Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[LittleBitFunny]

Shakib Al Hasan returns to the squad for the second Test against Pakistan. This is good news for Bangladesh. Bangladesh's bowling lineup is very weak. In the second innings of the previous Test, they were able to take only two wickets for Pakistan. Moreover, the performance of pace bowlers is worse. In such a situation, an all-rounder team like Shakib was needed.

@LittleBitFunny Shakib is more than an a all rounder he’s an leader and inspires the dressing room by his mere presence, hence his availability is indeed a major boost for the Bangladeshi team. Also I’m sure his experience will help other bowlers too, so it looks like Pakistan will not find it easy to beat Bangladesh in the next test match.

You are right. His presence will inspire the players of the team. Bangladesh team is now young dependent. The team has many young players who are inexperienced. Shakib's experience will help them to perform better. Moreover, Shakib is a leader. Although he is not the captain of the team, he will be able to help guide the team in the right direction.

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[laurenB7742]

SriLanka     vs    West Indis

The third day's play has started. West Indies collected 9 runs. Tottal runs 78/1. They are still trail by 125 runs. Today is the third day, and the West Indies have lost just one wicket. Hopefully West Indies will be able to play all day. Perhaps the match is going to be a draw.

[UmerIdrees]

Updated WTC point table.

In this cycle Pakistan has a real solid chance of qualifying into the finals. They are playing SENA countries in their own condition (Home) or may be their UAE home ground, all away matches are against Ban, SL and WI.

NZ, Ind, Aus, Eng has a equal chance of qualifying. Although we can rule out England completely cause they are already 2-1 behind one of their own home series against India and playing against Kiwis at home. Ashes is on the line too. Their schedule looks tough af.

How does this work out ?  Isn't it that every team should play against each team in order to determine the finalist ?

If Pakistan does not play with India, England and Australia and still quality for the finals that won't be a fair result. Also ICC test champion is for the period for 2021- 2023. So the final will be somewhere in 2023 ?

[kro55]

SriLanka     vs    West Indis

The third day's play has started. West Indies collected 9 runs. Tottal runs 78/1. They are still trail by 125 runs. Today is the third day, and the West Indies have lost just one wicket. Hopefully West Indies will be able to play all day. Perhaps the match is going to be a draw.

The Sri Lankan bowlers also flopped in the first session. The West Indies collection is now 120. Kraigg Brathwaite is unbeaten on 51 and Bonner has 23 runs. Their striker at night is 36.95 and 40.35 respectively. They are batting very well. They are still 84 runs behind Sri Lanka.

[Webetcoins]

In the second Test between West Indies and Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka finished their first innings with just 204 runs. I thought they would collect more than 250. This collection seems very low for the first inning. West Indies lost just one wicket and scored 61 runs. The West Indies will be looking to win this Test after losing the first Test. You must play well in the first innings to win. If you perform poorly in the first innings, victory is not possible with good performance in the second innings.

Veerasammy Permaul has done very good job for visitors here in Galle where mostly visiting teams having good advantage now West Indies also can do some good for themselves because this guy give them good chance now luck and rain both need to be beside with them for leveling series even after 2 days we have nothing clear about what going to happen but still a good and interesting day coming because if West Indies able to have some good batting then they can bring down Sri Lankan but still rain is still big threat for this match we lost one complete day which is the big problem now.

If they want to win match and level series then surely they need some very good batting in this inning with nearly 350+ runs is really important because fourth inning is also not easy for them on this turning pitch. As of now, scored 180+ runs for the loss of 4 wickets hence it seems 350+ will be possible by considering lower order batsmen like Holder.

[JSRAW]

Anyone following the unofficial test between South Africa A and India A? I am seeing India A in action after a long break. And I am not sure whether this tournament will go ahead as planned, as the Omicron variant is spreading across South Africa. But for now, the matches are ongoing. After first day of play, South Africa A is at 233/7, but none of their players managed a half century. There were a few 40s and 30s, but no 50s. Among the Indian bowlers, Ishan Porel and Navdeep Saini picked up two wickets each.

