The Consolidated Cricket Thread

[CrittaMagic69]

Tara looking fine as, bloody Cronk

 

[CroydonDog]

Lol @CroydonDog if you’re going to rate my comment optimistic, tell me why you disagree.

Have you not seen the bell taking off when hitting that crack? Did you not see the extra unexpected bounce that led to Harris’ dismissal. Did you not bite India bowling too full early and having almost immediate success once they started to get it right?

Both teams were a bit wasteful at times throughout the day, but 6/277 at the end of the day in this wicket is not a bad position to be in.

I know there were a few bad shots, but overall I think we had the better of play today and I don’t get your pessimism.

I wouldn't say I'm being overly pessimistic, but I dont think Australia won the day by any stretch.

We scored at least 150 - 200 less than we should have. It was the opportunity to really stamp some authority, being 1nil down in the series and with India missing key bowlers, and the Australian batsman again strove for mediocrity. Where is the guy that is going to put their hand up, dig deep, carry the bat through a day, put on 150+ and not throw away their wicket playing shots that no test batsman would have played in their right mind a generation ago? Smith wont be back for a while.

People were celebrating the openers getting half centuries like it was some sort of achievement.

I also like a good contest between btw and ball, but India, with some patience should be able bat on a decent looking pitch and put in sizeable lead... fingers crossed they dont.

 

[DoggiesBoy]

That was a cracking delivery

 

[Haslerhasworms]

So we lost our first 4 wkts for 36 and our last 4 wkts for 16.
Effectively 8/52 and we still get 326 without anyone getting a century.
Bizarre!
See ya later Vijay

 

[CrittaMagic69]

Fuck just put my glasses on and noticed it's Mel and not Tara.

 

[Dognacious]

I wouldn't say I'm being overly pessimistic, but I dont think Australia won the day by any stretch.

We scored at least 150 - 200 less than we should have. It was the opportunity to really stamp some authority, being 1nil down in the series and with India missing key bowlers, and the Australian batsman again strove for mediocrity. Where is the guy that is going to put their hand up, dig deep, carry the bat through a day, put on 150+ and not throw away their wicket playing shots that no test batsman would have played in their right mind a generation ago? Smith wont be back for a while.

People were celebrating the openers getting half centuries like it was some sort of achievement.

I also like a good contest between btw and ball, but India, with some patience should be able bat on a decent looking pitch and put in sizeable lead... fingers crossed they dont.

No not really. Once the cracks started yesterday afternoon it's a bowlers wicket. 50 is a good score on it. India won't get the benefit of batting on the fresh pitch like we did. I reckon they will do well to get 200.

 

[CroydonDog]

No not really. Once the cracks started yesterday afternoon it's a bowlers wicket. 50 is a good score on it. India won't get the benefit of batting on the fresh pitch like we did. I reckon they will do well to get 200.

Well 2 down already... that ball from Hazlewood was sublime.

50 is a decent score, but it's not one to write home about either. We just don't have a matchwinner in the team.

Pitch looks fine to me tbh.

 

[Flanagun]

I wouldn't say I'm being overly pessimistic, but I dont think Australia won the day by any stretch.

We scored at least 150 - 200 less than we should have. It was the opportunity to really stamp some authority, being 1nil down in the series and with India missing key bowlers, and the Australian batsman again strove for mediocrity. Where is the guy that is going to put their hand up, dig deep, carry the bat through a day, put on 150+ and not throw away their wicket playing shots that no test batsman would have played in their right mind a generation ago? Smith wont be back for a while.

People were celebrating the openers getting half centuries like it was some sort of achievement.

I also like a good contest between btw and ball, but India, with some patience should be able bat on a decent looking pitch and put in sizeable lead... fingers crossed they dont.

