Won 1, Lost 1 and how close were we too taking it 2-0?
Just watched the game and I'm so gutted. We came so close and really, it seemed like it was thrown away. But hats off to the boys on an awesome run of unbeatable cricket in all forms of the game. Sadly the Black Caps ended the run.
The 1st T20i was a good one. Mitchell Johnson came out from the shadows where he'd been hiding most of the summer and delivered a really fine spell of bowling to clean out the Black Caps top order. Our fielding was outstanding in that game with Steven Smith igniting the enthusiasm. Granted, there were some slight below standard moments for the boys in the field but when they were good they were excellent.
David 'Pitbull' Warner & Shane Watson got things off to a flyer as they weren't shy to blast the Kiwi bowlers all over the place. They set the momentum and David Hussey was the man to finish proceedings with a good innings of 47 runs. Victory came by 6 wickets, as predicted by yours truly.
The 2nd T20i was a thrilling match, but nonetheless I am still so upset we didn't get over the finish line. I think it was because chasing down 200+ is really hard to achieve, but the way the boys fought so hard to get there and came so close, that is what's so upsetting.
Cam White nearly got us across the line with the true display of what Power-hitting is all about.
He bashed 64 unbeaten runs off 26 balls with 5 sixes. It was a quality innings and I'm stoked to see him find his feet at long last in both T20 & ODI cricket!
Brad Haddin started things off perfectly in our run chase. His innings was magnificent and he's upped his T20 game to whole other level. He didn't manage the half-century but he hit the ball cleanly with fine timing.
Michael Clarke was able to finally get his head into a T20 innings. He scored his first half-century in T20 cricket, 67 runs off 45 balls.
He had the chance to seal victory with 3 needed off the last ball, which he blasted down to long-on. There was a fumble and I was certain they were going to run three. Pup was only just half-way down the wicket and Tim Southee had all the time to just whip the bails off.
It was a tie!
The Super over was our golden chance to take it. We only managed 6 runs in the over with Southee bowling another excellent over at the death. But the only really bad call of the night was bowling Shaun Tait.
Now don't get my wrong as I rate The Wild Thing, but in a Super over control is the key.
Therefore you need a bowler who can take pace off the ball with good control, has a strong ability to nail their line and length and also be able to generate some pace to add variation as a weapon. Taito is a fast bowler and a part of that skill is that he just lets rip with the ball! Therefore it can go anywhere, but any outside edge could also go anywhere. Let alone the wides that can happen. I was certain Dirk Nannes and Ryan Harris would be the 'go to' options. Earlier performances don't matter when it comes to a strategic choice and my feelings in it not being a good option to bowl Tait was purely strategic. Then again it's not like he had too many runs to defend.
So probably the major hiccup Pup made. Regardless, he's done a really good job as Skipper for the T20's. Punter will be taking over now for the ODI's and Tests.
But all in all it was a special game. The most runs scored in a T20i and our preperations for the T20 Champions Trophy are looking really good.
Must say, it's been a while since we lost a game so probably been brought back down to earth, but atleast it was an exciting match that had so much energy from start to finish.
And now we wait for the ODI's.
Ricky Ponting will be making the trip over to join the Squad with our other ODI specialists, while the T20 clan depart. Shaun Marsh will not be playing due to his back injury.
We gave the Black Caps their chance of victory so now it's time to take them out in the ODI's.
5 games and plenty to play for.
What did all of you think of the T20's and what are your predictions/thoughts ahead of the ODI's?
28 February 2010
23 February 2010
SHANE WATSON: BAGGY GREEN BLOG PLAYER OF THE SUMMER
* Results at the end of the article Long article, but I really do hope you enjoy my article on Shane Watson, the Player of the summer!
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG PLAYER OF THE SUMMER winner: SHANE 'WATTO' WATSON
In 2002 Shane Watson surfaced as a cricketer who had been dubbed by a number of cricket hotshots as a 'special talent'. He even won the Bradman Young Cricketer Award at the Allan Border medal awards in 2002.
When he was called into the Australian side the impression he'd have to make would need to be extraordinary nestled amongst one of the finest Australian cricket teams to ever play the game in not only One Day Internationals, but also Test cricket.
People came to know of Shane Watson, but it would still be 7 years until he'd become a household name of sorts. This was as a result of one big issue which would result in this lengthy wait, and that was constant injury!
Having started out with Queensland he made a move to Tasmania for a short stint to settle himself as an emerging all-rounder and to try make a name for himself in a side that was slightly lower key than the rest of the State sides. He returned to Queensland where he'd spend the bulk of his State days.
From his debut in the 2001/02 season his appearances were rare but each season Shane Watson would be in the team line-up, but by the season of 2004/05 injuries had become a huge problem for him and it ended up becoming an inconsistent pattern for Watto, with a wait and see mentality. He'd be in for a couple of games then out again, then back again and out again. These injuries began to pave the way for other young cricketers, notably Michael Clarke, and slowly but surely each injury was putting Watto back into the shadows of International cricket. It started to seem he'd never build upon a below par start to a potential Test career or become a cemented member of the Squad.
Things began to improve. In the 2007 World Cup he played a crucial innings against New Zealand where he played one of the most exciting, bold innings of his career and it's a personal highlight for me. He was innovative with his shot selection and really pulverized the Black Cap bowlers to execute a late innings assault that was amongst the best you'd find to give your side a winning chance.
He was a key contributor to the 2007 World Cup success and didn't get dismissed once with the bat proving his importance in the middle order.
In the 2007 ICC T20 Trophy against Sri-Lanka he cramped up and while watching the game I immediately thought that was that. It was frustrating to watch a fine young cricketer on the edge of taking his career to a new level when suddenly it was all put back on hold, again!
The selectors were becoming frustrated, the players even seemed to become frustrated but it was disappointment for Watto. This seemed to be the injury that would end it all.
A long time away rehabilitating the body saw Watto return to State cricket where his stats were far from convincing but after a remodeled bowling action and with the departure of most of the players he had come up against on Debut back in the 2001/02 season, it was the golden opportunity for him, the opportunity that would probably be his last one.
In the 2008 season, the Aussies travelled to the Carribbean to take on the Windies. Matthew Hayden pulled out of the tour with an injury when Simon Katich has his golden return ticket to represent the Baggy Green. Not being a specialist ODI player, with Haydos still out of the side, Watto made the trip following a dominating IPL stint where he was the Player of the series. He ended up making his maiden century in the Windies series.
Based upon his brilliant return the selectors gave him a chance to return to the Baggy Green to play India in the Border-Gavaskar Series, but it proved to be a poor series.
Placed in the middle order with a huge reliance upon to deliver with the ball, he didn't meet expectations and was dropped after another failure against New Zealand in Brisbane. However, in ODI cricket he was refreshed and fit, ready to play with the Squad against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi, where he started with a duck (a bit of a trend) but then scored 85* and 116*. It was his 2nd ODI century. It had been the impact he needed for a flight to England. It had come in unexpected circumstances when it seemed he'd used up his chances.
There was a twist to this. It was already assumed he'd play in the ODI series against England after the Ashes, but no one expected a call-up to the Ashes Squad with Andrew McDonald serving as the all-rounder with good results. The twist in the plot got even more surprising as he was called up to open the batting after Phillip Hughes hadn't met the selectors expectations to deliver against England. The Ashes was at stake and Watto was put in as a specialist batsman to focus on opening the batting. This would take his maturity as a batsman and respect as an emerging senior player to a new level and cast aside the media's finger pointing at his abilities! It would also set up his summer that has impressed us!
While the Urn was lost, Watto had showed guts as he took on a tough challenge that tests a cricketers mental toughness and technique. He ended the Ashes with 3 half-centuries in 5 innings.
He played in the ODI's after the Ashes but struggled. The selectors kept the faith and he made the visit to South Africa for the ICC Champions Trophy, which was a tournament he'd walked away from as a match winner in 2006. Could he make another impact?
In the 1st match of the series against the Windies he was bowled for a golden Duck courtesy of a wild in-swinger from Kemar Roach. It was an unwanted pattern that was developing.
It got a bit worse for him as a was dimissed for a duck against India the next game, resulting in three ducks in his last three innings!
While it was concerning to some, I knew he'd turn it around. There was just that aura about Watto's return.
He has that trait Ricky Ponting often speaks of which is when the team are up against a daunting task they rise above it. Watto went on to score two memorable back to back centuries in both the semi-final and final. In the final he ended the game with a six, and brought his century up in victorious style. It was a dream end for him to a series that was a major one for Australia!
His celebrations reflected that. In the moment of this heroic closure to the tournament, I cast my mind back to his career, the constant injuries, the way he just couldn't show his true class and how he was never taken too seriously. It was a sign of breaking free, overcoming the mental challenge that cricket presents to the elite players and it was a perfect conclusion to the moment. Watto had arrived!
He started the summer with a duck. Yes, another duck! But it didn't take long for him to string together the following scores against the Windies:
0, 96, 48, 89, 30.
He had lucked out on a maiden-century the 'Gabba, and at Perth he'd come just as close! Australia faced an issue with no-one being able to make the triple figure mark. Who would it be?
Starting out against Pakistan it happened again! It seemed surreal as he was dismissed for 93, run out! Watto was facing a huge challenge. He'd need to overcome the century barrier and utilise every bit of stamina, mental preparation and self-belief he'd developed over the years. On 99 the very next innings it had to happen. He cut the ball and it was about to be caught, not again! Then it happened, the catch was spilled and Watto darted for that one valuable run! He had reached his maiden Test century in a gripping fashion.
The very next Test he scored another ninety and was dismissed. Despite the comedy of it and definite frustration, it was a dream summer with the Baggy Green. His scores against Pakistan were:
93, 120*, 6, 97, 29, 1. That's 346 runs averaging 69.20.
Looking back on it it could have been 4 possible centuries, maybe 5. Imagine that to the Stats.
To round it off he also managed 13 wickets with effective medium paced seam bowling, with glimpses of reverse-swing.
The Tests were over and it was time to make an impression in the ODI's.
He had a modest start to the ODI's against Pakistan, where he only played 3 games:
107 runs, 1 half-century, average 35.66 and 6 wickets. He was playing the all-rounders role though as an important member of the ODI side to contribute with the ball too.
His final innings of 51 against the Windies was an entertaining way to wrap up his summer, and in the series ended second on the Stats list behind Ricky Ponting:
189 runs, Highest score 59, Average 47.25, Strike-rate 95.93, 3 Half-centuries in 4 matches .
He batted with aggression and unshakable confidence backed by his instincts that makes an opener stand-out in ODI cricket. These attributes are clear when you see Opening specialists like Matthew Hayden, Virender Sehwag, Adam Gilchrist and Chris Gayle. He can bowl at any time of an innings in any form of the game while being able to positively shift his focus to his batting duties. He did a grand job of this in the ODI's, while his biggest impact was indeed during the Test matches.
The T20's were his final moment to leave a lasting impact for the summer for all of us cricket enthusiasts as well as a way to end his golden summer.
With David 'Pitbull' Warner, the two of them ripped apart the Windies bowlers as they basically won the match. Watto scored 62* unbeaten runs with 4 sixes and 4 fours with the usual classy strokes but he made it into a T20 specialist innings. His timing was awesome and he also delivered with the ball. It was the ideal way to leave the ideal impact on the viewers and his contributions to an unbeaten summer are evident.
He's got an exciting style to his batting which makes him an entertaining Test cricketer who can easily change gears in his innings and has no confidence issues to launch at the new ball during the 1st session of a Test match.
He overcame the nervous nineties to finally turn a childhood dream into a reality in scoring that century, which had seemed to remain nothing but a dream a few years back. Injury after injury set his career back, but showing determination and hard work to return to the side he's back.
So to see him with the Baggy Green Cap again and as a regular member of the Squad who has remained level headed despite a prolific season and summer, it is admirable and I'm proud to see Shane Watson emerge as not only the Allan Border medalist winner. The readers of The Baggy Green Blog seem to agree that he is indeed the 'Player of the Summer'.
With a few more games in a cemented role and the growing realisation that he is the opening batsman for Australia it makes his 2011 World Cup look set to be a really big one, but the Ashes will be the next big agenda! But I'm sure Watto would admit he's just pleased to be playing cricket again with consistency and that the tour to New Zealand will be his next test.
It's been a unique journey and what lies ahead for this versatile cricketer is very exciting.
Having also met Watto I can make a public statement here in saying he is an allround top bloke. I wish him nothing but success at the elite level. Proud of you mate!
----------------------------------------------------------------
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG PLAYER OF THE SUMMER Poll:
Shane Watson: 16 votes, 61%
Doug Bollinger: 10 votes, 38%
Nathan Hauritz: 6 votes, 23%
Michael Hussey: 6 votes, 23%
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG EMERGING PLAYER OF THE SUMMER Poll:
Doug Bollinger: 9 votes, 60%
Ryan Harris: 5 votes, 33%
Douggie B has captured the attention of many cricket enthusiasts. He has the Merv Hughes like personality when it comes to interacting with the crowd but it was mostly his bowling that secured this award. Stepping in after Hilfy was struck by injury, Douggie B was effective in both the Tests and ODIs. Quick, ambitious, a mean attitude and of course awkard bounce at the batsmen paved the way for his emergence as an attacking pace bowler at the elite level. He did a fine job and is now emerging as a key bowler. How can we forget his fun with Chris Gayle. Dismissed 6 times over the summer. Bollinger who?
Ryano made a dream return to the side, but I imagine your votes were mostly due to the fact Douggie B was there for the entire summer. None the less Ryano was awesome.
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG SILENT ASSASSIN OF THE SUMMER Poll:
Brad Haddin: 5 votes, 62%
Nathan Hauritz: 4 votes, 50%
This poll was close, although before I closed it it seemed the votes had gone a bit chaotic so hope it wasn't a Blogger bug. Anyways, Hads came out first on your votes.
Brad Haddin was my personal best, so I agree with all of you.
He had loads of questions about his standards behind the stumps, as did Ritz regarding what he could deliver this summer.
I am not in any doubt Hads is currently the best 'Keeper of the lot in International cricket. He took a stack of catches that many 'Keepers dream to take and they were all really important catches too, notably the one to get rid of Salman Butt during the SCG Test. His batting was well below par but his flawless work behind the stumps gave our bowlers many wickets and boosted us too many victories with silent effectiveness. I say it again, those catches he took were bloody awesome! Screamers!
As for Ritz, two 5 wicket hauls this summer and highly effective batting. The mans contributions should not be under estimated and not forgotten. NSP better note it!
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG PLAYER OF THE SUMMER winner: SHANE 'WATTO' WATSON
In 2002 Shane Watson surfaced as a cricketer who had been dubbed by a number of cricket hotshots as a 'special talent'. He even won the Bradman Young Cricketer Award at the Allan Border medal awards in 2002.
When he was called into the Australian side the impression he'd have to make would need to be extraordinary nestled amongst one of the finest Australian cricket teams to ever play the game in not only One Day Internationals, but also Test cricket.
People came to know of Shane Watson, but it would still be 7 years until he'd become a household name of sorts. This was as a result of one big issue which would result in this lengthy wait, and that was constant injury!
Having started out with Queensland he made a move to Tasmania for a short stint to settle himself as an emerging all-rounder and to try make a name for himself in a side that was slightly lower key than the rest of the State sides. He returned to Queensland where he'd spend the bulk of his State days.
From his debut in the 2001/02 season his appearances were rare but each season Shane Watson would be in the team line-up, but by the season of 2004/05 injuries had become a huge problem for him and it ended up becoming an inconsistent pattern for Watto, with a wait and see mentality. He'd be in for a couple of games then out again, then back again and out again. These injuries began to pave the way for other young cricketers, notably Michael Clarke, and slowly but surely each injury was putting Watto back into the shadows of International cricket. It started to seem he'd never build upon a below par start to a potential Test career or become a cemented member of the Squad.
Things began to improve. In the 2007 World Cup he played a crucial innings against New Zealand where he played one of the most exciting, bold innings of his career and it's a personal highlight for me. He was innovative with his shot selection and really pulverized the Black Cap bowlers to execute a late innings assault that was amongst the best you'd find to give your side a winning chance.
He was a key contributor to the 2007 World Cup success and didn't get dismissed once with the bat proving his importance in the middle order.
In the 2007 ICC T20 Trophy against Sri-Lanka he cramped up and while watching the game I immediately thought that was that. It was frustrating to watch a fine young cricketer on the edge of taking his career to a new level when suddenly it was all put back on hold, again!
The selectors were becoming frustrated, the players even seemed to become frustrated but it was disappointment for Watto. This seemed to be the injury that would end it all.