Its a First class test match so not sure why they are calling it unofficial test. I think this tour will go ahead because National team is about tour South Africa soon and CSA wouldn't want upcoming tour to be postponed at any cost so they will ensure safety for every player and staff. BCCI and CSA also enjoy good relation.

Ishan Porel is good but Saini is not disciplined bowler and its seems Batters are also in okay-ish form. Priyank Panchal and Abhimanyu Easwaran made 96 and 103 respectively in the first match. Prithvi also hinting that he's about to find his hands. Vihari's form is more important  tho. He was sent there for a reason, i hope he score some runs and make his comeback in national team.

[Haunebu]

I do agree that such kind of draw doesn't taste good to strongly positioned sides but test cricket need similar results sometimes or some last overs finish because it makes test cricket more exciting and will attract more eyeballs in a longer run as far as Red ball cricket is concern. I would also add that no one forgets these kind of tests even after decades.   

I disagree. I have no idea why anyone would enjoy watching test matches played over the course of several days end as draws. It's just a waste of time and effort for the players and the audience if you ask me. Also, I don't remember a single noteworthy test that ended as a draw.

The fact is that Indian team have included failed and pathetic bowlers like Ishant Sharma, Ashwin and Patel who cant even bowl out the last man of the New Zealand team. They were looking completely helpless to get the wicket.

You do realise that the tail-enders luckily survived, don't you? Also, Ashwin and Axar destroyed the NZ batting line-up in this test clearly which is why I feel that your opinion about them is actually pathetic. Grow up!

[ibuddy122505]

Shakib Al Hasan returns to the squad for the second Test against Pakistan. This is good news for Bangladesh. Bangladesh's bowling lineup is very weak. In the second innings of the previous Test, they were able to take only two wickets for Pakistan. Moreover, the performance of pace bowlers is worse. In such a situation, an all-rounder team like Shakib was needed.

@LittleBitFunny Shakib is more than an a all rounder he’s an leader and inspires the dressing room by his mere presence, hence his availability is indeed a major boost for the Bangladeshi team. Also I’m sure his experience will help other bowlers too, so it looks like Pakistan will not find it easy to beat Bangladesh in the next test match.

Shakib Al Hasan is always a special player for Bangladesh Cricket, no matter what the format may be. Having quality spinners in your team is always an advantage, especially when he is return after a while. Shakib Al Hasan is a record breaker. He is one of the stars of Bangladesh's cricket team. He is a fantastic player! I am eagerly awaiting another remarkable performance in the Dhaka test.

[Iranus]

Anyone following the unofficial test between South Africa A and India A? I am seeing India A in action after a long break. And I am not sure whether this tournament will go ahead as planned, as the Omicron variant is spreading across South Africa. But for now, the matches are ongoing. After first day of play, South Africa A is at 233/7, but none of their players managed a half century. There were a few 40s and 30s, but no 50s. Among the Indian bowlers, Ishan Porel and Navdeep Saini picked up two wickets each.

Its a First class test match so not sure why they are calling it unofficial test. I think this tour will go ahead because National team is about tour South Africa soon and CSA wouldn't want upcoming tour to be postponed at any cost so they will ensure safety for every player and staff. BCCI and CSA also enjoy good relation.
Ishan Porel is good but Saini is not disciplined bowler and its seems Batters are also in okay-ish form. Priyank Panchal and Abhimanyu Easwaran made 96 and 103 respectively in the first match. Prithvi also hinting that he's about to find his hands. Vihari's form is more important  tho. He was sent there for a reason, i hope he score some runs and make his comeback in national team.

I honestly think that if Prithvi plays well he might get a chance in the national team and also get that fast. He is a good batsman in my opinion. He can hit a long ball, But he has to be consistent enough.
Talking about consistency I think  Saini is a good bowler and has good enough pace but the only problem is that if he balls 5 good deliveries in one over he balls one ball which is absolutely like a free hit to the batsman. Unless he gets consistent enough he will struggle to get in the national team.

