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[basket case]

The problem is South Africa does not have any quality spinners. Also I don't expect Anderson to do much in India other than his first 5 overs with the new ball when he brings it in to the left hander. I don't think England will play 5 bowlers. I still think Morgan can have a big impact in India.

This DRS thing is a little overblown. It wont matter if there is no DRS in India. The issue is umpires are now more willing to give lbws courtesy of analyzing themselves through replays. This won't change if there is no DRS, although if you have Billy Doctrove, who never thinks its out, it might be the case.

I do not think England should play Monty in SriLanka because SriLankan batsmen are brought up on a diet of SLA bowlers and I don't remember Abdul Rehman having any impact against them.

I can't see 3 Seamers going well in SL though. 40-50 degrees they won't be able to bowl longer than 4 over spells.

Agreed that we don't have great spinners, but Paul Harris all ways did a decent holding job.

[Buzz]

Anyone thought what might have happend if Eng weren't batting last in the last 2 tests, and Strauss had won the toss?

I think the test matches were relatively close and although Eng were out played, it was not by much (70 runs in each of the final two tests)

This means that there is no need to overreact and to work better. For me the Eng batting order should be regigged - Strauss and Cook still up front, but Bell at 3, Trott at 4, KP at 5 then we have the dilemma at 6 - I think Morgan needs to play more first class cricket, Prior could bat at 6 - which allows Bresnan to play then with the remaining 4 bowlers - who were fantastic.

options for Eng at 6 other than prior - Bopara? not for me - so that means we are looking at one of the colts from the Lions then - but Taylor who is supposed to be next in line is poor against spin - and the ideal replacement, Samit Patel isn't the answer, we don't need 3 spinners... argh glad I am not a selector - of the colts we have Bairstow or Jo Root - but surely they would benefit for a bit more first class cricket too...

[armie]

Buzz i think it had more to do with English batsmen more or less surrendering at first sight of spin. The toss factor i think is sometimes overhyped. The English team did not do much better in the first test either where they had batted frst by choice. All in all, it was a fun series to follow. 

[Opener]

Buzz, Pakistan batting first in the last 2 tests provided a great opening for England to control the match in my opinion after Pakistan's dismal first innings batting. England should have won the second match but the third game looks closer than it actually was.

[Buzz]

interesting points, I still don't understand why it is so hard to play spin.

[Manormanic]

I don't think there is much need for England to panic - rather, it ought to be motivation for them to push harder to improve.  The first test was a nightmare, but they controlled large parts of the second and third games and, but for a poor collapse, an incredible partnership and maybe less than good fortune, they were well in the series.

But it has proven a lot of things; that Morgan is not yet a Test player being the obvious one.  The problem is as Buzz points out, who to replace him with.  Serious contenders would seem to be Patel - we all need to face that England are desperate to have him even show the merest semblance of restraint with the knife and fork because they see a spot for him - Taylor, and possibly Root.  Now, for me, Root is a long way short at this stage and is really not the type of batsman you'd want at six anyway, but he's a more than useful offie and will be an excellent player in 18 months time, so may be worth a look see.

Of course, if Ben Stokes develops, he has the six spot sewn up...

[Manormanic]

interesting points, I still don't understand why it is so hard to play spin.

Hmmm, its always hard when you're not picking the ball - that doesn't explain why Rehman, who is exactly the type of bowler who wheels away economically without causing anyone butterflies in moderate standard club cricket, suddely looked like he was bowling with a hand grenade though!

[Cover_Drive]

I'll be honest and confess here, when Rehman made his debut and bursted onto international scene I used to say ''Medium fast bowler'' I never rated him high and he kept on getting A category contract and I was furious why would they do that but he has surprised me in this series and more importantly proved me wrong

[Cover_Drive]

Taufeeq won't average 20.

What a precise prediction I must say his series average was 18 lol

[armie]

Its not always about spinning big and getting bounce, it is about being smart, especially when the opposition is edgy. Abdul Reman is smart and has all the weapons, spin, flight, arm balls. Calling hima  club level bowler is actually nothing short of an insult. I mean that sounds more like Ashley Giles then Abdul Rehman. 

[Johnny]

Lots of people calling for Morgan's head, but it's not as though Ian Bell has been any better

[TommyDeeeee]

No, Ian Bell has been just as bad. But, i think that Bell has been unlucky on a few occasions. I'm not saying for a second you can blame his hideous form on 'bad luck' but i just think that Morgan hasnt even looked like scoring a run.

[Opener]

I think and I might take the flak for it Ian Bell is a bit over rated because he looks great while playing. He is clueless against spin. I think his record is inflated a little bit due to his performances against Bangladesh. If you analyze his second innings dismissal in the 2nd test although he was unlucky with the ball trickling on to the stumps, he did not pick the doosra and he only adjusted at the last minute because the ball was short.

I hope Morgan is not dropped in the test series in Sri Lanka and India because I see him as a quality player who adds that unorthodox bit of flair to the England line up. He is quick on his feet but his confidence was such that he always looked laboured.

[100 not out]

I think this series has shown how mentally weak the English batsmen were. For me apart from cook and trott the rest were flops. Strauss had that one fifty and pieterson showed glimpses. I think the batsman should have been a bit more positive and should have used their feet more often. Pakistan with their limited batting resources out batted England. I think the Aussies will be chomping at the bit for a go against them.

[100 not out]

Forgot to add prior he had a decent innings. Once again being positive pays. If you are looking to survive it will be game over. Use your feet to get to the pitch of the ball . Hit a couple over the top to spread the field . Easier said than done.