*Official* West Indies In Australia

[Julian87]

Would go

Gayle
Dowlin/Barath (both went quite well, either worth a spot)
Sarwan
Nash
Chanderpaul
Bravo
Ramdin
Sammy
Taylor
Roach
Rampaul

Need Sammy for the batting IMO, Gayle's bowling is as good as Benns anyway. Attack looks a little toothless without Edwards. Could possibly drop Sammy and throw in Barath or Dowlin down the order, Bravo is good enough for the 4th bowling option and Gayle with the spin. They may be tempted to keep Sammy or Benn in without Edwards in the team though.

Yeah from what I know of the team this is what I'd pick. Never seen the other openers though, so I can't make a call on which one I'd pick. I don't think they can play both of them, and Gayle though. I think Sammy would add more to the team than them at Brisbane. Fairly good number 8 and he'll move the ball around a bit.

 

[roseboy64]

Gayle and Barath are the only openers in the squad.

 

[Athlai]

Gayle and Barath are the only openers in the squad.

So Dowlin at 4/6, Nash 4/6, Bravo 7, Ramdin 8 and then bowling of Taylor, Roach, Rampaul, Sammy, Benn and Tonge?

 

[Howsie]

1.Gayle
2.Barath
3.Sarwan
4.Nash
5.Chanderpaul
6.Bravo
7.Ramdin
8.Sammy
9.Taylor
10.Tonge
11.Roach

Barath will play over Dowlin as he's actually an opener, he's also a far better batsmen IMO. Can't see the point of playing Benn, Sammy will be just as effective plus he can sort of bat.

 

[AlanJLegend]

I know it's not for a few months yet, but what do you guys reckon the Australian line-up for the ODIs will be? I'm thinking it will be pretty standard, along the lines of;

Watson
Haddin
Ponting
Clarke
Hussey
White
Voges
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle
Bollinger


Would be nice to see Lee back, not sure if it will happen though. I'm not sure about Shaun Marsh either. His century in India was nice, but it would be a hard team to fit him into. Maybe drop Voges and have Haddin at 7?

 

[roseboy64]

So Dowlin at 4/6, Nash 4/6, Bravo 7, Ramdin 8 and then bowling of Taylor, Roach, Rampaul, Sammy, Benn and Tonge?

Looks that way.

1.Gayle
2.Barath
3.Sarwan
4.Nash
5.Chanderpaul
6.Bravo
7.Ramdin
8.Sammy
9.Taylor
10.Tonge
11.Roach

Barath will play over Dowlin as he's actually an opener, he's also a far better batsmen IMO. Can't see the point of playing Benn, Sammy will be just as effective plus he can sort of bat.

Agree Benn might not play. If Deonarine had made some runs he'd have been in there ahead of Sammy though. Not much difference in bowling between him and Benn TBH.

 

[Matt79]

Watson over Hussey?

Tough call, but I'm inclined to go for Hussey. So, so many more runs on the board. With Watson you're hoping that he's both good enough for test level (which I'm only 50-50 on) and in some kind of form. With Hussey, you know he's good enough because he's shown it so often over his career. You're just hoping he's on form.

Countering that is Watto's bowling. How much of an issue is that? Not realllly enough for me to swing it.

I meant in the fullness of time.

 

[howardj]

Gayle likely back for the first Test.

Fantastic.

Man for man, their batting lineup is not the worst going around the international scene. They just don't seem, as a unit, to score all that prolifically. I hope they can produce a good performance at the Gabba though.

 

[Jarquis]

Not really been following the build up to this but where's Edwards?

 

[shivfan]

I think it will be....

Gayle
Barath
Sarwan
Nash
Chanderpaul
Bravo
Ramdin
Taylor
Benn
Rampaul
Roach

 

[stephen]

Agree Jaques has copped some harsh ones, but baffling to suggest that North doesn't merit, on performances delivered, his place in the team. Similarly, don't really see why Rogers should be ahead of Hughes anymore - he shouldn't be far behind or in any way out of calculations, but Hughes has done enough in FC and in his tests to date to suggest he merits his place in the selectors priorities.

It basically comes down to whether you think Watson, as an all rounder is worth his place in the team. I think his batting is good enough that even if he's not the beat candidate as a batsman alone, then as a package he's worth the slot. And if he ends up taking Hussey's spot in the middle order in the end, rather than as an opener, even moreso.

Note I said "in an ideal world". Ideally North would never have been picked in the first place.

Rogers was outscoring Hughes by a significant margin when Hughes was picked for Australia.