[Tony116]

In the second Test between West Indies and Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka finished their first innings with just 204 runs. I thought they would collect more than 250. This collection seems very low for the first inning. West Indies lost just one wicket and scored 61 runs. The West Indies will be looking to win this Test after losing the first Test. You must play well in the first innings to win. If you perform poorly in the first innings, victory is not possible with good performance in the second innings.

Veerasammy Permaul has done very good job for visitors here in Galle where mostly visiting teams having good advantage now West Indies also can do some good for themselves because this guy give them good chance now luck and rain both need to be beside with them for leveling series even after 2 days we have nothing clear about what going to happen but still a good and interesting day coming because if West Indies able to have some good batting then they can bring down Sri Lankan but still rain is still big threat for this match we lost one complete day which is the big problem now.
If they want to win match and level series then surely they need some very good batting in this inning with nearly 350+ runs is really important because fourth inning is also not easy for them on this turning pitch. As of now, scored 180+ runs for the loss of 4 wickets hence it seems 350+ will be possible by considering lower order batsmen like Holder.

I think that the west indies have really made a good comeback after the first match loss and Sri Lanka is really struggling to make progress in the second innings of the second match. They have already lost two wickets and only scored 46 runs. They have to put a really big score if they want to win this match.

[laurenB7742]

Batting in the first innings of West Indies, the first 3 batsmen collected 151 runs. And the entire team of West Indies collected 253 runs. I didn't expect to see such a bad performance even after making such a good start. West Indies players need to be more responsible. However, Sri Lanka lost two wickets for just 39 runs in their second innings. West Indies have a chance to win.

[pakhitheboss]

Batting in the first innings of West Indies, the first 3 batsmen collected 151 runs. And the entire team of West Indies collected 253 runs. I didn't expect to see such a bad performance even after making such a good start. West Indies players need to be more responsible. However, Sri Lanka lost two wickets for just 39 runs in their second innings. West Indies have a chance to win.

Srilanka trails by only 3 runs, they would try to capitalize tomorrow by scoring anywhere between 200 to 250. They have only lost 2 wickets and still have a few players who can bat. WI will now try to get as many wickets as they can in the first session of tomorrow to determine where the game is headed.

[laurenB7742]

Batting in the first innings of West Indies, the first 3 batsmen collected 151 runs. And the entire team of West Indies collected 253 runs. I didn't expect to see such a bad performance even after making such a good start. West Indies players need to be more responsible. However, Sri Lanka lost two wickets for just 39 runs in their second innings. West Indies have a chance to win.

Srilanka trails by only 3 runs, they would try to capitalize tomorrow by scoring anywhere between 200 to 250. They have only lost 2 wickets and still have a few players who can bat. WI will now try to get as many wickets as they can in the first session of tomorrow to determine where the game is headed.

Sri Lanka lost 3 wickets and scored 97 runs. And is ahead by 49 runs. Since today is the fourth day and Sri Lanka have 7 more wickets, they should bat carefully. The wicket is more important than the run collection. This match will be a draw if they are able to play well today. But if their batting is a disaster. And if they can't deliver more than 200 targets on the last day, then Sri Lanka is likely to lose.

[pakhitheboss]

Batting in the first innings of West Indies, the first 3 batsmen collected 151 runs. And the entire team of West Indies collected 253 runs. I didn't expect to see such a bad performance even after making such a good start. West Indies players need to be more responsible. However, Sri Lanka lost two wickets for just 39 runs in their second innings. West Indies have a chance to win.

Srilanka trails by only 3 runs, they would try to capitalize tomorrow by scoring anywhere between 200 to 250. They have only lost 2 wickets and still have a few players who can bat. WI will now try to get as many wickets as they can in the first session of tomorrow to determine where the game is headed.

Sri Lanka lost 3 wickets and scored 97 runs. And is ahead by 49 runs. Since today is the fourth day and Sri Lanka have 7 more wickets, they should bat carefully. The wicket is more important than the run collection. This match will be a draw if they are able to play well today. But if their batting is a disaster. And if they can't deliver more than 200 targets on the last day, then Sri Lanka is likely to lose.

