We have cricket

is it the right colour 4 days out?

Well after our dodgy and unsure start, we are in the gate!

My apologies to Lefty for causing him the stress of flying over to an uncertain outcome, but now the job is done.
Let's talk cricket.

I didn't do a wash up of the last test, but if i had to sum it up in as few words as possible, i'd say, "Thank you Cameron Sutherland!"
A great test track, that had everyone -including the Poms- say it.
Something for everyone.

Now the issue of the team selection for Melbourne- what a dilema!
With the ball, no one did anything that puts them in the, "please take a seat, mate" catagory.
Hey-Diddle didn't get wickets, but was tight and applied the torniquet, Hilf was much the same, and Jono and Rino were very very good.
So, does the G need a spinner? i like beer at the G, but would be prepared to give up Beer for the test.

Hauritz with another century must be... well, we all know what he thinks his chances are.

Pontings finger must be giving Kwahaja (must learn to spell that!)the drools. Will he, won't he? Punter has a habit of missing the od Boxing day, given i think it is his last chance, i doubt he will miss out this time.

Short and sweet today- there are many more things to be covered, but i need to do that which i'm paid for!

stoph verismo
Down the wicket

ps. who says you can't win a test with only 3 batsman... as long as you can get 20 wickets!

AB for PM!

There is nothing like a weekend of working on renos with the radio on Grandstand and hearing the around the grounds to get an appreciation of what is going on in this vast land we call home.

Firstly, a big congrats to Strauss and White for endeavouring to make the 3 day tour game a match. With 'sporting declarations' de rigour the stage was set for an exciting run chase on the last day for England... alas Melbourne, i love you, but your fickle weather can be a heart breaker. Hearing the stops due to the rain was all the more frustrating when 25km away i was sweating like a bushy in bright sunshine!

The few headlines i read on line about Victoria belting the Poms should be summarily ignored as Strauss bowled himself and Morgan to the in form McKay and Herrick and gave them a strike rate over 210 and a bowlers economy of over 12 each!

Of greater interest was Beer -obviously!
All eyes were on the new baggy green hat stand as WA bowled everyone else in the side -joking- before the ball was tossed over to Beer so he could tantalise the media for 2 overs before the heavens opened so violently hearing the broadcasters was nigh on impossible.

Beer had batted well enough the afternoon of his call up, and returned the next morning to be not out at the end of the innings, but that's not what he is about, is it. What we wanted to see was how well he kept his head with the ball; by all accounts he was landing it well and only went for one in each of the 2 overs he got.

Beers appointment has stunned many, but it was interesting to hear Mark Ridgeway talk him up after coaching him at St Kilda... still, good bloke or otherwise, to put in a debutant in such a critical test leaves many a hand going on auto-pilot to scratch the head. With the 'ditch admitting it is a gamble, and Chappell adding that due to a shallow talent pool Johnson had to be handled carefully to ensure he would slot straight back in, the greater focus is even more directed on the whole selection panel.

'Ditch's contract is up after the world cup, so with an Ashes loss looming it is now time to scout around and find a solution for the dysfunctional set-up we now have... and i know where to start!

AB for chairman of selectors! Captain Cranky on the field is the only viable choice to ensure the required ruthlessness and focus is applied to the task. We can throw anyone else into the mix to pad it out, but it is imperative that the head honcho be someone with the drive, understanding and respect of the game necessary to pull us up by the boots straps and have a genuine long view.

AB for CoS!
NOW!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

ps. how much fun are the Sub Ed's going to have with Beer? Most likely heading for the Herald Sun should Beer get belted- "Beer Battered!"

Who said this:
"I don't play for them any more."

...and what was he doing when he said it?

R's holes and opinions

CD (career death) Day today!

every man with a keyboard and his dog with an iphone is writing about the impending Australian team selection today.
for mine the best comments are coming from those associated with the England team and the WA coach.

"If you're chopping and changing a lot, people can play for their individual spots instead of playing for the team," said England keeper Prior.

i have an opinion on this, IT IS ABSOLUTE CRAP! short of deliberately running out a team mate that may be in consideration over you- which is stupid, because you are already in the side- how does this statement even work?. if people are playing their best (for whatever reason) then we are getting what we need from them. So thanks for trying to be helpful Prior, helpful like a hangnail!

