Kasper, Tate, Marto, Clarke in....

[Spenno]

So they have picked Kasper and Tate ahead of Gillespie and dropped Hodge for Marto and clarke and kept the pig hunter (Symonds) instead of going back to Watson.

Some pretty good choices i reckon.

Although i would have loved to see Gillespie back in the squad, i watched him in the ING final and he has lost too much pace to be menacing anymore. Kasper is top wicket taker in Pura and takes 3 or 4 every test. Tate took 6 in that ING game but bowled something like 16 wides. Is a wicket taker but needs to work on a lot before he should get a regular spot. But if we need someone to take wickets in the later test he should be given a go.

Hodge is unlucky, no doubt, but Marto and Clarke are classier players and should be in ahead of him.

Watson is ordinary at best at the moment and the pig hunter will nail down a spot. He took forever to become good in ODIs and look at him now! Stick with him i reckon.

Bracken should never be seen in Aussie colours again unless it is swinging. If not don't even think about playing him. ORDINARY!

Any thoughts?....

 

[Winston Smith]

So they have picked Kasper and Tate ahead of Gillespie and dropped Hodge for Marto and clarke and kept the pig hunter (Symonds) instead of going back to Watson.

Some pretty good choices i reckon.

Although i would have loved to see Gillespie back in the squad, i watched him in the ING final and he has lost too much pace to be menacing anymore. Kasper is top wicket taker in Pura and takes 3 or 4 every test. Tate took 6 in that ING game but bowled something like 16 wides. Is a wicket taker but needs to work on a lot before he should get a regular spot. But if we need someone to take wickets in the later test he should be given a go.

Hodge is unlucky, no doubt, but Marto and Clarke are classier players and should be in ahead of him.

Watson is ordinary at best at the moment and the pig hunter will nail down a spot. He took forever to become good in ODIs and look at him now! Stick with him i reckon.

Bracken should never be seen in Aussie colours again unless it is swinging. If not don't even think about playing him. ORDINARY!

Any thoughts?....

mate you're spot on. i'm also disappointed about gillespie, but he's only a shadow of his best.

very happy about tate. don't forget (as richie benaud said) none of the 16 wides that he bowled in ODI are wides in test cricket. tate is good and he'll only get better. can't wait to see him and lee together.

i never liked watson much. symonds is 56 times better than him.

thanx for this update mate

 

[KENNY-DOWALL]

Pretty happy about martyn's return

Good to see tait get a chance and kasper coming back into the line up

Watson isnt that good symonds is a much better all rounder than him

Good luck to the aussies

 

[Winston Smith]

it's tait and not tate. my mistake

 

[.PARANoIR.]

Hodge got dropped already. Poor bastard. He only made a doulble century a few months ago.

Martyn will flop at 4, once again.

Shaun Tait, they go on about how he got 6 in the final. blah blah blah. Most of his wickets were because Gillespie was bowling that well at the other end and the batsmen were trying to put Tait away. Tait will be no where near as effective in test cricket, if they don;t try and go after him, he wont make the big inrodes. But in saying that, I still think that Bracken is a useless hack and that Tait should be in before him.

Id like to see them retain Symonds at 6, before Clarke or Martyn, thatd make more sense. He deserves a go, plus being able to bowl spin and mediums, is a big plus, much better selection than Watson, as he can't bat well enough to be a test 6, nor can be he bowl any good.

For once, except for Bracken, and perhaps Martyn, and leaving out Gillespie, Bichel and Jaques - The Aussie selectors pretty much got it right.

This now brings me to ask..why the hell isn't Kasper on the plane to South Africa right now for the rest of the ODI's?! We sure as hell need him.

 

[Winston Smith]

, I still think that Bracken is a useless hack and that Tait should be in before him.

he sure is. and stuart clark too. fuken useless, both of 'em

 

[.PARANoIR.]

Clark is better than Bracken. Not by much though.

It scares me that the Aussie selectors consider Clark to be the next McGrath

 

[Spenno]

Martyn will flop at 4, once again.

I don't really agree with that. I still have absolutely no idea why they dropped Martyn in the first place. Fine, his ashes series wasn't the greatest but he did get two of the worst decisions i've seen since ponting was given out LBW on debut. Two BIG inside edges that i could see and hear from 10 000 miles away!

In the two year previous to the ashes Martyn was the most successful australian batsman. One bad series (and lets admit it, most of the aussies had a bad series) and they dropped him.

It had scapegoat written all over it. Im glad he is back cause he has the best cover drive in the game. If he fails, send him on his way but he deserves to go out because he really did fail not because the team did and they need to blame it on someone.

 

[.PARANoIR.]

Yes. Not doubting he didn't deserve to be dropped. Because he didnt. He got jewed.

But, he hasn't done anything spectacular in the Pura Cup to warrant a recall