ICC World Test Championship 2019-21 [Continued]

[Adamant]

Playing against NZ will better than playing against Aussies. 
We will get a chance to avenge the SF loss

[SrinjayDutta]

3 hours ago, Rightarmfast said:

You are overestimating England and underestimating india. England will not win 1 test.

and if it has to be india vs England for the finals, that will be most exciting. England will crumble as they do always! 

I'm mostly worried about anderson broad archer stokes with the pink ball in a new stadium with unknown pitch. Also if we beat eng soundly, they are out. its going to be either aus or nz. Will also keep nz mildly ahead from a pure technical point of view, because of conditions in eng in june (season start, most likely green seaming conditions with rain, overcast sky). they have jamieson southee boult, and also some sound batsmen , and williamson obviously. but would be a nice game, and with this never say die mentality, we should win.

[SrinjayDutta]

nz is also our bogey team since 2000 mini world cup loss.

[SrinjayDutta]

4 hours ago, sage said:

Can there be an India vs England final? 

not much chance, as one will knock the other out in the next series.

[vvvslaxman]

[bahadur_billa]

6 hours ago, SrinjayDutta said:

I can see us at least winning 2-1 at home. that leaves aussies to win 3-0 at sa, which is not happening. I am sure we can manage a 3-0/4-0 also (2-1 at worst case).

2-1 won't work. We need 74 points to qualify (assuming Aussies beat South Africa). So we need 2 wins and 2 draws that's 80 points. 

[bahadur_billa]

4 hours ago, New guy said:

2-1 will do now

Nope 2-1 gives us 69.44%. We need 2 wins and 2 draws. Or 3-1. 

[Serpico]

22 hours ago, SrinjayDutta said:

I'm mostly worried about anderson broad archer stokes with the pink ball in a new stadium with unknown pitch. Also if we beat eng soundly, they are out. its going to be either aus or nz. Will also keep nz mildly ahead from a pure technical point of view, because of conditions in eng in june (season start, most likely green seaming conditions with rain, overcast sky). they have jamieson southee boult, and also some sound batsmen , and williamson obviously. but would be a nice game, and with this never say die mentality, we should win.

ICC would hope that match will last at least 4 days, so the pitch will not be green mamba. Plus NZ don't have a quality spinner.. if top order don't collapse and pant comes in after 50th over, we got the match.

 

I'm more worried about Aus. They are wounded and will be looking for revenge.. will definitely dump starc, wade and paine.. pattinson will be deadly in england. Plus they haven't lost at Lords in 83 years or something. Lords is bigger fortress to them than Gabba, funnily enough

[Lone Wolf]

1 hour ago, Serpico said:

ICC would hope that match will last at least 4 days, so the pitch will not be green mamba. Plus NZ don't have a quality spinner.. if top order don't collapse and pant comes in after 50th over, we got the match.

 

I'm more worried about Aus. They are wounded and will be looking for revenge.. will definitely dump starc, wade and paine.. pattinson will be deadly in england. Plus they haven't lost at Lords in 83 years or something. Lords is bigger fortress to them than Gabba, funnily enough

Wow surprised at that stat..  They'll come hard indeed & with Choker lolli we can't be sure of anything.  I swear if we lose due to that choker I am gonna lose it..  Hand over the team to Rahane then. 

 

[sage]

From Cricinfo:

Quote

This series defeat also brings into sharp focus the four points they dropped due to slow over-rate in Melbourne. Had they not dropped those points, they would have been on 70 even with this defeat at the Gabba. If teams are tied on points percentage, the runs-per-wicket ratio comes into play in determining the WTC finalist (since teams have played an unequal number of series in this cycle, the series wins criteria isn't being considered); Australia's ratio is currently 1.39 while New Zealand's is 1.28.

 

This means Australia would have stayed ahead of New Zealand if they hadn't been docked those four points. Now, they will have to hope that the series against South Africa goes ahead and they win that at least by a 2-0 margin, or hope that India drop some points in the series against England.

 

Australia might get knocked out now due to their 4 point deduction

[Serpico]

26 minutes ago, sage said:

From Cricinfo:

 

Australia might get knocked out now due to their 4 point deduction

maybe teams will start taking overrate seriously after this

[Stan AF]

'Australia's tour at this stage is going ahead' - CSA's acting CEO

Details set to "be announced in a week or so" but arrangements conditional on the "changing" Covid-19 pandemic

•  
  Firdose Moonda05:22 PM

If the tour is finalised, this will be the first time Australia's Test team plays in South Africa since the 2018 ball-tampering scandal  Getty Images

• Cricket South Africa is confident Australia's visit for three Tests will go ahead, with details set to "be finalised and announced in a week or so", according to acting CEO Pholetsi Moseki.