A long time away rehabilitating the body saw Watto return to State cricket where his stats were far from convincing but after a remodeled bowling action and with the departure of most of the players he had come up against on Debut back in the 2001/02 season, it was the golden opportunity for him, the opportunity that would probably be his last one.
In the 2008 season, the Aussies travelled to the Carribbean to take on the Windies. Matthew Hayden pulled out of the tour with an injury when Simon Katich has his golden return ticket to represent the Baggy Green. Not being a specialist ODI player, with Haydos still out of the side, Watto made the trip following a dominating IPL stint where he was the Player of the series. He ended up making his maiden century in the Windies series.
Based upon his brilliant return the selectors gave him a chance to return to the Baggy Green to play India in the Border-Gavaskar Series, but it proved to be a poor series.
Placed in the middle order with a huge reliance upon to deliver with the ball, he didn't meet expectations and was dropped after another failure against New Zealand in Brisbane. However, in ODI cricket he was refreshed and fit, ready to play with the Squad against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi, where he started with a duck (a bit of a trend) but then scored 85* and 116*. It was his 2nd ODI century. It had been the impact he needed for a flight to England. It had come in unexpected circumstances when it seemed he'd used up his chances.
There was a twist to this. It was already assumed he'd play in the ODI series against England after the Ashes, but no one expected a call-up to the Ashes Squad with Andrew McDonald serving as the all-rounder with good results. The twist in the plot got even more surprising as he was called up to open the batting after Phillip Hughes hadn't met the selectors expectations to deliver against England. The Ashes was at stake and Watto was put in as a specialist batsman to focus on opening the batting. This would take his maturity as a batsman and respect as an emerging senior player to a new level and cast aside the media's finger pointing at his abilities! It would also set up his summer that has impressed us!
While the Urn was lost, Watto had showed guts as he took on a tough challenge that tests a cricketers mental toughness and technique. He ended the Ashes with 3 half-centuries in 5 innings.
He played in the ODI's after the Ashes but struggled. The selectors kept the faith and he made the visit to South Africa for the ICC Champions Trophy, which was a tournament he'd walked away from as a match winner in 2006. Could he make another impact?
In the 1st match of the series against the Windies he was bowled for a golden Duck courtesy of a wild in-swinger from Kemar Roach. It was an unwanted pattern that was developing.
It got a bit worse for him as a was dimissed for a duck against India the next game, resulting in three ducks in his last three innings!
While it was concerning to some, I knew he'd turn it around. There was just that aura about Watto's return.
He has that trait Ricky Ponting often speaks of which is when the team are up against a daunting task they rise above it. Watto went on to score two memorable back to back centuries in both the semi-final and final. In the final he ended the game with a six, and brought his century up in victorious style. It was a dream end for him to a series that was a major one for Australia!
His celebrations reflected that. In the moment of this heroic closure to the tournament, I cast my mind back to his career, the constant injuries, the way he just couldn't show his true class and how he was never taken too seriously. It was a sign of breaking free, overcoming the mental challenge that cricket presents to the elite players and it was a perfect conclusion to the moment. Watto had arrived!
He started the summer with a duck. Yes, another duck! But it didn't take long for him to string together the following scores against the Windies:
0, 96, 48, 89, 30.
He had lucked out on a maiden-century the 'Gabba, and at Perth he'd come just as close! Australia faced an issue with no-one being able to make the triple figure mark. Who would it be?
Starting out against Pakistan it happened again! It seemed surreal as he was dismissed for 93, run out! Watto was facing a huge challenge. He'd need to overcome the century barrier and utilise every bit of stamina, mental preparation and self-belief he'd developed over the years. On 99 the very next innings it had to happen. He cut the ball and it was about to be caught, not again! Then it happened, the catch was spilled and Watto darted for that one valuable run! He had reached his maiden Test century in a gripping fashion.
The very next Test he scored another ninety and was dismissed. Despite the comedy of it and definite frustration, it was a dream summer with the Baggy Green. His scores against Pakistan were:
93, 120*, 6, 97, 29, 1. That's 346 runs averaging 69.20.
Looking back on it it could have been 4 possible centuries, maybe 5. Imagine that to the Stats.
To round it off he also managed 13 wickets with effective medium paced seam bowling, with glimpses of reverse-swing.
The Tests were over and it was time to make an impression in the ODI's.
He had a modest start to the ODI's against Pakistan, where he only played 3 games:
107 runs, 1 half-century, average 35.66 and 6 wickets. He was playing the all-rounders role though as an important member of the ODI side to contribute with the ball too.
His final innings of 51 against the Windies was an entertaining way to wrap up his summer, and in the series ended second on the Stats list behind Ricky Ponting:
189 runs, Highest score 59, Average 47.25, Strike-rate 95.93, 3 Half-centuries in 4 matches .
He batted with aggression and unshakable confidence backed by his instincts that makes an opener stand-out in ODI cricket. These attributes are clear when you see Opening specialists like Matthew Hayden, Virender Sehwag, Adam Gilchrist and Chris Gayle. He can bowl at any time of an innings in any form of the game while being able to positively shift his focus to his batting duties. He did a grand job of this in the ODI's, while his biggest impact was indeed during the Test matches.
The T20's were his final moment to leave a lasting impact for the summer for all of us cricket enthusiasts as well as a way to end his golden summer.
With David 'Pitbull' Warner, the two of them ripped apart the Windies bowlers as they basically won the match. Watto scored 62* unbeaten runs with 4 sixes and 4 fours with the usual classy strokes but he made it into a T20 specialist innings. His timing was awesome and he also delivered with the ball. It was the ideal way to leave the ideal impact on the viewers and his contributions to an unbeaten summer are evident.
He's got an exciting style to his batting which makes him an entertaining Test cricketer who can easily change gears in his innings and has no confidence issues to launch at the new ball during the 1st session of a Test match.
He overcame the nervous nineties to finally turn a childhood dream into a reality in scoring that century, which had seemed to remain nothing but a dream a few years back. Injury after injury set his career back, but showing determination and hard work to return to the side he's back.
So to see him with the Baggy Green Cap again and as a regular member of the Squad who has remained level headed despite a prolific season and summer, it is admirable and I'm proud to see Shane Watson emerge as not only the Allan Border medalist winner. The readers of The Baggy Green Blog seem to agree that he is indeed the 'Player of the Summer'.
With a few more games in a cemented role and the growing realisation that he is the opening batsman for Australia it makes his 2011 World Cup look set to be a really big one, but the Ashes will be the next big agenda! But I'm sure Watto would admit he's just pleased to be playing cricket again with consistency and that the tour to New Zealand will be his next test.
It's been a unique journey and what lies ahead for this versatile cricketer is very exciting.
Having also met Watto I can make a public statement here in saying he is an allround top bloke. I wish him nothing but success at the elite level. Proud of you mate!
----------------------------------------------------------------
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG PLAYER OF THE SUMMER Poll:
Shane Watson: 16 votes, 61%
Doug Bollinger: 10 votes, 38%
Nathan Hauritz: 6 votes, 23%
Michael Hussey: 6 votes, 23%
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG EMERGING PLAYER OF THE SUMMER Poll:
Doug Bollinger: 9 votes, 60%
Ryan Harris: 5 votes, 33%
Douggie B has captured the attention of many cricket enthusiasts. He has the Merv Hughes like personality when it comes to interacting with the crowd but it was mostly his bowling that secured this award. Stepping in after Hilfy was struck by injury, Douggie B was effective in both the Tests and ODIs. Quick, ambitious, a mean attitude and of course awkard bounce at the batsmen paved the way for his emergence as an attacking pace bowler at the elite level. He did a fine job and is now emerging as a key bowler. How can we forget his fun with Chris Gayle. Dismissed 6 times over the summer. Bollinger who?
Ryano made a dream return to the side, but I imagine your votes were mostly due to the fact Douggie B was there for the entire summer. None the less Ryano was awesome.
THE BAGGY GREEN BLOG SILENT ASSASSIN OF THE SUMMER Poll:
Brad Haddin: 5 votes, 62%
Nathan Hauritz: 4 votes, 50%
This poll was close, although before I closed it it seemed the votes had gone a bit chaotic so hope it wasn't a Blogger bug. Anyways, Hads came out first on your votes.
Brad Haddin was my personal best, so I agree with all of you.
He had loads of questions about his standards behind the stumps, as did Ritz regarding what he could deliver this summer.
I am not in any doubt Hads is currently the best 'Keeper of the lot in International cricket. He took a stack of catches that many 'Keepers dream to take and they were all really important catches too, notably the one to get rid of Salman Butt during the SCG Test. His batting was well below par but his flawless work behind the stumps gave our bowlers many wickets and boosted us too many victories with silent effectiveness. I say it again, those catches he took were bloody awesome! Screamers!
As for Ritz, two 5 wicket hauls this summer and highly effective batting. The mans contributions should not be under estimated and not forgotten. NSP better note it!
AUSSIE T20 SQUAD WALLOP THE WINDIES
I had initially typed an article on the match, but the Blogger server screwed up and didn't save my writing.
I don't have the energy to recall what I said, but simply put, 'what a summer'!
The boys ended the summer unbeaten and it's good to see them in good form with T20 cricket. It seems the NSP has finally gotten it right with the players they are selecting for T20 cricket.
David Warner was explosive out there and his innings was spectacular. If you didn't catch it you better make a plan. It was an innings I will not forget and it was sheer entertainment.
Shane Watson ended his summer off with a glorius innings as he was unbeaten of 62* runs. Could it have ended any better for Watto? Doubt it.
Pitbull Warner's fifty was the 2nd fastest in T20i's and he beat his previous best by 1 ball, done on his debut which seems ages ago now.
Watto was classy in his innings and his half-century was parcially overshadowed by Warner's efforts. His strike-rate was right up there and the two of them were demons with the bat who made a mockery of the Windies' total.
Dan Christian was able to end it off with a heave for four on his debut. He also picked up 2 wickets.
Earlier our bowlers had done another splendid job. Our bowlers have been a highlight of the summer and it all started with Ben Hilfenhaus at the 'Gabba in the 1st Test versus the Windies. Ryan Harris made his T20 debut and unsurprisingly he was in there with the wickets. He picked up 2 wickets.
Steven Smith has made the midwicket boundary his own turf. He took another flying catch on the boundary, making it his third thrilling take in just his 3rd T20i. What a rippa it was and he has the energy about him that you just can't keep out of the game as it just ripples from the crowds to the team.
Our bowlers contained the Windies and that was good enough to lead the way for towering sixes, big bashes and an 8 wicket victory, courtesy of Player of the match David Warner and the impressive Watto.
The results for the summer:
5 Test victories, 9 ODI victories and 3 T20 victories.
I think Cricket Australia will need to seriously consider how they manage the summer fixtures in future and it seems the players are waking up to Overkill cricket.
Rahul Dravid recently spoke about it for Indian cricket. Now we wait to see if things get changed to ensure Tests and ODI's have the thrill and anticipation element to them.
Tomorrow the Baggy Green Reader awards will be revealed.
The Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer will be revealed as well as your votes for the Emerging player of the summer and The Silent Assassin of the summer.
Cast your vote now for the Silent Assassin.
Basically put, who do you think was the player amongst the candidates who made a huge impact this summer but did so with a relatively low profile? All four of those guys did it but who was your ideal?
I have also prepared an article on the Player of the summer.
I don't have the energy to recall what I said, but simply put, 'what a summer'!
The boys ended the summer unbeaten and it's good to see them in good form with T20 cricket. It seems the NSP has finally gotten it right with the players they are selecting for T20 cricket.
David Warner was explosive out there and his innings was spectacular. If you didn't catch it you better make a plan. It was an innings I will not forget and it was sheer entertainment.
Shane Watson ended his summer off with a glorius innings as he was unbeaten of 62* runs. Could it have ended any better for Watto? Doubt it.
Pitbull Warner's fifty was the 2nd fastest in T20i's and he beat his previous best by 1 ball, done on his debut which seems ages ago now.
Watto was classy in his innings and his half-century was parcially overshadowed by Warner's efforts. His strike-rate was right up there and the two of them were demons with the bat who made a mockery of the Windies' total.
Dan Christian was able to end it off with a heave for four on his debut. He also picked up 2 wickets.
Earlier our bowlers had done another splendid job. Our bowlers have been a highlight of the summer and it all started with Ben Hilfenhaus at the 'Gabba in the 1st Test versus the Windies. Ryan Harris made his T20 debut and unsurprisingly he was in there with the wickets. He picked up 2 wickets.
Steven Smith has made the midwicket boundary his own turf. He took another flying catch on the boundary, making it his third thrilling take in just his 3rd T20i. What a rippa it was and he has the energy about him that you just can't keep out of the game as it just ripples from the crowds to the team.
Our bowlers contained the Windies and that was good enough to lead the way for towering sixes, big bashes and an 8 wicket victory, courtesy of Player of the match David Warner and the impressive Watto.
The results for the summer:
5 Test victories, 9 ODI victories and 3 T20 victories.
I think Cricket Australia will need to seriously consider how they manage the summer fixtures in future and it seems the players are waking up to Overkill cricket.
Rahul Dravid recently spoke about it for Indian cricket. Now we wait to see if things get changed to ensure Tests and ODI's have the thrill and anticipation element to them.
Tomorrow the Baggy Green Reader awards will be revealed.
The Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer will be revealed as well as your votes for the Emerging player of the summer and The Silent Assassin of the summer.
Cast your vote now for the Silent Assassin.
Basically put, who do you think was the player amongst the candidates who made a huge impact this summer but did so with a relatively low profile? All four of those guys did it but who was your ideal?
I have also prepared an article on the Player of the summer.
22 February 2010
BRETT LEE SET TO HANG UP THE BAGGY GREEN
While it is not official as such, it seems the media may have this one right.
The word out there is that Brett Lee is set to retire from Test cricket.
Even so, it will be sad news when he makes a statement.
Binga has been sensational for us and one of the greatest PACE bowlers we've ever seen in World Cricket.
Fast, competitive and intimidating with the shiny red ball he really could take apart the best, and his 310 victims will clarify that!
But with the amount of cricket (overkill cricket) we see nowadays and with options opening up for the newly retired player it is not a total surprise.
The frustration probably came up on him with the constant let down due to injury which has more often than not required him to go under the surgery knife.
To get back out there and throw your body at hours of bowling with the body taking one hell of a beating, it can't be easy. Test cricket is very much a mental game and this has an impact.
I understand this and I am pretty sure what his reasoning will be.
He's had a really rough two years has Binga and whatever his decision is I'm supporting the Champ either way.
He is a Champ and a gentleman at that too. He takes the time for his supporters, will somehow find a smile and if he needs to knock the batsman's head off it wasn't ever problem! So we will know soon enough (speculation is that Friday we hear the official word) when and if Binga will indeed be hanging up his Baggy Green which has unquestionably been a serving testament to a special career in Test cricket.
Dating back to 1999 and remembering him as a fresh young man with an uncertain but eagerly followed career, it has been a damn good run for Binga.
Hopefully it won't be the end for an ODI and T20i career with the Green and Gold as I sure as hell want to see more from him, but as far as Test's go it is time for new bloody out there perhaps but Binga...cheers to a fine career for the Baggy Greens mate!
Brett Lee; Baggy Green number 383
The word out there is that Brett Lee is set to retire from Test cricket.
Even so, it will be sad news when he makes a statement.
Binga has been sensational for us and one of the greatest PACE bowlers we've ever seen in World Cricket.
Fast, competitive and intimidating with the shiny red ball he really could take apart the best, and his 310 victims will clarify that!
But with the amount of cricket (overkill cricket) we see nowadays and with options opening up for the newly retired player it is not a total surprise.
The frustration probably came up on him with the constant let down due to injury which has more often than not required him to go under the surgery knife.
To get back out there and throw your body at hours of bowling with the body taking one hell of a beating, it can't be easy. Test cricket is very much a mental game and this has an impact.
I understand this and I am pretty sure what his reasoning will be.
He's had a really rough two years has Binga and whatever his decision is I'm supporting the Champ either way.
He is a Champ and a gentleman at that too. He takes the time for his supporters, will somehow find a smile and if he needs to knock the batsman's head off it wasn't ever problem! So we will know soon enough (speculation is that Friday we hear the official word) when and if Binga will indeed be hanging up his Baggy Green which has unquestionably been a serving testament to a special career in Test cricket.
Dating back to 1999 and remembering him as a fresh young man with an uncertain but eagerly followed career, it has been a damn good run for Binga.
Hopefully it won't be the end for an ODI and T20i career with the Green and Gold as I sure as hell want to see more from him, but as far as Test's go it is time for new bloody out there perhaps but Binga...cheers to a fine career for the Baggy Greens mate!
