably, it has already been Day 2 Lunch, still Australia has a lot to go.

[Avirunes]

What's wrong with cricbuzz? Smith's profile is missing.

It's working for me. Here it goes: https://cricbuzz.com/cricket-stats/player/4697/steve-smith

Probably, it has already been Day 2 Lunch, still Australia has a lot to go.

Yeah I know it's too early to speak about the outcome actually but right now I think the pace in this test is kinda slow. If one or two innings comes up with surprise from any of the two sides then I think we can see a side winning.

Either way it kinda feels boring watching only smith putting up himself on the line to save Australia. It kinda feels like I am watching like 4-5 players vs 11 players England side.

[Little Mouse]

It's working for me. Here it goes: https://cricbuzz.com/cricket-stats/player/4697/steve-smith

Strange, it didn't work for me a while ago but now it's working. while I was clicking on his profile, it was sending me to the search page.

Yeah I know it's too early to speak about the outcome actually but right now I think the pace in this test is kinda slow. If one or two innings comes up with surprise from any of the two sides then I think we can see a side winning.

Chance of having a winning team is pretty low. Australian bowlers have to destroy England's batting.
Australia can declare the innings if they think of winning the match, if they bat whole day, no chance will be left.

[akhjob]

So Smith-Paine duo has crossed 100 runs partnership and are in good form. Earlier, it looked like both teams were in control. But post Lunch, things have changed and AUS looks dominating and are scoring at a faster rate. Considering that this is a batting pitch and the duos form, 450+ runs seems reasonable. And I don't believe that Eng will go down without a fight. So this match is more of a draw to me.

[FIFA worldcup]

The England summer this year has been terrible with the rain stopping play not only in the Ashes but it also played a big part in the World Cup where we could of seen a different result. Anyway I thought Australia have batted well to get to 170 runs off just 44 overs and only losing 3 wickets and the danger man Smith is still at the crease so if he can get going on day 2 then Australia can make 400+ runs.

I doubt they will even reach 350. Once Smith departs, the English bowlers will focus on the tail enders and they will continue chipping away until there is no one left to bat.

Smith did not depart which made Aussie is a better position. I think if Aussie play well from here onwards, they can make 500+ runs and then look to create pressure and try to get a follow on. If the rain does not disturb, we can see one more tight test contest here.

[Vishnu.Reang]

So Smith-Paine duo has crossed 100 runs partnership and are in good form. Earlier, it looked like both teams were in control. But post Lunch, things have changed and AUS looks dominating and are scoring at a faster rate. Considering that this is a batting pitch and the duos form, 450+ runs seems reasonable. And I don't believe that Eng will go down without a fight. So this match is more of a draw to me.

What happened during the 1st and 2nd tests just repeating again. Back then, Smith built valuable partnerships with lower order and tail end batsmen such as Siddle, Cummins and Lyon. We are not quite at the tail yet, but I think the Australian tail will add another 100 runs to push the total above 500. If that happens, then England will go down by an innings and more.

[erikalui]

Smith on 179. Double century is close. Never thought they could cross 350 but now 450-500 is easy for them. Aus won't declare before 500 now. Considering the second day is almost going to end in 5 hours, this match will likely end in a draw.