Cricket Season Thread

[magpie_mania]

i'm sorry if you are offened by me saying: "im sick…"

the thing is it doesn't matter where you live, i will support india for the rest of my life. However, people don't get it!

And, as for commonwealth games, as you said you form your own opinions. That speaks for itself i think.

im not offended by your "sickness" what i am offended by is you saying it doesnt matter where you live i wonder if thats what your parents were saying when they went cap in hand to migrate to this beautiful country i think your comments also speak for your mentality.

 

[Tiger_Watto]

Guys, lets get back to the Cricket please…

PM each other if you want to have a personal debate!

 

[magpie_mania]

guys, lets get back to the cricket please…

Pm each other if you want to have a personal debate!

who will win the ashes, are the pommies a hope and how many if any tests will phil hughes and steve smith play. :wahoo: :wahoo:

 

[Jazza]

Im trying not to bag players Geo.

But its just a fact that Ponting is not a great tactical captain and a lot of experts who have played the game agree.

There's been major blunders like bowling first at Headingly in 05 on a road without McGrath and an out of form Gillespie, Nagpur 08 with the over rates, playing an injured Symonds and Lee against SA 08, bowling Hauritz and North at to the number 10 and 11 at Cardiff 09, wanting 4 seamers on a spinners deck at the oval 09, batting first in Sydney 2010 on a green top, and in England vs Pakistan 2010 batting first on another greentop.

I mean yesterday, with under 20 runs needed he was still putting the field back giving away easy 1s and 2s, with just 20 runs needed and the tailender playing well, I think he should of brought the field up. Laxman hardly ever hits the ball over the top (According to cricinfo: Number of 6s hit by Laxman in Test cricket: 4\. With his most recent 6, 5 years ago), so if he did do that with the field up, with a bad back and pressure on, it would of been a huge risk.

It mystifies me why he never has a 3rd man, especially on the subcontinent where lots of balls roll along the ground in the slips area. He brought Marcus North on with the game on the line and kept Hilfenhaus out of the attack too long, then with 2 needed he had a fine leg when he may as well of had everyone up. I also think he is a bit of a ball chaser, you watch everytime a 4 is hit, he puts a fieldsman out on the boundary to where the ball went.

I think one of the reasons why we don't always finish teams off is because the captaincy can be too defensive and they dont go for the jugular.

 

[magpie_mania]

im trying not to bag players geo.

But its just a fact that ponting is not a great tactical captain and a lot of experts who have played the game agree.

I mean yesterday, with under 20 runs needed he was still putting the field back giving away easy 1s and 2s, with just 20 runs needed and the tailender playing well, i think he should of brought the field up. Laxman hardly ever hits the ball over the top (according to cricinfo: number of 6s hit by laxman in test cricket: 4\. With his most recent 6, 5 years ago), so if he did do that with the field up, with a bad back and pressure on, it would of been a huge risk.

It mystifies me why he never has a 3rd man, especially on the subcontinent where lots of balls roll along the ground in the slips area. He brought marcus north on with the game on the line and kept hilfenhaus out of the attack too long, then with 2 needed he had a fine leg when he may as well of had everyone up. I also think he is a bit of a ball chaser, you watch everytime a 4 is hit, he puts a fieldsman out on the boundary to where the ball went.

I think one of the reasons why we don't always finish teams off is because the captaincy can be too defensive and they dont go for the jugular.

the aussies were blessed with a great captain in steve waugh who was ruthless and knew how to go for the jugular i will say his one and only bad error as captain was in india when he enforced the follow on and lost while taylor before him was excellent also with field placement.but as good as ponting is with the bat he is found wanting on tactics as a captain with field placement and use of bowlers.

 

[citizen_cub]

When Waugh retired back in '04, there were a few other good candidates, Gilchrist captained the first 3 tests in India in '04, winning 2 and drawing 1, I think he wouldn't have made a bad captain. Then there was Warne, as he was a controversial character OFF the field, he was probably never gonna be the captain, but he had a fantastic cricket mind, always had planned worked out for the batsmen he was bowling to and always knew what his field settings were before he bowled, would've been a MUCH better captain than Ponting.

 

[Jazza]

When Waugh retired back in '04, there were a few other good candidates, Gilchrist captained the first 3 tests in India in '04, winning 2 and drawing 1, I think he wouldn't have made a bad captain. Then there was Warne, as he was a controversial character OFF the field, he was probably never gonna be the captain, but he had a fantastic cricket mind, always had planned worked out for the batsmen he was bowling to and always knew what his field settings were before he bowled, would've been a MUCH better captain than Ponting.

Warney would of been a great captain but in hindsight it was probably good that he wasn't as he would of been captain when he was banned for the diuretic and we would of had a brand new captain for the 03 world cup and then when Waugh retired he was a month away from making a comeback and it wouldnt of been right being made captain after not being in the side for 12 months. Tactically he would of been MUCH better then Ponting and who knows how good the side may have been.