Brett Lee; Baggy Green number 383
21 February 2010
1st T20i vs the WINDIES: ANOTHER VICTORY
It was nice to watch some T20 cricket with the Bellerive Oval under lights, not having to moan about the ICC or moronic cricketing fixtures.
It's also been good to stay undefeated this summer, one game to go though.
In hindsight looking at this T20, we made more runs than we did against Pakistan, although one major area to note is from overs 10-15 we tend to lose momentum and wickets! To win the ICC T20 Champions Trophy we will need to find a way to just up our game to a better consistency level in this period of play. Perhaps easing singles and two's instead of going for glory.
If we can tweak it, I am certain we'll be in a good shape to be more competitive in T20 cricket. Until recently we haven't been that good.
The crowd were fantastic and there was alot of really fine cricket to appreciate by this group of players. Appreciation sometimes gets neglected for the players so that's something I'd like to note.
David Warner got off to an exciting start, he rarely doesn't.
That one six was enormous! Type of shot you would play on the Playstation 2.
He has been finding consistency in the middle with his performances and dammit he's awesome to watch when he finds the middle of the bat. The Pitbull dominates the crease and with his power hitting he's always exciting to watch. Gutted he fell 1 short of a half-century to a really soft dismissal, but we have 1 game to go still!
Shane Watson was also outstanding. He played two fine shots for six to the deep midwicket boundary that flew into the crowd...including some spectacular crowd catches. I reckon the Watto/Warner combo is going to be the way to go for T20i's.
I recommend you try watch their partership on a highlights package if you missed it.
The two of them really did a brilliant job for us.
Things fell apart in the middle of the innings - as mentioned - but Brad Haddin did a really good job. He hasn't really done too well in T20 cricket with the bat and has in fact had a bit of a tough time with the bat all summer long. His Wicket Keeping has been unquestionably perfect but tonight's game allowed him to play a really good innings.
I have mentioned many times that I find Hads to be one of the best stroke makers in modern day cricket and tonight he showed a fine example of classy hitting, piercing the gaps with expert timing and a few big heaves over the ropes. He did a terrific job to get us into a really competitive postion and then his 'Keeping was fantastic yet again.
179 was far better than our job against Pakistan and with the way our bowlers have not only performed all summer, but also in that 1st T20 against Pakistan, that was total that'd give them a really good chance to take the game.
Shaun 'The Wild Thing' Tait was on fire. Easily clocking them in at 150km/h+ he has been a demon with the ball. Chris Gayle bowled (playing a terrible shot) and then Cam White taking a blinder of a catch at first slip to get rid of Deonarine. The hat trick was on, but Kieron Pollard just defended it.
But then he made the defining blow to get rid Pollard. A ball than ripped off the deck, rushed to the edge of the bat, Pollard was taken by surprise and it was 4 down for the Windies!
Dirk Nannes, who will not be representing the Netherlands anymore I reckon, cashed in with a good opening spell. With Taito's ferocious display of pace bowling, the pressure was right off him.
I must mention that that catch of Watto's was really well taken. Those catches are very difficult to take when they fly behind you and trust me he made it look easy. It gave Mitchell Johnson his 1st wicket for the night.
And on that note, anyone see Steven Smith's boundary catch? WHAT A BLOODY SPECTACULAR CATCH! Leaping in the air, throwing his arms out there he took it just in his finger tips and that ball was heading for a maximum! A special catch and as a I said on Twitter, you can sense the enthusiasm of our young players.
Mitch had a 2nd wicket which certainly made Mithell's night a hell of alot better.
I see Elyssa Perry also took an excellent catch for the Southern Stars in their T20 against the Black Caps, they ended up just losing their match.
Ramdin and Morton put up a really good fight, showing some toughness, as they tried to make the Windies' efforts look more consolidated. They ended up playing some big shots. All these efforts too late?
Yes. Ramdin was caught out after a conference between Pitbull Warner and Dirty Dirk and then Steve Smith took another brilliant catch on the boundary to get the big wicket of Morton. It was all over for the Windies after they were 4 wickets down anyway. Just great to see such excellent fielding throughout the innings.
The standards were set high and no one let the side down.
Well done to Michael Clarke on his Captaincy of this T20 Squad. Ricky Ponting led us excellently this summer and really inspired the Squad from the Baggy Green to the Green & Gold, so Pup has followed in his wake really smoothly.
Victory by 38 runs! Top batting from Pitbull Warner, Watto and Hads, then followed up by a wild spell from The Wild Thing Tait with backing up from the bowlers. The fielding was special with a display of the high standards I've mentioned and Steve Smith settled into the benchmark perfectly.
Shaun Tait takes the Player-of-the-match award and it was a special performance from the boys tonight. He's been on fire for the T20's!
One T20i to go and that will be a wrap for the summer.
Article on Shane Watson and his dream summer will be up next week.
It's also been good to stay undefeated this summer, one game to go though.
In hindsight looking at this T20, we made more runs than we did against Pakistan, although one major area to note is from overs 10-15 we tend to lose momentum and wickets! To win the ICC T20 Champions Trophy we will need to find a way to just up our game to a better consistency level in this period of play. Perhaps easing singles and two's instead of going for glory.
If we can tweak it, I am certain we'll be in a good shape to be more competitive in T20 cricket. Until recently we haven't been that good.
The crowd were fantastic and there was alot of really fine cricket to appreciate by this group of players. Appreciation sometimes gets neglected for the players so that's something I'd like to note.
David Warner got off to an exciting start, he rarely doesn't.
That one six was enormous! Type of shot you would play on the Playstation 2.
He has been finding consistency in the middle with his performances and dammit he's awesome to watch when he finds the middle of the bat. The Pitbull dominates the crease and with his power hitting he's always exciting to watch. Gutted he fell 1 short of a half-century to a really soft dismissal, but we have 1 game to go still!
Shane Watson was also outstanding. He played two fine shots for six to the deep midwicket boundary that flew into the crowd...including some spectacular crowd catches. I reckon the Watto/Warner combo is going to be the way to go for T20i's.
I recommend you try watch their partership on a highlights package if you missed it.
The two of them really did a brilliant job for us.
Things fell apart in the middle of the innings - as mentioned - but Brad Haddin did a really good job. He hasn't really done too well in T20 cricket with the bat and has in fact had a bit of a tough time with the bat all summer long. His Wicket Keeping has been unquestionably perfect but tonight's game allowed him to play a really good innings.
I have mentioned many times that I find Hads to be one of the best stroke makers in modern day cricket and tonight he showed a fine example of classy hitting, piercing the gaps with expert timing and a few big heaves over the ropes. He did a terrific job to get us into a really competitive postion and then his 'Keeping was fantastic yet again.
179 was far better than our job against Pakistan and with the way our bowlers have not only performed all summer, but also in that 1st T20 against Pakistan, that was total that'd give them a really good chance to take the game.
Shaun 'The Wild Thing' Tait was on fire. Easily clocking them in at 150km/h+ he has been a demon with the ball. Chris Gayle bowled (playing a terrible shot) and then Cam White taking a blinder of a catch at first slip to get rid of Deonarine. The hat trick was on, but Kieron Pollard just defended it.
But then he made the defining blow to get rid Pollard. A ball than ripped off the deck, rushed to the edge of the bat, Pollard was taken by surprise and it was 4 down for the Windies!
Dirk Nannes, who will not be representing the Netherlands anymore I reckon, cashed in with a good opening spell. With Taito's ferocious display of pace bowling, the pressure was right off him.
I must mention that that catch of Watto's was really well taken. Those catches are very difficult to take when they fly behind you and trust me he made it look easy. It gave Mitchell Johnson his 1st wicket for the night.
And on that note, anyone see Steven Smith's boundary catch? WHAT A BLOODY SPECTACULAR CATCH! Leaping in the air, throwing his arms out there he took it just in his finger tips and that ball was heading for a maximum! A special catch and as a I said on Twitter, you can sense the enthusiasm of our young players.
Mitch had a 2nd wicket which certainly made Mithell's night a hell of alot better.
I see Elyssa Perry also took an excellent catch for the Southern Stars in their T20 against the Black Caps, they ended up just losing their match.
Ramdin and Morton put up a really good fight, showing some toughness, as they tried to make the Windies' efforts look more consolidated. They ended up playing some big shots. All these efforts too late?
Yes. Ramdin was caught out after a conference between Pitbull Warner and Dirty Dirk and then Steve Smith took another brilliant catch on the boundary to get the big wicket of Morton. It was all over for the Windies after they were 4 wickets down anyway. Just great to see such excellent fielding throughout the innings.
The standards were set high and no one let the side down.
Well done to Michael Clarke on his Captaincy of this T20 Squad. Ricky Ponting led us excellently this summer and really inspired the Squad from the Baggy Green to the Green & Gold, so Pup has followed in his wake really smoothly.
Victory by 38 runs! Top batting from Pitbull Warner, Watto and Hads, then followed up by a wild spell from The Wild Thing Tait with backing up from the bowlers. The fielding was special with a display of the high standards I've mentioned and Steve Smith settled into the benchmark perfectly.
Shaun Tait takes the Player-of-the-match award and it was a special performance from the boys tonight. He's been on fire for the T20's!
One T20i to go and that will be a wrap for the summer.
Article on Shane Watson and his dream summer will be up next week.
20 February 2010
A SMALL CROWD, TIME TO PANIC!
Come on now, seriously! The media really know how to completely screw up the modern perception of cricket. Not too long ago we were being bombarded with their criticism that Test cricket was on the verge of becoming extinct. Am I not correct in saying over the past 18 months we have seen some exciting Test cricket that has made the playing field a place to watch with great enthusiasm from GENUINE cricket supporters?
The media's latest issue is that anytime a game has a slightly low crowd attendance the game must be in trouble. This is not new to the game of cricket, even for Rugby Union which is shorter and seasonal.
I have images, footage and books from the early nineties that highlight State cricket and International cricket, and I can promise you that crowd attendance wasn't always anything special. In a Sheffield semi-final you could probably hear just the players families and mates cheering them on. In a Supersport final in South Africa the players would probably only hear the opposition players clapping for them as they lifted the Trophy and in England it was a way to take a nice afternoon nap while watching some cricket when something exciting happened.
Even at the elite level where the ultimate interest is held, matches are not always going to be jam packed and often low in attendance. You can't expect every game to reach an 80% capacity, that's a big expectation.
Having said that there are solutions. There's always a solution and if you are a regular at this Blogsite of mine, you will have noticed the blokes who know a thing or two about their cricket and are interested in the games well being will all agree time and time again that the ICC has played a big role in completely stuffing things up. Notably regarding the areas the media will quite happily dig into.
Overkill cricket is the number 1 cause for 80% of the issues we have, this term dubbed by Baiju. The IPL is the other 20% as far as I'm concerned (but let's leave that for another day).
5 ODI's is ideal for a big series coming off a big Test series, but ideally 3 ODI's should be the norm. I dread to think that officials are still thinking about 7 ODI fixtures, which are fundamentally focused on the Grounds to make a return on a financial basis. How many grounds can we get to host a game? Bottom line is usually the focus here. Who gives a damn if a cricketer has a family and has been on the road for 6 months and is physically fried. They must play! Come on.
But what do you think? Cricket Australia seriously need to consider the fixtures with the scrapping of the Tri-series. The ICC needs to be logical about every single series and event that is held. The questions to answer are simple TAKING the constant focus of bottom-line out the questions:
Will there be genuine interest in this fixture?
What is the maximum amount of games that can be played before interest drops?
Given the nature of competition, how many games would meet fans expectations? eg. a 5 match ODI series between Australia & Bangladesh is moronic. However, 3 ODI's? This will work.
What series or events are upcoming for the players after the current fixtures? This question will simply answer if the players will come under heavy workload and if the upcoming fixtures are being too crammed up.
Lastly the biggest question THE ICC NEEDS to address is this: 'How do we set out a cricketing calendar with the agreement of the cricketing bodies that WILL ensure we can create hype and interest in more than 80% of our cricketing fixtures.
T20 cricket won't kill ODI cricket. Too much of a format will kill cricket. It's as simple as that.
If the ICC can find a way to regulate and control the amount of cricket played it will benefit everyone; the cricketers, the officials, the fans - who have to find the money to attend these games which are often not exactly cheap - and lastly it will shut the media up.
Ricky Ponting recently revealed his opinions regarding the poor crowd attendance at the MCG.
In my opinion it is because the Windieshave been struggling, the series was over, there'd already been a number of ODI's played and it's been a long summer. It ends up being costly to the average supporter and the interest in the game does plummet, even if the boys won the series.
Had this been 3 ODI's, same for the Pakistan series, with 2 T20's and the Tests, just reducing 4 ODI's makes a difference not only for the fans but also for ODI cricket. After all this is what the World Cup is based on!
Here's what Punter said:
"It's down on what we probably would have expected but it's the last game of the summer, the series is over," "People in Melbourne have paid a lot of money all year to come and watch games of cricket. You can't expect them just to keep coming out day after day. As players we'll keep doing the best we can to promote the game in the right way and that's by playing good entertaining cricket."
"I'm not sure if the lack of contest had anything to do with it all, I just think we've played a whole lot. You look at all the days of cricket that the public have had to pay and go and watch through the summer, I think that's probably the reason why the numbers have dwindled off in the last week." Source: Cricinfo
Pretty much what I expect to hear from a player and I have to agree with Punter on this one.
The media will back off if the Officials can regulate the game, if the Cricketing bodies can find a balance as to what is best for the fans and notjust the financial analysis of the game.
Revenue helps develop the game so it obviously can't be neglected but cricket will make money. Money shouldn't dictate as to what happens to cricket.
Logical fixtures where the players are fresh and ambitious to play cricket will make a huge difference.
Lastly, listening to the fans will result in a turnaround. From there Marketing and genuine development of the game will naturally take it's course with more desired results.
Then again, I've been down this road a number of time. What good does it do? It's not like any big cheese or Corporate git in the cricket world gives a shit what we think.
The media's latest issue is that anytime a game has a slightly low crowd attendance the game must be in trouble. This is not new to the game of cricket, even for Rugby Union which is shorter and seasonal.
I have images, footage and books from the early nineties that highlight State cricket and International cricket, and I can promise you that crowd attendance wasn't always anything special. In a Sheffield semi-final you could probably hear just the players families and mates cheering them on. In a Supersport final in South Africa the players would probably only hear the opposition players clapping for them as they lifted the Trophy and in England it was a way to take a nice afternoon nap while watching some cricket when something exciting happened.
Even at the elite level where the ultimate interest is held, matches are not always going to be jam packed and often low in attendance. You can't expect every game to reach an 80% capacity, that's a big expectation.
Having said that there are solutions. There's always a solution and if you are a regular at this Blogsite of mine, you will have noticed the blokes who know a thing or two about their cricket and are interested in the games well being will all agree time and time again that the ICC has played a big role in completely stuffing things up. Notably regarding the areas the media will quite happily dig into.
Overkill cricket is the number 1 cause for 80% of the issues we have, this term dubbed by Baiju. The IPL is the other 20% as far as I'm concerned (but let's leave that for another day).
5 ODI's is ideal for a big series coming off a big Test series, but ideally 3 ODI's should be the norm. I dread to think that officials are still thinking about 7 ODI fixtures, which are fundamentally focused on the Grounds to make a return on a financial basis. How many grounds can we get to host a game? Bottom line is usually the focus here. Who gives a damn if a cricketer has a family and has been on the road for 6 months and is physically fried. They must play! Come on.
But what do you think? Cricket Australia seriously need to consider the fixtures with the scrapping of the Tri-series. The ICC needs to be logical about every single series and event that is held. The questions to answer are simple TAKING the constant focus of bottom-line out the questions:
Will there be genuine interest in this fixture?
What is the maximum amount of games that can be played before interest drops?
Given the nature of competition, how many games would meet fans expectations? eg. a 5 match ODI series between Australia & Bangladesh is moronic. However, 3 ODI's? This will work.
What series or events are upcoming for the players after the current fixtures? This question will simply answer if the players will come under heavy workload and if the upcoming fixtures are being too crammed up.
Lastly the biggest question THE ICC NEEDS to address is this: 'How do we set out a cricketing calendar with the agreement of the cricketing bodies that WILL ensure we can create hype and interest in more than 80% of our cricketing fixtures.
T20 cricket won't kill ODI cricket. Too much of a format will kill cricket. It's as simple as that.
If the ICC can find a way to regulate and control the amount of cricket played it will benefit everyone; the cricketers, the officials, the fans - who have to find the money to attend these games which are often not exactly cheap - and lastly it will shut the media up.
Ricky Ponting recently revealed his opinions regarding the poor crowd attendance at the MCG.
