[Dilmah G]

Since I haven't seen one lately.

You poms are getting it this year. Thought we were f@cked this morning when a coworker this morning said we were down four wickets already. Hussey is brilliant.

[Liberator]

Ah cricket.  How very....English...of you.

* Liberator knows next to nothing about cricket and thinks they should play something where hitting the ball hard is important, like baseball.

[Dilmah G]

Oh, it shows.

Google 'Ashes Test Series' and tell me hitting the ball hard isn't important.

[Black Wolf]

Siddle's Hat-Trick on day 1 was brilliant - only saw it in highlights, but Hey-Zeus. And yeah, thank Christ for Hussey.

North needs to lift his game or risk getting droppped, and he needs to do it this coming innings. Anything short of a half century and he deserves to go, unless he does something miraculous witht he ball. Johnson also needs to improve - no wickets and 4.4 an over? Come off it.

[Dilmah G]

Yeah, that may have saved us from getting smashed. Bloody good on 'im.

Oh really? I saw on the scores today that he played really poor cricket. And yeah, not even U/12's get 4.4 an over.

[MP-Ryan]

I can honestly say that, while an otherwise fairly bright person, I am completely unable to fathom how cricket works - this despite actually trying to figure it out.  I watched a game in Ottawa last summer and left more confused than when I arrived.

Googling the rules didn't help much either.  And my wife, who originally hails from England, doesn't understand it any better than I do =)

What an odd sport.

[Dilmah G]

Well, if you understand the bowler-bowls-ball-to-batsman-who-slogs-it-like-it's-a-hand-grenade mechanic, with 'runs' being awarded for how far said batsman hits ball should it collide with the ground past a certain threshold, behind which, runs are scored literally, you can just ask the guy next to you about the 'innings' and the concept of a 'test series', something I don't quite understand myself.

[MP-Ryan]

Well, if you understand the bowler-bowls-ball-to-batsman-who-slogs-it-like-it's-a-hand-grenade mechanic, with 'runs' being awarded for how far said batsman hits ball should it collide with the ground past a certain threshold, behind which, runs are scored literally, you can just ask the guy next to you about the 'innings' and the concept of a 'test series', something I don't quite understand myself.

You sound like the teacher in an episode of Charlie Brown when I read this =)

[Dilmah G]

Personally, I don't think it's all that different to baseball. But I think cricket may be a genetic and/or cultural thing.

On the other hand, I don't understand what on Earth you guys are on about with this 'NFL' business, but apparently the entire country loves it.

[MP-Ryan]

On the other hand, I don't understand what on Earth you guys are on about with this 'NFL' business, but apparently the entire country loves it.

I would say that's an American thing, but there are a number of Canadians that are obsessed with it too... the traitorous bastards.

[Scotty]

I think it's a big thing because there is little more satisfying in this world than hearing the CRACK of impact clear up in the stands full of roaring fans.

[Mongoose]

I'm kind of in Ryan's boat at the moment; I've done a bit of research into how the hell cricket works, but I'm mostly at a loss over it.  What boggles my mind the most is how a single game of it can potentially last days.  And people say baseball is slow-paced.

[Liberator]

I understand College football.  I like it even.  But Pro Ball is pointless to me.  It just means less when they are doing it for money instead of pride I guess.

[Sushi]

All I know about Cricket I learned from watching Lagaan.

Also, I agree with Liberator: College football is awesome, NFL is meh.

[Mongoose]

I understand College football.  I like it even.  But Pro Ball is pointless to me.  It just means less when they are doing it for money instead of pride I guess.

You think they're not doing it for money in college?  How much do you think big schools make off their programs?

That diversion aside, I feel like I should make at least some attempt to learn how the game works.  That and Aussie rules football, which is equally incomprehensible to me at the moment.

[Enigmatic Entity]

Since I haven't seen one lately.

You poms are getting it this year. Thought we were f@cked this morning when a coworker this morning said we were down four wickets already. Hussey is brilliant.

+5

Hussey past 100 and Haddin approaching 100 with a lead of 50 now. Australia's been lucky with their challenges, the Poms maybe not so lucky. What do you guys think of the challenge rules?

Hussey 196 and Haddin 136 - You Poms have lots of work to do - and don't try the "Defend for two days so we can get a draw" strategy!  (Actually I think they have kept their spirits up, so well done on that)

[Black Wolf]

They're OK - better than just accepting the umpire when they make screamingly wrong decisions, but they allow for the umpire to remain relevant on lineball calls, since you don't want to risk wasting your appeals. It's not a perfect system, but  I'm not sure I could hink of a better one.

[Dilmah G]

Yeah, I reckon it's alright for now.

And  the poms seemed to have made a hell of a comeback.

[Darius]

They're two quite evenly matched teams...should be a hell of a series this time round.

[Dilmah G]

Indeed. Makes for interesting cricket.