If Gilly was made captain it could of been in a way as an ideal succession plan for Clarke to be captain now after Gillys retirement 2 years ago. But, Clarke wasnt in the side when Ponting became captain and we dont know how Gilly may have performed being captain all the time.

I think CA could see a rebuilding period coming even when Waugh retired and thats why they probably went with Ponting over a lot more experienced and older team mates. I thought it was the right decision at the time but I think now Clarke is ready to take over. He's in the middle of his career, at the peak of his batting and has shown to be a good leader in the shorter versions of the game.

 

[southerntiger]

How good is Very Very Special? One of my favourite cricketers to watch.

 

[Tiger_Watto]

guys, lets get back to the cricket please…

Pm each other if you want to have a personal debate!

who will win the ashes, are the pommies a hope and how many if any tests will phil hughes and steve smith play. :wahoo: :wahoo:

Aussies - 4-1
Hughes must be a chance if Watson or Katich get an injury
Smith, probably none, but maybe Sydney.

 

[tig_prmz]

I say 4-0 to the Aussies

Hughes IMO deserves a spot ahead of North while Watson should be moved to the middle order. Just an opinion!

Don't think Smith will get a chance. He needs more ODI's under huis belt IMO.

 

[Jazza]

I say 4-0 to the Aussies

Hughes IMO deserves a spot ahead of North while Watson should be moved to the middle order. Just an opinion!

Don't think Smith will get a chance. He needs more ODI's under huis belt IMO.

2-1 to Australia.

I'd have Hughes in as well, I dont understand how after 2 bad Tests he gets dropped yet they have persisted with North and Hussey over a much longer period.

If it was up to me I would of drastically changed the order about a year ago, although I'm not expecting many to agree:

1\. Katich
2\. Hughes
3\. Clarke
4\. Watson
5\. Ponting
6\. Smith/Bailey
7\. Haddin
8\. Johnson
9\. Hauritz
10\. Hilfenhaus
11\. Bollinger

Clarke batted at number 3 for NSW when he started, being the next captain and our most consistent batsman I would have him at 3.
Watson has spent most of his first class career at 4 so he can go there.
Ponting isnt the player he was and probably needs to go down the order like what Viv Richards and Allan Border did at the end of their careers, he also began his career down the order.
Smith has shown what he can do and surely wouldnt be worse then North at number 6 and also Ponting can help him along. If not, I think Bailey would be a solid option, he had great Summer last season.

 

[citizen_cub]

Interesting point about Bailey, he's been scoring a lot of runs for Tassy over the past few seasons and I'm glad somebody mentioned his name, I don't know whether the selectors will though. Personally, I think he's a better batsmen than Smith but it really depends on whether the selectors want a second spinner or another batsmen.

Either way, I think both could do better than North and Smith's leggies are definitely going to worry the batsmen more so than North's honest offies. I feel a little sorry for North, because he was dominating at state level for a long time but because of the personnel the Australian team had for such a long time, didn't get a look in until he was 30, unfortunately another short term player, same goes with Hussey.

 

[Juro]

I reckon the Ashes will be 2-2

 

[Jazza]

Interesting point about Bailey, he's been scoring a lot of runs for Tassy over the past few seasons and I'm glad somebody mentioned his name, I don't know whether the selectors will though. Personally, I think he's a better batsmen than Smith but it really depends on whether the selectors want a second spinner or another batsmen.

Either way, I think both could do better than North and Smith's leggies are definitely going to worry the batsmen more so than North's honest offies. I feel a little sorry for North, because he was dominating at state level for a long time but because of the personnel the Australian team had for such a long time, didn't get a look in until he was 30, unfortunately another short term player, same goes with Hussey.

Bailey did go to NZ for the ODI series earlier in the year but he didnt play.

I think Smith is favoured and then it may be a battle between Ferguson, Khawaja and Bailey as the next in line in the middle order. White may even be a chance as well or they may shift one of the openers down to bring Hughes in.

As Ferguson has scored runs at ODI, he looks like he has the edge, especially when Andrew Hilditch talks about him.

But I agree that Hussey and North are short term players, the more we select these guys to debut at 30+ the longer we are going to be in transition for. We have Katich, Hussey and Ponting at 35, Haddin at 32 and North at 31\. I heard that Dave Hussey still has ambitions for the Test side and he is 33.

I think the reason why we were so successful for so long is that we didnt have a real transition period throughout the 90s. We went through a complete transition in the 80s with the likes of S Waugh, Boon, Jones, G Marsh, Healy, M Hughes, and Reid all debuting close together but a lot of those guys were slowly phased out and replaced by a younger generation with the likes of Hayden, Langer, Martyn, McGrath, Warne, Slater, Reiffel, Fleming, Ponting and Gillespie who all debuted between 1992 and 1995 under the age of 25.

We have seen a lot more players debut at around 30 throughout this period.