ESPNcricinfo understands that the full series will be played on the Highveld, with matches divided between SuperSport Park and the Wanderers, and the Irene Country Club will be used as the teams' biosecure base, as was the case for the Sri Lanka series over the festive period. While dates are yet to be confirmed, former Australia fast bowler Ryan Harris, speaking on SEN radio last week, suggested that the Australian team will depart their shores on February 24, with the Tests to start in early March. All these arrangements are conditional on the ever-changing situation of the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

"Australia's tour at this stage is going ahead. I had a chat with the chair of Cricket Australia about a week ago and we agreed that the tour is going to go ahead," Judge Zak Yacoob, chairperson of CSA's interim board, said. "We agreed that we are going to ensure that our facilities are as good as possible, as good as necessary. We also agreed we learn every day but that is not on the basis that we did anything wrong when England was here because you know that none of the English were affected. That's the bottom line. They all flew back and that was fine.

 

"But the learning in relation to this virus changes all the time and as it changes things must change. We agreed that as professionals neither he [CA's chair] nor I know anything about this. We have doctors, we have experts, who lead us through this process and what we have adopted is an approach that as long as the experts on both sides, true professionals in relation to coronavirus and health, agree that the facilities are fine, we go on the basis that the facilities are fine. So far there is between the chair of CA and myself no doubt that the series will go ahead, but we have agreed also that the coronavirus is so changing, that we cannot predict what will happen. If things suddenly go down for the worse and we really can't do it and our experts say we can't do it and the other experts say we can't do it, we won't be able to."

 

South Africa have already hosted two international series this summer, first against England, who were based in Cape Town, and then against Sri Lanka, who were in Johannesburg. England were due to play three T20s and three ODIs but left without playing the 50-over matches after concerns over the integrity of the biosecure environment. Three South African players and two hotel staff tested positive for Covid-19 over the course of the three T20s, as did two England players before the ODIs, though those tests were later proved to be false positives, while both teams were allowed out to play golf. CSA tightened protocols ahead of the Sri Lanka series, with neither team allowed to leave the base except to go to the ground, and that series took place without incident.

 

Given the success of the Sri Lanka series, that there are two Test venues on the Highveld and that it is more affordable for CSA to create a biobubble at the Irene Country Club than Cape Town's Vineyard Hotel (where the players were housed for the England series), the Australia Tests are more than likely to take place in upcountry rather than at any of the coastal venues.

 

2:33

 

South Africa 'desperately' need teams to tour

 

The only factor that could cause concern over hosting the series in the Gauteng province is the rising number of Covid-19 infections. South Africa are deep into the second wave of the pandemic and daily case numbers range between 10,000 and 20,000. The Gauteng province, where many festive holiday-makers have returned, is expected to see a continued rise in cases and there is concern that the healthcare system could be overwhelmed. Restrictions are in place countrywide, which include a 9pm-to-6am curfew and a ban on alcohol sales, but interprovincial and international travel by air is allowed. Despite that, several airlines, including Emirates and KLM, have temporarily suspended flights to and from South Africa.

 

In all likelihood, the Australian team will have to arrive by charter flight, but will not need to enter a strict quarantine on arrival. It is likely they will train in small groups at first and as a squad within a few days, as Sri Lanka did. CA has been in touch with the staff at the Irene Country Club to request extra facilities - such as a makeshift gym - and it is understood further negotiations concern the logistics around players' families joining them on the tour.

 

CSA is expected to try and be as accommodating as possible to Australia given the financial importance of the tour. After losing USD 1.5 million from the postponed England ODIs, the Australia tour is the last opportunity for CSA to earn money this summer, and could also impact the negotiations for their new broadcast deal, which will be finalised in April. The deal is expected to be worth less than the previous one due to both the economic climate and the team's declining fortunes, but a more competitive

South African side that plays against top opposition regularly could bump up the value.

 

Australia, too, will be keen to play. After losing to India at home, they need to win two Tests in South Africa and draw the third in order to leapfrog New Zealand on the World Test Championship table. Australia have only lost one series in South Africa since readmission, in the 2017-18 summer. They have returned to play ODIs in the country since then and were whitewashed 3-0 last March, but this will be the first time their Test team plays in South Africa since the ball-tampering scandal.

Firdose Moonda is ESPNcricinfo's South Africa correspondent

 

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/aus-vs-sa-2021-22-australia-s-tour-at-this-stage-is-going-ahead-csa-s-acting-ceo-1248713

 

 

[goose]

India winning this (like everything else they win) will be a massive boon to the whole WTC idea

[Stan AF]

England confirm two-Test series against New Zealand for June

Fixtures against No. 1-ranked Test side to be played at Lord's and Edgbaston

• ESPNcricinfo staff03:30 PM

New Zealand claimed the ICC No.1 Test ranking after beating Pakistan 2-0  AFP via Getty Images

England will play a two-Test series against New Zealand this summer, with the ECB confirming fixtures at Lord's and Edgbaston in June.

New Zealand will be the fourth touring country hosted by England in 2021, with limited-overs series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan ahead of a five-Test encounter with India.

