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[Twelfth Man]

It seems to have been spoken about a lot since the horrible winter we endured in Australia, but what would your Test side be for the summers two series? There are a few names floating about, but what is the right team with a good balance?

With no Trott (presuming he continues his absence), Pietersen or Swann there could be a very different looking side to the one that finished up the 2013 English summer.

[Buzz]

Please can I ask people before they post their teams to think about the balance of the team - this is what I posted elsewhere...

To win test matches consistently you need batsmen who can take the game to the opposition.
If you look at the best teams - Bradman's invincibles, Windies in the 80's, Aussies through the late 90s-2000's Vaughan's England team - the Indian team that made it to number one, before they crashed and the Saffers - they all have someone in the top 3 who can take a team apart - even the current aussies have Warner.

We need to have a much better balance of stroke players and blockers - otherwise we let the opposition bowl at us which puts the middle order under too much pressure.

So Cook needs an opening partner who hits boundaries - trescothic style otherwise we will never put the opposition under pressure.

I want to see a batting line up that bowlers will loose sleep over bowling at...

[Jason_Yuan]

i will give my choice of team first:

Alastair Cook
Joe Root
Nick Compton
Ian Bell
Eoin Morgan
Ben Stokes
Craig Kieswetter (He should get a chance if Prior don't perform)
Stuart Broad
James Anderson
Steven Finn
Simon Kerrigan ( Another shot at test level)

[Twelfth Man]

I totally agree Buzz. What would your side be?

[smilley792]

I think it will be

Cook
Root
Bell
Taylor
Morgan
Stokes
Prior
Bresnan
Broad
Kerrigan
Anderson


That's going on lions performance, plus England's ability to stick with people they know.
But it isn't what I'd want to see.


Cook
Lumb/hales/wright
Bell
Root
Morgan
Stokes
Buttler
Broad
Rashid
Anderson
mills


The openers lumb/hales/wright will need work for test level, but I be
I've England should pick one and turn him into our david Warner. He went from a t20 player to test opener, and scares attacks. Look at what he did to morkel yesterday!
If they choose wright, it's a bowling option to help the 4 bowlers and root.

I picked Rashid as I want us to play a leggy, and Borthwick has taken tap in Sri Lanka, plus Rashid can bat, and isn't bad to have come in at 8.

Mills is raw but pace is king IMO. Get him in and blood him. We do t have one, but we need a steyn/johnson and we need one fast!

[Johnny]

Cook
Root
Bell
Morgan
Ballance(for no other reason than he's the man in possession)
Stokes
Prior
Broad
Onions
Anderson
Kerrigan

I think sooo much is dependant on who gets the head coach role.

[Buzz]

I totally agree Buzz. What would your side be?

Well assuming that we can't pick Surrey Legend KP...

I would probably go for something like...

Cook
Carberry (with instruction to put bat to ball) failing that probably Hales - who may not be good enough, but he should be given a go
Bell
Root
Morgan
Stokes
Butler (or Prior)
Borthwick or Ali - I am not sure - the lack of decent spinners is odd.
Broad
Anderson
Finn (told to bowl quick.)

[The_Bird]

Cook
Robson
Bell
Root
Ballance
Stokes
Buttler
Rafiq
Broad
Mills
Anderson

[400notout]

Cook
Carbs
Robson
Bell
Ali
Taylor
Stokes
Prior
Broad
Finn
Anderson

Onions 12th

[Number4]

Cook
Wright (England's answer to Warner)
Bell
Root
Morgan
Stokes
Prior
Borthwick
Broad
Anderson
Rankin

[Manormanic]

Some piffle being talked here I fear; with respect to Buzz, you can only pick from what is available to you and I really don't think its worth picking a guy who doesn't even get into his county first class side as a matter of routine on the optimistic hope that he'll replace KP!

The keys will be making sure that we have enough experience in the batting whilst blooding new bowling options and that we don't misuse Stokes by trying to make him bolster the batting as part of a four man attack.

So, if I were the selector, I'd have:

Cook
Robson
Bell
Root
Morgan
Stokes
Prior
Rashid
Broad
Anderson
AN Other Seamer

The above is a tad harsh on James Taylor, who runs the risk of being the lad about whom we die wondering, and on Gary Ballance, who deserves another go eventually but who is not quite ready and who should be the one to make space for Morgan, who is important to me for his ability to influence tempo.  Prior may be over the hill, but his experience will be critical as part of the progression of the team and he should at least be given a go - if he fails, a decision between Bairstow and Buttler will need to be made.

So to the extra seamer.  Stokes provides some balance to the side and, whilst it would be valid to wonder whether Rashid would be vulerable to a bit of tap, Root could hold up an end in extremis.  That being the case, what we need is a bowler with impact - and for me the options are to either take a left armer to change the angle, which would bring in the Topley/Gurney/Mills/Willey debate, or someone with wheels, in which case the wuickest I've seen in the last couple of seasons has been Liam Plunkett, who has got some serious gas.

[Buzz]

your top four are all basically blockers who will allow the bowling team to attack and gain confidence. Hales is a big call (which is why I went for Carberry!)

My view - just like Duncan fletcher likes 90+mph bowlers, is that you need a stroke player/hitter in the top 3 - On the flat international pitches guys who struggle on a trent bridge green top in April wont struggle so much. 

Other than that, your team isn't all that different from mine!

Nice to see some Yorkshire bias in their too

[mr_wickets]

That's going on lions performance, plus England's ability to stick with people they know.
But it isn't what I'd want to see.


Cook
Lumb/hales/wright
Bell
Root
Morgan
Stokes
Buttler
Broad
Rashid
Anderson
mills


The openers lumb/hales/wright will need work for test level, but I be
I've England should pick one and turn him into our david Warner. He went from a t20 player to test opener, and scares attacks. Look at what he did to morkel yesterday!
If they choose wright, it's a bowling option to help the 4 bowlers and root.

I picked Rashid as I want us to play a leggy, and Borthwick has taken tap in Sri Lanka, plus Rashid can bat, and isn't bad to have come in at 8.

Mills is raw but pace is king IMO. Get him in and blood him. We do t have one, but we need a steyn/johnson and we need one fast!

I think Hales is quite a way from the est team, Notts dropped him from 4 day stuff last year.

[smilley792]

I think Hales is quite a way from the est team, Notts dropped him from 4 day stuff last year.

And Victoria had dropped Chris Rodgers at the end off 2012 and were about to cancel his contract.
Yet since he's scored 4 test centuries.


Just because someone doesn't currently do well in fc, doesn't mean he won't succeed at test. Plus there's Nottinghamshire to take into account. They may force to much pressure on him "do not go aerial, block everything"
Where as, some England coaching, and being told "do a Warner, play your own game and take the attack to the bowling" may allow him to succeed.


Could fail miserable two, but as buzz notes, we need some fire in our line up, and can't see it coming from many other sources.

[ProCricketer1982]

ODI

Hales
Robson
Bell
Root
Morgan
Stokes
Buttler
Broad
Finn
Spinner (whoever is best)
Jordan

Test side

Cook
Compton
Bell
Root
Ballance
Robson
Prior
Stokes
Jordan
Broad
Finn

Root bowled perfectly well as a spin option, give. We have no one who is really pushing a place. Robson is in training at 6, root has to bat for a while at 4 and prove if he's a middle order guy or can take over in the top three in 2-3 years. I'd put bedwetter and buttler on standby and get them playing as many 4 day games as possible. Same with Ali, chopra, Taylor and co.