in a rush but:
african andy #2 (strauss) backs ponting..DER! he'd hardly ask for the rightful captains recall!
Lee wants to be thought of as still in the mix...uummm, devolution seldom pays divedends.
gayle axed as cap... can't imagine him showing too much emotion over that- footnote, Nash vc!
clarke to play every game every format in the next 6 months...check the scoreboard pup, you may not get that choice!
warne declares swann holds key to ashes... "go after him, especially in that first over where he commonly gets a wicket" yes sir!
hodge blasts b/rangers to victory... still not good enough for aus! hmphfff!
stoph back on the fitness wagon and looks set for 1st game in 2 weeks (masters!)...hasn't bowled or faced a ball in 8 months!
Showing posts with label Gayle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gayle. Show all posts
Tuesday, 19 October 2010
Wednesday, 9 December 2009
Test cricket the victor
And just it looks as though Indian curators have put another 'nail in the coffin' of test cricket, good old Les produces a beauty. All three results possible on the last day with lots of wickets and runs in the game - welcome to test cricket. No doubt with the result being a draw 20/20 heads will be saying 'what's the point' and I say to them 'you just don't get it'. Go eat some chicken.
With entertaining an esteemed colleague from Melbourne a priority I was less than totally observant of the day's play on Saturday. Really it wasn't a great day's cricket with both teams grinding it out a bit but an impromptu meeting with Joel Garner provided some relief from the sun. My colleague was adamant in his views on West Indies cricket and Big Bird received them well; albeit a little dismissive at times with a wave of his hand.
I continue to be proven wrong in my views on Aus' team with Watson making two good knocks at the top and less troubled by full and straight deliveries than he was in England. Johnson looked as good as he's bowled in months and brought up 50 wickets in the calendar year believe it or not! Bolly was great - I've been a big fan of his for a while and hope that he takes the rock a few more times this summer. Hussey looks very uncomfortable at the crease and Hauritz is fairly consistent. We may have to accept that he won't replicate Tim May's efforts in England in 1993 unless bowling on favourable decks but he is doing a job. While Benn toiled for a 5 for in the first innings he couldn't find rewards from a 5th day wicket so it's worth bearing that in mind when evaluating Hauritz's return.
Bravo demonstrated why Ponting rates him as West Indies' most dangerous player. I wasn't convinced of him but am now a convert. He bowls very very handy overs to complement Roach and bats with traditional West Indies' flare. This may be his undoing at times but will no doubt bring as many runs if not more than Flintoff ever did for England. Big Benn (or 'Suli' as he like to be known) performed miracles in the first innings. It wasn't hot but to bowl so many overs and remaining dangerous is an amazing feat. Roach bowls heat, consistently, and hopefully the WACA is more of the old variety so we see some fizzers past noses. I guess there's little point mentioning Chanderpaul and Sarwan which is a good sign for the West Indies as they were widely touted as their only chance.
Listening to AM radio late on day 4 the West Indies commentator was explaining that Gayle kept batting to ensure there would be no loss. This was because his team had been beaten so badly for so long that the West Indies would take a draw as a win. Gayle partly confirmed as much at the end of the test by stating preventing the loss was the first priority. However, surely when he had men all around the bat for the last session on the last day with 5 wickets to get he must have wondered if he'd made the right decision. The idealist in me says that West Indies cricket followers would have preferred their captain to put the onus on Aus to get a target and keep a result much more probable. If you lose giving it your all and being brave then that's admirable. I would have more respect for Gayle if he'd given Aus 100 overs to make 300 odd by throwing the bat earlier on day 4 and declaring. On the other side there's no doubt he did what he thought best for his team and was committed to the task. On this level, Mr Gayle, I apologise for doubting you.
With neither side making 700 over three days in one innings we had a real test match to watch and West Indies were the better side overall. Full credit to them for making Aus scrap a draw and it bodes well for WA since, while the trophy will remain in Aus, West Indies' pride will not.
With entertaining an esteemed colleague from Melbourne a priority I was less than totally observant of the day's play on Saturday. Really it wasn't a great day's cricket with both teams grinding it out a bit but an impromptu meeting with Joel Garner provided some relief from the sun. My colleague was adamant in his views on West Indies cricket and Big Bird received them well; albeit a little dismissive at times with a wave of his hand.
I continue to be proven wrong in my views on Aus' team with Watson making two good knocks at the top and less troubled by full and straight deliveries than he was in England. Johnson looked as good as he's bowled in months and brought up 50 wickets in the calendar year believe it or not! Bolly was great - I've been a big fan of his for a while and hope that he takes the rock a few more times this summer. Hussey looks very uncomfortable at the crease and Hauritz is fairly consistent. We may have to accept that he won't replicate Tim May's efforts in England in 1993 unless bowling on favourable decks but he is doing a job. While Benn toiled for a 5 for in the first innings he couldn't find rewards from a 5th day wicket so it's worth bearing that in mind when evaluating Hauritz's return.