I just think that it's ridiculous that we have two makeshift openers while we have two ready to go openers who would make most other sides in the world.

 

[Uppercut]

I meant in the fullness of time.

Ah, okay.

I hope Watson's good enough to bat 4, but I'm not entirely convinced.

 

[Matt79]

Note I said "in an ideal world". Ideally North would never have been picked in the first place.

Rogers was outscoring Hughes by a significant margin when Hughes was picked for Australia.

I just think that it's ridiculous that we have two makeshift openers while we have two ready to go openers who would make most other sides in the world.

No wonder you and Rich have some ripper conversations...

 

[stephen]

No wonder you and Rich have some ripper conversations...

Haha point taken.

Bear in mind that I would not pick that same team now, just that I think the selectors should have aimed for that team by the ashes 09.

North has definately cemented his spot.

It is just frustrating to see such quality players as Jaques and Rogers sitting on the bench. If I was going to pick the team for the WIndies tests the batting order would look something like:

Hughes
Katich
Ponting
Clarke
Hussey
North
Haddin

Hughes is a huge talent who should never have been dropped. I have no place in my side for Watson - he needs a full season of first class cricket without injury IMO.

 

[roseboy64]

Not really been following the build up to this but where's Edwards?

Injured.

I think it will be....

Gayle
Barath
Sarwan
Nash
Chanderpaul
Bravo
Ramdin
Taylor
Benn
Rampaul
Roach

Wouldn't surprise me.

 

[Jono]

To me, Rogers should be opening for Australia, but you can't exactly blame the selectors for opening with Watson and also playing Hussey.

Watson did not fail as opener. He didn't kick on, sure, but he didn't play to the point where he should be dropped.

And Hussey had to be given the benefit of the doubt.

I imagine that in an ideal world Rogers or Hughes would be opening for Australia heading into this series (and one can argue Hughes should never have been dropped) but the fact is, they're just unlucky at what has transpired (Watson and Hussey's form).

I imagine Watson (providing he doesn't get injured) will get the next 6 tests as opener. If he does well, and Hussey does well, I imagine that Australia will have "make shift openers" for a while.

Does it really matter if they're make-shift if they're scoring runs?

 

[roseboy64]

No doubt over Gayle’s commitment

says Bennet King

There should be no doubt over Chris Gayle’s commitment to Test cricket after the West Indies captain underwent a Aus$25,000 heart operation to save his career on the 2005 tour of Australia, former head coach Bennett King told an Australian newspaper yesterday.

King, the Australian who was in charge of the team from 2004 to 2007 when he resigned after the World Cup in the Caribbean, recalled what the Sydney Sunday Telegraph described as Gayle’s “traumatic battle with a congenital heart defect that jeopardised his international future”.

 

[roseboy64]

BREAKING NEWS: Gayle to return to Australia

West Indies captain Chris Gayle on Saturday evening confirmed that following the discharge of his mother from hospital, he will return to Australia to lead the Caribbean side in the first Test at the Gabba, slated to commence on Thursday November 26th.

Gayle’s mother – Heazlyn Gilroy – was discharged from the Medical Associates Hospital in Kingston on Saturday evening and the 30 year old hard hitting opening batsman immediately made plans to depart Jamaica on Monday for Australia via Los Angeles, USA. He will arrive in Queensland on Tuesday.

“(Her discharge) is the best news anyone could get, these situations are very scary and I give God thanks to have her back home. It is a tremendous feeling and the family is now at ease,” Gayle told DigicelCricket.com shortly after chauffeuring his mother from the hospital to her home.

 

[howardj]

In an ideal world the top seven for Australia would look like this:

Rogers
Jaques
Ponting
Katich
Clarke
Hussey
Haddin

.

I think that world is far from ideal.

With respect mate, that's a bit of a Dad's Army lineup. By the time of the Ashes next year, you'd have three 35 year olds and Rogers who is on the wrong side of 30 and who apparently has a difficult personality and didn't 'fit' into the Australia team when he made his debut.

No Watson is just madness.

 

[Top_Cat]

I think that world is far from ideal.

With respect mate, that's a bit of a Dad's Army lineup. By the time of the Ashes next year, you'd have three 35 year olds and Rogers who is on the wrong side of 30 and who apparently has a difficult personality and didn't 'fit' into the Australia team when he made his debut.

No Watson is just madness.

AWTA. Watto should be groomed to bat 3 after Ponting goes in the way way Ponting himself was, tbh.