[Frankie]

Originally Posted by old crust

It is about a sell out for each test already. It could be a close run thing again, I reckon if Mitchell Johnson adapts to English conditions he could be the difference. The ECB have already pinned their colours to the mast, prefering making money to winning the Ashes. Taking the Welsh pound instead of playing at Nottingham where England would have the best chance of winning, sums the twats that run the game here up.

I have just looked up the ECB website and notice there are only 5 Tests in the 2009 Ashes series. However there are 2 Twenty20 games and 7 ODI's. WTF??

IMO an Ashes series comprises of 6 Tests with a few ODI's etc. tacked on to the end for novelty value. It seems the ECB is keen to back one day cricket despite the fact that the 2005 Ashes series was the best ever in living memory and put cricket in the UK into the national headlines.

They should have used the 2005 Ashes series as a massive marketing campaign and put the emphasis fully back on Test cricket. Instead we have a mini, almost pointless, early season Test series against the West Indies and a diluted down Ashes series.

Therefore full focus has been moved from the Ashes to the "sideshow" Windies tour and one day cricket. Quantity instead of quality.

As for the Aussies.

In years gone by they used to tour in the fullest sense and play games against County sides and others. Maybe seen, competitively, as a waste of time but it gave players the chance to acclimatise to English conditions. However most Test playing nations seem to do this now. You just turn up on the day and "do it" just like the Windies did now and got twatted.

For me the ECB have tainted this Ashes series already. It should be all about the two sides going head to head over 6 Tests. No prisoners taken, which made the 2005 series so compelling and had people who dislike cricket being interested and inspired loads of kids to take up the game because they wanted to be the next KP, Freddie, Harmison etc.

A golden opportunity missed.