Fair enough, you’re entitled to your opinion, but I think you’re misjudging the pitch, tbh. That is not a 400 or 500 run wicket. Yes, our batting line up is inexperienced and Head in particular played a stupid shot....Shaun Marsh played a bad one too, but India’s bowlers were not on the money in that first session and I think they missed more opportunities than we did. They are always in the game with two players of the class of Pujara and Kohli in the side, but those two will have to play very well to put India on top, imo. Harris was in great touch and got out to a ball that shot up off the pitch and would have taken any player by surprise. The inconsistent bounce and the way the ball is taking off when it hits that crack suggests to me it’s a wicket that players are never quite set on.

Our score could have been better if we hadn’t played a few rash shots, but for the most part we’ve been batting pretty sensibly, going at around 3 an over. Players make bad decisions under pressure in the heat....especially inexperienced ones (or overrated ones like Marsh) just look at India’s first dig in the first test. They have a much more experienced and settled line up.

I don’t think we were anywhere near perfect, but I think it was our day. Having said that, we’re just entering the pivotal part of the game. If Kohli and Pujara put on a big partnership, that could spell trouble for us. But I’m pretty happy with our position and the efforts of what is a young and inexperienced side.

Smith will be back pretty soon imo. Warner too. Their bans are over in three months and if Langer doesn’t get them back in the side ASAP, he’s nuts. It’s always going to be hard without your two best batsmen. Take Kohli and Pujara out of India’s team and they’d already be out of this test match imo.

In any case, I think we have another pretty good test match shaping up.

 

[Flanagun]

Well 2 down already... that ball from Hazlewood was sublime.

50 is a decent score, but it's not one to write home about either. We just don't have a matchwinner in the team.

Pitch looks fine to me tbh.

Dude, the bounce is up and down and all over the place and there’s an ever widening crack. I think it’s a pretty tough wicket and it’s only going to get harder to bat on. Even if India get a lead they still have to bat last on it. It’s not the worst wicket I’ve seen, but there are definitely a few demons in it. It’s far from one of the roads we’ve become accustomed to in recent seasons.

 

[CroydonDog]

Fair enough, you’re entitled to your opinion, but I think you’re misjudging the pitch, tbh. That is not a 400 or 500 run wicket. Yes, our batting line up is inexperienced and Head in particular played a stupid shot....Shaun Marsh played a bad one too, but India’s bowlers were not on the money in that first session and I think they missed more opportunities than we did. They are always in the game with two players of the class of Pujara and Kohli in the side, but those two will have to play very well to put India on top, imo. Harris was in great touch and got out to a ball that shot up off the pitch and would have taken any player by surprise. The inconsistent bounce and the way the ball is taking off when it hits that crack suggests to me it’s a wicket that players are never quite set on.

Our score could have been better if we hadn’t played a few rash shots, but for the most part we’ve been batting pretty sensibly, going at around 3 an over. Players make bad decisions under pressure in the heat....especially inexperienced ones (or overrated ones like Marsh) just look at India’s first dig in the first test. They have a much more experienced and settled line up.

I don’t think we were anywhere near perfect, but I think it was our day. Having said that, we’re just entering the pivotal part of the game. If Kohli and Pujara put on a big partnership, that could spell trouble for us. But I’m pretty happy with our position and the efforts of what is a young and inexperienced side.

Smith will be back pretty soon imo. Warner too. Their bans are over in three months and if Langer doesn’t get them back in the side ASAP, he’s nuts. It’s always going to be hard without your two best batsmen. Take Kohli and Pujara out of India’s team and they’d already be out of this test match imo.

In any case, I think we have another pretty good test match shaping up.

For me, its not about whether it's a "400 or 500 wicket", but there is simply nobody is standing up and digging in. 322 just isn't enough, at 1nil down to show you mean business. Ricky Ponting even said so - and an RT Ponting is the exact type of batsman every test side needs (or a Hasham Amla or an Alastair Cook)...

 

[DoggiesBoy]

That is what you call a desperate for a wicket review, that was never anything but going over.

 

[coach]

For me, its not about whether it's a "400 or 500 wicket", but there is simply nobody is standing up and digging in. 322 just isn't enough, at 1nil down to show you mean business. Ricky Ponting even said so - and an RT Ponting is the exact type of batsman every test side needs (or a Hasham Amla or an Alastair Cook)...

