The warm up game against an Australian X1 has gone okay.


Cricket Australia XI - 233 and 75

England - 293 and 207


England win by 192 runs


England bowling figures for the last innings

Anderson - 10.2 overs - 3 wickets for 12 runs
Woakes - 10 overs - 4 wickets for 17
C Overton - 11 overs - 3 wickets for 15 runs

Crane - 6 overs for 27 runs
Root - 3 overs for 2 runs

This Australian team was once beaten by an innings and 410 runs by Ilford C C 2nd X!.

Our boys would have been far better off spending time in the nets.

You can't beat live cricket for practice......oddly it never helped my bowling

Your batting held up though?

England v another OZ Cricket X1.

England 1st Innings

234 for 3 wickets (61.0 overs)

Cook c Nielsen b Short 70
Stoneman c & b Fallins 111
Vince c Sangha b Fallins 26
Root* 6
Malan* 10

Extras - 10nb 1w 0b 0lb - 11

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/scorecard/ECKO41919

OZ X1 - 250 All Out

Progress continues.

England 337 for 3.


Root* 62

Malan* 57



Fall of Wickets

172-1 (41.1 ovs) Cook
214-2 (51.2 ovs) Vince
217-3 (53.5 ovs) Stoneman

England trundled on to 515 All Out, Root 83 and Malan eventually run out on 109.

Mooen has taken a couple of wickets in the OZ IX's second innings, they're on 103 for 3 at the moment.

England lead by a lot. (265 less 103)

No injuries today, please.

Australian squad for the 1st Test

Australia squad:

Steve Smith (captain), David Warner, Cameron Bancroft, Jackson Bird, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine (wk), Chadd Sayers, Mitchell Starc.

Chadd Sayers joins Jackson Bird in providing cover to a strong pace-bowling attack of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.

Paine, who said he was "a little bit surprised", added: "I made my Test debut seven years ago and I feel like I'm about to make it again."

On a "placid, unresponsive pitch" England took a single wicket all day.

Match drawn.

Look at the BBC tosspot's comments - feck me, with "supporters" like that who needs OZ criticism?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/42036351

Here's a bit of magic from the reporter a couple of years back :-

What began as a routine question in a routine Cricket World Cup news conference was transformed into a moment of social media gold by a slip of the tongue.

In an unwise attempt to form the words "you've had tremendous success" while interviewing Australia captain Michael Clarke, BBC Sport's Stephan Shemilt instead blurted out "you've had tremendous sex" and the whole room, led by Aussie batsman Steve Smith, dissolved into a fit of the giggles.

Clarke, fresh from leading his side to the World Cup final after victory over India in Sydney, replied with a broad grin: "That's a question for my wife."

Unsurprisingly, the exchange has quickly gone global, carried by news outlets the world over and shared massively on social media.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/32064417

The England gals have just produced the unlikeliest of victories to draw the Series at 8 points all.

Bloody good effort.

10:56

All the batsmen who were crap for England last season have scored runs on tour so far. Now is the time for the Aussies to commence their attempts to get them out.

http://sport.bt.com/cricket-01364050608536

Enjoy the 1st Day.

England won the toss and were 196 for 4 at the close.

Root ran Vince out, robbed him of 100

What a *Bar steward*.