The possibility of New Zealand or Ireland being invited to play Test cricket had previously been floated in the event that the ICC World Test Championship final, to be held at Lord's, was cancelled. That fixture remains in the calendar but without a set date.

Fixtures against New Zealand and Sri Lanka

• 1st LV= Insurance Test vs NZ - Lord's, June 2-6

• 2nd LV= Insurance Test vs NZ - Edgbaston, June 10-14

• 1st Vitality T20I vs SL - Cardiff, June 23

• 2nd Vitality T20I vs SL - Cardiff, June 24

• 3rd Vitality T20I vs SL - Ageas Bowl, June 26

New Zealand last played a Test in England in 2015, when the series was drawn 1-1. The Lord's fixture will see them return to the scene of the dramatic World Cup final tie between the teams in 2019.

 

"The prospect of our England men's team taking on the world's two top-ranked Test nations in New Zealand and India this summer is something for us all to savour," ECB chief executive officer, Tom Harrison, said.

Three T20Is against Sri Lanka have also been firmed up, with games at Cardiff and the Ageas Bowl ahead of a three-match ODI series starting in Durham on June 29. Pakistan will then arrive for ODIs and T20Is, before the Tests against India begin on August 4.

 

The ECB is hoping to be able to host crowds during the summer, with ticket ballots now open, after the entire 2020 international schedule was played behind doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

England's Visually Impaired team are also due to host Australia for the Ashes in 2021, but that series remains subject to Covid-19 assessments. Multi-format series for England Women against South Africa and New Zealand are also in the pipeline.

 

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/england-confirm-two-test-series-against-new-zealand-for-june-1249132

[Stan AF]

England get 60 points. Now at 412. At 3rd position behind India and NZ. percentage wise england would be 68.66%

 

Now all top three sides points wise (Ind/NZ and Eng) have played 5 series for 600 points now. 

Edited January 25, 2021 by Stan AF

[sage]

 

Updated.

[bahadur_billa]

1 hour ago, Stan AF said:

England confirm two-Test series against New Zealand for June

Fixtures against No. 1-ranked Test side to be played at Lord's and Edgbaston

• ESPNcricinfo staff03:30 PM

New Zealand claimed the ICC No.1 Test ranking after beating Pakistan 2-0  AFP via Getty Images

England will play a two-Test series against New Zealand this summer, with the ECB confirming fixtures at Lord's and Edgbaston in June.

New Zealand will be the fourth touring country hosted by England in 2021, with limited-overs series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan ahead of a five-Test encounter with India.

The possibility of New Zealand or Ireland being invited to play Test cricket had previously been floated in the event that the ICC World Test Championship final, to be held at Lord's, was cancelled. That fixture remains in the calendar but without a set date.

Fixtures against New Zealand and Sri Lanka

• 1st LV= Insurance Test vs NZ - Lord's, June 2-6

• 2nd LV= Insurance Test vs NZ - Edgbaston, June 10-14

• 1st Vitality T20I vs SL - Cardiff, June 23

• 2nd Vitality T20I vs SL - Cardiff, June 24

• 3rd Vitality T20I vs SL - Ageas Bowl, June 26

New Zealand last played a Test in England in 2015, when the series was drawn 1-1. The Lord's fixture will see them return to the scene of the dramatic World Cup final tie between the teams in 2019.

 

"The prospect of our England men's team taking on the world's two top-ranked Test nations in New Zealand and India this summer is something for us all to savour," ECB chief executive officer, Tom Harrison, said.

Three T20Is against Sri Lanka have also been firmed up, with games at Cardiff and the Ageas Bowl ahead of a three-match ODI series starting in Durham on June 29. Pakistan will then arrive for ODIs and T20Is, before the Tests against India begin on August 4.

 

The ECB is hoping to be able to host crowds during the summer, with ticket ballots now open, after the entire 2020 international schedule was played behind doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

England's Visually Impaired team are also due to host Australia for the Ashes in 2021, but that series remains subject to Covid-19 assessments. Multi-format series for England Women against South Africa and New Zealand are also in the pipeline.

 

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/england-confirm-two-test-series-against-new-zealand-for-june-1249132

Are they going to cancel WTC final? And is this series part of 2021-23 WTC? 

[Stan AF]

31 minutes ago, bahadur_billa said:

Are they going to cancel WTC final? And is this series part of 2021-23 WTC? 

No idea bro. These guys are scheduling and cancelling to their whims.

[Lone Wolf]

57 minutes ago, bahadur_billa said:

Are they going to cancel WTC final? And is this series part of 2021-23 WTC? 

This series is not part of WTC Cycle 2..  Poms playing additional games just like when they toured NZ. 

[Serpico]

2 hours ago, bahadur_billa said:

Are they going to cancel WTC final? And is this series part of 2021-23 WTC? 

They will move WTC final to two weeks later. 

 

NZ will get some crucial match practice in England before the final (assuming Aus loses in SA). BCCI should also send our team early and let them play some FC games with counties