Former RSA coach Arthur added something too, "Right now is the time to calm everything down, it's not the time to start putting players under the microscope," said Arthur, now coach of Western Australia. I'd say he doesn't want North back!
What a stupid thing to say, now is EXACTLY the time to be getting the critical eye going.

Ponting too came up with a good one on a radio sound bite, claiming North should still be in the side. Ok Punter, if you really think so, he can have your spot!

As all eyes look towards the SA and NSW match it appears Smith, Ferguson and Hauritz are all doing enough there to go to the head of the class come next week... we'll see!

yeah! i'm PO'd at the moment!
stoph verismo
down the wicket

Tests within a Test

interesting "series" this.
close game in the first: if Bollinger had bowled on the last day...
if Punter knew how to captain a spinner....
if Laxman...


and now for the 2nd test we see a grinding affair which may not be great for a result, but which has as discussed elsewhere given North another 6 months...
shown the need for batsman to 'settle' and wait for the bad ball...
and just how great S. Tendulkar STILL is...

we have NEVER had his number (49 test tons- 10 against aus), and while only idiot speak in absolutes, we never will and he shall retire knowing HE could always beat Australia. He almost makes me glad we have timed tests, otherwise...


on Ponting and Hauritz; regardless of the lack of support from a captain, a spinner MUST still bowl on the spot -even saying to and showing his captain where he'll put it- to force the captain to see the need for a bowlers selected field. Hauritz has failed to do this in this 2nd test, and will be publicly pilloried for failing to get a bagfull on the sub-continent. Spin great B. Bedi offered great support of Haury over the weekend and made a similar point about Punters inability to work with and use a bowler like Haury... but any way you look at it 0-153 will have you horse whipped by all and sundry.

with 2 days to go- unless this track opens up wider than Boonies smile at the the thought of 'shifting tin'- this game looks to be little more now than a test of: concentration or attrition... unless someone decides to get a bit excited; Big Kev, where are you?

Perth... thanks for being in another time zone!

Perth Test
as an eastern state living cricket nut, this is my favourite test outside my home.
it starts a half hour before i leave work... and goes into the evening! turn tv/dvd on for the kids, plug in receiver to mac, turn down the volume on mac/channel 9, turn on grandstand, enjoy beverage and barrage!

Siddle out... thank goodness. his tightness enforcing a rest now was such a bonus as i was ready to give it to all and sundry had he been selected. i know as a paceman he must have been looking forward to Perth, but the bigger picture has prevailed; see you on B-day Pete!

batsman told to get ruthless: reason being, no one has made a hunj this series... so what!
isn't it better all/most/many of the batsmen are averaging around their average for the series than failing?
what is better: one player gets a hundred and the next a duck, or both get 50? making 50 is being in form, a quacker isn't!

then what about S.Smith being picked with Hauritz injuring his finger!
i agree with T.Jenner, it is a bit too premature, and given his 1st class average at the moment is 75... yep, 75! he clearly hasn't learned his craft enough to ply it on the Perth track. McGain is the leading spinner in the country at present, but even as a leggie myself, the obvious choice if Ponting wants a specialist turner is Krezja. Tall, bouncy and with a proven doosra it is a dead set slap in the face for a bloke that has done all required to get back in, and is more suited to that pitch.

i hope CA doesn't crush Smiths building talent by throwing him in the deep end when his skill level isn't fully developed, on a pacemans pitch, and with a captain that doesn't know how to utilise a slower bowler!

priorities, people, public profile

while it may seem "un-Victorian", i can't help but wonder how the media work sometimes; this is purely a rhetorical question as i do understand the nature of media, but am still confused as to why in the week of the first test of the summer the sports segments of commercial news programs start with 3 AFL stories- including one about the Magpies annual pre xmas training and sight-seeing trip to Arizona! If it is annual, it is hardly news!

Then, after a story about some teenage draft picks anticipation about moving to Melbourne, we get something on the NATIONAL team of the seasons most popular sport! How does THAT work?

Sure, the Windies are a team in disarray, and many tout the series as bordering on a waste of time, but it IS a TEST, and IS being played here in Australia, so surely it should precede magpies on burro's going down a big ditch!

...i feel better now!


So what have we got to look at 2 days out from Brisvegas?

Firstly, it appears everyone that has ever (briefly) pulled on a baggy green is lining up everyone that currently gets use out of one to give career advice.

Rodney Hogg has sent down a short one at Lee telling him to give up Test and concentrate on ODI; probably sound advice, but Lee values Test above all so if he could, i think he'd do it the other way around. Still, in his press conference, Lee looked as if he had reconciled not playing for his country again.

