A flimsy batting lineup, with the highest score 22, easily overtaken by opponents who simply played cricket, rather than trying to hit the ball into a neighbouring county. The Head of Cricket asserted before the competition started that we had a side of 'entertainment machines' and we were going to play aggressive cricket. Personally, there were a lot of times when I would have settled for good old common sense.
.
Tonight we set off like a train, but the innings was derailed by the end of the Powerplay. Donald promised, but didn't deliver and the top order was blown away by accurate bowling, Coughlin apart. Patel tried to rebuild, but too many players gave it away and the total set never looked enough.
The Durham spinners bowled well, as did Amir, Patel and Brown for Derbyshire. Yet this was another big occasion where we flopped and it continues to be a major frustration for supporters that we just don't turn up on the big occasions.
I will do a review of the T20 competition over the weekend, as time permits. There will be those who think that in taking it to the last game we did well. I am not one of them. With the investment in this squad specifically for this competition, I would deem this a major disappointment.
More about that in the next couple of days.
On to the one-day cup now. Not that I am feeling optimistic there...
Hi Steve,
ReplyDeleteWhen I looked at the Durham team you posted, my first thought was I'm glad we are not playing them in a first class match. Even without Stokes I reckon they would beat most test nations these days.
Then I figured it's a blast match, so it evens things up a bit. If the good version of Derbyshire turns up, we have a 30% chance. We know now they didn't, so no shock then.
I expect your review will eviscerate the management, and selection too. I agree we have the squad to do better than this, but it's done now, so we are left with the nonentity the 50 over trophy, somewhat unfairly, has become. Let's go for it!
Has to be a change of coach for next season now, doesn’t there? All the eggs thrown firmly in the T20 basket (although that seemingly amounted to some underwhelming overseas and a couple of aging players on a final hefty, one would expect, payday) and yet we do no better than usual. One decent year under Mickey and then two shockers.
ReplyDeleteI’d love to see us blood a younger coach; would Ian Bell fancy a head of cricket role? Our batters improved under him whilst he was here.
Very dispiriting and the CC wooden spoon beckons too, surely.
Chris
We have made a complete mess of 4 day cricket, in part due to the recruitment being built around getting deep in this competition. Tactics, team selection and decision making has been mostly dreadful during the T20 and as a member (for now anyway) it's bitterly disappointing. I hold MA mostly culpable and his time is up as far as I'm concerned.
ReplyDeleteMickey Arthur’s overseas recruitment was awful. He has to go. Simon
ReplyDeleteWell we just didn't fancy that trip to the Oval did we to get an absolute battering, that's the only explanation I can think of as to why we put in another lame, pathetic display. Yet again the batting was abject on a free scoring wicket, this is a major issue in this team for me, I've covered it before so won't go in to it again.
ReplyDeleteThe coaches have to go at the end of the season as I wouldn't trust Mickey Arthur to get the recruitment right again, it's been shambolic tbqh under his tenure.
We just can't carry on like this, changes needed!
All the other fixtures went in our favour and we failed to control our own destiny . It was done and dusted after 6 overs and we were 25 runs short . No player batted longer than 7 overs ,good luck to Durham they looked a good well balanced side in terms of age and skill set
ReplyDeleteIf one game summed up where we are, then last night was it.
ReplyDeleteA group of players brought in who, it appears, don't gel, aren't a team, are poorly led and largely underperformed time and again.
MA'S interview is just a repeat of what we've heard before and I'd love to know what Dupavillon's thoughts are and the story of what happened last night.
I've said it before, we are so accustomed to losing, just surviving that maybe it's baked in to the club's mentality. We don't have that 'edge' that other clubs and high performing individuals do. We're just too 'nice' as a club and that mentality takes you nowhere in pro' sport these days.
We used to be a professional cricket club with a corporate entertainment business on the side.
Our results and performances, over an extended period, suggest that it now works the other way round.