Bravo demonstrated why Ponting rates him as West Indies' most dangerous player. I wasn't convinced of him but am now a convert. He bowls very very handy overs to complement Roach and bats with traditional West Indies' flare. This may be his undoing at times but will no doubt bring as many runs if not more than Flintoff ever did for England. Big Benn (or 'Suli' as he like to be known) performed miracles in the first innings. It wasn't hot but to bowl so many overs and remaining dangerous is an amazing feat. Roach bowls heat, consistently, and hopefully the WACA is more of the old variety so we see some fizzers past noses. I guess there's little point mentioning Chanderpaul and Sarwan which is a good sign for the West Indies as they were widely touted as their only chance.
Listening to AM radio late on day 4 the West Indies commentator was explaining that Gayle kept batting to ensure there would be no loss. This was because his team had been beaten so badly for so long that the West Indies would take a draw as a win. Gayle partly confirmed as much at the end of the test by stating preventing the loss was the first priority. However, surely when he had men all around the bat for the last session on the last day with 5 wickets to get he must have wondered if he'd made the right decision. The idealist in me says that West Indies cricket followers would have preferred their captain to put the onus on Aus to get a target and keep a result much more probable. If you lose giving it your all and being brave then that's admirable. I would have more respect for Gayle if he'd given Aus 100 overs to make 300 odd by throwing the bat earlier on day 4 and declaring. On the other side there's no doubt he did what he thought best for his team and was committed to the task. On this level, Mr Gayle, I apologise for doubting you.
With neither side making 700 over three days in one innings we had a real test match to watch and West Indies were the better side overall. Full credit to them for making Aus scrap a draw and it bodes well for WA since, while the trophy will remain in Aus, West Indies' pride will not.
Friday, 13 November 2009
...but first, the news
interesting week in world cricket we've had.
Australia retain top ICC ODI pozzy, with the series win over India. If i was in doubt as to whether i was remiss in my writing about these games, the lack of comments from all tells me a contribution was not required.
That said, from the nothing i actually saw and the news reports/scores etc it appeared to have had a lot going on in a well fought contest.
Obviously the first point was the Australian attrition rate: while calls of 'too much cricket for the players' are bandied about, i take the other point- players WANT to opportunity to play, and earn.
It could be said that players will not self-enforce a rest for fear of losing their place, and while this argument has some substance, i can't see how an in-form player that needs to miss a game will not be re-included... then again, we are talking about CA selectors, so anything is possible!
Best of all was the new inclusions lifting and the team pulling together for the result, and credit where it is due, CA did the right thing by both giving new players a run, and bringing in some experienced but little used blokes. Big congrats to Doug the rug on his successful return, what a great way to get ahead of the pack for the upcoming summer.
As a post script on the series, does Daniel Brettig Baggygreen.com really believe that 50 over cricket has come "Roaring back"? I think not! http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=970572
Just because a player says it, doesn't mean people want to watch it! With many venues in India holding less than 50,000 people, a full house is not a massive achievement in a country with such a population and purports to be "cricket mad!"
Back. Back, and not going any where.
Good to see one of my favourite players -big Dan Vettori- back after a knock to the bonce by M. Aamer in a match against Pakistan brought on the release of several lawn tigers and a general feeling of poorliness! It must have been a bit of a wack as it hit the grill and concussed the match winning eastern islander!
Roy - i was just watching the rugby and somehow ended up drinking- Symonds is back to prop up the Bulls for the upcoming one day game against SA. Lefty, if he gets a bowl (he is in to replace paceman C.Swann) can i suggest getting down to the ground and attempting to handicap the wayward champ with the offer of a cold one or 20 from over the fence. That is poor of me given my previous supportive remarks of Symonds... sorry, but given he sees the rest of his career as a T20 player, if he gets a slog on or his gear going with the ball or in the field, the croweaters may need to do a Phar Lap and poison the strapping workhorse!
Punter has assured us (again!) that he is not entertaining the thought of retirement yet. This comes in the wake of Hilditch burying his tongue up the Taswegians blurter with the remark that Ponting going would leave a gulf as wide as that left by the retiring S.K.Warne! Without a doubt the apple islander is an incredible batsman and strangely enough not a terrible ODI captain, but in the wash up how did he change the game of cricket? He didn't! If anything, he has hindered his chance of being a greater batsman by digging in his talons to a captaincy
that as the 'best batsman' he received by default. When CA realize that being a great batsman is not the best credential for holding the position of captain, then we may see better cricketing brains running the show out in the field.
