Tour of Afghanistan in India 2019

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 8:35am

Balbirnie (82) and McCollum (39) both out shortly after lunch. Ireland now ahead on runs but four wickets down. Need a KOB sized miracle

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 8:35am

5 down. Poynter gone

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 8:48am

Thompson gone

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 9:55am

50 partnership up for KOB and Dockrell. Can these two make to stumps and beyond though?

Squatter · 17-03-2019 10:04am

And now a 50 for Big Kev. Well played sir!

BarryD2 · 17-03-2019 10:05am

KevIRL wrote: »

50 partnership up for KOB and Dockrell. Can these two make to stumps and beyond though?

Be great if they could, give us a bit of hope. Looked like an innings defeat after first day but we’ve come back well to avoid that ignominy. Nice to see Kev getting dropped, that’d be a sickener for the Afgs out there in the sun all day. Stirling seems to have victim of poor low decisions twice in this match. Not good enough. Dockrell has shown good approach in circumstances.

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 10:15am

220-6 at tea. Lead by 78, despite a collapse of 4-20 after the 3rd wicket stand. Still playing catch up, another 100 needed at least

BarryD2 · 17-03-2019 10:26am

Mysterypunter wrote: »

220-6 at tea. Lead by 78, despite a collapse of 4-20 after the 3rd wicket stand. Still playing catch up, another 100 needed at least

Yeah, still very much adv for Afg. We’ be wanting to set a target of 200+ to be in with any half chance. And that’s a bit of an ask from here. Even then, Afg will likely have plenty of time to knock it off. Never was just occupying the crease and soaking up time more important. No sign of the weather intervening anyway

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 10:31am

BarryD2 wrote: »

No sign of the weather intervening anyway

The only way it could is to heat up, and keep Afghanistan in the field for 2 more sessions.
This is a good fight from 85-9 in the first innings

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 10:33am

Dockrell out, didn't look out, dodgy LBW

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 10:42am

Kevin O'Brien out now, 8 down

Rikand · 17-03-2019 10:44am

KOB out lbw

Pitched in line, hit just about in line. Probably would have missed leg stump though. Even the commentator didn't feel great about saying it was good

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 10:49am

Rikand wrote: »

KOB out lbw

Pitched in line, hit just about in line. Probably would have missed leg stump though. Even the commentator didn't feel great about saying it was good

The leg spinner Salamkhiel is supposed to be 17, who are they kidding?, KOB played it off the back foot, did look like it was missing though. The Afghans are appealing 3 or 4 times every over

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 11:20am

Useful runs for the last stand

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 11:23am

50 partnership

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 11:26am

First time since 1895 that a team has had 50 partnerships for the last wicket in both innings

BarryD2 · 17-03-2019 11:27am

KevIRL wrote: »

50 partnership

Had to go out for a bit to return & find the wheels coming off our wagon, helped by one of the umpires loosening the wheel nuts

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 11:31am

288 all out after an entertaining last wicket stand. 147 to win for Afghanistan

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 11:32am

288 all out.

147 the target then. Three wickets before close?

BarryD2 · 17-03-2019 11:35am

KevIRL wrote: »

288 all out.

147 the target then. Three wickets before close?

Hope springs eternal in the Irishman’s breast, particularly on Paddy’s Day!

KevIRL · 17-03-2019 12:12pm

Wicket. Shazad out

Mysterypunter · 17-03-2019 12:34pm

29-1 at the close, Afghanistan looking comfortable

BarryD2 · 17-03-2019 12:42pm

Mysterypunter wrote: »

29-1 at the close, Afghanistan looking comfortable

Very comfortable. Be all done & dusted tomorrow morning. That Rahmat Shah is a stylish batsman, uses the feet well and looks fairly unflappable. Could do very well for them you’d think in future matches.

We just got off to a very bad start and not helped by some questionable umpiring for important wickets.

Richard Hillman · 17-03-2019 6:47pm

Hopefully the wicked goes off tomorrow and if we can't win, we can at least make the scores look respectable

Mysterypunter · 18-03-2019 6:42am

BarryD2 wrote: »

Very comfortable. Be all done & dusted tomorrow morning. That Rahmat Shah is a stylish batsman, uses the feet well and looks fairly unflappable. Could do very well for them you’d think in future matches

He has 50* now 82-1

Mysterypunter · 18-03-2019 7:33am

Afghanistan 149-3, won by 7 wickets. Was a bit of a farcical end, lost a wicket to a stumping and a run out near the end, but a very easy win

KevIRL · 18-03-2019 7:35am

All done. Match won with a four.149/3, the two wickets coming very late on when the result was a formality

riffmongous · 18-03-2019 12:34pm

Why was it just a one off test?