Or a steve smith....

 

[Flanagun]

For me, its not about whether it's a "400 or 500 wicket", but there is simply nobody is standing up and digging in. 322 just isn't enough, at 1nil down to show you mean business. Ricky Ponting even said so - and an RT Ponting is the exact type of batsman every test side needs (or a Hasham Amla or an Alastair Cook)...

Cook took a while to find his feet at test level too from memory. I don’t think he waltzed straight into the side and started scoring big hundreds. The same is true for a number of greats of the game. Matthew Hayden is one who comes to mind.

Harris looks very good and probably would have kicked on if he didn’t get a very good ball that would have accounted for most players. Head made his name as a T20 player and does still have the odd rash shot in him, but I think he’s trying and the more he plays, the better he will get at maintaining his concentration. Khawaja is very good and stood up in a big way for us against the UAE, but sadly he’s out of sorts at the moment. All players have form slumps.

I don’t know Finch or Handscomb have got what it takes at test level and Shaun Marsh has shown time and time again that he’s too inconsistent at the top level.

I’m not denying we have problems in our batting order, I’m just saying it’s not an easy wicket and overall the team exceeded my expectations on it. I guess it is just a matter of expectation. If you pick young guys amongst players like Marsh and Finch, they will take a while to find their feet. If you take a team’s two best top order players out of the line up, any team will take some time to adapt. I honestly didn’t expect much of our team this summer and considering Khawaja is out of touch and our other most senior batsman Marsh has always been inconsistent, I think there have been some good signs.

I think we have a good foundation there. Harris and Head are showing a lot of promise, Khawaja is great when in form. When Smith and Warner come back, I’m sure those guys will benefit greatly from their experience....if we can find another middle order player, we will have the building blocks of a very formidable top six and team, imo.

Punter was lucky at the beginning of his career. He came into a very strong side that was number one in the world and had plenty of gun players. Still, I can remember times towards the end of his career when the team wasn’t exactly standing up.

The future isn’t looking so bad, the top order has performed much better in the first innings than they did in the last test and we’re in this game (although we really need to break this partnership). If we can jag a wicket soon, we will be back on top.... but the sad reality is, with Smith and Warner out, we don’t have the luxury of relying on two players who are as experienced and classy as Kohli and Pujara.

 

[DoggiesBoy]

What i was worrying out-load about y'day is happening, kohli getting set on this pitch. I think we are in big trouble, if we don't make any in-roads tomorrow morning i think it is going to be an uphill battle from there.

*edit* also for clarity i don't think our bowlers have done anything particularly wrong, after we grabbed a few early wickets india just dug in and batted really well to suit the conditions.

 

[GoTheDoggies]

Flemming is terrible. He's bringing the T20 joke commentary into the Test arena and it's taking it down a level.

 

[Straight18]

Was that a fair enough clean catch fellas ? Kholi dismissal

 

[CroydonDog]

Was that a fair enough clean catch fellas ? Kholi dismissal

Yes. Theres no "bounce" or evidence ball hit the ground first.

And thank fuck Kohli is finally gone. He had the potential to take the game away from Australia.

 

[CroydonDog]

What i was worrying out-load about y'day is happening, kohli getting set on this pitch. I think we are in big trouble, if we don't make any in-roads tomorrow morning i think it is going to be an uphill battle from there.

*edit* also for clarity i don't think our bowlers have done anything particularly wrong, after we grabbed a few early wickets india just dug in and batted really well to suit the conditions.

Thankfully he's now out.

I can imagine millions of Indians are burning effigies of the umpires as we speak.

 

[Haslerhasworms]

Was that a fair enough clean catch fellas ? Kholi dismissal

If the fielder confidently claims it as legit, I'm happy enough with that.
Too many replays/cameras for him to lie.

 

[CroydonDog]

Also seeing kohli with the shits makes it so much more worth it.