With this in mind i will give Ricky one compliment, at least holding the position hasn't had an major adverse effect on his batting, like many better captains before him; still, how much better could he have been without the chore he is not equipped for?
...as well as.
It looks like the Poms will get Ashes cricket back on free-to-air tv now that it is considered a "crown jewel". Up yours Murdoch!
...and some thoughts.
Watson has expressed an desire to stay at the top of the order, clearly he is effective there, but with Marsh a hard-nut specialist back and batting way down the list, and Ponting having moved himself out of #3 to open (who'd have thought he would budge from that spot?) do Australia need to re-evaluate the order a little? I propose keep Watson opening, Marsh at 3 and Ponting at 4.
Is Lee's latest break down the last at an international level? Hilditch appears set to pursue a bowling squad without the quick. http://www.cricinfo.com/ausvwi09/content/story/434176.html
Fidel Edwards from WI looks to have strained more than his injury prone body by playing truant on his remedial program designed to get him right for the Australian tour and playing Champion League cricket only to pick up a further injury. The action has forced WICB to withhold a contract for Edwards and now has me posing the question, will T20 competitions be filled with recalcitrant, retired and raw players only?
The 'Master Blaster' King Viv has given Gayle a verbal touch up about his attitude. As someone that is a HUUUGGGEE fan of Viv and struggling to cop Gayles anti test opinions i couldn't love this more! Not just content to tell Gayle to get his head right, Viv has even offered up an alternative for the captaincy during the Australian tour in the captain for Trinidad and Tobago. Smokin' Joe must still be a bit mad-for-it as his mans name is Ganga!
...and one i forgot, and a fresh one this morning.
What about the ICC proposal for a play-off test series every other year for the top of the ranking teams. i presume this is by way of an alternative to having a test world cup. The logic being that people from other countries (regions) will be more interested in the results of tests and series that their country is not involved in as everyone jockies for the top positions.
And as if Sachin wasn't already the greatest, he confirmed it overnight by taking a press conferance to talk about his 20th anniverary in the game at international level, and graciously let the 2 hour event go for 6 hours so he could answer all questions in many languages even if they were repeats from another language. This in itself is not great (generous, patient and articulate), what is great was the Master letting it be known his desire for more tests to be played, even pointing the finger at the goliath of the BCCI!
Go Sachin!
Australia retain top ICC ODI pozzy, with the series win over India. If i was in doubt as to whether i was remiss in my writing about these games, the lack of comments from all tells me a contribution was not required.
That said, from the nothing i actually saw and the news reports/scores etc it appeared to have had a lot going on in a well fought contest.
Obviously the first point was the Australian attrition rate: while calls of 'too much cricket for the players' are bandied about, i take the other point- players WANT to opportunity to play, and earn.
It could be said that players will not self-enforce a rest for fear of losing their place, and while this argument has some substance, i can't see how an in-form player that needs to miss a game will not be re-included... then again, we are talking about CA selectors, so anything is possible!
Best of all was the new inclusions lifting and the team pulling together for the result, and credit where it is due, CA did the right thing by both giving new players a run, and bringing in some experienced but little used blokes. Big congrats to Doug the rug on his successful return, what a great way to get ahead of the pack for the upcoming summer.
As a post script on the series, does Daniel Brettig Baggygreen.com really believe that 50 over cricket has come "Roaring back"? I think not! http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=970572
Just because a player says it, doesn't mean people want to watch it! With many venues in India holding less than 50,000 people, a full house is not a massive achievement in a country with such a population and purports to be "cricket mad!"
Back. Back, and not going any where.
Good to see one of my favourite players -big Dan Vettori- back after a knock to the bonce by M. Aamer in a match against Pakistan brought on the release of several lawn tigers and a general feeling of poorliness! It must have been a bit of a wack as it hit the grill and concussed the match winning eastern islander!
Roy - i was just watching the rugby and somehow ended up drinking- Symonds is back to prop up the Bulls for the upcoming one day game against SA. Lefty, if he gets a bowl (he is in to replace paceman C.Swann) can i suggest getting down to the ground and attempting to handicap the wayward champ with the offer of a cold one or 20 from over the fence. That is poor of me given my previous supportive remarks of Symonds... sorry, but given he sees the rest of his career as a T20 player, if he gets a slog on or his gear going with the ball or in the field, the croweaters may need to do a Phar Lap and poison the strapping workhorse!
Punter has assured us (again!) that he is not entertaining the thought of retirement yet. This comes in the wake of Hilditch burying his tongue up the Taswegians blurter with the remark that Ponting going would leave a gulf as wide as that left by the retiring S.K.Warne! Without a doubt the apple islander is an incredible batsman and strangely enough not a terrible ODI captain, but in the wash up how did he change the game of cricket? He didn't! If anything, he has hindered his chance of being a greater batsman by digging in his talons to a captaincy
that as the 'best batsman' he received by default. When CA realize that being a great batsman is not the best credential for holding the position of captain, then we may see better cricketing brains running the show out in the field.
