This Week in Cricket #153 - Nathan Lyon's dip, Shubman Gill's composure and two more Test previews

The Top Order Cricket Podcast

This week on the show, we're all back in the same room to discuss the Black Caps' demoralising loss to Australia at the Basin Reserve, as well as a preview/review of the 4th and 5th Tests between India and England.

We start the episode with some initial thoughts from the Kiwi contingent about the pain of another Test loss to Australia - a game where New Zealand showed signs they could compete on days 1 and 3, but crumbled on the even days on their way to a very familiar scoreline against their Trans-Tasman neighbours.

There's plenty of praise for Cameron Green and Nathan Lyon, as well as Matt Henry and Glenn Phillips who provided the positives from a New Zealand point of view. We also discuss the make up of a Black Caps bowling attack in transition, a seemingly indestructible quartet of Australian bowlers, the impact of injuries and the form of Marnus Labuschagne and Alex Carey.

In the second half of the show, we look back at the 4th Test between India and England, which saw India secure a series victory in Ranchi. Was it a missed opportunity for England? Or do India deserve all the credit for winning the biggest moments of this series.

We touch on crucial performances from Dhruv Jurel and Shubman Gill, highlighting their composure under huge pressure. Joe Root's hundred demonstrated his class, but India's spin trio of Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav made life difficult for England in the third innings and turned the match back India's way.

Finally, we preview the 5th Test in Dharamasala - potentially the hundredth for Jonny Bairstow and Ravi Ashwin - with an eye to conditions and how England may look back on this series when all is said and done.

We'll be down at Hagley Oval in a few days' time at the second Test between the Black Caps and Australia, so expect plenty of content from that match and also the final India v England Test. As always, we really appreciate everyone who takes the time to give us a like, follow, share or subscribe on all our channels (@toporderpod on Twitter & Facebook, and @thetoporderpodcast on Instagram & YouTube) and a (5-Star!) review at your favourite podcast provider, or tell a friend to download. It really helps others find the show and is the best thing you can do to support us. You can also find all our written content, including our Hall of Fame series, at our website.

You can also dip back into our guest episodes - including a recent conversation with Mike Hesson, plus chats with former World Cup stars Shane Bond and Mike Hussey, current players such as Matt Henry, Sophie Devine and Ish Sodhi, coaches Gary Stead, Jeetan Patel and Luke Wright, as well as Barry Richards, Frankie Mackay, Bharat Sundaresan and many more fascinating people from all across the cricketing world.

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Thanks for listening.

0:00 Intro

0:55 A demoralising loss for the Black Caps

3:50 Do New Zealand have a mental block against Australia?

5:10 Why is it so hard to clean up the tail?

6:50 Cameron Green delivers under pressure

9:25 Nathan Lyon - the GOAT gets even GOATier

12:40 Australia's bowling group

15:55 Glenn Phillips - better than a part-timer?

17:00 Selection questions

19:35 Ben Sears in line for a Test debut

25:35 Concerns about the form of Marnus Labuschagne and Alex Carey?

28:35 Changes for the second Test?

32:20 India v England 4th Test review

33:50 Missed opportunity for England?

37:20 England's bowling attack

40:00 Let's talk about the Ollies

43:30 Dhruv Jurel and Ben Foakes

47:35 Shubman Gill answering questions

48:38 India's spinners

50:15 What's going to happen in the 5th Test?

56:30 Outro

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