In my opinion it is because the Windieshave been struggling, the series was over, there'd already been a number of ODI's played and it's been a long summer. It ends up being costly to the average supporter and the interest in the game does plummet, even if the boys won the series.
Had this been 3 ODI's, same for the Pakistan series, with 2 T20's and the Tests, just reducing 4 ODI's makes a difference not only for the fans but also for ODI cricket. After all this is what the World Cup is based on!
Here's what Punter said:
"It's down on what we probably would have expected but it's the last game of the summer, the series is over," "People in Melbourne have paid a lot of money all year to come and watch games of cricket. You can't expect them just to keep coming out day after day. As players we'll keep doing the best we can to promote the game in the right way and that's by playing good entertaining cricket."
"I'm not sure if the lack of contest had anything to do with it all, I just think we've played a whole lot. You look at all the days of cricket that the public have had to pay and go and watch through the summer, I think that's probably the reason why the numbers have dwindled off in the last week." Source: Cricinfo
Pretty much what I expect to hear from a player and I have to agree with Punter on this one.
The media will back off if the Officials can regulate the game, if the Cricketing bodies can find a balance as to what is best for the fans and notjust the financial analysis of the game.
Revenue helps develop the game so it obviously can't be neglected but cricket will make money. Money shouldn't dictate as to what happens to cricket.
Logical fixtures where the players are fresh and ambitious to play cricket will make a huge difference.
Lastly, listening to the fans will result in a turnaround. From there Marketing and genuine development of the game will naturally take it's course with more desired results.
Then again, I've been down this road a number of time. What good does it do? It's not like any big cheese or Corporate git in the cricket world gives a shit what we think.
19 February 2010
VOTE FOR YOUR EMERGING PLAYER OF THE SUMMER
The candidates are up for 'Emerging Player of the summer'. Cast your vote on the poll.
Who do you think either debuted this summer or returned to the side with excellent performances?
Poll will be open till the 22nd, then the final Poll will be up.
Who do you think either debuted this summer or returned to the side with excellent performances?
Poll will be open till the 22nd, then the final Poll will be up.
5th ODI vs THE WINDIES
The new poll is up, so cast your vote for your Emerging Player of the summer.
Winner and most deserved Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer, will be up on the blog tomorrow with an article too. The current poll will be up till Monday.
After that it will be the Baggy Green Blog Silent Assassin of the summer.
Refer back to THIS POST to see the award categories.
5 Test victories, 9 ODI victories, now we wait for the T20 results. 1 win so far.
Steven Smith made his debut for the ODI side and it was a good time to do it with a dead rubber match at the MCG.
Ricky Ponting was rightly so the Player of the series. He didn't have an effective start against Pakistan, but towards the end of that series he kicked up the intensity and logged in his 29th century last game. It was an aggressive innings and was pretty flawless. He ended his summer with another half-century, scoring 61.
His stats are as follows:
5 matches, 295 runs, Highest score 106, Average 73.75.
The Windies came over for this series without their full strength Squad. I was certain from the start they would not win this series. With the way the current Aussie side are playing a full stregth side would be needed, and without it the Windies were going to struggle from the start. And they did. They showed alot more fight in the Test matches but I hope it doesn't dishearten them too much. They have the players to take this side forward. Like Pakistan, they have discipline to work on and most importantly a few victories will steer their confidence in the right direction.
As for the Windies' fielding in this ODI. They were back to their poor fielding antics which is simply pathetic when in full swing. Brad Haddin had the best of the spilled opportunities and then a drop against James Hopes proved to be costly towards the closing stages of the innings. Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting had luck too. Ah yes, it was just a bad field outing for the Windies.
I thought Kieron Pollard batted excellently given the circumstances created for him due to the top orders inability to make a stand. He is a young man and after his efforts for The Redbacks I think he is more than a T20 player. I would watch his progress closely. As for Nikita Miller, what an innings from the lower order batsman but even more so by Darren Sammy. Well done to those blokes on their 9th wicket effort.
Brad Haddin and Shane Watson got things off to a flyer.
It was none other than Shane Watson who let rip with the bat, blasting sixes with picture perfect execution. Power, raw power and what a summer he has had. He's been remarkable and that was some of the best top order power hitting you will see. He was unlucky to be caught off a full toss.
Hads had a good cameo at the top with Watto. He also cashed in on some big hitting, but came undone with the dreaded edge onto the stumps.
Ricky Ponting has settled into form that will crush the opposition's bowlers on his day. He scored his 76th half-century and did so with crafty stroke play. Working them off the pads, coming down the wicket to the spin bowlers (that six off Nikita Miller that flew over the sight screen was awesome) and he has no issues to pull. I had a dream Punter reached his 30th ODI century, unfortunately that wasn't to be, but it was terrific batting from Punter.
Michael Clarke also batted really well with Punter.
He took a nasty knock to the danger zone area for any man batting. He did hit a six which has been a long time coming but not for the first time did he fall short of a half-century. He had been playing the pull shot so well this summer, which I compared to that of Brian Lara. He was nearly put down too but the Windies had some luck in their favour.
The two big guns of the innings were Catfish and Adam Voges.
Adam had another opportunity given to him. He usually plays his shots really well, but for good reason he perhaps feels a bit uncertain of his role when brought into the side. But if he can get settled and read the games situation he can be brutal. That's his reputation for WA on the hard tracks and why he was first considered for T20 cricket at International level. While more conservative than Catfish, it didn't matter as they complented each other really to ensure a late innings assault was pulled off, and not for the first time this summer did we see an awesome display like this.
Michael Hussey, Nathan Hauritz, Cameron White and Ryan Harris have all given us displays of this but recently it has been Catfish who has been doing the damage.
He reached his half-century in 26 balls and he has found some destructive form.
He really took the Windies apart the other night with his batting, and he did it once again as he steered us to 324 runs. The way he took on Ravi Rampaul was really exciting and probably gave Adam the confidence to have a bash at it himself.
Great partnership and even better to see James Hopes delivering with the bat!
Another daunting total for the Windies to try chase down.
The bowling, well the Windies struggled again.
Doug Bollinger had Chris Gayle yet again. Can you believe it!
Ryan Harris didn't take too long to get a couple of wickets to his Stats. Ryano has shown how perserverance and hard work pave the way to get to the elite level, similar to Simon Katich's journey. Steven Smith managed to grab his 1st catch in ODI cricket on debut. Not long after he took his 2nd catch off the bowling of James Hopes.
Stevo had a bowl out tonight which was good for him, especially when a total of 324 was on the board. His maiden wicket was an LBW, claiming Dinesh Ramdin's wicket.
As I mentioned to Sylvester while on Twitter, I just have this gut feeling that Stevo is going to do something big for us with his bowling. He is very young and while he doesn't seem anything special to the average onlooker, as I said it's just a gut feeling he will do something big for us. Not anytime soon possibly but certainly in the distant future. He's only just begun and last thing he needs, from the media particularly, is heavy exposure and hype.
It didn't do Phillip Hughes any good. On that note Phillip missed 200 AGAIN! 192 out for NSW in their Sheffield Game against the Redbacks.
Back to tonights game, I was stoked to see Michael Clarke finally get that direct hit. He's had a stack of chances this summer and at long last he got it. It was a damn good one too.
Having a look at our bowlers, how brilliant have they been. Truly magnificent considering the bowling was the most questioned area of our game in recent times.
Doug Bollinger: 11 wkts, average 11.36 (Check those stats out! Damn!)
Ryan Harris: 7 wkts, average 16.28
Clint McKay: 3 wkts, average 22.66
Shane Watson: 2 wkts, average 27.50
Nathan Hauritz: 5 wkts, average 24.00
Mitchell Johnson: 3 wkts, average 40.66
We have had a good balance between bat and ball, but it has ultimately been our bowling unit that cleared the way for us this summer, including our T20 Squad, who will be up and running soon.
Doug Bollinger led the attack and did so in an energetic manner which seemed to feed through to the other bowlers and our fielders who have also been outstanding.
But that is that for the ODI's until New Zealand next week, including two T20's to kick start proceedings.
By the way, The Southern Stars beat New Zealand's womens team 5-0. Brilliant!
The Windies were courageous in their own capacity but it wasn't enough and as I have said before, I truly hope they go from strength to strength.
As for our boys, most definitly strength to strength as we build towards the World Cup. But the focus on big tournaments for now will be that ICC T20 Champions Trophy.
Thanks for joining me throughout the series on Twitter or here at the Baggy Green Blog.
Winner and most deserved Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer, will be up on the blog tomorrow with an article too. The current poll will be up till Monday.
After that it will be the Baggy Green Blog Silent Assassin of the summer.
Refer back to THIS POST to see the award categories.
5 Test victories, 9 ODI victories, now we wait for the T20 results. 1 win so far.
Steven Smith made his debut for the ODI side and it was a good time to do it with a dead rubber match at the MCG.
Ricky Ponting was rightly so the Player of the series. He didn't have an effective start against Pakistan, but towards the end of that series he kicked up the intensity and logged in his 29th century last game. It was an aggressive innings and was pretty flawless. He ended his summer with another half-century, scoring 61.
His stats are as follows:
5 matches, 295 runs, Highest score 106, Average 73.75.
The Windies came over for this series without their full strength Squad. I was certain from the start they would not win this series. With the way the current Aussie side are playing a full stregth side would be needed, and without it the Windies were going to struggle from the start. And they did. They showed alot more fight in the Test matches but I hope it doesn't dishearten them too much. They have the players to take this side forward. Like Pakistan, they have discipline to work on and most importantly a few victories will steer their confidence in the right direction.
As for the Windies' fielding in this ODI. They were back to their poor fielding antics which is simply pathetic when in full swing. Brad Haddin had the best of the spilled opportunities and then a drop against James Hopes proved to be costly towards the closing stages of the innings. Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting had luck too. Ah yes, it was just a bad field outing for the Windies.
I thought Kieron Pollard batted excellently given the circumstances created for him due to the top orders inability to make a stand. He is a young man and after his efforts for The Redbacks I think he is more than a T20 player. I would watch his progress closely. As for Nikita Miller, what an innings from the lower order batsman but even more so by Darren Sammy. Well done to those blokes on their 9th wicket effort.
Brad Haddin and Shane Watson got things off to a flyer.
It was none other than Shane Watson who let rip with the bat, blasting sixes with picture perfect execution. Power, raw power and what a summer he has had. He's been remarkable and that was some of the best top order power hitting you will see. He was unlucky to be caught off a full toss.
Hads had a good cameo at the top with Watto. He also cashed in on some big hitting, but came undone with the dreaded edge onto the stumps.
Ricky Ponting has settled into form that will crush the opposition's bowlers on his day. He scored his 76th half-century and did so with crafty stroke play. Working them off the pads, coming down the wicket to the spin bowlers (that six off Nikita Miller that flew over the sight screen was awesome) and he has no issues to pull. I had a dream Punter reached his 30th ODI century, unfortunately that wasn't to be, but it was terrific batting from Punter.
Michael Clarke also batted really well with Punter.
He took a nasty knock to the danger zone area for any man batting. He did hit a six which has been a long time coming but not for the first time did he fall short of a half-century. He had been playing the pull shot so well this summer, which I compared to that of Brian Lara. He was nearly put down too but the Windies had some luck in their favour.
The two big guns of the innings were Catfish and Adam Voges.
Adam had another opportunity given to him. He usually plays his shots really well, but for good reason he perhaps feels a bit uncertain of his role when brought into the side. But if he can get settled and read the games situation he can be brutal. That's his reputation for WA on the hard tracks and why he was first considered for T20 cricket at International level. While more conservative than Catfish, it didn't matter as they complented each other really to ensure a late innings assault was pulled off, and not for the first time this summer did we see an awesome display like this.
Michael Hussey, Nathan Hauritz, Cameron White and Ryan Harris have all given us displays of this but recently it has been Catfish who has been doing the damage.
He reached his half-century in 26 balls and he has found some destructive form.
He really took the Windies apart the other night with his batting, and he did it once again as he steered us to 324 runs. The way he took on Ravi Rampaul was really exciting and probably gave Adam the confidence to have a bash at it himself.
Great partnership and even better to see James Hopes delivering with the bat!
Another daunting total for the Windies to try chase down.
The bowling, well the Windies struggled again.
Doug Bollinger had Chris Gayle yet again. Can you believe it!
Ryan Harris didn't take too long to get a couple of wickets to his Stats. Ryano has shown how perserverance and hard work pave the way to get to the elite level, similar to Simon Katich's journey. Steven Smith managed to grab his 1st catch in ODI cricket on debut. Not long after he took his 2nd catch off the bowling of James Hopes.
Stevo had a bowl out tonight which was good for him, especially when a total of 324 was on the board. His maiden wicket was an LBW, claiming Dinesh Ramdin's wicket.
As I mentioned to Sylvester while on Twitter, I just have this gut feeling that Stevo is going to do something big for us with his bowling. He is very young and while he doesn't seem anything special to the average onlooker, as I said it's just a gut feeling he will do something big for us. Not anytime soon possibly but certainly in the distant future. He's only just begun and last thing he needs, from the media particularly, is heavy exposure and hype.
It didn't do Phillip Hughes any good. On that note Phillip missed 200 AGAIN! 192 out for NSW in their Sheffield Game against the Redbacks.
Back to tonights game, I was stoked to see Michael Clarke finally get that direct hit. He's had a stack of chances this summer and at long last he got it. It was a damn good one too.
Having a look at our bowlers, how brilliant have they been. Truly magnificent considering the bowling was the most questioned area of our game in recent times.
Doug Bollinger: 11 wkts, average 11.36 (Check those stats out! Damn!)
Ryan Harris: 7 wkts, average 16.28
Clint McKay: 3 wkts, average 22.66
Shane Watson: 2 wkts, average 27.50
Nathan Hauritz: 5 wkts, average 24.00
Mitchell Johnson: 3 wkts, average 40.66
We have had a good balance between bat and ball, but it has ultimately been our bowling unit that cleared the way for us this summer, including our T20 Squad, who will be up and running soon.
Doug Bollinger led the attack and did so in an energetic manner which seemed to feed through to the other bowlers and our fielders who have also been outstanding.
But that is that for the ODI's until New Zealand next week, including two T20's to kick start proceedings.
By the way, The Southern Stars beat New Zealand's womens team 5-0. Brilliant!
The Windies were courageous in their own capacity but it wasn't enough and as I have said before, I truly hope they go from strength to strength.
As for our boys, most definitly strength to strength as we build towards the World Cup. But the focus on big tournaments for now will be that ICC T20 Champions Trophy.
Thanks for joining me throughout the series on Twitter or here at the Baggy Green Blog.
17 February 2010
YOUTHFUL SELECTION CHANGES
Steven Smith will seem certain to make his debut for Australia in the final ODI of the series vs the Windies at the MCG.
Sylvester, you pleased about this mate?
Steven Smith has a great opportunity here for himself and he has been a bit out of touch in the Ford Ranger Cup as opposed to his efforts for NSW in T20 cricket and Sheffield Shield games. He is an effective spin bowling option with plenty room to develop it as an attacking element to his game, while his middle order batting can be explosive yet still shows glimpses of maturity and fast learning.
Nathan Hauritz has been given a rest along with Michael Hussey after their massive workload this summer, with positive results.
The two of them will also not participate in the T20's alongside Ricky Ponting meaning this will be their last appearances until the upcoming T20's and ODI's against The Blacks Caps.
Brad Haddin returns to hold the fort behind the stumps meaning Tim Paine has returned to the Tassie Tigers. In fact he has actually just hit a half-century for them tonight against WA. I like the way we have been giving Tim really good exposure at International level like the selectors did with Hads in the Gilchrist days. Hads' 'Keeping has been sensational this summer!
As for the T20's at The Bellerive Oval and the SCG, the selectors are starting to smarten up. Instead of throwing in our Test and ODI specialists which they have done for too long now, they are focusing on specialist players.
Steven Smith was amongst the players of this change in plans and performed excellently on debut.
Travis Birt lucked out but has another chance to shine, while Daniel Christian has his moment after showing his value to the Redbacks.
Here's the T20 Squad for the two T20's:Michael Clarke (Captain), Shane Watson, David Warner, Shaun Marsh, Cameron White, David Hussey, Travis Birt, Brad Haddin (Wicketkeeper), Steven Smith, Daniel Christian, Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris, Dirk Nannes, Shaun Tait.
Sylvester, you pleased about this mate?
Steven Smith has a great opportunity here for himself and he has been a bit out of touch in the Ford Ranger Cup as opposed to his efforts for NSW in T20 cricket and Sheffield Shield games. He is an effective spin bowling option with plenty room to develop it as an attacking element to his game, while his middle order batting can be explosive yet still shows glimpses of maturity and fast learning.