 

[Marshall_magic]

If it was up to me I would of drastically changed the order about a year ago, although I'm not expecting many to agree:

1\. Katich
2\. Hughes
3\. Clarke
4\. Watson
5\. Ponting
6\. Smith/Bailey
7\. Haddin
8\. Johnson
9\. Hauritz
10\. Hilfenhaus
11\. Bollinger

Not a fan of the batting line up. I would leave Ponting at 3, he's been so good there for so long, why change it. I would also leave Watson at the top where he is doing very well.

1 Watson
2 Katich
3 Ponting
4 Clarke
5 Ferguson
6 Smith
7 Haddin/Paine
8 Johnson
9 Hauritz
10 Hilfenhaus
11 Bollinger

 

[citizen_cub]

Interesting point about Bailey, he's been scoring a lot of runs for Tassy over the past few seasons and I'm glad somebody mentioned his name, I don't know whether the selectors will though. Personally, I think he's a better batsmen than Smith but it really depends on whether the selectors want a second spinner or another batsmen.

Either way, I think both could do better than North and Smith's leggies are definitely going to worry the batsmen more so than North's honest offies. I feel a little sorry for North, because he was dominating at state level for a long time but because of the personnel the Australian team had for such a long time, didn't get a look in until he was 30, unfortunately another short term player, same goes with Hussey.

Bailey did go to NZ for the ODI series earlier in the year but he didnt play.

I think Smith is favoured and then it may be a battle between Ferguson, Khawaja and Bailey as the next in line in the middle order. White may even be a chance as well or they may shift one of the openers down to bring Hughes in.

As Ferguson has scored runs at ODI, he looks like he has the edge, especially when Andrew Hilditch talks about him.

But I agree that Hussey and North are short term players, the more we select these guys to debut at 30+ the longer we are going to be in transition for. We have Katich, Hussey and Ponting at 35, Haddin at 32 and North at 31\. I heard that Dave Hussey still has ambitions for the Test side and he is 33.

I think the reason why we were so successful for so long is that we didnt have a real transition period throughout the 90s. We went through a complete transition in the 80s with the likes of S Waugh, Boon, Jones, G Marsh, Healy, M Hughes, and Reid all debuting close together but a lot of those guys were slowly phased out and replaced by a younger generation with the likes of Hayden, Langer, Martyn, McGrath, Warne, Slater, Reiffel, Fleming, Ponting and Gillespie who all debuted between 1992 and 1995 under the age of 25.

We have seen a lot more players debut at around 30 throughout this period.

I agree with your first point, Smith has been talked up for test cricket and I'd be very suprised if he doesn't play within the next 12 months, Khawaja, Ferguson and Bailey are all chances but you'd have to favour Smith at this stage, White will never play for Australia in tests again, UNLESS they want a batsmen, even then, he'd still be a small chance, they would never pick him as a spinner after the filth he served up in India a couple of years ago, I probably bowl better leggies than him.
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Although Haddin debuted very late, he fully deserved his spot as he'd been touted as Gilchrist's successor for years and had been consistently performing at a high standard at state level, at 33, I still think he's got a few more years left in him. Katich also came back into the picture very late in his career at 32, but has since proven to be one of better batsmen and is still performing at a high level, even at 35\. But it's obvious to me for a couple of seasons now that Ponting and Hussey are past it, Ponting's footwork and movement on the crease is nowhere near as good as it was 4-5 years ago, he is also not timing the ball nearly as good as he was 4-5 years. Same thing with Hussey.

Totally agree with the point about transition, we've been in transition for the better part of 4 years now and we seem to keep debuting blokes at 30 when what we really need to do is breed players in their early 20's so that they are players for the long term, instead of debuting blokes in their 30's and only getting a couple of good seasons out of them before they hang up the boots.

It's not just debuting North and Hussey in their 30's, what about Ryan Harris? Although he bowled really well against the Paki's in the ODI's and had a nice start to his test career against NZ, how long will he last? You know Glenn Mcgrath and Dennis Lillee are the ONLY Aussie fast bowlers to play past the age of 33? Harris is another example of a player who will not last and has been placed in the team for the SHORT term.

 

[Peaches]

I can't believe the flack Ponting gets. Compared to every other captain in the modern era, I would have Ponting. His tactical nouse wasn't as strong as that of Shane Warne, but I don't think anyone was even close to him. Waugh was the greatest following other greats like Taylor and Border. Anyone who had the job after Waugh was going to struggle to maintain such a high class. Ponting I think will retire if he doesn't have his best Ashes series individually. Clarke is ready to go if given an opportunity.

 

[tig_prmz]

Woah! who is Peter George? Never heard of him 😕 lol

 

[magpie_mania]

woah! Who is peter george? Never heard of him 😕 Lol

23 year old south australian pace bowler.

 

[Jazza]

woah! Who is peter george? Never heard of him 😕 Lol

23 year old south australian pace bowler.

Nearly 7 ft tall, bowls fast medium. Line and length bowler, got a pretty good record to start his Shield career.