Mysterypunter · 18-03-2019 12:51pm

riffmongous wrote: »

Why was it just a one off test?

Because the ICC only pretend to give a fcuk

HonalD · 18-03-2019 12:57pm

riffmongous wrote: »

Why was it just a one off test?

A number of reasons probably.

There was 3 T20s and 5 ODIs already in the Tour, so having more than 1 Test would have extended it longer - Afghanistan are now concentrating on the World Cup I presume.

ICC also want to get sides a few 1 Test series to show them the ropes. Given that there was virtually no income from the Test Match, someone has to pick up the tab too.

Overall, cannot read too much into a one match series but the fact that the team did not roll over is a positive. Areas to work on are - batting in the first innings and bowling wicket taking deliveries.

BarryD2 · 18-03-2019 1:29pm

HonalD wrote: »

Overall, cannot read too much into a one match series but the fact that the team did not roll over is a positive. Areas to work on are - batting in the first innings and bowling wicket taking deliveries.

It was a pretty comprehensive win for Afg! Should have been a 9 wicket victory and could easily have been an innings win. They won with a day plus to spare.

Bad start on Day1, failure to build partnerships higher up the order, some questionable umpiring decisions going against us, no real penetration in the bowling - waiting for batsmen to make mistakes.

I think our fielding was generally sharp from what I saw and we can bat down the order - probably a function of our more extensive experience of the limited overs game.

Series averages make for a bit of reading:
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/averages/batting_bowling_by_team.html?id=12786;team=29;type=series
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/averages/batting_bowling_by_team.html?id=12785;team=29;type=series

When one of your opening batsman is consistently scoring less than tail end bowlers, there's something seriously amiss. No room for sentimentality - William Porterfield shouldn't be picked. Nothing greatly new in this, from following the team fortunes over the past 10 years, he's been more likely to fail in the matches where we need him the most, scoring more freely against lesser opposition. That's just my two cents from a follower.

Mysterypunter · 18-03-2019 10:18pm

When one of your opening batsman is consistently scoring less than tail end bowlers, there's something seriously amiss. No room for sentimentality - William Porterfield shouldn't be picked. Nothing greatly new in this, from following the team fortunes over the past 10 years, he's been more likely to fail in the matches where we need him the most, scoring more freely against lesser opposition. That's just my two cents from a follower.[/QUOTE]

I agree, he fails a lot, and is always picked, but are there any strong alternatives?

riffmongous · 18-03-2019 10:59pm

Checking back through my posting history here I saw that 2 and a half years ago I was complaining about his uninspired captaincy and how it was time for someone else to take over, little seems to change with our team

Richard Hillman · 19-03-2019 12:40am

Exactly. It's not like he's a Mike Brearly type where you could overlook his lack of runs for his on field leadership. He's a terrible captain. And I'm not being overly dramatic in using the word terrible. He really is terrible.

This team needs to go to Lords in 4 months. Lords is a predictable as the clock. It will swing like mad until lunch on the first day, then you'll get a batting track for 3 days. We lose the toss and get put into bat, we're in big big trouble. All out at lunch and then watch England bump their batting averages for 2 days. It's going to get very ugly and a step too far, too soon for this team. Something has to change quickly.

Porterfield would probably end up batting if he won the toss.

BarryD2 · 19-03-2019 1:58pm

Mysterypunter wrote: »

I agree, he fails a lot, and is always picked, but are there any strong alternatives?

George Dockrell has good experience, few years both behind and in front of him. Generally puts in a solid contribution. He'd be as good a captain as any I'd have thought, but knowing little of the internal politics of Cricket Ireland.

Batting? Stirling and Balbirnie to open, bring on some of the younger players like McCollum - we'll need them for the future anyway.

HonalD · 19-03-2019 5:07pm

I heard Balbirnie might be a good shout for captain. Problem is Porterfield has tons of experience and although Dockroll has too, he's been in and out of the team and hasn't a place nailed down.
Young wicket taking fast bowlers are a big problem area.

Tour of Afghanistan in India 2019

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