We shouldn't underestimate the lack of atmosphere last night either. It sounded woeful on the stream. When that starts to die, you're being given a loud and clear message.
Interesting times ahead.
Andy
As a life member the club IMO we're treated as paying customers the whole business model of Derbyshire revolves around the T20 packing the ground with paying customers and rinsing as much money out of them as possible the playing results are secondary no doubt the club will announce another healthy profit for this year. Mikey won't be sacked because the board won't want to pay him off bringing him in as a high profile coach has been a disaster the money spent on him would have been better spent on two decent overseas players, the question has been asked as to why Mikey has been reluctant to play both of his overseas players is it because they get payed on appearances and only playing one saves money?
DeleteWe blew it. What’s galling is that the results in the Leicestershire and Yorkshire games went our way.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, we racked up runs in the power play, but couldn’t build on this and post 180 or more. No one took the game by the scruff of the neck. All the big guns failed to fire.
We don’t seem to know how to manage an innings when we bat. Surely, the players should know what the game plan is and be able to execute it, at least most of the time.
Our bowlers did okay, but they didn’t have enough runs to defend. It was odd that Dupavillon didn’t bowl all his overs. Dave Fletcher suggested that this might have been because Patel might have wanted Chappell in the team, hinting at a rift between Mickey and Patel.
Ackermann and Lees built the kind of partnership we were unable to build and took Durham to a relatively easy victory.
I didn’t sense the kind of buzz from the team last night you would have expected when they were on the cusp of a quarter final. Not for the first time, I’ve found myself thinking that the problem with Derbyshire seems to be psychological.
Steve, how long contracts did Samit and Ross sign for, thanks?
ReplyDelete2 years each, CB
DeleteThanks mate, oh dear!
DeleteA poor performance to terminate a distictly uninspiring campaign and add to the despondency all or most Derbyshire supporters feel about the present abject situation. I must give some praise to Samit for showing leadership, bowling skill and a valient effort with the bat. Also Alex Thomson has shown creditable effort and maturity in his cricket generally. But I do support a change in Management and I await your summary of things with great interest Steve. It cant go on like this.
ReplyDeleteThis morning listening to Mickey Arthur just brought more frustration. I don’t think he ever set the team up right in all 14 matches. The recruitment was completely wrong. He should looked in market for good number 4.
ReplyDeleteWe can all agree very difficult to replace Du Plooy will most seasons score and get 300+ runs. This was huge oversight for the balance of the team we looked light all season. I think bowling was okay and vast majority of matches I would say they bowled well as a unit. What let the team down was lack clarity with 5th bowler. I personally think dipping between Thompson, Wagstaff, Reece, Madsen and Whiteley showed this. I also don’t think Patel captained the team well. Last night he should backed Du Pivillion and everyone in ground would got him to return around 10th over. It was poor capacity. We seen many examples through the campaign. I hope next year he bring someone new in for captaincy. I still believe Patel can be very useful player for next season he showed that with his performances. I think my overall my opinion is that Mickey set us wrong for this tournament. The biggest concern is the whole focus of season was to do well T20 and his whole recruitment was focused round this. That what really concerning going forward as Derbyshire supporter.
There is a massive "credibility gap" between what Mickey Arthur says and what the team is producing. He still talks with passion and commitment, but for whatever reason cannot convert this into results. Recruitment has been poor - underperformances with the exceptions of Brown in t20 and Patel as a bowler if not as a batter. Agree it's time for change. Again.
ReplyDeleteYep, regarding Mickey Arthur's interviews you could just do a loop of the word ' disappointing ', that's all you ever hear from him. It's all down to him and the coaching staff from getting nowhere near enough out of this current crop of players, and for that reason he has to go as do the coaching staff. Three seasons in now and if anything we're regressing which is unacceptable with his squad in place as well .
ReplyDeleteRumours about Andersson from Middlesex, and Proctor from Northampton joining does very little to lift spirits as it will be like for like from last seasons signings of Lloyd and Whiteley, what is the point?