4 wickets down but SL is still going strong because of Dhananjaya de Silva. He has already scored 45 and would easily now reach 50. SL has a lead by 102 runs and session 1 has ended. I am sure that they will consume the whole day and try to get as much as they can on the scoreboard in order to defend the total tomorrow.

[galambo]

4 wickets down but SL is still going strong because of Dhananjaya de Silva. He has already scored 45 and would easily now reach 50. SL has a lead by 102 runs and session 1 has ended. I am sure that they will consume the whole day and try to get as much as they can on the scoreboard in order to defend the total tomorrow.

Second session is in progress and SL are 108 runs ahead and 6 wickets left. SL batsman must try to set target of at least 250 runs to give there bowlers a chance. Target of 200 or less will be in favor of WI. From gambling perspective its still not clear who will win this game, the way things are going I think SL will set target of less then 200.

[JSRAW]

I do agree that such kind of draw doesn't taste good to strongly positioned sides but test cricket need similar results sometimes or some last overs finish because it makes test cricket more exciting and will attract more eyeballs in a longer run as far as Red ball cricket is concern. I would also add that no one forgets these kind of tests even after decades.   

I disagree. I have no idea why anyone would enjoy watching test matches played over the course of several days end as draws. It's just a waste of time and effort for the players and the audience if you ask me. Also, I don't remember a single noteworthy test that ended as a draw.

I understand that you inclined more towards result oriented tests but you can't ignore the fact that last test wasn't some random dead rubber draw, in fact it was completely opposite and we hardly see any test match going into the last overs.

Its a First class test match so not sure why they are calling it unofficial test. I think this tour will go ahead because National team is about tour South Africa soon and CSA wouldn't want upcoming tour to be postponed at any cost so they will ensure safety for every player and staff. BCCI and CSA also enjoy good relation.
Ishan Porel is good but Saini is not disciplined bowler and its seems Batters are also in okay-ish form. Priyank Panchal and Abhimanyu Easwaran made 96 and 103 respectively in the first match. Prithvi also hinting that he's about to find his hands. Vihari's form is more important  tho. He was sent there for a reason, i hope he score some runs and make his comeback in national team.

I honestly think that if Prithvi plays well he might get a chance in the national team and also get that fast. He is a good batsman in my opinion. He can hit a long ball, But he has to be consistent enough.
Talking about consistency I think  Saini is a good bowler and has good enough pace but the only problem is that if he balls 5 good deliveries in one over he balls one ball which is absolutely like a free hit to the batsman. Unless he gets consistent enough he will struggle to get in the national team.

Atm competition is tough for openers in Indian squad. Rohit-Rahul-Gill-Mayank-Prithvi all are fighting for only 2 positions. With good form they also need some sort of luck similar to KL Rahul, he got chance in England when Gill was first choice opener but he got injured.

[laurenB7742]

Batting in the first innings of West Indies, the first 3 batsmen collected 151 runs. And the entire team of West Indies collected 253 runs. I didn't expect to see such a bad performance even after making such a good start. West Indies players need to be more responsible. However, Sri Lanka lost two wickets for just 39 runs in their second innings. West Indies have a chance to win.

Srilanka trails by only 3 runs, they would try to capitalize tomorrow by scoring anywhere between 200 to 250. They have only lost 2 wickets and still have a few players who can bat. WI will now try to get as many wickets as they can in the first session of tomorrow to determine where the game is headed.

Sri Lanka lost 3 wickets and scored 97 runs. And is ahead by 49 runs. Since today is the fourth day and Sri Lanka have 7 more wickets, they should bat carefully. The wicket is more important than the run collection. This match will be a draw if they are able to play well today. But if their batting is a disaster. And if they can't deliver more than 200 targets on the last day, then Sri Lanka is likely to lose.

