GLuvsMtb

There are potentially 2 big games this week. WI vs India. On paper and on recent form the Indian side should win with a comfortable margin. The WI side will however look for another big performance from Gayle. The other is SA vs Pakistan. As with India vs WI, SA should have the upper hand over a Pakistan side that looks very off-colour in this tournament. Of lesser importance is the Bangladesh vs Scotland clash, but a good showing from Bangladesh will strengthen their QF hopes.

The Stormers played their worst game this season and still came away with an away win. The other SA sides must be afraid... very afraid.

They almost choked (coat, hat, door).

yes? Not sure what you are referring to?

that's like saying someone will win the TdF after the first TT. There is still a lot of water that has to flow under the bridge. How we keep our momentum with these relatively long breaks in-between games is going to be crucial and once we get to the knock-outs we should really try to avoid the Aussie / Kiwi media at all cost. Historically this has cost us, particularly against Aus.

Sides have learnt that he is strong on the off side. Coming around the wicket to him has worked on 1 or 2 occasions, but I expect him to bounce back. He remains a class player and should probably use the games against UAE, Ireland and Pakistan (he has an impressiver record against the paki's) to play himself back into form. Rilee was impressive today in the middle order. If there is to be a change in this regard it would be for Faf to open with # and QdK to drop down into the middle order. AB keeping is not an option. Can you imagine having to keep after you just bliksemed 162 off 66 balls? Besides, our slow overrate is of a much bigger concern than QdK's lean run to date. Dale has looked a bit off in this series, so not sure what the ailment is. Hopefully Donald can work his magic and help Dale get his rhythm back. Abbot also showed some guts today with a disciplined performance and the side may just encourage Vern to heal up properly as they might want to give Abbot a proper run before the knock-outs. Behardien did everything right today, but probably will still lose out to JP for the big games. JP is a proper 5th bowler and would have done a similar job as what Behardien did at the end today. It is nice to finally see a bit of depth in the squad, something that to date has been a concern. I expect AB to get a rest against UAE and possibly Ireland. I recon that second in pool B is now more or less a given, unless India has a brain fart against WI

Bowled out for 100? At least that would remedy the NRR situation we got into when India pounded us.

Didn't know that there is electricity in the Freestate?! When are you's getting tar roads other than the N1?

they had a review, so it baffles me a bit that he just walked.

their website is not updated for this. You sure that you just didn't run out of prepaid? http://loadshedding.eskom.co.za/

our tame Paki is doing he bizznizz for us.

Abbott! The boy is on fire today!

Abbot you beaut!

A good performance by Abbott today may just see him edge out the Vern for the rest of the tournament. Our 5th bowler combo of AB, Rilee and Behardien will need to come to the party thought. I would have felt more comfortable with JP in the side instead of Behardien, but the way Behardien made sure that AB got the strike in the last few overs was worth an extra 20 runs or so for us. The only dot to Behardien was off the last ball of the 48th, giving AB the strike in the 49'th. Parnell would not have been able to do this for us, so if JP is not available for the next game Behardien will get the nod before Parnell in my books.

162 of 66 balls... your move Chris Gayle

2 overs to go... did I say 350? I meant 400

Why, were we 45/3 with all 3 batsmen getting out to soft dismissals?

SA building a steady partnership. Amla finding a bit of form again and Faf also playing well. They weathered the storm well up front and surely will now look to cash in. 350 is not out of the question, but lets not get ahead of ourselves.

The cycling industry is slightly different. The guys coining it are the sole agents. Specialized broke convention by ditching the agency model and preferred a more direct presence. This is paying off now that what was seen as a somewhat weird and dangerous pastime now is mainstream. I predict that the other manufacturers will follow suite once their agency agreements come to an end. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the moms and pops bike shops from time to time, but they are a dying breed. Just like the corner grocer disappeared the moms and pops bike shops are in their way out.

Quite right you are. I may experiment with QdK at 6 and move Rilee to open with #.

snobbery is subjective and not limited to any brand / type of store. I cannot recall ever feeling unwelcome in any bike shop before. Maybe I am just thick-skinned or maybe I engage with people differently to how others engage them. Oh, and just for the record, I am a guy in my late 30's with a beer gut weighing about 100kg, so I don't even look the part either. I often go into shops just to have a look and I don't have a Tag on my wrist or wear an Armani suite either.

Another aspect of concept stores is that staff are trained on a specific range of bikes and components. They generally also have more depth in what is on the floor in terms of sizes etc. A concept store should have all the main bike models in all available sizes, provided hat there is stock in SA, while a normal bike shop typically only have one of each model and have to source any deviation in size requirement from Specialized HQ. Some concept stores work, some don't. Sales and service staff and management all have to buy into the brand 100% and location plays a huge role too.

A bike shop sells as many brands as they can squeeze onto the sales floor, like say Edgars, while a concept store only sells a particular brand, like say the Levi's store.

Lets just hope that they don't try and hedge their bets and play BOTH Parnell and Behardien. I'd actually be inclined to give Phangiso a go instead of Vern, and play the extra batsman instead of an All Rounder. The 5th bowler's overs would then be made up of a combo of JP, Rossouw and AB. PS, I think JP is good enough to be an outright 5th bowler, but an over or 2 from AB and / or Rossouw will give us a few options in the middle overs. My Starting 11 would be: 1.QdK 2. # 3. Faf 4. AB 5. Rilee 6. Miller 7. JP 8. Dale 9. Morkel 10. Phangiso 11. Tahir