The Ashes await....

And so we move on to the next phase of the Australian cricket team’s journey. Cricket, like life goes on. Each series is analysed to death and then forgotten as the next series invades our consciousness, papers and TV screens. And what a series it promises to be, like every Ashes. Australia’s disgraceful pounding in the final test in South Africa raised many questions which cannot simply be explained away by the “dead rubber” syndrome that has many supporters and knockers on this forum.

Bryce McGain had probably the most to play for in either team and has probably played his last test. As happy as he was to receive his baggy green in the grand scheme of things it will turn out to be unfortunate. South Africa were able to throw caution to the wind having already lost the series and what better victim than the debutant leggie? Even the great S K Warne had a shocker of a debut, but not comparable to McGain’s. Perhaps McGain could have been backed by more defensive field settings when it became obvious the Proteas were going after him but he was not alone in the punishment and Ponting had been criticised for that very thing in Australia.

Hussey must now spend the next few months agonising over a career on the wane. He may just be saved for the Ashes if only through his vast experience on Pommie decks but his reprieve will be short lived if he fails early. We all know how many batsmen we have waiting in the wings.

McDonald for me is on borrowed time as well. Hardly a revelation in SA, his bowling is not penetrating enough. I would love to see the Australian selectors bite the bullet and declare Mitch Johnson our all rounder and choose another batsmen or bowler as the situation demanded. He is clearly good enough as demonstrated by his master class to all the “batsmen” in the Australian team on Sunday night. His technique is superb and he strikes the ball so cleanly. Small English grounds will not contain him. Timid English bowlers will be punished.

Hughes is a gun but needs to rein it in when he has to. It will not take bowlers long to identify his problem areas and bowl to them. He will be retained for the Ashes but needs to be patient on swinging decks in Notubland.

I can’t see another cracking series like 2005 or a flogging like 2006. I am predicting 3-1 to the Aussies with a draw thrown in there after the first or second test due to bad weather/light.

Ouch, what just happened?

Let this be a lesson to selection of overseas touring parties: ALWAYS pick backups for each area of your team. This means: batsman (middle order), keeper, pace bowler and spin bowler. Obviously this depends on the depth to choose from; for instance if the spinner you're talking about couldn't turn the ball to save their life don't bother. I know that David Boon used to take the gloves on occasions but with the tendency for keepers now to be more than half-decent batsmen too, I think there's even more reason to include Wade or Manou. When a pace bowler breaks down obviously there needs to be someone to take their place; same goes for a batsman. It begs the question; what were the selectors going to do if Katich or Clarke broke down. With the latter this was certainly going to be a risk. What if it occurred two days before the start of a test (which it has)? Contingency plans are indicative of good preparation. No doubt if North had not eaten some rancid wild boar there would be nothing to say on the issue. But because Aus danced with the culinary devil the great debutant is lying in a hospital bed and the first 11 is missing a number six.

It must also be acknowledged that day one of the third test highlighted how close South Africa and Australia are. If one team is not quite on the ball this is exploited ferociously by their opposition. I would ask, however, if Macdonald is picked as an allrounder then why would he bat at seven while Haddin is put up to six. That being said your top order is picked to do a job (ie take the shine off the new ball and make runs!) and your number eight should be getting bonus runs: not required runs. Whereas it appears RSA has made good changes; at least with their opening batsmen so far, Aus has looked short with the bat and no options that could have prevented such an event .

RSA came out with more purpose and fire than in the previous two tests and the Aus batsmen were not up to the task (save Katich, Haddin and Johnson). This was to be expected as pride is on the line for RSA. Hughes will hopefully have learnt another lesson about intent and respecting the bowling, the selectors will hopefully have learnt a lesson about picking a touring party for England. And Hussey will ideally have learnt a lesson about one's place in the team before the first test of the Ashes when he is dropped.

Sir Vivian Richards unfit to play

The ICC have finally reacted to the absolutely pathetic conditions of the Sir Vivian Richards Antigua ground!

Given that a test against England had the pin pulled on it because the surface was deemed unsafe for players in February, it seems quite hopeless that it has taken this long (over a month- the test was on the 13th) to actually implement any action. The alarm bells must have been ringing well before the test but somehow it was allowed to start... and then be forcibly finished after only 10 balls!

