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***Official Australia in India***

Precambrian

Precambrian

Banned
pup11 said:
India's bats have us by the googlies
By Kerry O'Keeffe

November 02, 2008 12:00am

THE Mentalist would find it difficult to fathom what has been going on in the heads of the Australian selectors over the past few weeks. Fair dinkum, was the spin bowling order of merit conceived at Hooters during a session with John Daly?

Last Wednesday, Australia began a crucial Test in Delhi needing to take 20 wickets to level the series. Our panel came up with the slow bowling trio of Cameron White, Michael Clarke and Simon Katich.

This grouping is unlikely to take 20 first-class wickets in a calendar year on doctored decks in the Gobi Desert.

Is Jason Krejza sleeping inside the Taj Mahal with Stuart MacGill's alarm clock? And why is baby-faced chinaman Beau Casson considered fruit out of season?

Casson's situation demands a public explanation from selection chairman Andrew Hilditch, who the media feel is harder to catch than the multiple top edges he provided fine leg during his hooking days.

Casson's case is particularly perplexing. The New South Welshman contributed in his only Test in the West Indies last June but has been overlooked for the sub-continent series.

Rumours abound that the panel felt a couple of hidings from Sachin Tendulkar and the boys may have torpedoed his career. They were uncomfortable sending two wrist-spinners, in Bryce McGain and Casson, on the same assignment.

The rule should be to send your best bowlers on difficult missions. Of course, Casson may not be the real deal anyway. Like Brad Hogg, his wrong-un is a much stronger delivery than his stock ball and, consequently, represents his major strike option.

And Casson has to develop his momentum on slow pitches where batsmen tend to play him a little too comfortably off the back foot. These are challenges he has been denied by selection panel perceptions.

Perhaps Casson's googlies will return against New Zealand this month in Australia. The Kiwis would have trouble picking Bill Lawry's nose.

The Casson issue aside, surely the off-spinner Krejza had to play in this Test. Ricky Ponting is known to be a fan and could have cuddled the former New South Welshman had the going got tough. Part-time offie Virender Sehwag proved how valuable finger spin can be on such crusty surfaces.

This was Krejza's pitch, too. Having said that, Nathan Hauritz, the NSW off-spinner, was the best finger spinner I saw last season, although I didn't take in Greg Matthews of Sydney University.

Hauritz ticks the two most important boxes in the art of slow bowling. He possesses a genuine loop and he is precise - two skills we have sadly lacked in India.

Some very god points made in this article by Kerry O'Keeffe, and i agree with most of them.
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Yeah, Aus has to take a chance with Krejza in the last test. Esp if it is spinning deck. A 2-0 will be no bad than 1-0, and they can aim a shot at 1-1.
 
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Clapo said:
People can say what they like about Johnson getting "lucky" wickets, but at least he's getting them. It's also worth noting that apart from Sehwag in the first innings of the first test, the 3 other wickets he got there were very good deliveries, as was the one to remove Sachin in the first innings here, and the one that Rauf didn't give against Sehwag in the 2nd test.
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Johnson still has some technical issues but he is quick, very strong and has the happy habit of picking up wickets

The guy is also a relative novice in terms of experience so there is a chance he will improve

Btw, people rave about Ishant but a comparison of his record to Johnson's at similar stages of their careers makes interesting reading
 
Precambrian

Precambrian

Banned
social said:
Johnson still has some technical issues but he is quick, very strong and has the happy habit of picking up wickets

The guy is also a relative novice in terms of experience so there is a chance he will improve

Btw, people rave about Ishant but a comparison of his record to Johnson's at similar stages of their careers makes interesting reading
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Ishant is 20, and is still on the learning curve, Johnson is 27. There is a huge difference in their experience.

And had Ishant possessed a similar fielding unit to Australia, his figures could be much better, not only in terms of catches taken, but also by way of cenceding less runs.
 
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From Cricinfo

Ian Chappellis not happy with Mitchell: "I have never seen him do that before and I am delighted that the umpire stepped in and spoke to the captain. But I am worried that Ponting spend some talking to them trying to dissuade. I would have liked the umpires to tell him " you have some problem with your fast bowler and get him to shut up."

What an absolute hypocrite
 
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Precambrian said:
Ishant is 20, and is still on the learning curve, Johnson is 27. There is a huge difference in their experience.

And had Ishant possessed a similar fielding unit to Australia, his figures could be much better, not only in terms of catches taken, but also by way of cenceding less runs.
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Because of injury, Johnson has played 7 more fc games in those extra 7 years

The guy has spent more time on the recovery couch than on the field
 
Precambrian

Precambrian

Banned
Love the wa Tendulkar changes stances, when Clarke was bowling over the wicket, he was taking an open (Chanderpaulesque) stance, and when the bowled comes around, it is the normal one. Subtle but a study in itself.
 
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Precambrian said:
How does that matter? And is it a good thing?
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The point is that bringing up their respective ages is irrelevant because Johnson, even if he was as good as Ishant at the same age, wouldn't have gotten picked. Whether it's a good thing is debatable but their respective ages matter pretty much not at all.
 
Precambrian

Precambrian

Banned
Agree, I was not talking about the age, but the experience, just not match, but in life general. This is Test Cricket, and whether you are 16 yr old or 36 yr old, it doesnt matter and only performances matter. I am not taking away anything from Johnson, but merely stating that Ishant has done more than what could be expected out of a 20 yr old fast bowler at this level.
 
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Precambrian said:
Agree, I was not talking about the age, but the experience, just not match, but in life general. This is Test Cricket, and whether you are 16 yr old or 36 yr old, it doesnt matter and only performances matter. I am not taking away anything from Johnson, but merely stating that Ishant has done more than what could be expected out of a 20 yr old fast bowler at this level.
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Well, for what it's worth, I'm firmly in the Ishant camp too. Johnson is bowling better all the time but I reckon Sharma has all the tools to be an all-time great. Certainly, one of India's better bowlers in their history.
 
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