Nathan Hauritz has been given a rest along with Michael Hussey after their massive workload this summer, with positive results.
The two of them will also not participate in the T20's alongside Ricky Ponting meaning this will be their last appearances until the upcoming T20's and ODI's against The Blacks Caps.
Brad Haddin returns to hold the fort behind the stumps meaning Tim Paine has returned to the Tassie Tigers. In fact he has actually just hit a half-century for them tonight against WA. I like the way we have been giving Tim really good exposure at International level like the selectors did with Hads in the Gilchrist days. Hads' 'Keeping has been sensational this summer!
As for the T20's at The Bellerive Oval and the SCG, the selectors are starting to smarten up. Instead of throwing in our Test and ODI specialists which they have done for too long now, they are focusing on specialist players.
Steven Smith was amongst the players of this change in plans and performed excellently on debut.
Travis Birt lucked out but has another chance to shine, while Daniel Christian has his moment after showing his value to the Redbacks.
Here's the T20 Squad for the two T20's:Michael Clarke (Captain), Shane Watson, David Warner, Shaun Marsh, Cameron White, David Hussey, Travis Birt, Brad Haddin (Wicketkeeper), Steven Smith, Daniel Christian, Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris, Dirk Nannes, Shaun Tait.
15 February 2010
ALLAN BORDER MEDAL AWARD RESULTS
The Allan Border Medal Award night has come to a closure and the results are out.
Allan Border Medalist: Shane Watson
Deserved and what an achievement! He is currently leading the polls to for the 'Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer' and what an asset he has been to the team in both Test and ODI cricket. He's cast aside doubts people had over his abilities to open the batting in Test cricket, he's become a genuine all-rounder in ODI cricket and having overcome what seems to be have been endless injuries, he has finally made his mark with this award. While only an award, it is bigger than that as the recognition of his hard work and rather unusual journey to succeed at the elite level has finally been achieved. Plenty more to come from Watto. Well done mate!
Australian Test cricketer of the Year: Simon Katich
Initially I suspected Watto to grab this one, but Katto has it this time. Funny enough I expected him to take the award last year ahead of Brett Lee, but Binga had the honours. A consistent opener for us who rarely let's the side down, Katto's return to the Test side has been spectacular. He wears that Baggy Green with pride with the knowledge that it seemed to be over for him after the 2005 Ashes.
Due to that injury Matty Hayden suffered before the Frank-Worrell Trophy in 2008, it opened the door for Katto after a record achieving Pura Cup campaign and the award for Test player of the year is his! He's a classy opening batsman, a useful part-spinner with the habit to get a wicket and a bloody marvellous fielder at short-leg. A real Champ who's a genuinely tough bloke and I will be upset when they day comes around that we don't see the crab-like shuffle at the crease anymore.
Australian ODI cricketer of the Year: Shane Watson
Just thinking of his return to the ODI side in 2008, the two centuries that followed and then lastly that Champions Trophy campaign of his in South Africa. His performances in the semi-final and Final are two significant moments in his career that I will never forget. I expected Michael Hussey to sneak away with this award due to his consistent rescue missions with the bat in the middle order, but Watto has taken this one. Huss was the contender though in the final votes. Surprisingly Ricky Ponting wasn't in the top 3 of the votes.
State Cricketer of the year: Michael Klinger (South Australia)
The Redbacks opener told the media they had been a bit harsh on him after the starts to his season, but a double hundred shut them up. A classy opener for South Australia and a smart cricketer it is Michael Klinger who walks away with the State cricketer award. That's the second year in a row for him.
Bradman Young Cricketer of the year: John Hastings (Victoria)
He is second on the wicket tally in the Sheffield competition, has played every match and is a valuable lower-order batsman who is also effective in 50 over and T20 cricket. Expected Steven Smith to take it, but Hastings does deserve it.
Women's cricketer of the year: Shelley Nitschke (South Australia)
So that's the round-up.
What do you all think of the awards?
Allan Border Medalist: Shane Watson
Deserved and what an achievement! He is currently leading the polls to for the 'Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer' and what an asset he has been to the team in both Test and ODI cricket. He's cast aside doubts people had over his abilities to open the batting in Test cricket, he's become a genuine all-rounder in ODI cricket and having overcome what seems to be have been endless injuries, he has finally made his mark with this award. While only an award, it is bigger than that as the recognition of his hard work and rather unusual journey to succeed at the elite level has finally been achieved. Plenty more to come from Watto. Well done mate!
Australian Test cricketer of the Year: Simon Katich
Initially I suspected Watto to grab this one, but Katto has it this time. Funny enough I expected him to take the award last year ahead of Brett Lee, but Binga had the honours. A consistent opener for us who rarely let's the side down, Katto's return to the Test side has been spectacular. He wears that Baggy Green with pride with the knowledge that it seemed to be over for him after the 2005 Ashes.
Due to that injury Matty Hayden suffered before the Frank-Worrell Trophy in 2008, it opened the door for Katto after a record achieving Pura Cup campaign and the award for Test player of the year is his! He's a classy opening batsman, a useful part-spinner with the habit to get a wicket and a bloody marvellous fielder at short-leg. A real Champ who's a genuinely tough bloke and I will be upset when they day comes around that we don't see the crab-like shuffle at the crease anymore.
Australian ODI cricketer of the Year: Shane Watson
Just thinking of his return to the ODI side in 2008, the two centuries that followed and then lastly that Champions Trophy campaign of his in South Africa. His performances in the semi-final and Final are two significant moments in his career that I will never forget. I expected Michael Hussey to sneak away with this award due to his consistent rescue missions with the bat in the middle order, but Watto has taken this one. Huss was the contender though in the final votes. Surprisingly Ricky Ponting wasn't in the top 3 of the votes.
State Cricketer of the year: Michael Klinger (South Australia)
The Redbacks opener told the media they had been a bit harsh on him after the starts to his season, but a double hundred shut them up. A classy opener for South Australia and a smart cricketer it is Michael Klinger who walks away with the State cricketer award. That's the second year in a row for him.
Bradman Young Cricketer of the year: John Hastings (Victoria)
He is second on the wicket tally in the Sheffield competition, has played every match and is a valuable lower-order batsman who is also effective in 50 over and T20 cricket. Expected Steven Smith to take it, but Hastings does deserve it.
Women's cricketer of the year: Shelley Nitschke (South Australia)
So that's the round-up.
What do you all think of the awards?
ALLAN BORDER MEDAL AWARDS 2010
It is already time for the AB Awards!
Due to the mass of cricket we have seen I haven't really had time to focus on it. To be honest I nearly forgot about it all together.
It's appropriate though as I am currently doing the first awards here of the Baggy Green Blog as a small recognition to our players are the fine cricket they have displayed. On that topic, the 'Baggy Green Blog Player of the Summer' award is up for nominations and while it is only focused on the performances over the summer, obviously it is worthy to note what these guys have achieved prior to the start of the Windies/Pakistan series.
Take the Champions Trophy & The Indian tour into your considerations.
Votes will be closed on this current poll soon.
Once that is done it will be time for the 'Emerging Player of the summer' award.
Votes are telling a tale.
With regards to the AB Awards, before the winners start getting streamed here's a quick prediction from my part:
AB Medal Award: Shane Watson
Test Player Award: Shane Watson
ODI Player Award: Michael Hussey
The Bradman Young Cricketer: Steve Smith (while there's a few more young guys who have been really impressive, after his century recently for NSW in their Sheffield game against the Vics and a T20 call-up it's hard for me not to ignore him.)
Let's see how close I am. Keep your votes coming in if you have yet to vote for the 'Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer'!
Due to the mass of cricket we have seen I haven't really had time to focus on it. To be honest I nearly forgot about it all together.
It's appropriate though as I am currently doing the first awards here of the Baggy Green Blog as a small recognition to our players are the fine cricket they have displayed. On that topic, the 'Baggy Green Blog Player of the Summer' award is up for nominations and while it is only focused on the performances over the summer, obviously it is worthy to note what these guys have achieved prior to the start of the Windies/Pakistan series.
Take the Champions Trophy & The Indian tour into your considerations.
Votes will be closed on this current poll soon.
Once that is done it will be time for the 'Emerging Player of the summer' award.
Votes are telling a tale.
With regards to the AB Awards, before the winners start getting streamed here's a quick prediction from my part:
AB Medal Award: Shane Watson
Test Player Award: Shane Watson
ODI Player Award: Michael Hussey
The Bradman Young Cricketer: Steve Smith (while there's a few more young guys who have been really impressive, after his century recently for NSW in their Sheffield game against the Vics and a T20 call-up it's hard for me not to ignore him.)
Let's see how close I am. Keep your votes coming in if you have yet to vote for the 'Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer'!
14 February 2010
4th ODI vs THE WINDIES
I won't be posting my usual match review after the 4th ODI at the Gabba, which is currently in progress. I was on Twitter for a duration of the Windies innings if you want to follow my quick chirps there. Tomorrow I will try and get around to it.
In the meantime have your vote for your 'Baggy Green blog Player of the summer'. Poll is up and click here for the article.
Otherwise that was a terrific century from the maestro Ricky Ponting! It was Punter's 29th century and it really was a golden innings from our Skipper. Along with breaking the restraint the Gabba has had over his lack of centuries there, as a team our total of 324 was one of our best efforts yet. I think we only had an average of 230 odd previously, so the confidence wave took us well into this game. I would strongly suggest you catch the highlights to have a look at Punter's innings. The Ton was due and it comes after an excellent string of good contributions with a confident touch.
Cam White batted bravely for his 63 after that nasty smash in the grill! That must have done something surely? That's the second time this season. Hope it's nothing to bad, but he was in a warzone out there and he came out on top with a genuine contribution.
How about James 'Catfish' Hopes' innings too. He looked in good touch last game at the SCG with the bat and in front of his home crowd he launched what I like to call a late innings assault. He didn't just launch the ball with the slogger mentality, but instead carved the ball to the boundary with some fine strokes. A good innings and collectively a very solid ODI scorecard. Credit to Shane Watson and Tim Paine as they set the momentum off from the start.
Douggie Bollinger picked up Chris Gayle's wicket once again, now for the 3rd time in the ODI's. Chris had let loose the Gayle storm at the Gabba, but it was Douggie who ended what could have been a spectacular display of sixes and fours flying around the ground.
Outstanding bowling from Douggie B this summer. He's had the crowds riht behind him and he's bowled with unstoppable momentum. Certainly the voting polls indicate alot of you believe he is in the running for Player of the summer!
Tim Paine has two catches to his name as I watch right now and he's taken his catches cleanly. It's great too see the young Tassie boy in the Green and Gold again.
James Hopes has just come on to get a wicket with his 1st ball. What a game he's having! He's bowling with a good seam too.
I also just saw Tim Nielson on the tele. I forgot we had a Coach for a while to be honest as you hardly hear about him, atleast since the Champions Trophy.
And now just seen Cam White back from the X-ray's with a massive ice pack against his face. Poor bloke!
Hold thumbs for the boys as they aim to take this series with a victory at the Gabba. That will result in the 5th game being a dead-rubber. Another one of those, but the Windies will try fight back here even if the target is very daunting.
In the meantime have your vote for your 'Baggy Green blog Player of the summer'. Poll is up and click here for the article.
Otherwise that was a terrific century from the maestro Ricky Ponting! It was Punter's 29th century and it really was a golden innings from our Skipper. Along with breaking the restraint the Gabba has had over his lack of centuries there, as a team our total of 324 was one of our best efforts yet. I think we only had an average of 230 odd previously, so the confidence wave took us well into this game. I would strongly suggest you catch the highlights to have a look at Punter's innings. The Ton was due and it comes after an excellent string of good contributions with a confident touch.
Cam White batted bravely for his 63 after that nasty smash in the grill! That must have done something surely? That's the second time this season. Hope it's nothing to bad, but he was in a warzone out there and he came out on top with a genuine contribution.
How about James 'Catfish' Hopes' innings too. He looked in good touch last game at the SCG with the bat and in front of his home crowd he launched what I like to call a late innings assault. He didn't just launch the ball with the slogger mentality, but instead carved the ball to the boundary with some fine strokes. A good innings and collectively a very solid ODI scorecard. Credit to Shane Watson and Tim Paine as they set the momentum off from the start.
Douggie Bollinger picked up Chris Gayle's wicket once again, now for the 3rd time in the ODI's. Chris had let loose the Gayle storm at the Gabba, but it was Douggie who ended what could have been a spectacular display of sixes and fours flying around the ground.
Outstanding bowling from Douggie B this summer. He's had the crowds riht behind him and he's bowled with unstoppable momentum. Certainly the voting polls indicate alot of you believe he is in the running for Player of the summer!
Tim Paine has two catches to his name as I watch right now and he's taken his catches cleanly. It's great too see the young Tassie boy in the Green and Gold again.
James Hopes has just come on to get a wicket with his 1st ball. What a game he's having! He's bowling with a good seam too.
I also just saw Tim Nielson on the tele. I forgot we had a Coach for a while to be honest as you hardly hear about him, atleast since the Champions Trophy.
And now just seen Cam White back from the X-ray's with a massive ice pack against his face. Poor bloke!
Hold thumbs for the boys as they aim to take this series with a victory at the Gabba. That will result in the 5th game being a dead-rubber. Another one of those, but the Windies will try fight back here even if the target is very daunting.
12 February 2010
THE BAGGY GREEN READER AWARDS
* FOR 3rd ODI review CLICK HERE or scroll down to the previous article!
2 games to go, then 2 T20's and that's the summer concluded!
After this series is concluded I will be posting an article on who is my Player of the summer, Emerging Player of the summer and Silent Assassin of the summer.
However, I still want YOU to have your vote as a valued reader and comment contributor to this site.
The informal categories are:
'Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer' which is which is nothing more than validated praise and support beyond the usual on my side, but from you it's also simple. Who was your favourite Aussie Player this summer?
'Baggy Green Emerging Player of the summer', which bloke returned to the side or debuted this summer doing so with excellent results due to their fine performances making you proud?
'Baggy Green Silent Assassin award', which is simply who made a major impact with little fuss over their performances, but contributed valuably?
I'm putting the poll up till the end of the ODI series for 'Baggy Green Player of the summer', then followed by the others.
THE POLL is a list of my own nominations who I think are in the running as the mos popular options for you to choose from. You CAN do multiple votes!
This will be the readers vote.
You can also: Vote in a comment, send me an email or write a brief article of your own on your chosen players!
2 games to go, then 2 T20's and that's the summer concluded!
After this series is concluded I will be posting an article on who is my Player of the summer, Emerging Player of the summer and Silent Assassin of the summer.
However, I still want YOU to have your vote as a valued reader and comment contributor to this site.
The informal categories are:
'Baggy Green Blog Player of the summer' which is which is nothing more than validated praise and support beyond the usual on my side, but from you it's also simple. Who was your favourite Aussie Player this summer?
'Baggy Green Emerging Player of the summer', which bloke returned to the side or debuted this summer doing so with excellent results due to their fine performances making you proud?
'Baggy Green Silent Assassin award', which is simply who made a major impact with little fuss over their performances, but contributed valuably?
I'm putting the poll up till the end of the ODI series for 'Baggy Green Player of the summer', then followed by the others.
THE POLL is a list of my own nominations who I think are in the running as the mos popular options for you to choose from. You CAN do multiple votes!
This will be the readers vote.
You can also: Vote in a comment, send me an email or write a brief article of your own on your chosen players!
WINDIES' HOPES DROWNED OUT AT THE SCG
While I was certain they weren't going to win the series regardless, the Windies will not be able to fight their way to a 3-2 victory as the typical Sydney cricketing weather had the final say. The rain came down at the beginning of the Windies' run chase and 1 over is all that was managed. So the standing remains 2-0 and now my prediction has to be adjusted by 1 match. Technically doesn't change a thing though.
So the magic of the SCG didn't happen for us this time around.
A magical victory against Pakistan in the defense of a small target, then a demolishing roll over against Pakistan in the SCG ODI. The hunting ground is good, but other than the rain it wasn't much of a magical game.
Bet the media will be going on about how the weather is making 50 over cricket boring and all that crap to be blunt. Absolute muppets they are!
Adam Voges got an opportunity to open the batting as Shaun Marsh pulled out with a back strain. While Adam is kind of a versatile batsman he was placed in a tough spot to open up on a difficult batting surface, very different to his preference of a faster track. His stay was a brief one, and Tim Paine also didn't have a blast in his return as he was bowled by a Ravi Rampaul inswinger, who ended with figures of 4/61 which is expensive but he caused a few issues for our batsmen. Don't fret about Tim, he'll cash in sometime soon. Darren Sammy's return to the Windies side made a big impact as he picked up 3 wickets for 46 runs.
