It was a no-ball!

Well done Allister Cook.  I seem to remember Ben and I in the office the last time England were here. They lost an early Strauss, but we said don't worry, Cook and Trott are in (this was not long after THAT Ashes series down under (no Andrew, not one of THOSE, THAT one) so we'll be OK. We weren't, it all went wrong and we lost 3-0.
But this week, however, has been just what you expect from Cook.

As impressive as 13 hours of batting is, I don't think I was remotely surprised at any point. This is just Cook being Cook. It's why we love him so dearly. Wonderful stuff.
It was hard to explain on Tuesday (watching cricket on my birthday never happens) to non-cricket colleagues down the pub that just because they've got 500, doesn't mean we're rubbish and it's all over.
Sheffield Shield rules and a bonus point for the first innings lead, please. Might add a teensy bit of interest to middle-eastern/sub-continental batting tracks like this one. Wow, as pitches go this is a shocker.
Imagine if Bell had held those two catches on day one.

I'm sure we'll see a draw tomorrow, but I look forward to belated-birthday dinner and presents at my folks house with the first two rugby quarter finals!
Come on the northern hemisphere! Apart from France. But I won't mind if they beat the All Blacks.