Ian Chappell has written of P.Hughes chances of getting a spot... for a while.

Ian Healy must be worried about his public profile at the moment, as he has started up a new discussion. He believes M.Clarke is not durable enough to take the captaincy due to his recurring back problem. And that Ponting MUST lead Australia back to England for the next Ashes. Sure, why not Heals. As a batsman, it would be Punters best chance at getting a hat-trick...of defeats!
Others to weigh into the captaincy debate are Kim- don't cry for me-Hughes, and Steve -i've got a great mo, so i must be a sports star- Rixon. Rixon wants a change in the next 12 months, Hughes wants Ponting to stay on because of his great leadership... i don't need to touch that one, any remark Kim makes on leadership speaks volumes!

And then there is Shane: Windies lift or get torn apart. Oldies lift or get out of the AusXI.
I don't know if he is trying to improve the contest, or playing mind games with Windies, but it wouldn't be the start of a series without some brash comments from the greatest EVER player of the game.
Certainly he is correct in identifying the continued use of the excuses- rebuilding and transition, and has given up a list of young players that need to be given experience as soon as possible:

Henriques, Hughes and wristy Steven Smith are names Warne wants in.

Interesting too, that he has backed Hauritz's inclusion in the first test, interesting in that he obviously has a lot of faith in Krezja as he gave him the new nut on winning the toss in the all stars game. Another point regarding these two bowlers is the speculation that Haury will finally unveil his much worked on doosra, and that Krazy let one go in the state game when the result was already a certainty.

stoph verismo
down the wicket

Haury, stay where you are!

What a crushing and resounding win to the NSW team last night... w-w-w-well, d-d-d-done; sorry hard to say for someone that lives in the state that last (aus) season had the best cricket team in the country. i say best not because we only one the format that counts, but because the Vics were in everything at the end, and so should be considered the best team over-all. But that was last year, and counts for diddly now!
And last night, it counted for less as they were out played at every level.

Stand out point for mine last night was N. Hauritz, and Kats faith in having him bowl at the other end of the opening bowling pair.
Others finished with better figures, but Haury had done the job in his first 2 overs by taking out the opening batsmen for ducks. You could almost hear Kat thinking, "thank you Nathan, you've crushed their spirit, the others will take it from here mate!" We all know Haury is very effective at slowing things right down and creating excellent pressure for his bowling partner, will he finally get the chance to work through a series without fear of drinks carrying- unlikely as it is he would bowl in Perth! Let's hope he continues and gives a bit to the Indians for the up coming ODI series.

Bret Lee must have thought he was staring in 'A Christmas Carol', because he was tighter than Scrooges purse strings! (4-O, 1-M, 2/15). Although Moises Henriques might like that title too- 3-O, 0-O, 3/11! If in the future Watson is kept as an opener- on performance i see no reason why not- we may be looking at the new national all-rounder.

finally, with the NSW openers (Hughes and Werner) taking on everything- and coming up trumps- the selection process for other formats retains its intrigue with the youngsters getting up some momentum, and showing their desire for representation.

Express team choice

Anyone able to get this done before team announced?
Prefered Aussie team for last test.

Jim Maxwell on ABC says due to the heat, the wicket will turn into a bunsen; so Hauritz to come back.

i'll have a dip. For mine:

same as last test apart from: Hey-diddle out, go and tighten up bloke! Your game is good, but for someone so aggressive, they get too many runs off you.

so, surprisingly i'll give Binga a go; why travel all that way and not play? (chssssp! sound as i open worm can!) I was watch You tube last night and i want to see more of Lee's inswinging yorkers! they don't need to be at 155km, 142 will be enough.

Huss, you have done just enough to swing my sights away... for now!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

A Summary

Sorry for getting in early lads and I know there will be much to expand on but having the day off - had to put something up.

First, captaincy. Not the best from either I feel. It's easy to put men round the bat when you're going for wickets on the last day but takes courage when it's the first innings. Once Aus had passed England's score Strauss looked like he was waiting for the declaration. I hope we won't see such negative field placings too much in the series. Relatively speaking Ponting did ok: pick the pertinent word here. Sure Swann and co. batted well to get Eng past 400 but they can only hit the ball where bowlers allow them to: and they'll hit where the gaps are. The key is pressure - unlike the last day, lower order batsmen will not remain caged for too long in the first innings. But when you give deep square leg, deep point, fine leg etc to a number 8 or 9 what message are you sending?

