Thursday 30 December 2010

This Just In!!

Test side announcement to be delayed until 5.30pm.

Something big is brewing.

Ponting injured and won't play?

New captain to be named? That takes a board vote.

If it is Clarke I will lose my guts.

4 comments:

  1. Well, that's a kick in the guts for Hussey I say. The man has done everything he could to drag this team over the line and is probably the most qualified yet they give it to the golden boy. Who decided that he was the annointed one all those years ago?

    Clarke is TERRIBLY out of form and gets handed the captaincy on top of it. They probably gave him the choice and the selfish prick would have jumped at it.

    That's fine but as skipper now Clarke MUST score runs AND make decisions.

    He hasn't been good at either with the bat this series.

    Nice to see Khawaja get a look in. But as expected the selectors only made compulsory changes as per their policy for too long now.

    What a perfect opportunity missed...

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  2. That doesn't sound like the start you blokes need. Maybe he'll be temporary - just to see out the Ashes and then they'll start afresh. Shame about Ponting though - do you reckon that's the end of him? He's a good player and captain, just hasn't had the run of luck that he needed and was given a crap team to work with.

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  3. it is typical CA, "you haven't performed, but we can't take a perceived backwards step, so here is the captaincy!"

    I can only hope they will start afresh MPA, but history tells me...
    I beg to differ regarding Ponting, yes, he has been a good player, but not captain. he was given a gift with an impending expiry date, and he used it well until it fell apart. Then he was given no help rebuilding (they love that word at CA) it... but he also didn't have the nouse to use the parts he had to make a servicable replacement.

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  4. I tell you MPA and I will say it freely, England outplayed Australia at the times that it mattered. I don't think we recovered from the 1/500 odd in the first test. Something about that stuck in the psyche of all Aussies.

    But this decision is about more than just the current series. It indicates to all in the side that Clarke, regardless of form is going to be the captain when Ponting steps down, or off.

    One series does not define a player but the glaring thing for me about Clarke is he is not willing, able or both to curtail his natural game for long enough to do what has to be done for his country.

    Ponting is the same and for so long his talent and the talent around him allowed him to go hard early, get cheap dismissals and still walk away with a victory.

    But lean times call for a leader that will sacrifice his own game for the good of the team and for players like Ponting and Clarke that means putting away the "get out" shots for playing in the arc and grinding runs. Neither has shown that they can do that for long enough.

    Hussey on the other hand already has the game to do just that. His strokeplay is superb but he can just as easily prod around for 30 off 100 balls and stay in the centre where a captain is needed most.

    He may be the wrong side of 35 but the fact he had to wait for so long I think can actually benefit his career at this level.

    I will be the first to admit that I had his papers stamped before this series and I will eat humble pie for that. However he has been the only batsmen to stand up when needed in a very tough series and should be recognised.

    The optimal result for Australia is Ponting and Clarke out of the side, Ponting into retirement and Clarke to get his back right and start making big, important scores

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