0/T England v West Indies

[Plain Peter]

Players adapt to all sorts of different conditions, competitions and formats and learn how to play in whatever competition they're in.

So that's why there are one-day specialists who'll never get selected for a Test match.
And class batsmen who probably cringe at not being able to play themselves in.
And class bowlers who really wish they could bowl a yorker each delivery.

When they're in a five-dayer, they know they need to build an innings - and a bowler knows he can vary his pace and line over the span of a few overs in order to coax a batsman into playing a shot that will get him a wicket.

Exactly, which is why the game is so absorbing.

In the shorter version there's less time and each ball, or each run takes on a greater significance. Batters have to hit the ground running and bowlers have to keep it tight - a dot ball is nearly as good as a wicket.

Slogget with all your might, hope for contact, any contact, but the meatier the better.

In my opinion, a lot of the detractors are criticising it because they think they should.

In my case it's to make the thread run a bit longer

[mounse mk2]

Oh come on 20/20 is great fun and as Shrimper says has brought a lot of uncricket followers to enjoy the game.

Our tactics were very wrong last night, we were 2 hitters short. But Bopara and Pietersen when they were playing well at the beginning of our innings were not slogging they were playing proper cricket strokes. And look at the likes of Chanderpaul, ok i know he's not English but this is the guy who would make Boycott look like Chris Gayle in test matches, but has versatility.

I hate to hark back to the Ashes series of 2005 but if it weren't for the experience of bowling in limited overs games would Steve Harmison had ever bowled that majestic yorker to Michael Clarke on the penultimate day of the second test? Bowlers in 20/20 will learn such skills to transform into what is yes still ultimately the true form of the game.

And for me it has been a bowlers tournament. The likes of Gul, Mendis, Bravo, all the South Africans, Afridi and even Broad and Anderson have been superb.

Yes it is the prelude to The Ashes for me also But, hey it's has been great fun.

Oh for Marcus Trescothick though...

[Plain Peter]

I'm really only peed off because slogget isn't on terrestrial TV.
All I've seen is what little there is on the News.
I even lost Sky Sports News on Freeview when we went Digital a couple of months ago.