With this in mind i will give Ricky one compliment, at least holding the position hasn't had an major adverse effect on his batting, like many better captains before him; still, how much better could he have been without the chore he is not equipped for?
...as well as.
It looks like the Poms will get Ashes cricket back on free-to-air tv now that it is considered a "crown jewel". Up yours Murdoch!
...and some thoughts.
Watson has expressed an desire to stay at the top of the order, clearly he is effective there, but with Marsh a hard-nut specialist back and batting way down the list, and Ponting having moved himself out of #3 to open (who'd have thought he would budge from that spot?) do Australia need to re-evaluate the order a little? I propose keep Watson opening, Marsh at 3 and Ponting at 4.
Is Lee's latest break down the last at an international level? Hilditch appears set to pursue a bowling squad without the quick. http://www.cricinfo.com/ausvwi09/content/story/434176.html
Fidel Edwards from WI looks to have strained more than his injury prone body by playing truant on his remedial program designed to get him right for the Australian tour and playing Champion League cricket only to pick up a further injury. The action has forced WICB to withhold a contract for Edwards and now has me posing the question, will T20 competitions be filled with recalcitrant, retired and raw players only?
The 'Master Blaster' King Viv has given Gayle a verbal touch up about his attitude. As someone that is a HUUUGGGEE fan of Viv and struggling to cop Gayles anti test opinions i couldn't love this more! Not just content to tell Gayle to get his head right, Viv has even offered up an alternative for the captaincy during the Australian tour in the captain for Trinidad and Tobago. Smokin' Joe must still be a bit mad-for-it as his mans name is Ganga!
...and one i forgot, and a fresh one this morning.
What about the ICC proposal for a play-off test series every other year for the top of the ranking teams. i presume this is by way of an alternative to having a test world cup. The logic being that people from other countries (regions) will be more interested in the results of tests and series that their country is not involved in as everyone jockies for the top positions.
And as if Sachin wasn't already the greatest, he confirmed it overnight by taking a press conferance to talk about his 20th anniverary in the game at international level, and graciously let the 2 hour event go for 6 hours so he could answer all questions in many languages even if they were repeats from another language. This in itself is not great (generous, patient and articulate), what is great was the Master letting it be known his desire for more tests to be played, even pointing the finger at the goliath of the BCCI!
Go Sachin!
Tuesday, 19 May 2009
Isn't a Gayle just a lot of wind?
Thanks Leftriteout for pointing out WI captain Chris Gayles comments on test cricket.
Quite clearly, Gayle did not have his 'game face' on when he stepped off the plane for the English series. Given that the fixture was relatively late in be finalised, it would seem the top Windie doesn't have the fast paced mind his love of short form cricket would imply! Or is his mind so fast paced that he can't comprehend the intricacies of the 5 day game? The results of that series leads me to believe the later.
Or, is he so money focused that he can't see a value to cricket (Test). It has always been a bit of an issue in the West Indies moral (when not winning) that there is no "Nation" to play for, only a region. But I'm sure there would be plenty of young players that would give an unprotected left nut to play at an international level... any form of the game.
Whether Gayle's remarks were just a knee jerk reaction to the rushed nature of the tour, a long flight and the cold weather of Blighty juxtaposed against the tropical Caribbean, it doesn't behove a team captain to denigrate the great game. If Gayle is not inclined to play 5 days for a pay check, I'm sure he can make a years income in the IPL- or is he just too greedy. And that is where I'd prefer him with this attitude!
stoph verismo
down the wicket
Quite clearly, Gayle did not have his 'game face' on when he stepped off the plane for the English series. Given that the fixture was relatively late in be finalised, it would seem the top Windie doesn't have the fast paced mind his love of short form cricket would imply! Or is his mind so fast paced that he can't comprehend the intricacies of the 5 day game? The results of that series leads me to believe the later.
Or, is he so money focused that he can't see a value to cricket (Test). It has always been a bit of an issue in the West Indies moral (when not winning) that there is no "Nation" to play for, only a region. But I'm sure there would be plenty of young players that would give an unprotected left nut to play at an international level... any form of the game.
Whether Gayle's remarks were just a knee jerk reaction to the rushed nature of the tour, a long flight and the cold weather of Blighty juxtaposed against the tropical Caribbean, it doesn't behove a team captain to denigrate the great game. If Gayle is not inclined to play 5 days for a pay check, I'm sure he can make a years income in the IPL- or is he just too greedy. And that is where I'd prefer him with this attitude!
stoph verismo
down the wicket
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