Four weeks to go to the first test

[flanflinger]

Really can't see why Strauss would be a better pick than Vaughan at the moment as Captain!!

He was woeful in the Ashes, and could easily find himself dropped, as it is we know Vaughan will be skipper come the first Test.

I am not one for wholesale change, the big question that the selectors will be debating is the keeper. With Fletcher now out of the picture, will this mean a clear run for Read, or will there be a change. I can't see Jones getting the nod, Nixon has done a good job in the World Cup, but I too can't see him building a Test innings. Davies and Prior were the A team picks, Foster is an outside bet.

I tend to go for Youth, when a gap appears, so I would go for Davies. I would be very unhappy if Prior was the choice. Moores has seen both these guys close up for the last 12 months, so it will be interesting to see who he goes for.

[Collyisamackem]

Originally Posted by flanflinger

Really can't see why Strauss would be a better pick than Vaughan at the moment as Captain!!

He was woeful in the Ashes, and could easily find himself dropped

Sounding dangerously like Ern there FF, picking a captain on form alone and not accounting for leadership. Strauss proved himself an excellent leader against Pakistan, and let's be honest he wasn't exactly alone in showing poor Ashes form! He is the longer term option and I am dead set against having separate captains, so for me if Vaughan has the ODI captaincy taken from him then he'll have to step down in tests though he can continue playing as Nasser did. Either that or we continue with Vaughan as ODI and test captain, and hope these sporadic dashing ODI innings come more often!

[Speedboy Salesman]

Originally Posted by Richie Benauds Love Child

Flintoff is no more an allrounder at the moment that I am. Pick him for his bowling and potential low order biffing, maybe even get him into form, but to play him at 6, even with the WI in apparent disarray, would be a liability.

On a seperate note, no Vaughan Mr Speedboysalesman ?

Flintoff hasn't really been biffing anything except the bottom of pints glasses recently, so I agree with what you said, treat him, as a bowler, put him way down the order.

No Vaughan, because I feel the man needs some time out, coming back from injury straight into captaining a national side for the World Cup is tough for anybody, and Vaughan has looked a little bit out of his depth and his batting has suffered. I'm not saying Vaughan should never come back to the Test side, I'm saying let him go to back to county cricket, where the pressure is less, and let him get some county innings under his belt.

[Collyisamackem]

Well, SS, Vaughan does get two CC matches and two Friends Provident matches before the Lords test, so is that enough for him to get into form? He will ply in the tests, I'm sure, but the question is how many county games do you need to get some kind of form going? I'm not sure that Vaughan will have had enough four-day cricket to get him to full test match fitness, but at least it's something and the World Cup will also have helped him to some extent in that respect. He'll be far better prepared for the tests than he was for the World Cup anyway!!!