It is all good and well to be developing an academy and training facilities in Dubai, but when an important cricketing region like the West Indies has this happen, is it any wonder athletic kids there chase the dollars in the USA through sports like basketball, when they see "premium venues" in conditions unfit for international contest?

Let's hope the ICC follows up on this debacle with some grass roots support of the area and a commitment of assistance to providing a world class playing venue and surface; not just for cricket, the people of Antigua, or the kids that should one day be the next Windies stars, but to honour again the great man whose name hangs on the gate!

stoph verismo
down the wicket


http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=785527 brief explination
http://icc-cricket.yahoo.com/media-release/2009/March/media-release20090317-49.html detailed from the ICC

Whirlpool....

What a whirlpool of emotions and theories has erupted in the last few months around Australian cricket. Careers have sadly ended , others have shot off into oblivion and sensationally some have ignited. And yet after all the turbulence of these last months we find our much beloved team in much the same place as they were before it all began. The same place, but in a vastly different vehicle. We now find ourselves talking excitedly about our new crop of youngsters not nervously chewing our nails wondering if the old hands can somehow manage one more foray into battle dragging the weak and weary through the trenches. For so long the wisened cricket community had talked up our second tier Sheffield Shield players with bravado suggesting that an Australia A side would probably be the second best team in the world and possibly believed it. That theory was tested and then blown to pieces by a rampaging South Africa hell bent on crushing a hoodoo that had existed for too long. Their series win seemed almost like fate and was helped along by some scratchy Australian form with the bat, ball and worst of all the field. I watched with a mixture of exasperation and disappointment as Australia systematically ruined a second day position of power and wondered the whole day if the game was following some sort of script. Had the ghost of Hansie Cronje righted a wrong? No, it was cricket plain and simple and it was not pretty to watch if you follow the baggy green. But it was good for world cricket. The Australians had been knocked from their high horse and a new sense of opportunity was realised by the struggling and challengers alike. They can be beaten and it could be us. Even the Australian victory in Sydney did nothing to quell the rising confidence of the rest of the world. It was hardly convincing, once again we struggled to finish of a team that should have been dead hours before. A broken handed Graeme Smith almost held on. The feeling was confirmed, the Aussies are ripe for the picking. You just knew some old aristocrat in the UK was polishing up a new batch of OBE's ready for the team once they took back The Ashes.
And then we went to South Africa. And the rest of the world waited for the bloodbath that would surely drag us from our throne once and for all. No Lee, no Hayden, no Symonds, No Clarke. The most inexperienced team to tour in a long, long time. Three debutants in the same test first up. Who would make the runs? Who would take the wickets? It was time, it was destiny. But the rest of the world had maybe not read enough Australian papers to have taken in the cold hard facts of the situation. Our Sheffield Shield is the best domestic competition in the world. An Australia A side could probably be the second best team in the world...

DTW team scoreboard

Because you guys are so supportive, and because you all love cricket as much as i do, i've decided to reward your loyalty to the site and hopefully motivate more to get on board DTW and increase the debate and depth of conversation here.

So here it is, the downthewicket scoreboard:

Scores for POTD (play of the day).

5 points for POTD awarded every day.

50 points for introducing a new member

25 points to person who introduced a new member, when that new member introduces someone else.

10 points when your post gets 10 or more comments from others apart from yourself.

15 points for getting a post on another cricket site or blog that you sign off with, or mention/link downthewicket


The prize will be either a latest release or classic cricket book or cricket DVD of your choice. If the person with the highest score has over 1000 points i'll double the prize!

To allow for new members to accumulate points this will run until the end of the ODI series of the 09/10 Australian summer cricket season.

Play of the day will reset as a new day after a POTD has been awarded- this will allow for all of us living in different timezones/lifestyles.

