South Africa v England (& Zimbabwe)

I can't help but think he knows he chucks the doosra , otherwise why hide it in internationals and bring it out in the local stuff where he expected to pass muster ? The only positive to come out of this latest episode is that the standing umpires reported him - that must've embarrassed the SA heirarchy.

At least the local umpires did call him for chucking which is a rarity in itself. How many times would you see any local umpire in India or Pakistan calling a local player? None. I really do not rate Botha but for some reason he has done reasonably well in the limited over game for SAF, which is why they want to have him in their long term plans.

I suspect that if he plays for SA v England in the ODIs that Kevin Pietersen won't hit him into next week, but next year!

Mate even Smith can make the ball turn off the square. I remember when he was bowling 10 overs an innings back in 2006 in the ODIs here in Australia because SA had no one else. Botha is crap, it's embarrassing how the Aussies played him. 

I wonder how well Trott plays spin. He only faced North in the Oval test which is the only time I've seen him... doesn't matter anyway, spinning the ball straight doesn't count!

Trott's success or otherwise could well depend on where he bats. If they play him at 3 he could well find himself at the wicket against a very shiny ball against a rampant Steyn - not an easy place to be !  My preference is for KP to bat 3 , followed by Collingwood , Trott and then Prior.  It still looks a bit thin to me , although the tail is useful.  If England are to compete well , Strauss and Cook will need to give them decent starts.

Agreed , but who can it be ?  Freddie's retirement has left a hole that just can't be filled with England's current crop of talent.  Bresnan is a fair allrounder , more than useful in one dayers , but unlikely to succeed as a bowler in test matches.  They might have erred by in letting Ryan McClaren go - he could well feature in both formats against them shortly!

What about Ian Bell? Will he not play? Bell at 3, followed by KP, Colly and Trott sounds good enough.

Is he in the squad?

Don't rate him. The guy has no confidence and purely lacks ability. County cricket is not the best place to learn your trade, Ramps and Hick are the best examples. Guys like Hussey, Rogers, D Hussey and Hodge average 50-55 in FC cricket... basically they average 70 in County cricket and 40 in Australian FC cricket.

I reckon if Parnell gets a go then Bell will get cleaned up pretty early in the piece.

Dead right Zu. Cook as I have mentioned in this forum before, is the batting version of Monty Panesar. So much talent, but not improving and changing with time and experience. Cook is 24 and has played close to 50 tests. Potentially he could play 150-200 tests because England prefer the longer format and he has started young. But he will not be one England's greats if he doesn't fix his technical deficiencies and try and work on his game. He makes the same mistakes time and time again. He is talented, I rate him and that ton he made in 06/07 as  a 21 year old in the Ashes was a gem. He could be England's next captain, but only if he can justify his selection. I'm afraid he's not doing that right now.

Stephen Waugh had about 4 shots , averaged 51 vs Ambrose, Wasim, Donald and co. You remove those shots which risk your wicket, as Waugh did with the hook and pull, you can become a real menace to bowlers worldwide.

I think this would be a good series, even the ODI's.  KP, Morgan and Collingwood is a good line up.  Strauss has been good lately and I like Denly's attacking style, it has been missing since Trescothick went!

And about Botha guys, he should be picked in ODI's seeing he has been doing well, no matter how rubbish we think he is.  I think he's ordinary but at the end of the day, what you put on the scoresheet is what matters - it's just like how I always say Johnson is the luckiest bowler I've seen but I don't call for him to be dropped because he gets wickets and that's what matters.