4 wickets down but SL is still going strong because of Dhananjaya de Silva. He has already scored 45 and would easily now reach 50. SL has a lead by 102 runs and session 1 has ended. I am sure that they will consume the whole day and try to get as much as they can on the scoreboard in order to defend the total tomorrow.

Sri Lanka scored 273 runs and took a lead of 224 runs. They has batted very well. Now if they declare the innings then both the teams will have a chance to win the match. But Sri Lanka will not take any risk. Will try to play the whole day today. Dhananjaya de Silva is still unbeaten on 121 runs. Lasith Embuldeniya is now at the crease with him.

[Swordsoffreedom]

Batting in the first innings of West Indies, the first 3 batsmen collected 151 runs. And the entire team of West Indies collected 253 runs. I didn't expect to see such a bad performance even after making such a good start. West Indies players need to be more responsible. However, Sri Lanka lost two wickets for just 39 runs in their second innings. West Indies have a chance to win.

Srilanka trails by only 3 runs, they would try to capitalize tomorrow by scoring anywhere between 200 to 250. They have only lost 2 wickets and still have a few players who can bat. WI will now try to get as many wickets as they can in the first session of tomorrow to determine where the game is headed.

Sri Lanka lost 3 wickets and scored 97 runs. And is ahead by 49 runs. Since today is the fourth day and Sri Lanka have 7 more wickets, they should bat carefully. The wicket is more important than the run collection. This match will be a draw if they are able to play well today. But if their batting is a disaster. And if they can't deliver more than 200 targets on the last day, then Sri Lanka is likely to lose.

4 wickets down but SL is still going strong because of Dhananjaya de Silva. He has already scored 45 and would easily now reach 50. SL has a lead by 102 runs and session 1 has ended. I am sure that they will consume the whole day and try to get as much as they can on the scoreboard in order to defend the total tomorrow.

Sri Lanka scored 273 runs and took a lead of 224 runs. They has batted very well. Now if they declare the innings then both the teams will have a chance to win the match. But Sri Lanka will not take any risk. Will try to play the whole day today. Dhananjaya de Silva is still unbeaten on 121 runs. Lasith Embuldeniya is now at the crease with him.

I want to talk about Lasith Embuldeniya's performance. Dhananjaya was batting very well but no batsman was able to form a partnership with him. Dhananjaya was at the crease but his other batsmen were quickly out. But Embuldeniya has been at the crease for a long time. Although he is basically a bowler, his batting is good enough. He scored 8 runs from 42 balls. He has been able to fulfill his responsibilities properly.

[Minor Miner]

I want to talk about Lasith Embuldeniya's performance. Dhananjaya was batting very well but no batsman was able to form a partnership with him. Dhananjaya was at the crease but his other batsmen were quickly out. But Embuldeniya has been at the crease for a long time. Although he is basically a bowler, his batting is good enough. He scored 8 runs from 42 balls. He has been able to fulfill his responsibilities properly.

Sri Lanka has scored 300 runs. And they have not lost any more wickets. Dhananjaya-Embuldeniya pair scored 79 runs. Sri Lanka have been able to score so many runs thanks to the extraordinary batting skills of these two batsmen. They are ahead by 251 runs. In the last day, West Indies will not be able to win by batting for 252 runs.

[JSRAW]

~snip~

I want to talk about Lasith Embuldeniya's performance. Dhananjaya was batting very well but no batsman was able to form a partnership with him. Dhananjaya was at the crease but his other batsmen were quickly out. But Embuldeniya has been at the crease for a long time. Although he is basically a bowler, his batting is good enough. He scored 8 runs from 42 balls. He has been able to fulfill his responsibilities properly.

Not your typical bowler but batting all rounder and already had 7 tons under his belt before this new daddy hundred. Daddy hundred doesn't come easy for the batsman when wickets are falling on the other end. He single-handedly saved the SL, if they win the game then he's the man of the match. Now their bowler would hope that pitch start deteriorating.

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Guess, we might get some clarity on the upcoming SA vs Ind soon.