Michael Clarke had a good partnership with Michael Hussey and watching their partnership gave an indication that the run scoring was far from easy on this wicket.
If anything is a real indicator just check Cam White's stats:
17 off 41 deliveries...strike rate under 50.
Pup played his shots and only managed one boundary, so the key to his partnership with Huss was strike rotation and very energetic running. Pup came under a bit of a battle with the Windies quicks and his downfall came as he tried to attack the shorter ball and picked up a fine edge in a wild pull shot.
Pup has become pretty good at executing his pull shots, with a Brian Lara like element to it by lifting his front leg upwards while rotating his wrists to keep the ball low and powerfully struck. It ended is his innings though this time, but the technique is working well for him.
James 'Catfish' Hopes played well for his 30 runs. Catfish rarely fails but doesn't exactly always impress which is a reason why he has a slightly low profile despite having been contributing for our team for close to 5 odd years now with some sort of growing consistency. His innings with Huss revived our headache's due to the difficulty to score the runs.
Both of them fell alongside two other wickets in the space of 3 overs, and then out came Ryan Harris!
Ryano is having the dream run, and his night ended in greater success with the bat as he didn't even bowl 1 delivery! In the last over of our innings he played the ball finely to the deep square leg boundary, then repeated a similar stroke with better elevation. Two fours, which then became three and then the big one, a massive hit down the ground for a maximum! Suddenly his late innings burst gave us some hope, and Douggie B didn't get any strike. 18 valuable runs, but it didn't matter as....
The Windies innings was called off after 1 over, and that was it!
My gut feeling indicated that Chris Gayle was going to come at us all guns blazing, especially when we were looking at a 26 over reduction. But it ended there as that became an unlikely proposal to end the match as the rain kept coming down.
Douggie B looked calm and totally in control of their personal battle with one man desperately wanting to entertain and the other trying to cement his place as a front line seamer. This is one small reason I love this game so damn much!
We would have won anyways I'm sure, and I base this on aboslutely nothing.
Except for the fact our bowlers are in terrific form with synergy strong amongst them, also our fielding has been brilliant throughout the summer and we can't forget the fortune of the SCG!
So not much of a game but we had some fun with the Ryan Harris slogout.
Till the next game, cheers.
Catch me on Twitter on Sunday for the game as the 'Gabba.
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
So the magic of the SCG didn't happen for us this time around.
A magical victory against Pakistan in the defense of a small target, then a demolishing roll over against Pakistan in the SCG ODI. The hunting ground is good, but other than the rain it wasn't much of a magical game.
Bet the media will be going on about how the weather is making 50 over cricket boring and all that crap to be blunt. Absolute muppets they are!
Adam Voges got an opportunity to open the batting as Shaun Marsh pulled out with a back strain. While Adam is kind of a versatile batsman he was placed in a tough spot to open up on a difficult batting surface, very different to his preference of a faster track. His stay was a brief one, and Tim Paine also didn't have a blast in his return as he was bowled by a Ravi Rampaul inswinger, who ended with figures of 4/61 which is expensive but he caused a few issues for our batsmen. Don't fret about Tim, he'll cash in sometime soon. Darren Sammy's return to the Windies side made a big impact as he picked up 3 wickets for 46 runs.
Michael Clarke had a good partnership with Michael Hussey and watching their partnership gave an indication that the run scoring was far from easy on this wicket.
If anything is a real indicator just check Cam White's stats:
17 off 41 deliveries...strike rate under 50.
Pup played his shots and only managed one boundary, so the key to his partnership with Huss was strike rotation and very energetic running. Pup came under a bit of a battle with the Windies quicks and his downfall came as he tried to attack the shorter ball and picked up a fine edge in a wild pull shot.
Pup has become pretty good at executing his pull shots, with a Brian Lara like element to it by lifting his front leg upwards while rotating his wrists to keep the ball low and powerfully struck. It ended is his innings though this time, but the technique is working well for him.
James 'Catfish' Hopes played well for his 30 runs. Catfish rarely fails but doesn't exactly always impress which is a reason why he has a slightly low profile despite having been contributing for our team for close to 5 odd years now with some sort of growing consistency. His innings with Huss revived our headache's due to the difficulty to score the runs.
Both of them fell alongside two other wickets in the space of 3 overs, and then out came Ryan Harris!
Ryano is having the dream run, and his night ended in greater success with the bat as he didn't even bowl 1 delivery! In the last over of our innings he played the ball finely to the deep square leg boundary, then repeated a similar stroke with better elevation. Two fours, which then became three and then the big one, a massive hit down the ground for a maximum! Suddenly his late innings burst gave us some hope, and Douggie B didn't get any strike. 18 valuable runs, but it didn't matter as....
The Windies innings was called off after 1 over, and that was it!
My gut feeling indicated that Chris Gayle was going to come at us all guns blazing, especially when we were looking at a 26 over reduction. But it ended there as that became an unlikely proposal to end the match as the rain kept coming down.
Douggie B looked calm and totally in control of their personal battle with one man desperately wanting to entertain and the other trying to cement his place as a front line seamer. This is one small reason I love this game so damn much!
We would have won anyways I'm sure, and I base this on aboslutely nothing.
Except for the fact our bowlers are in terrific form with synergy strong amongst them, also our fielding has been brilliant throughout the summer and we can't forget the fortune of the SCG!
So not much of a game but we had some fun with the Ryan Harris slogout.
Till the next game, cheers.
Catch me on Twitter on Sunday for the game as the 'Gabba.
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
09 February 2010
SQUAD CHANGES ANNOUNCED
Deservedly Brad Haddin and Shane Watson will be given a rest for the next couple of ODI's in the current series against the Windies.
The two of them have been the stand out players of the summer for me, so while it will be unfortunate not to see them in action, they do need the rest!
The boys lead the series 2-0, with one more win needed to claim the series against a slightly deflated Windies team.
In place for Hads will be Tassie's Tim Paine. I'm stoked for Tim as he was brilliant for us in stepping in for Hads after the Ashes series. He was excellent behind the stumps for us in the Champions Trophy and continued onwards through the Indian series with good performances, until he bust his finger which gave Graham Manou the call-up to debut in ODI cricket.
Tim is still a young bloke and these opportunities are the best way to ensure we have a bloody good 'Keeper to step in when Hads hangs up the Baggy Green Cap. So Tim is in and I'm really pleased about this.
In place for Watto will be Adam Voges. Adam gets his chance again but I reckon he will be in the middle order though while Tim takes the opening-role in Watto's place. Adam will play where Hads is usually situated I reckon. Adam is kind of just 'there' when he plays so I hope he gets stuck in with these opportunities he has. If can be honest I think if I were an observer from another team I wouldn't be too worried about him as an opponent. For this reason I'd like him to show the casual observers what he is capable of!
The player rotation system is being handled really well. It's one way to ensure that overkill cricket doesn't burden our team again like it did no less than 6 months ago! Days I'd rather forget about, but as always there's some kind of positive and that is that other blokes were given opportunities which they made the most of and they are now apart of the Squad due to their brilliant courage to step up in their performances.
One more win needed to take this series and that will be a victorius summer, although my series prediction will still be closely monitored though.
Hope Ryano gets another chance for the 3rd ODI at the SCG.
*For 2nd ODI review see previous article.
The two of them have been the stand out players of the summer for me, so while it will be unfortunate not to see them in action, they do need the rest!
The boys lead the series 2-0, with one more win needed to claim the series against a slightly deflated Windies team.
In place for Hads will be Tassie's Tim Paine. I'm stoked for Tim as he was brilliant for us in stepping in for Hads after the Ashes series. He was excellent behind the stumps for us in the Champions Trophy and continued onwards through the Indian series with good performances, until he bust his finger which gave Graham Manou the call-up to debut in ODI cricket.
Tim is still a young bloke and these opportunities are the best way to ensure we have a bloody good 'Keeper to step in when Hads hangs up the Baggy Green Cap. So Tim is in and I'm really pleased about this.
In place for Watto will be Adam Voges. Adam gets his chance again but I reckon he will be in the middle order though while Tim takes the opening-role in Watto's place. Adam will play where Hads is usually situated I reckon. Adam is kind of just 'there' when he plays so I hope he gets stuck in with these opportunities he has. If can be honest I think if I were an observer from another team I wouldn't be too worried about him as an opponent. For this reason I'd like him to show the casual observers what he is capable of!
The player rotation system is being handled really well. It's one way to ensure that overkill cricket doesn't burden our team again like it did no less than 6 months ago! Days I'd rather forget about, but as always there's some kind of positive and that is that other blokes were given opportunities which they made the most of and they are now apart of the Squad due to their brilliant courage to step up in their performances.
One more win needed to take this series and that will be a victorius summer, although my series prediction will still be closely monitored though.
Hope Ryano gets another chance for the 3rd ODI at the SCG.
*For 2nd ODI review see previous article.
08 February 2010
WINDIES RECEIVE A BEATING AT THE ADELAIDE OVAL!
Was great to have a few new followers on Twitter. It's good to have your chirps or 'tweets' during various sessions of the game. Cheers to that.
For those of you who want to follow me on Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
Well the Windies started out terribly. I have to admit I felt a rare emotion for the opposition. I felt sorry for the Windies!
Firstly they sent a B-team over to a major ICC event due to board issues, now they have been burdened by injuries with a number of key players. So they now have a top order with decent expectations upon them with little collective experience and Chris Gayle may be feeling pressure to perform to not only make runs but to also try live up to the reputation as a master slogger. Pity because he has a patient temperament too when he bats...sometimes.
News on the day was that Ryan Harris was being given a rest while Clint McKay had a chance to get in there, so Ryano sported the 12th man bib. The Oval was the return ground of gold for Ryano so I was slightly upset he didn't get a game.
Due to Doug Bollinger delivering a wild opening spell of seam bowling with steep bounce off a good Adelaide Oval track, he had the Windies against the rafters. He did the damage and that initial impact was what gave us a smooth chance of victory. Chris Gayle was sent back LBW first ball. The mood of the innings was set. That's quite something, showing you how important he is too this current side. The Adelaide Oval seemed to halve in capacity too after that first delivery!
But after being hammered after a brutal opening spell from our bowlers, including some tame controversy of sorts with the Umpires, the Windies managed to recover decently after their horrific start.
Pollard and Smith were the key due to their abilities to put the pressure back on any opposition once they get their eye in. It didn't seem that great with a score of 170 all out from 39.4 overs, but after being 4 wickets down with 16 runs on the board I think they managed to redeem themselves. Funny how there will always be one or two guys who get the runs.
Besides the awesome bowling from Douggie B (4/28) who is just being incredibly consistent in his performances, it was great to see Punter get another run out with a dead-eye direct hit and then Huss wrapped it up with one of the best outfield catches you will see.
The question that tends to burden so many teams with a low scoring game are the following:
Do you go out guns blazing and knock off the runs as quickly as possible (A Gilchrist/Hayden like effort, totally irreplaceable), do you pace the innings out with patience (A Michael Clarke effort), or do you go out with aggressive intentions and find a balance between the two?
Either way early wickets to the opposition can change the entire situation of the game in a low scoring run chase.
So the run chase. Shaun Marsh was playing his shots with perfection, he had a look to his innings that was confidently imposing to the Windies bowlers. No complacency, just a bloke opening the batting hungry for runs and to do it with no holding back! That's a Marsh innings I have been waiting for. He had one hectic moment of luck when he was undecided on a shot, like Trav Dowlin in the start of the Windies innings, but the ball missed the stumps! The shots could continue!
Watto still takes the prize for 'holding the pose' after the notable straight drive!
Shaun sadly fell before the 10 over mark but he did the job with Watto to get things going with 'aggressive intentions'. He's making the starts is Shaun, but just not managing to keep it going. His dismissal didn't stop Watto from playing some magnificent shots.
He was thrashing the ball all over the place after a moderate start. Three boundaries in the 12th over was a highlight of his innings, each shot being perfectly executed! Then he was riding the confidence wave in no time and the boundaries just kept coming, with a four bringing up his half-century after an immaculate heave for six!
Having met the Champ Watto last year, my Brother-in-law and I are convinced our heart-to-heart chat with him was the encouragement key to his current form...and Callum Ferguson ignoring us led to his bust knee down the line.
I have no answers for Binga's elbow though on this note.
Kemar Roach bowled a damn fine delivery to pick Watto's wicket for 53, but it was another great innings from Watto. Was hoping for a century though!
Writing about Kemar Roach, his pace was awesome. The way he was able to put Michael Clarke out of shape around the crease was quite a sight and was energy was exciting to watch. Imagine if he had a few of the fit Windies pace bowlers with him?
Another bowler I note is Nikita Miller, sure he doesn't look like anything special but I just think he has something good there. A kind of X-factor that Brad Hogg had for us. Just a gut feeling, as I do want the Windies' cricket to improve.
It was a good move by Punter to take the PowerPlay in the 19th over, with less then 100 runs needed was smart. The Adelaide track was looking good too and Ricky Ponting took advantage of it with his excellence.
The best aspect of his innings was the way he elegantly cut the ball, just sending down the blade with expert timing and disecting the field! However, when Punter is in-form when does he not show us the shot in his armour!
During the PowerPlay it was really good to see Punter switch into an attacking mood and play really big shots! Pleased to see Punter play a fine innings and get into the ODI form again! The Maestro ended 57* not out.
Michael Clarke did a fine job being the anchor in supporting Punter to make sure their partnership got us over the not so intimidating finish mark. Didn't take long to do it too as Punter blasted a pull shot for four with 141 balls to spare.
That was a really big win!
The moral of this game for the Windies is as follows. Don't ever, ever again bowl Shane Watson out for a golden duck (notably Kemar Roach) as sure enough down the line you're going to get the panel beating of note!
I think you could also say just don't lose 4 wickets for under twenty runs.
2-0 is the standing and there goes Chris Gayle's prediction for 4-1..assuming it was to his own team.
My prediction seems to be taking shape well though.
Will see how it continues as the boys head over to the SCG on Friday for the 3rd ODI.
For those of you who want to follow me on Twitter:
Well the Windies started out terribly. I have to admit I felt a rare emotion for the opposition. I felt sorry for the Windies!
Firstly they sent a B-team over to a major ICC event due to board issues, now they have been burdened by injuries with a number of key players. So they now have a top order with decent expectations upon them with little collective experience and Chris Gayle may be feeling pressure to perform to not only make runs but to also try live up to the reputation as a master slogger. Pity because he has a patient temperament too when he bats...sometimes.
News on the day was that Ryan Harris was being given a rest while Clint McKay had a chance to get in there, so Ryano sported the 12th man bib. The Oval was the return ground of gold for Ryano so I was slightly upset he didn't get a game.
Due to Doug Bollinger delivering a wild opening spell of seam bowling with steep bounce off a good Adelaide Oval track, he had the Windies against the rafters. He did the damage and that initial impact was what gave us a smooth chance of victory. Chris Gayle was sent back LBW first ball. The mood of the innings was set. That's quite something, showing you how important he is too this current side. The Adelaide Oval seemed to halve in capacity too after that first delivery!
But after being hammered after a brutal opening spell from our bowlers, including some tame controversy of sorts with the Umpires, the Windies managed to recover decently after their horrific start.
Pollard and Smith were the key due to their abilities to put the pressure back on any opposition once they get their eye in. It didn't seem that great with a score of 170 all out from 39.4 overs, but after being 4 wickets down with 16 runs on the board I think they managed to redeem themselves. Funny how there will always be one or two guys who get the runs.
Besides the awesome bowling from Douggie B (4/28) who is just being incredibly consistent in his performances, it was great to see Punter get another run out with a dead-eye direct hit and then Huss wrapped it up with one of the best outfield catches you will see.
The question that tends to burden so many teams with a low scoring game are the following:
Do you go out guns blazing and knock off the runs as quickly as possible (A Gilchrist/Hayden like effort, totally irreplaceable), do you pace the innings out with patience (A Michael Clarke effort), or do you go out with aggressive intentions and find a balance between the two?
Either way early wickets to the opposition can change the entire situation of the game in a low scoring run chase.
So the run chase. Shaun Marsh was playing his shots with perfection, he had a look to his innings that was confidently imposing to the Windies bowlers. No complacency, just a bloke opening the batting hungry for runs and to do it with no holding back! That's a Marsh innings I have been waiting for. He had one hectic moment of luck when he was undecided on a shot, like Trav Dowlin in the start of the Windies innings, but the ball missed the stumps! The shots could continue!
Watto still takes the prize for 'holding the pose' after the notable straight drive!