There are literally hundreds of cricket sites and blogs around the world, so go get 'em tigers!

atb

stoph verismo
downthewicket

Ponting on the Borderline

Ricky Ponting is in a position not experienced by an Australian Captain since Allan Border took the reins of a down and out XI in the Eighties.
Mark Taylor was handed the most important job in the country and a team that had talent and confidence, he was a ruthless attacking captain that backed himself and his team and exploited it talents perfectly.
Steven Waugh is perhaps Australian cricket's luckiest captain, presiding over arguably its best team ever and with Australian cricket's best brain standing in the slips on hand to turn to if and when needed.
We will never know if he was any good as a captain because my Sicilian Great-Grandmother (who's only knowledge of cricket was how to roast them when times were tough) could have led the side with as much distinction.
Ponting took over a hugely successful team with massive amounts of experience to draw on and like any astute and wise leader was not backward in seeking advice both on and off the field.
The team bears no resemblance now to the great teams of the recent years and hundreds of tests worth of experience have been lost. As any-one would expect the team had to go backward before it went forward again.
After a fantastic battle in Australia that could have gone either way and success in the first two tests in South Africa (unexpected by most) a few things have been noticed.
Ponting seems now a General on the field; Gone are the on field discussions between overs and out come the attacking field settings and bowling changes with an authoritarian wave, point nod or word. Ponting is a man in control of his team and his destiny, he has his "own" team now and has had a large hand in shaping it.
Watching on the news at training, he was standing in the umpires position watching both bat and ball, giving encouragement, dispensing advice, "feeling his team", watching, thinking.
Hearing him arrive on the Afican continent with words like "confidence", "attacking" and "positive" it was clear to see that he is taking on the challenge ahead of him when others might have hedged by saying things like "re-building" "inexperienced" and "green"

We are on the way to learning just how good he is and the evidence is looking good.

Bowlers, the ball is in your court (hands!).

Here it comes... the crunch!
With Pontings quick declaration on day 4, the question begs to be asked, can the Aussies make the definitive statement- WE ARE BACK!

The SCG test win may have just been the RSA displaying that typical anomaly- the dead rubber loss. The first South African test displayed to me that the more complete changes made by the selectors have created the nucleus of a competative team; made all the more impressive by Johnson's continued ability to lead the bowling attack, and with Siddle just getting better innings by innings too.

So now we have had the aforementioned players performing, Hughes with back-to-back tons and the team poised to take the series if they can take 7 wickets on the last day. It looks like nearly everyone in team is pulling their weight; a nice change from having bowlers batting better than most of the batsmen, and part time bowlers taking wickets!

Day 4 was hardly the best for cricket viewing: 244 RSA runs and 2 wickets. With Smiths mangled hand, day 5 needs either 302 runs or 7 wickets must fall. On the face of it (if you use the previous day as a benchmark as to how the wicket is playing out), the match looks like fizzing out to a draw... unless this new found Australian bowling structure takes control. There is still plenty within the RSA batting line up- particularly with Kallis and DeVilliers at the crease- but this match, and the series, is really there to be won by the Aussie bowlers, in 3 session or less.

As an Australian, and one that has pushed for team change, i would like to think they can produce a win- preferably in the last session, just to tease it out for viewers/fans/and to break the hearts of the South Africans!

stoph verismo
downthewicket

Durban Demolition

The "green Mamba" pitch at Durban strikes again and its venom is clearly getting stronger as the days click over.

Australia's lower order folded at 352, a score that at any other time would be considered the bare minimum to defend and stay competitive. With all the talk of Johnson now pushing all-rounder status, a duck seemed to burst that bubble and one could not help but wonder if some of the hype had gone to his head... then he was given the ball!

Johnson, showing that he is now well entrenched as an international cricketing superstar, battered South Africa into a bloody pulp! With able assistance from McDonald, and another super tight and constrictive bowling effort from Siddle, Australia truly appear to have the bowling formula and combinations required now to take twenty wickets. Of course a front line spinner is the one key element missing, but unless Hilfenhaus takes it up another notch his position may well be used as the interchange bench. As previously stated, clearly it is desirable to give him as much test experience as possible when England will offer him the best conditions for his talents.

Where as in the Sydney test with Smith missing due to his hand injury Australia felt they had a real chance, his absence again (thanks to a 151km/h Johnson missile) looks unlikely to be the decisive factor in a match where more Australian batsman compiled some sort of score than South Africans. Hussey must consider his 50 a career saver given his recent test form. McKenzie just doesn't do enough regularly and one can't help but wonder how he keeps his spot when RSA cricket looks so good now!

Still, given the momentous turn-arounds all summer between these sides, only a fool would write South Africa off at this (or any!) stage. With two days to go, it once again seems likely that the competitive nature and skills of these teams will provide a full five days of test cricket.