Great batting from Aus: most disciplined I've probably ever seen. That attitude gives the lower order the licence to bat like Haddin did and let's hope we see more of that. North played only two silly shots in his innings and I've never seen Ponting leave so many deliveries outside off. Clarke: I love you. This bloke has learned so much about his own game. Eng just didn't have the penetration and the wizards of spin must have missed a few lessons at Hogwartz. Lesson One: no full tossers. Lesson Two: no long hops. Lesson Three: bowl to your field. Micheal Holding should be England's bowling coach: I've loved listening to him.

KP looks like he's got NFI at times. Aus were good with bowling full and straight which makes him look vulnerable. Cook seems to have validated my old cynicism (and made me look stupid for claiming he's improved), Strauss doesn't learn - half getting out of the way of a short ball AND leaving your hands up! Bopara will get better but, like KP, he'll probably frustrate the hell out of you in between scores. Collingwood is officially the most boring batsman in the world but also the most determined. Prior should pull his head in now after the Hauritz dismissal and Flintoff, well, I love the guy and he tried bloody hard in the last dig - soft dismissal considering.

Should we have won? Obviously yes. 8 wickets on the last day of the test match........
Therefore credit to England for holding out, poor sportsmanship but honestly we had plenty of time. I think Clark should be there but who goes out? Ponting will want runs from number 6 and I wouldn't drop Hauritz now. He did what he had to (and what Clarke and North weren't too effective in) - get wickets. The main issue I have is the fact Katich didn't bowl. Wrist spin that goes both ways! Tailenders can plan their strategy when they know the ball will only go two ways: straight or off to leg. Throw a googly in that and close-in fielders have an even bigger role. If Cardiff is the biggest spinning wicket we'll see then Ponting knows he can't rely on his part-timers to get wickets: just getting through overs.

Well done Siddle and Hilfenhaus: all up great Ashes debuts. Johnson's slower ball was the best weapon he had and we'll see more heat from him: he looked a little slow and the deck wouldn't have helped that at all.

What changes will we see for Lords? Tough one this: I don't think Aus will tinker and this would be ok in my opinion. Three fast bowlers didn't look enough at times but the strategy was always going to have Hauritz bowling 30 overs. Bit tricky I reckon. If Watson is fit I'd perhaps drop Hussey (any excuse though) and overs from Watson are a bonus. The problem is Watson is likely to tear a hamstring going for a single, or putting his pants on, or in the warm-up. I thought Harmison should have played (sounds like he's taken wickets again in County) and likely one of the 'spinners' will go out. This would be Monty as Swann can certainly bat: not sure if he can bowl though. Harmison and Flintoff - oooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhh. Now that's better.

Round 1

Who didn't enjoy that?
I feel asleep before the start of play -pathetic i know, but i do get up bloody early every day!- and woke to see 3/94 with Hilfenhaus wrapping KP on the pads for a big appeal.
Johnson's following over looked the goods too.

Seeing the wickets (good catch Huss!) and Bopara get the ball to the throat bodes well for a bat in the last session; especially if Collingwood keeps pulling with his eyes closed!

Hauritz in and England with 2 spinners: so everyone thinks it's a bunsen, you better get wickets Haury!

back to you Stuey, MO and Damo.

it's fair to say i'm getting pumped!

no takers on this line on 9msn cricket!
too easy!


will australia winPosted by: stoph, melbourne, on 8/07/2009 9:22:27 AM

will australia win-who knows! What a stupid question- why bother with a contest if the result is a done deal. What i do know is, this looks to be a far more balanced competition than in previous years. England can win a few ways, but australia can really only lose one way... through bad captaincy on Pontings behalf! Don't get me wrong, Punter is a terrific batsman, but he is a reactionary captain. He has been found lacking a lot of late with his choices and timing of bowlers and their use. When he realises that the best way to use someone like Hauritz is when an aggressive bowler like Siddle is at the other end is when he will get the best mileage from Haury. bringing him on, just because the ball is roughed up and it is 20 overs old is not tactical. stoph downthewicket verismo

Wake me up, before we go go (to England)

The summer of to-and-fro with RSA continues today with the start of the ODI matches... and the media can't help trying to put some significance on the competition by bashing out that hoary old chestnut of rankings. What a yawn!