Shaun sadly fell before the 10 over mark but he did the job with Watto to get things going with 'aggressive intentions'. He's making the starts is Shaun, but just not managing to keep it going. His dismissal didn't stop Watto from playing some magnificent shots.
He was thrashing the ball all over the place after a moderate start. Three boundaries in the 12th over was a highlight of his innings, each shot being perfectly executed! Then he was riding the confidence wave in no time and the boundaries just kept coming, with a four bringing up his half-century after an immaculate heave for six!
Having met the Champ Watto last year, my Brother-in-law and I are convinced our heart-to-heart chat with him was the encouragement key to his current form...and Callum Ferguson ignoring us led to his bust knee down the line.
I have no answers for Binga's elbow though on this note.
Kemar Roach bowled a damn fine delivery to pick Watto's wicket for 53, but it was another great innings from Watto. Was hoping for a century though!
Writing about Kemar Roach, his pace was awesome. The way he was able to put Michael Clarke out of shape around the crease was quite a sight and was energy was exciting to watch. Imagine if he had a few of the fit Windies pace bowlers with him?
Another bowler I note is Nikita Miller, sure he doesn't look like anything special but I just think he has something good there. A kind of X-factor that Brad Hogg had for us. Just a gut feeling, as I do want the Windies' cricket to improve.
It was a good move by Punter to take the PowerPlay in the 19th over, with less then 100 runs needed was smart. The Adelaide track was looking good too and Ricky Ponting took advantage of it with his excellence.
The best aspect of his innings was the way he elegantly cut the ball, just sending down the blade with expert timing and disecting the field! However, when Punter is in-form when does he not show us the shot in his armour!
During the PowerPlay it was really good to see Punter switch into an attacking mood and play really big shots! Pleased to see Punter play a fine innings and get into the ODI form again! The Maestro ended 57* not out.
Michael Clarke did a fine job being the anchor in supporting Punter to make sure their partnership got us over the not so intimidating finish mark. Didn't take long to do it too as Punter blasted a pull shot for four with 141 balls to spare.
That was a really big win!
The moral of this game for the Windies is as follows. Don't ever, ever again bowl Shane Watson out for a golden duck (notably Kemar Roach) as sure enough down the line you're going to get the panel beating of note!
I think you could also say just don't lose 4 wickets for under twenty runs.
2-0 is the standing and there goes Chris Gayle's prediction for 4-1..assuming it was to his own team.
My prediction seems to be taking shape well though.
Will see how it continues as the boys head over to the SCG on Friday for the 3rd ODI.
WHAT'S YOUR PREDICTION?
Alright, seeing as the placid (most of the time) Chris Gayle, Captain of the Windies, predicts a 4-1 result favouring his side I'd like to hear what some of you reckon. They are 1 down so the various punters reckon he's on the money there.
You reckon the Windies will be putting up a fight and the Gayle of fortune will prove the 4-1 prediction to be true, or will you, like me, rarely doubt the Teams class to take this series? I maintain that I reckon we are going to be seeing a rapid turn around from the Windies and that unpredictable element is just lingering to catch us out in any game, at any moment that the side switches off.
But I have to stay to true to my gut feeling which is that...nah, I'll leave the predictions up to the lot of you!
Catch me on Twitter (Kirby, where have you been?) for various sessions of the match:
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
You reckon the Windies will be putting up a fight and the Gayle of fortune will prove the 4-1 prediction to be true, or will you, like me, rarely doubt the Teams class to take this series? I maintain that I reckon we are going to be seeing a rapid turn around from the Windies and that unpredictable element is just lingering to catch us out in any game, at any moment that the side switches off.
But I have to stay to true to my gut feeling which is that...nah, I'll leave the predictions up to the lot of you!
Catch me on Twitter (Kirby, where have you been?) for various sessions of the match:
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
07 February 2010
AUSSIE BOWLERS SLAUGHTER THE WINDIES!
That was a really fine performance from our bowlers! With a list of injuries this batch of bowlers have had to really step up, and how well are they doing! They really slaughtered the Windies batting line-up as the victory margin was over 100 runs!
The bowlers deserve the credit for an outstanding performance and when you look at this list, the future is looking so strong:
Doug Bollinger, Ryan Harris, Mitchell Johnson, Clint McKay, Shane Watson, Nathan Hauritz...Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus, Brett Lee and Nathan Bracken. Keep in mind there are rising young blokes too!
Shane Watson was our top scorer and the best part was that it was Watto's 100th appearance for us in ODI's. If he continues the way he has done he will be my Player of the summer. He's had a rough journey with so many lows but the high's over the past 12 months are unforgettable. It was a pity a century wasn't achieved, but he then chipped in with the ball yet again, bowling a tight line with variation in his pace. Well done Watto! He was Player of the match (not of the series Mark Nicholas) and it was special to see how proud he was! It's been a rollercoaster ride and he's been terrific. What a Champ!
Ricky Ponting batted well but fell 1 short of a half-century. It's a better start for Punter, and he's done really well in his last few appearances. He started off well below his standards and now he's upped his own game and all I can say is that the Windies must watch out!
Otherwise it was just one of those games where the Windies bowled well and our batsmen just weren't in the best form for the day! No worries though.
Our bowlers, as mentioned, were the destructive force for us! After Chris Gayle went it was always going to be a tough challenge for the Windies to claw their way back in.
With Doug Bollinger and Ryan Harris doing another good job as a duo with the new ball the Windies were put right in the firing line due to an allround bowling effort. Douggie B is just having a dream run with that new ball!
Every guy chipped in with the ball, and the fielding was just as complementary. The boys took their catches, Punter set attacking fields for his bowlers and the strategies were in place. Punter impressed me as he was flexible in the field, keeping the guys in the game and being really sharp! At backward point he is still a thrill to watch. I rate our Skipper, and his energy is really present at the moment as this group try to continue to improve under his leadership.
Ryan Harris has continued to give it his best and he's getting the results. Ryano has become a key part of this team as he cruises the confidence wave! Another 3 wickets to his name and how brilliant was he in wrapping up the tail enders! This is a problem we had in the ODI and Test format for a while but since the England ODI series this ability to 'go in for the kill' has improved drastically. We have that cutting edge again and the guys just have to continue to improve, but not much to point fingers at. They're doing a brilliant job!
1-0 is the standing but Chris Gayle will be eyeing this as in-line with his prediction.
He predicted 4-1 to the Windies and this is then, theoretically, the game they had to lose.
As much as Chris is the coolest bloke in World Cricket and there's no lack of confidence in his forecast, he's a bit off on this one! That's what I think atleast but then again, I am probably the most overly optimistic Aussie cricket supporters out there at the moment.
Great start from the boys and that was a mean victory! I want the Windies to try salvage their best team possible now as I want to see a challenge out there.
The 2nd ODI will be at the Adelaide Oval, so be sure to check that match if you can!
The bowlers deserve the credit for an outstanding performance and when you look at this list, the future is looking so strong:
Doug Bollinger, Ryan Harris, Mitchell Johnson, Clint McKay, Shane Watson, Nathan Hauritz...Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus, Brett Lee and Nathan Bracken. Keep in mind there are rising young blokes too!
Shane Watson was our top scorer and the best part was that it was Watto's 100th appearance for us in ODI's. If he continues the way he has done he will be my Player of the summer. He's had a rough journey with so many lows but the high's over the past 12 months are unforgettable. It was a pity a century wasn't achieved, but he then chipped in with the ball yet again, bowling a tight line with variation in his pace. Well done Watto! He was Player of the match (not of the series Mark Nicholas) and it was special to see how proud he was! It's been a rollercoaster ride and he's been terrific. What a Champ!
Ricky Ponting batted well but fell 1 short of a half-century. It's a better start for Punter, and he's done really well in his last few appearances. He started off well below his standards and now he's upped his own game and all I can say is that the Windies must watch out!
Otherwise it was just one of those games where the Windies bowled well and our batsmen just weren't in the best form for the day! No worries though.
Our bowlers, as mentioned, were the destructive force for us! After Chris Gayle went it was always going to be a tough challenge for the Windies to claw their way back in.
With Doug Bollinger and Ryan Harris doing another good job as a duo with the new ball the Windies were put right in the firing line due to an allround bowling effort. Douggie B is just having a dream run with that new ball!
Every guy chipped in with the ball, and the fielding was just as complementary. The boys took their catches, Punter set attacking fields for his bowlers and the strategies were in place. Punter impressed me as he was flexible in the field, keeping the guys in the game and being really sharp! At backward point he is still a thrill to watch. I rate our Skipper, and his energy is really present at the moment as this group try to continue to improve under his leadership.
Ryan Harris has continued to give it his best and he's getting the results. Ryano has become a key part of this team as he cruises the confidence wave! Another 3 wickets to his name and how brilliant was he in wrapping up the tail enders! This is a problem we had in the ODI and Test format for a while but since the England ODI series this ability to 'go in for the kill' has improved drastically. We have that cutting edge again and the guys just have to continue to improve, but not much to point fingers at. They're doing a brilliant job!
1-0 is the standing but Chris Gayle will be eyeing this as in-line with his prediction.
He predicted 4-1 to the Windies and this is then, theoretically, the game they had to lose.
As much as Chris is the coolest bloke in World Cricket and there's no lack of confidence in his forecast, he's a bit off on this one! That's what I think atleast but then again, I am probably the most overly optimistic Aussie cricket supporters out there at the moment.
Great start from the boys and that was a mean victory! I want the Windies to try salvage their best team possible now as I want to see a challenge out there.
The 2nd ODI will be at the Adelaide Oval, so be sure to check that match if you can!
05 February 2010
A THRILLING T20 VICTORY vs PAKISTAN!
Thanks to those of you who were able to join me on Twitter! Was great to have you following my tweets and glad I could follow your chirps!
For the rest of you, have your say now about the game in the comments section here!
From The Baggy Green to the Green & Gold it was a victorius show from the boys! Admittedly we are rather shocking at T20 cricket, so I take any victory as a fine one! A definite change that will work in our favor is in the approach to Squad selection from the NSP. One good step to improve things.
What a game! This is how T20 should be, enough time to forget about it that it comes back with a bang! Pakistan walk away defeated with not one victory, but they gave the boys a tough challenge tonight. We had a disastrous run last summer so it's brilliant to be back on a winning streak.
So, is Hockey is now officially Pakistan's main sport?
Well, the Pakistan team will go away with alot to work on, but as I mentioned after the Test series they have some small things to work on, notably discipline, and if they rectify those things they will become a really fine cricket team. I just hope the fans don't go burning things now and being total gits. Losing is disheartening but it will just boost the Pakistan teams confidence to have support no matter what.
Our batting was pretty much a total short-circuit in the minds of our middle-order.
One thing I have observed is that we struggle to rebuild in T20 cricket after a collapse. In general rebuilding an innings or trying to salvage an innings is difficult but the batsmen took strain in the middle order, it could be put down to either fine bowling from Pakistan or some bizarre stroke-play from our batsmen.
There was another element in our batting which could be labelled as 'panic', as we had three run-outs! More than one run-out can be deterimental and it was the case for the boys as the initial target of 180 became an illusion.
But the Victorian David Hussey grafted with focus to try get us into a position with something to defend, even though watching him can do your nerves no good!
He really did blast those two sixes with ferocious power! I liked the way he tried his best to do a similar thing that his brother does in just rotating the strike, finding the gaps and playing a big shot where possible. It was a pity that no one was able to develop a partnership with him in the closing stages of the innings. It was even worse to see him unbeaten on 40!
David Warner played a fine innings before before being tempted into one wide of off stump. He had just pulled one powerfully for six, but he couldn't carry on. This left Michael Clarke to try hold the fort, which he did before also falling playing at one outside off. He executed some really well timed shots and ran some frantic singles to ensure we held the momentum. Frustratingly all his efforts resulted in was a middle order collapse. I was gutted to see our debutants not being able to cash in on some runs with a golden opportunity to shine being presented as both Travis Birt & Steven Smith deserved their call-ups but Pakistan bowled really well! Our T20 batting is still a long way off, but the consistency is hard to come by in this form of the game.
Atleast we saw some of our big hitters smash a few sixes for entertainment sake!
Shaun Tait! Yes Shaun Tait bowling at 156km/h looked pretty wild, but then he followed up with one clocking in at 160.7km/h! How about it eh! It was an insane over with not one delivery failing to be under 150! Brad Haddin admitted it was the fastest over he has had to 'keep too! It didn't take long for him to get the break-through. Taito was on target in this match and his pace was brutal!
Dirk Nannes backed him up well in the initial stage of the innings for Pakistan, and they complemented each other really well with good pace of his own and a niggling line and length.
Mitchell Johnson's radar went off tonight though and he was very costly in his first over. It's T20 cricket so the odd lashing is going to happen, but if Mitch is slightly off it's no mystery even to him that the run gates will be open! But did he make a needed comeback when it mattered!
Shane Watson was solid!
He was tight in his line, he varied his pace brilliantly and he lured the Pakistan batsmen to try innovative ways to score off him. He's had a golden summer, and I wonder how his batting would have gone had he not stuttered on a run to be painfully run-out! He has more chances coming up! Watch out Windies!
Steven Smith was brought in towards the death of the innings and how awesome was Michael Clarke's Captaincy notably during this period of play!
He tightened the field, implemented some outstanding tactics for all of his bowlers with some smart knowledge to back his moves. The best part about Pup's Captaincy (which I have noted many times) is that he is aggressive with his tactics as he tempts the batsmen to cast a line into his field of play and complements his bowlers really well to go for the kill! This is similar to how Ricky Ponting executed his plans when he still had all his older team-mates from when he was maturing into a senior player. Pup has had the right guy to learn from.
The only thing that was against Punter is that he was given a team full of players who he hadn't had under his leadership before and most of them he hand't played enough State cricket alongside. This is one aspect which brought up the criticism of his tactics, or lackof. Still a legend in my books!
This T20 Captaincy is just a chance for a guy like Pup to learn more about his game and leadership, even if he doesn't take over from Punter.
Back to Steven Smith! The 17th over, a big over in the match and what does he do? Tosses up a teasing leg-breaker, which The Real Julio Rana Naved tried to launch himself at. It missed the bat and Hads had an easy stumping chance, all the time in the world for a 'Keeper! So two wickets for Smith and the game was well and truely on! Umar Gul then comes on and the first ball he sends out a maximum! Quite an effort!
But that over from Steven Smith was a great over on debut at 20 infront of a massive crowd!
Mitchell Johnson then had a crazy return as he delivered a maiden over. It is hard to do in T20, let alone in the final stages of a game. That ended up being really defining and the momentum changed dramatically!
This reversal of momentum helped Dirk Nannes to handle the dirty work.
His first two balls of the 19th over were epic! He remained cool and calm, handling the job excellently throughout. Having set up the last over of the game perfectly, Shane Watson ended things off with a bang! A massive wicket first ball of his over seemed to secure victory. It was to be. Watto's summer just got that extra bit better!
It has to be said that Pitbull Warner's courage and intensity in the field is admirable. He runs around the field with every bit of energy he has and really shows off how athletic he is. A good display from him in the field! On the note of athletism, Mitchell Johnson's run-out! Enough said!
Kamran Akmal was able to have a good game for himself as he cast aside some demons to end his tour. His wicket-keeping was really good this game, notably that stumping to send Brad Haddin back with 1 run to his name. It was quick take down legside and even Hads would complement him on that. The two of them seem to have been quite buddy buddy this summer. It's a 'Keeper thing.
Kamran batted really well. Aggressive in his approach he became the dominating character for the innings! It tested our bowlers to find ways to to get rid of him, and after being dropped in the deep it only took one more delivery to end his night. A fine innings of 64 in T20 style. His confidence would have been boosted nicely after his performance!
But rightly so Shaun Tait was man-of-the-match. That delivery will be spoken of for many years to come, just like the deliveries from Shoaib Aktar and Binga are still spoken of today from the 2003 World Cup. Well done Taito! After a rough season for the Redbacks he got the call up and delivered in style!
So Pakistan head off but we will see them again later this year, but I am certain they can learn from this series. For our T20 side atleast we can say we beat the T20 Champions and that ends the Pakistan campaign off outstandingly.
Now for the Windies! Well we have two more chances at T20 cricket not too far away where the boys can try tweak things before the T20 Champions Trophy later this year. ODI cricket is back on though and we can expect a fired up Windies team lead by an in-form, cool customer Chris Gayle!
Copyright: Getty Images
For the rest of you, have your say now about the game in the comments section here!
From The Baggy Green to the Green & Gold it was a victorius show from the boys! Admittedly we are rather shocking at T20 cricket, so I take any victory as a fine one! A definite change that will work in our favor is in the approach to Squad selection from the NSP. One good step to improve things.
