England v South Africa test series

Cant wait for Thursday for this interesting test series to begin (just hope the rain stays away)

SA are coming into this series under cooked and may well take a day or two to tune in and by that time England maybe out of sight in the first test. Usually you bat first at the Oval but because of the Olympics this test is "out of season" as the last test is normally played there in September when its dry and the pitch takes massive turn on day 4 and 5. If I were Smith I would put England in to bat and and let them do the running.

Kallis, De Villiers and Amla have done well with the bat in the knock up matches. Rudolf looks ok but Smith and Peterson seem out of touch. Having said that Smith usually plays his best cricket against England in the UK.

The leggie, Tahir, is going to do well although English commentators have already written him off as just a one trick pony.

For England I am hoping that Trott is a complete failure as he holds up the game with his little rituals before every single farking ball is bowled. Bell could be there star player as he is in tremendous form. Cook will score a lot of runs as well but somehow I think that Pieterson is going to fail.

Vernon Philander could be the one SA bowler who will adapt very quickly to the English conditions and I would not be surprised if he ended up taking around 15 wickets in the series.

I think that England will win the first test with the second ending in a draw and SA taking the 3rd to square the series. (weather providing)

Please provide morning updates on the weather...iam gonna do the in running.

nice post cnc.for wat its worth i think the proteas will win this series easy.we hv too much class and if ab,kallis,amla and co can put up enough runs, we should be able to bowl out the poms with our bowling attack.

With the unfortunate injury to Mark Boucher SA have selected JP Duminy in his place although De Villiers will keep wicket. This means that SA now have more batting strength so if anything does go wrong at the start of the inning we have the players who can do a rescue act.

Weather forecast is that the first four days will be sunshine with no rain interruptions.

thats fantastic.4days is all we need to bowl them out twice.lol.all joking aside this will be a fantastic series and i hope the weather doesnt interfere too much with the cricket.

I see SA have not won at the Oval since 1903.10 consecutive matches there.

I never play these bets,but I decided when he did so well in Aus that I would back Philander to be the best SA Bowler in the series.5-2 is not exactly a brilliant price,but his pace seems perfect for the English conditions and his ability to swing it both ways will make him extremely tough to play.I just hope he doesn't swing it too much.

Today
Jul 19

65°F
54°F
PM Light Rain
Chance of rain:
70%Wind:
W at 12 mph DetailsFri
Jul 20

65°
56°
Showers
Chance of rain:
60%Wind:
NNE at 4 mph DetailsSat
Jul 21

66°
54°
Light Rain
Chance of rain:
60%Wind:
E at 5 mph DetailsSun
Jul 22

72°
54°
Mostly Cloudy
Chance of rain:
10%Wind:
SSW at 8 mph Details

The draw must be the safe bet

Best two teams in the world, been looking forward to it for a long time, shame its only a 3 match series, these two should be playing 5 tests every series. Boucher is a huge loss to SA (total respect and wish him nothing but well for the future) and though I favoured England before that sad news, I think it could be a decisive factor. Not only in the wicket-keeping department, or in the dressing room where I am sure he was a massive influence, but the loss of a player with Boucher's gutsy determination, and not without some skill, coming in down the order is a loss that should not be underestimated. England are now very strong in every department and I am confident they will win through but, the SA team has so many world class players that it should be a fascinating and excellent contest which could go any way.


And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England's mountain green?
And was the holy Lamb of God
On England's pleasant pastures seen?
And did the countenance divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among those dark satanic mills?

Bring me my bow of burning gold!
Bring me my arrows of desire!
Bring me my spear! O clouds, unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire!
I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand,
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.


COME ON THE LAND!!!!!!!!! (tu)

Hope Bob does not delete your post lol

May the best team win

Englander Wrote:

---

> Best two teams in the world, been looking forward
> to it for a long time, shame its only a 3 match
> series, these two should be playing 5 tests every
> series. Boucher is a huge loss to SA (total
> respect and wish him nothing but well for the
> future) and though I favoured England before that
> sad news, I think it could be a decisive factor.
> Not only in the wicket-keeping department, or in
> the dressing room where I am sure he was a massive
> influence, but the loss of a player with Boucher's
> gutsy determination, and not without some skill,
> coming in down the order is a loss that should not
> be underestimated. England are now very strong in
> every department and I am confident they will win
> through but, the SA team has so many world class
> players that it should be a fascinating and
> excellent contest which could go any way.
>
> And did those feet in ancient time
> Walk upon England's mountain green?
> And was the holy Lamb of God
> On England's pleasant pastures seen?
> And did the countenance divine
> Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
> And was Jerusalem builded here
> Among those dark satanic mills?
>
> Bring me my bow of burning gold!
> Bring me my arrows of desire!
> Bring me my spear! O clouds, unfold!
> Bring me my chariot of fire!
> I will not cease from mental fight,
> Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand,
> Till we have built Jerusalem
> In England's green and pleasant land.
>
> COME ON THE LAND!!!!!!!!! (tu)


Hi Englander

I just couldnt resist

I know a place in Africa
Where I can feel the sun on my back
And the sand between my barefoot toes
Where I can hear the gulls on the breeze
And the waves crash on the endless shore

I know a place in Africa
Where the mountains touch the skies of blue
And the valleys shelter vines of green
Where the trees spread out a cloth of mauve
And the bushveld wears a coat of beige

I know a place in Africa
Where I can hear the voice of thunder gods
And watch their lightening spears thrown to earth
Where I can breathe the scent of rain clouds
And taste the sweet dew of dusty drops

This is the place of wildness
Of evolution and dinosaurs
Where life began and mankind first stood
Of living fossils and elephants
Where lions roar and springbok herds leap

This is the place of struggle
Of desert plains and thorn trees
Where pathways end and hunters track game
Of horizons and frontiers
Where journeys start and sunsets bleed red

This is the place of freedom
Of exploration and pioneers
Where darkness loomed and light saw us through
Of living legends and miracles
Where daybreak came and hope now shines bright

My heart is at home in Africa
Where the sound of drums beat in my chest
And the songs of time ring in my ears
Where the rainbow mist glows in my eyes
And the smiles of friends make me welcome

My mind is at ease in Africa
Where the people still live close to the soil
And the seasons mark my changing moods
Where the markets hustle with trading
And Creation keeps its own slow time

My soul is at peace in Africa
For her streams bring lifeblood to my veins
And her winds bring healing to my dreams
For when the tale of this land is told
Her destiny and mine are as one

© 2006 Wayne Visser

GOOD LUCK MATE

CMON YOU PROTEAS

VIVA Proteas VIVA !!! Let's see these poms try get De Villiers out in two innings ( ..... 9/2 to be SA's top batsmen in this test ... could not resist !!