Sure hype, national pride and a sense of prominence sells papers (allegedly!)- but if the RSA crowds were so apathetic toward the test series, is the level of competition that we have seen over the summer enough to build interest in the results anyway? Correct me if you feel different, but does this ODI series just feel like a hump to climb over before we get back to business with the Ashes? Does anyone give a rodents rectum about the outcome?

On a more positive note, it is good to see a platform of new (ish) players on the squad list presented for the match.
Ben Laughlin, Brett Geeves may not get a run but at least they are being considered. Callum Ferguson and Marcus North are on the list and likely. And Nathan Hauritz has a chance to show that while he isn't a big wicket taker, if people can't score runs off him- and they generally don't- he gives the blokes at the other end the chance to work through the card; an ideal ODI spinner!

If there is any doubt with nagging injuries of the senior players i'd like to see a list of younger blokes go out and have a dip. Given it is only ODI and the RSA crowds have oddly made no effort to support the tour this season, why should we worry about their entertainment?

as per... day one, NZ

i won't lie to you... i loved the rapid fire nature of the GABBA test. until day 3 there were heaps of wickets and no way of really predicting the result.
But to be fair, i love the grind of an Adelaide test more- especially since the wonderful win in the 05/06 Ashes-(thanks again Shane for being the greatest cricketer of the modern age).

With the most batsman friendly pitch in the land- but not 'over-cooked' like many a foreign pitch- Adelaide offers the chance at real cricket competition, and more importantly- a result!
And so, once again, captain 'snake-eyes' has lost the toss- 5 in a row- and watched the opposition have the first go at an absolute belter. But that's ok.. as a steady head for the environment has prevailed- without spoiling the enjoyment with a guaranteed result. Getting off to a fine start, NZ had given away their lot straight after lunch until steadying for a slow, yet respectable
total 6/262... slow, but that is ok at Adelaide.. when we all want to see a test match.


A few good innings: Redman: 83 of 125 s/r 66.4
Taylor 44 of 88 s/r 50

but on a wicket for batting, a good spread across the bowling styles of :
Lee, Clarke and of course, the wonder kind/newby, M.Johnson, N.Hauritz has given away how wickets will fall: a bowler just needs confidence, and support, when being belted around

stoph verismo
downthewicket

CA, tell 'em they're dreaming

"His form so far this season, even if his first-class stats don't look that flash, his actual form and the way he has been bowling has impressed our selectors who have been to see him," Ponting said of Hauritz.

What on earth does that mean?

Does that mean he is landing them on the spot, turning the ball etc?

It would also imply that he is not deceiving the batsmen, who are still scoring runs from a bowler that would have been lucky to play as 12th man for NSW in their upcoming match.

I'll reiterate my previous statement: Given we are one match up in this "series" with New Zealand, why haven't CA given an un-capped rookie (even if we have to delve down into grade cricket) a chance at some international experience.

I hope Hauritz does have a great game, getting a bag of wickets and just maybe putting himself into contention for a regular spot within the side for the rest of his playing career... but it is unlikely given his form.

When is CA really going to start a proper rebuild of the side from the ground up?


If you too think CA need to re-evaluate their selection process- here is their contact link.


http://www.cricket.com.au/Default.aspx?s=contact-us



stoph verismo
downthewicket

Hauricane pick a fizzer

WATCH OUT!

Cricket Australia have feet flailing... in every direction!

Jason Krejza's injury has caused a typical CA knee jerk reaction with the call up of Nathan Hauritz.

What? You say. Hauritz! Didn't he get a run a few years ago in Mumbai on a turning pitch and get out bowled by part timer M.Clarke, you say?

Yep!, And at the moment he has 6 wickets for 40.67 in the Sheffield shield.
So why has he been called up? Only because he has International experience.

CA is clearly running with their stop-gap policy for fear of condemnation if an inexperienced player fails to perform- even though Hauritz must be considered inexperienced with only one test and eight ODI's. But Australia are playing New Zealand and are one test up, why not blood a new player?
If there isn't another spinner available in the First class competition, why not dig out a 19 year old from grade cricket? Give him a run. He may be carted (most likely in Adelaide), but he may step up and prove to be another champ that just needed the pressure put on to extract his best, what do we have to lose?

Instead, CA just fall back on someone that had a chance - sure Hauritz is on 27 and only got one go at test level, but where is the foresight in picking someone that now at best can only give seven or eight years service?

If we are are "rebuilding" our national side, why a retrograde call-up?