What a game! This is how T20 should be, enough time to forget about it that it comes back with a bang! Pakistan walk away defeated with not one victory, but they gave the boys a tough challenge tonight. We had a disastrous run last summer so it's brilliant to be back on a winning streak.
So, is Hockey is now officially Pakistan's main sport?
Well, the Pakistan team will go away with alot to work on, but as I mentioned after the Test series they have some small things to work on, notably discipline, and if they rectify those things they will become a really fine cricket team. I just hope the fans don't go burning things now and being total gits. Losing is disheartening but it will just boost the Pakistan teams confidence to have support no matter what.
Our batting was pretty much a total short-circuit in the minds of our middle-order.
One thing I have observed is that we struggle to rebuild in T20 cricket after a collapse. In general rebuilding an innings or trying to salvage an innings is difficult but the batsmen took strain in the middle order, it could be put down to either fine bowling from Pakistan or some bizarre stroke-play from our batsmen.
There was another element in our batting which could be labelled as 'panic', as we had three run-outs! More than one run-out can be deterimental and it was the case for the boys as the initial target of 180 became an illusion.
But the Victorian David Hussey grafted with focus to try get us into a position with something to defend, even though watching him can do your nerves no good!
He really did blast those two sixes with ferocious power! I liked the way he tried his best to do a similar thing that his brother does in just rotating the strike, finding the gaps and playing a big shot where possible. It was a pity that no one was able to develop a partnership with him in the closing stages of the innings. It was even worse to see him unbeaten on 40!
David Warner played a fine innings before before being tempted into one wide of off stump. He had just pulled one powerfully for six, but he couldn't carry on. This left Michael Clarke to try hold the fort, which he did before also falling playing at one outside off. He executed some really well timed shots and ran some frantic singles to ensure we held the momentum. Frustratingly all his efforts resulted in was a middle order collapse. I was gutted to see our debutants not being able to cash in on some runs with a golden opportunity to shine being presented as both Travis Birt & Steven Smith deserved their call-ups but Pakistan bowled really well! Our T20 batting is still a long way off, but the consistency is hard to come by in this form of the game.
Atleast we saw some of our big hitters smash a few sixes for entertainment sake!
Shaun Tait! Yes Shaun Tait bowling at 156km/h looked pretty wild, but then he followed up with one clocking in at 160.7km/h! How about it eh! It was an insane over with not one delivery failing to be under 150! Brad Haddin admitted it was the fastest over he has had to 'keep too! It didn't take long for him to get the break-through. Taito was on target in this match and his pace was brutal!
Dirk Nannes backed him up well in the initial stage of the innings for Pakistan, and they complemented each other really well with good pace of his own and a niggling line and length.
Mitchell Johnson's radar went off tonight though and he was very costly in his first over. It's T20 cricket so the odd lashing is going to happen, but if Mitch is slightly off it's no mystery even to him that the run gates will be open! But did he make a needed comeback when it mattered!
Shane Watson was solid!
He was tight in his line, he varied his pace brilliantly and he lured the Pakistan batsmen to try innovative ways to score off him. He's had a golden summer, and I wonder how his batting would have gone had he not stuttered on a run to be painfully run-out! He has more chances coming up! Watch out Windies!
Steven Smith was brought in towards the death of the innings and how awesome was Michael Clarke's Captaincy notably during this period of play!
He tightened the field, implemented some outstanding tactics for all of his bowlers with some smart knowledge to back his moves. The best part about Pup's Captaincy (which I have noted many times) is that he is aggressive with his tactics as he tempts the batsmen to cast a line into his field of play and complements his bowlers really well to go for the kill! This is similar to how Ricky Ponting executed his plans when he still had all his older team-mates from when he was maturing into a senior player. Pup has had the right guy to learn from.
The only thing that was against Punter is that he was given a team full of players who he hadn't had under his leadership before and most of them he hand't played enough State cricket alongside. This is one aspect which brought up the criticism of his tactics, or lackof. Still a legend in my books!
This T20 Captaincy is just a chance for a guy like Pup to learn more about his game and leadership, even if he doesn't take over from Punter.
Back to Steven Smith! The 17th over, a big over in the match and what does he do? Tosses up a teasing leg-breaker, which The Real Julio Rana Naved tried to launch himself at. It missed the bat and Hads had an easy stumping chance, all the time in the world for a 'Keeper! So two wickets for Smith and the game was well and truely on! Umar Gul then comes on and the first ball he sends out a maximum! Quite an effort!
But that over from Steven Smith was a great over on debut at 20 infront of a massive crowd!
Mitchell Johnson then had a crazy return as he delivered a maiden over. It is hard to do in T20, let alone in the final stages of a game. That ended up being really defining and the momentum changed dramatically!
This reversal of momentum helped Dirk Nannes to handle the dirty work.
His first two balls of the 19th over were epic! He remained cool and calm, handling the job excellently throughout. Having set up the last over of the game perfectly, Shane Watson ended things off with a bang! A massive wicket first ball of his over seemed to secure victory. It was to be. Watto's summer just got that extra bit better!
It has to be said that Pitbull Warner's courage and intensity in the field is admirable. He runs around the field with every bit of energy he has and really shows off how athletic he is. A good display from him in the field! On the note of athletism, Mitchell Johnson's run-out! Enough said!
Kamran Akmal was able to have a good game for himself as he cast aside some demons to end his tour. His wicket-keeping was really good this game, notably that stumping to send Brad Haddin back with 1 run to his name. It was quick take down legside and even Hads would complement him on that. The two of them seem to have been quite buddy buddy this summer. It's a 'Keeper thing.
Kamran batted really well. Aggressive in his approach he became the dominating character for the innings! It tested our bowlers to find ways to to get rid of him, and after being dropped in the deep it only took one more delivery to end his night. A fine innings of 64 in T20 style. His confidence would have been boosted nicely after his performance!
But rightly so Shaun Tait was man-of-the-match. That delivery will be spoken of for many years to come, just like the deliveries from Shoaib Aktar and Binga are still spoken of today from the 2003 World Cup. Well done Taito! After a rough season for the Redbacks he got the call up and delivered in style!
So Pakistan head off but we will see them again later this year, but I am certain they can learn from this series. For our T20 side atleast we can say we beat the T20 Champions and that ends the Pakistan campaign off outstandingly.
Now for the Windies! Well we have two more chances at T20 cricket not too far away where the boys can try tweak things before the T20 Champions Trophy later this year. ODI cricket is back on though and we can expect a fired up Windies team lead by an in-form, cool customer Chris Gayle!
Copyright: Getty Images
T20 ACTION DISCUSSION ON TWITTER
Catch me on Twitter for the T20 at the MCG as Michael Clarke leads the boys as they take on T20 Champions Pakistan!
Hoping the weather behaves and we actually manage to complete a T20 fixture this time unlike the two in England!
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
Follow my Tweets and share your views on the game if you wish! Come on Aussie!
Hoping the weather behaves and we actually manage to complete a T20 fixture this time unlike the two in England!
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
Follow my Tweets and share your views on the game if you wish! Come on Aussie!
03 February 2010
WINDIES ARE READY, WELL GAYLE FOR CERTAIN
The Prime Ministers XI vs The Windies looks pretty daunting at a quick look.
Chris Gayle doesn't need any further practice or mention for that matter if you know what he's capable of! Check that innings out!
146 runs off 89 deliveries with 8 sixes! What a machine.
Overall a mighty fine scorecard there for the Windies and three bowlers have the dreaded 10 runs per over figure present by their stats. When the Gayle storm let's loose even as a supporter feel the aftermath...but damn he's an exciting batsman!
Also, what was Matthew Hayden doing batting at 6th? Haydo's has the imposing abilities still, so what was he doing there? Well it didn't stop Tom Cooper from letting loose opening up. He was unbeaten on 160! The Manuka Oval in Canberra must be a fantastic batting track. That is what I have concluded from this match!
The Windies have arrived and look ready to challenge us. It will be tough grafting as this is where their unpredictability becomes a huge threat! One day they will rock up to the ground looking like Reggae beats are grooving in their minds, and fittingly their physical co-ordination is slow, and they will appear to be lazy with not a care in the world.
On these days they are usually terrible with their better known 'shock fielding' being the element of display. But then all of a sudden they will be the most ferocious of groups where it just takes one bloke to stand out and suddenly they all slip into a totally different mind! This unpredictable aspect is what can make them dangerous on their day. So do they arrive for the first ODI Reggae'd up or ferociously determined?
T20 cricket tomorrow versus Pakistan, their last appearance against us till mid-year. You can catch me on Twitter for the match, so if you want to join me there you can find me at:
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
Chris Gayle doesn't need any further practice or mention for that matter if you know what he's capable of! Check that innings out!
146 runs off 89 deliveries with 8 sixes! What a machine.
Overall a mighty fine scorecard there for the Windies and three bowlers have the dreaded 10 runs per over figure present by their stats. When the Gayle storm let's loose even as a supporter feel the aftermath...but damn he's an exciting batsman!
Also, what was Matthew Hayden doing batting at 6th? Haydo's has the imposing abilities still, so what was he doing there? Well it didn't stop Tom Cooper from letting loose opening up. He was unbeaten on 160! The Manuka Oval in Canberra must be a fantastic batting track. That is what I have concluded from this match!
The Windies have arrived and look ready to challenge us. It will be tough grafting as this is where their unpredictability becomes a huge threat! One day they will rock up to the ground looking like Reggae beats are grooving in their minds, and fittingly their physical co-ordination is slow, and they will appear to be lazy with not a care in the world.
On these days they are usually terrible with their better known 'shock fielding' being the element of display. But then all of a sudden they will be the most ferocious of groups where it just takes one bloke to stand out and suddenly they all slip into a totally different mind! This unpredictable aspect is what can make them dangerous on their day. So do they arrive for the first ODI Reggae'd up or ferociously determined?
T20 cricket tomorrow versus Pakistan, their last appearance against us till mid-year. You can catch me on Twitter for the match, so if you want to join me there you can find me at:
http://www.twitter.com/Ianbaggygreen
SQUAD NEWS & SOME MORE CASUALTIES!
The Squad for the ODI's versus the Windies has been announced.
Doug Bollinger and Shane Watson return to the side, while Adam Voges and Peter Siddle will not join the Squad this time around.
No surprises about Peter Siddle's latest news. A stress fracture in his back has sent him packing for the season and it is not going to be a part of the Test team to tour New Zealand after the upcoming ODI's. It isn't a surprise as his workload was becoming ridiculous and when all the signs were there of a bloke who had lost 'that edge' a bit, he included game after game and as a possible result of this he will now have to recover. Atleast he ended his season on a bit of a high!
Hope he returns with the ambition and vicious intent again getting close to that 150km/h mark!
The other news is that Brett Geeves is out for the season. Now some of you may not know but 90% of the time he is in the Test Squad as a cover for our bowling unit, and after covering for Sids at the WACA I thought we'd see him in action but he has also been ruled out and will most likely have no further part in the season.
This is also on the back of Ben Hilfenhaus still recovering along with seniors Brett Lee and Stuart Clark still well out of the mix.
But I am still hoping Hilfy recovers in time and can get a Sheffield game in to prove his worth for the tour to New Zealand. He would be epic in New Zealand with the new ball in his hand!
This does open up opportunities for guys like Clint McKay and Ryan Harris. Ryano in particular wouldn't have had a dream return if it hadn't been for these injuries.
I guess it has been a darker shade of positivity in knowing we have sufficient bowling stocks when only a few months back we were relying heavily on Mitch, Hilfy and Sids.
So Mitchell (still going strong) and Douggie B will lead the attack at this stage.
But that tour is a bit away so after Fridays T20 against Pakistan we can discuss the Windies series a bit more.
On the Domestic circuit Nathan Bracken is currently playing in NSW's Ford Ranger game against The QLD Bulls. It looks like Bracks is finding the trademark element to his game again. A return from our no.1 ODI bowler is promising!
But how about Phil Jaques! 171 not out from Phil Jaques! My word that's just outstanding from the man. Doubt we'll see him again at International level but good to see he's still hungry for runs.
Doug Bollinger and Shane Watson return to the side, while Adam Voges and Peter Siddle will not join the Squad this time around.
No surprises about Peter Siddle's latest news. A stress fracture in his back has sent him packing for the season and it is not going to be a part of the Test team to tour New Zealand after the upcoming ODI's. It isn't a surprise as his workload was becoming ridiculous and when all the signs were there of a bloke who had lost 'that edge' a bit, he included game after game and as a possible result of this he will now have to recover. Atleast he ended his season on a bit of a high!
Hope he returns with the ambition and vicious intent again getting close to that 150km/h mark!
The other news is that Brett Geeves is out for the season. Now some of you may not know but 90% of the time he is in the Test Squad as a cover for our bowling unit, and after covering for Sids at the WACA I thought we'd see him in action but he has also been ruled out and will most likely have no further part in the season.
This is also on the back of Ben Hilfenhaus still recovering along with seniors Brett Lee and Stuart Clark still well out of the mix.
But I am still hoping Hilfy recovers in time and can get a Sheffield game in to prove his worth for the tour to New Zealand. He would be epic in New Zealand with the new ball in his hand!
This does open up opportunities for guys like Clint McKay and Ryan Harris. Ryano in particular wouldn't have had a dream return if it hadn't been for these injuries.
I guess it has been a darker shade of positivity in knowing we have sufficient bowling stocks when only a few months back we were relying heavily on Mitch, Hilfy and Sids.
So Mitchell (still going strong) and Douggie B will lead the attack at this stage.
But that tour is a bit away so after Fridays T20 against Pakistan we can discuss the Windies series a bit more.
On the Domestic circuit Nathan Bracken is currently playing in NSW's Ford Ranger game against The QLD Bulls. It looks like Bracks is finding the trademark element to his game again. A return from our no.1 ODI bowler is promising!
But how about Phil Jaques! 171 not out from Phil Jaques! My word that's just outstanding from the man. Doubt we'll see him again at International level but good to see he's still hungry for runs.
01 February 2010
FOR A CHANGE I'M KILLING WRITING TIME
For my overview of our T20 Squad to take on Pakistan see the previous Blog post or CLICK HERE. Have your say on the Squad!
Yeah I am already craving some more cricket as I really got into the last ODI series. Very excited for the T20 but courtesy of Kirby at Dustbin cricket I have developed the annoying habit to look at Cricinfo images and laugh at stupid captions that may be appropriate. So to do a blog filler I'm pulling off a Kirby.
She does have a drastically different way in presenting things to me and perhaps defending, let's say, 176 runs to win a Test match I may be slightly more at ease in my never give-in optimism while she downs the coffee and bites away her finger nails, but I get her drift most of the time.
McKay Mouse. My mate pointed this out & I thought it was a funny one. The hairdo?
"Cuz we're going to a Hookie Lau, A Hookie, Hookie, Hookie, Hookie, Hookie Lau!" Apparently jumping around like this will win a Test series. Prove me wrong.
The real Julio Naved-ul-Hasan: "Err, Shahid what the hell man, I just spat on that and rubbed it by my crotch"
Boom Boom: "Arrgghhh, say what?"
I still don't understand Shahid Afridi's motives by biting the ball! I really want to know more from him besides his comment that he wanted to win the game.
27 camera's, 27 camera's are watching you and that wasn't exactly discreet you know.
Punter out to know that constant focus. If the ICC had an award for 'Most Filmed Captain' I haven't one doubt he'd take it hands down!
Yeah I am already craving some more cricket as I really got into the last ODI series. Very excited for the T20 but courtesy of Kirby at Dustbin cricket I have developed the annoying habit to look at Cricinfo images and laugh at stupid captions that may be appropriate. So to do a blog filler I'm pulling off a Kirby.
She does have a drastically different way in presenting things to me and perhaps defending, let's say, 176 runs to win a Test match I may be slightly more at ease in my never give-in optimism while she downs the coffee and bites away her finger nails, but I get her drift most of the time.
McKay Mouse. My mate pointed this out & I thought it was a funny one. The hairdo?
"Cuz we're going to a Hookie Lau, A Hookie, Hookie, Hookie, Hookie, Hookie Lau!" Apparently jumping around like this will win a Test series. Prove me wrong.
The real Julio Naved-ul-Hasan: "Err, Shahid what the hell man, I just spat on that and rubbed it by my crotch"
Boom Boom: "Arrgghhh, say what?"
I still don't understand Shahid Afridi's motives by biting the ball! I really want to know more from him besides his comment that he wanted to win the game.
27 camera's, 27 camera's are watching you and that wasn't exactly discreet you know.
Punter out to know that constant focus. If the ICC had an award for 'Most Filmed Captain' I haven't one doubt he'd take it hands down!
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