leicsmac

I think that would depend on factors we have no way of knowing are true or not. In any case, perhaps now he can get back to actually fulfilling his promises about the Ukraine war and the price of eggs, and other things like that. Or at least to lying through his teeth about fulfilling them.

Au contraire, a good foreign "intervention", if only brief, serves to distract from shite domestic policy decisions. Trump is counting on that as the point.

That's one problem, yes. And yet those areas of the press, with no regard for that or other nuance, seem to happily spread around that simplistic, shallow and reductive black and white "pick a side" morality that Trump and those who think like him embody. Hopefully not as many people will be taken in now as they were in the past.

Par for the course for certain sections of the UK press to not only be totally OK with Trump's decision making here but also pushing the UK to endorse it too. As if picking a side doing the shooting is better than keeping with all of those pushing to stop the shooting. Distasteful, but again, hardly unexpected.

Tbf to him it's hardly the first time someone has gone for the arsonist and firefighter routine as a means to look vaguely palatable. Like you said though, fires have a habit of often growing beyond the control of those who start them.

...it's almost as if the stories and history are right about that level of obsession with personal legacy combined with a large degree of power being absolutely and utterly toxic to pretty much everything it touches, isn't it?

It still baffles me that some people in the UK (rightly) see Trump and his policies for the disgust they are, but seemingly endorse such policies when Farage puts them forward. Shows the power of a certain type of UK upper-class charisma.

Fascinatingly poised.

I wonder what the odds on that are.

About 105 overs of total play left, not counting any that may be lost tomorrow for weather? Inclined to think that's more than enough for a result either way if this last wicket falls quickly.

Okay... looks like the draw is less likely on the table now.

Fair enough. Goodness knows I have my own biases regarding people who choose to disregard scientific knowledge and dire things happen as a result.

The mothers isolating behaviour was obvious, and I can imagine it's very difficult to fight that when sick from cancer. She did choose, but for me the mother bears almost all responsibility for that choice.

That amount of overs really shouldn't have to rely upon "sensible" batting to go through to be honest, given the conditions and that the opposition only have one world class bowler.

This is still going to be a position where England have to bat out around 90 overs (less whatever gets taken off for rain delays) to draw the match. If they can't do that given the conditions, they don't deserve the draw and it would be piss poor.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crenzwyvpn1o Gabriel and Sebastian Shemirani watched with concern as their mother Kate rose to notoriety during the pandemic, eventually getting struck off as a nurse for promoting misinformation about Covid-19. Then, their sister Paloma was diagnosed with cancer. Doctors told her she had a high chance of survival with chemotherapy. But in 2024, seven months later, she died - having refused the treatment. The brothers blame their mother's anti-medicine conspiracy theories for Paloma's death at 23 - as cancer doctors tell BBC Panorama these beliefs are becoming more mainstream. Kate Shemirani has not responded directly to the allegations we raised, but she has publicly blamed the NHS for her daughter's death. As far as I'm concerned, that woman is civilly, if not criminally, culpable for her daughters death.

Particularly as even if not bowled out India won't likely have enough to be comfortable with a declaration until close of play today at least. If England lose this from here then it will have been a shocking batting performance in the fourth innings.

Anything above 250 will definitely be tricky, I think.

First blood to England.

Pretty much even money from here, I think. Over/under line on the chase around 250.

One innings shootout it is, then.

The England tail certainly wouldn't have done this under previous management, that's for sure.

England won one Test in 17 before it was implemented. I think this bears repeating quite often tbh.

Also, England cricket fans are about the only sporting fans I know who are as reactionary as Leicester football fans.

Nah, it really matters here, too. People overvaluing the Ashes is why England sometimes lose other series they should win. As for Brook himself, his numbers speak for themselves so far, so I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt.