The Cricket Thread

[Erebus Pasha]

Not quite true actually, the WACA has in recent times, been Australia's weakest link in home pitches with the Aus team only managing to win 2 of teh last 5 matches there (not including this test) and one of those matches was a narrow victory against the West Indies a couple of years ago. it just seems England struggle with the pitch for some reason, it didn't really look like it favoured the bowlers that much this year and if Bell hadn't been left to fight with just the bowlers, England could have easily surpassed Australia's first innings total.

I say that because England have only won once there since the 1970/71 Ashes series, and that was at a time when Australia's side had been decimated by the Packer defections. England have never fancied Perth. The only positive in this series is that England haven't been defeated and lost the Ashes at the same time. It's still all to play for.

I remember in the summer of '07 that Australian cricket was so fixed on the pace of the WACA pitch they decided for osme unknown reason to pick Taite in the side expecting him to break the 160 km/hr mark, was a horrible mistake though on recollection Hodge's double century saved the match for us.

Tait's never fancied it. He doesn't have the temperament to be any more than a 20/20 bowler. And I have always liked Brad Hodge. He played for my home county Leicestershire in our 20/20 competition but how is his standing in Aussie cricket nowadays?

I honestly can't see Australia taking a designated spinner to Melbourne. The way the 4 quicks work together was simply brilliant with Hilfenhous setting up quite a few of wickets for both Harris and Johnson to take, with Cook's LBW being an example. Withb Smith in the team it only seems more obvious to not bother with Hauritz, Doherty or Beer, with his leg spins being more than satisfactory on drop in pitch at the 'G which hardly favours spinners, though it doesn't exactly give the pace attack some juice either.

Can't see Smith bowling out a side though, not at this stage of his career. His bowling is still not up to scratch yet. He has a future in the Australian team for sure but at the moment I don't think he is good enough to be at number 6 in the batting line-up and isn't good enough to be considered Australia's premier spin bowler. I think you're right though - Australia won't change a winning line-up for Melbourne. I think they will still go in with four pace bowlers but I think you will see a better display from England's batsman at the MCG. I think England may also drop Collingwood and bring in Bresnan.

[Pra]

Tendulkar gets a record 50 centuries.

[E.K]

Tait's never fancied it. He doesn't have the temperament to be any more than a 20/20 bowler. And I have always liked Brad Hodge. He played for my home county Leicestershire in our 20/20 competition but how is his standing in Aussie cricket nowadays?

Hodge doesnt play test matches anymore only 20/20 and 50 over games for Victoria. Still making centuries for victoria in their games although he is getting a bit too old.

[Yoda Twin]

I say that because England have only won once there since the 1970/71 Ashes series, and that was at a time when Australia's side had been decimated by the Packer defections. England have never fancied Perth. The only positive in this series is that England haven't been defeated and lost the Ashes at the same time. It's still all to play for.

The way the series has panned out is going to make for some riveting cricket at the MCG and SCG in the final two tests and the closeness of the two teams is supposedly going to draw quite a crowd to the MCG with suggestions they'll break 90K.

Tait's never fancied it. He doesn't have the temperament to be any more than a 20/20 bowler. And I have always liked Brad Hodge. He played for my home county Leicestershire in our 20/20 competition but how is his standing in Aussie cricket nowadays?

Hodge has possibly been the most unluckiest Australian cricketer for a long time. WHile utterly dominating the Domestic and First Class competitions within Australia, he's never been given a solid position within the Australian side and it's been suggested by some that he could easily have been as good, if not better than Ponting. He's retired from the Shefield Shield (Our first class competition) however he's still competing in both the ODD's and Twenty - 20's and is still delivering massively for Victoria.

Can't see Smith bowling out a side though, not at this stage of his career. His bowling is still not up to scratch yet. He has a future in the Australian team for sure but at the moment I don't think he is good enough to be at number 6 in the batting line-up and isn't good enough to be considered Australia's premier spin bowler. I think you're right though - Australia won't change a winning line-up for Melbourne. I think they will still go in with four pace bowlers but I think you will see a better display from England's batsman at the MCG. I think England may also drop Collingwood and bring in Bresnan.

I actually didn't realise he was considered an all rounder until his recent selection and was shocked to see him batting over Haddin. His leg spins will probably just play a supportThe 'G's always played well for batters (even bowlers batting if you look at the test against South Africa recently hehe) and it's definately going to be harder for the Australian's.

[Erebus Pasha]

Tendulkar gets a record 50 centuries.

Yes good on him although he was left stranded by his team as they crashed to an innings defeat. It would've been more of a game if the Indians had handled the short stuff better in their first innings. Actually in this match and the Ashes game at Perth it was nice to have pitches that actually did something rather than being a batter's paradise.

[pannonian]

Yes good on him although he was left stranded by his team as they crashed to an innings defeat. It would've been more of a game if the Indians had handled the short stuff better in their first innings. Actually in this match and the Ashes game at Perth it was nice to have pitches that actually did something rather than being a batter's paradise.

A pitch where one side makes 157-0 is a disgrace to cricket. How are bowlers supposed to take wickets on a pitch that offers them no help at all?

[Mr Tom]

Should have chosen different bowlers, England's taken them down for 98.

Aussies bowlers need to perform consistently throughout the series, so lets be honest they havn't.

[Spartacus the Irish]

A pitch where one side makes 157-0 is a disgrace to cricket. How are bowlers supposed to take wickets on a pitch that offers them no help at all?

By bowling wicket-to-wicket and just short of a length, varying the pace, and obviously praying to the cricket gods for a little.

England's bowling was good because they gave Australia very few opportunities to score runs without risk - most of Australia's wickets were lost because they were trying expansive shots in an effort to try and score (Phillip Hughes, Brad Haddin), or playing defensive shots at balls that should have been left.

Australia's batsmen didn't help themselves, however - batting like England did in the last Test, by not leaving balls just outside offstump, and instead wafting or pushing hard at them, offering easy catches behind the wicket; not to take anything away from England's bowling, but the ball was not swinging or seaming viciously. They simply bowled tidily and Australia batted without intelligence.

As for consistency - there is now massive pressure for the Australian bowlers to take five-fer' every innings, simply because of the precedent of Australia's main strike bowler (Mitchell Johnson) having one bad match and being immediately dropped, and others not performing and being summarily dismissed (Bollinger, Doherty); so Australian bowlers seem to be trying too hard sometimes. And that is often a bad thing for a bowler, because sometimes all you should be doing is bowling a line and length to build up pressure for the bowler at the other end, or bowling to a pre-determined plan (for example, in earlier Ashes tests, you do NOT stray down the legside against Ponting - whereas in this series, Ponting has been so out of form that he has been caught twice down the legside. It seems to be something England are occasionally targeting him with, tight bowling down the offside and then a seemingly nice juicy legside delivery that Ponting will try and snatch at, sometimes getting runs, sometimes getting out).

[ShADoW]

Aussies better pray for some rain.

[Yoda Twin]

Yea that was an absolute massacre, Australia are going to have to show some heart if they're even thinking about drawing the test.

[Pra]

This match has become farcically one-sided.

[Spartacus the Irish]

Ponting has lost it. He was a fantastic batsmen, but I think it is really becoming apparent that his ability as a captain and leader are sorely lacking, and have been papered over by the world-class quality that has filled the Australian team in the last decade.

You cannot show disrespect to an umpire; indeed calling for a review of his decision is already a disrespect of sorts. But to then argue against Aleem Dar (Siddle joining in), point at him, raise your voice, then go over and argue with the batsman (Pietersen) and then to go and argue with the second umpire (Tony Hill), is a ing disgrace. Especially so considering Dar has been the best umpire of the series by a country mile, and has made decisions such as Prior's 'dismissal' on 5 being overruled (correctly) for a Mitchell Johnson no-ball.
(This description is from match reports and pictures only, I won't be able to see the highlights themselves until 22:00 tonight (it's 13:00 as I type this), so don't take what I have written as verbatim).

I'm obviously biased by being English, but I would be heartily ashamed of the Australian cricket team, and especially Ponting, in this series.

[Pra]

Chappell is calling for his head. The media are ready to pounce on Ponting and he's feeling the pressure. Sad to see a once great team suffer ignominy.


Anywho, Zaheer is back and boy what a difference did he make to the Indian attack. He is a leader to the bowlers, he helps them bowl to a plan, and is a big part of how India got the number 1 status. He's no pace bowler, but for India he has a McGrath/Pollock-esque presence.

[Spartacus the Irish]

AUS 1st Innings - 98ao
ENG 1st Innings - 512 ao
- Trott 168*
- Prior 85
- Cook 82
- Siddle 33-10-75-6

England lead by 415 runs

This is England's second highest first-innings lead of all time, second only to the Oval Test of 1938 when Len Hutton scored 364 and England made 903-7 declared, for a first-innings lead of 702 (and probably not going to be broken any time soon)

[pannonian]

Chappell is calling for his head. The media are ready to pounce on Ponting and he's feeling the pressure. Sad to see a once great team suffer ignominy.


Anywho, Zaheer is back and boy what a difference did he make to the Indian attack. He is a leader to the bowlers, he helps them bowl to a plan, and is a big part of how India got the number 1 status. He's no pace bowler, but for India he has a McGrath/Pollock-esque presence.

Chaminda Vaas.

[ShADoW]

Anywho, Zaheer is back and boy what a difference did he make to the Indian attack. He is a leader to the bowlers, he helps them bowl to a plan, and is a big part of how India got the number 1 status. He's no pace bowler, but for India he has a McGrath/Pollock-esque presence.

If you guys still had Irfan Pathan as well, in his prime form, your bowling line-up would have been a devastating force.

[E.K]

The problem Australia have is that nobody is ready to captain the side yet.

[Pra]

Chaminda Vaas.

Agreed, he is more Vaas like than the other two. On his own merit, he's good, but he has a great effect on the other bowlers. Sreesanth and Sharma more lethally with him.

If you guys still had Irfan Pathan as well, in his prime form, your bowling line-up would have been a devastating force.

Yeah, if we had 1 more good seamer would make us complete. Pathan almost worked with the Chappell revolution, but like Chappell, began well, and then petered out.

Sharma has heart, but is inconsistent. Sreesanth is too erratic; the two perform decently with Zaheer, but are useless without him.

[Pra]

And another Very Very Special innings from Laxman. He's done this twice this year so far.

Congrats also to English fans on here for what looks like a certain Ashes retaining win.

[pannonian]

From vaughancricket (twitter):

Got fined once as Captain..in Joburg.. Comments about the Umpires.. To he honest I still haven't paid the fine..