*Official* Zimbabwe in West Indies

[WindieWeathers]

The last Test series that the West Indies played was against Australia....

1) Nash was the fourth best run-getter on both sides. His 250 runs came at a good average of 41, and was only beaten by Gayle (346), Katich (302) and Watson (263). To drop him after such a good performance with the bat would be ridiculous!

2) Test cricket is played over five days. This is not 20/20 cricket. It doesn't matter if Nash scores slowly. Shiv can also score slowly. Dravid scores slowly in Test cricket. Larry Gomes used to score slowly. All are/were great Test batsmen....

3) None of the Tests were drawn as a result of slow batting. So, both Shiv and Nash can play in this WI side, if they deserve their places.

We were in a good position before Nash decided to stop batting for over an hour!!, that's a fact, as i said i won't have any problem with Nash retaining his spot if Shiv is out of the side, too many players who are one paced and can't accelerate the run rate won't get us anywhere, Barath is slow, Chanders is slow, we need someone who can actually win us a game from the middle order, and like i said Deo has more shots in his make-up and bowls decent spin too, sometimes you have to make big decisions Mike, sticking with the status quo won't move us forward.

 

[WindieWeathers]

Pollard will be in India for the duration of the A team matches. As for the wicket keeper surely if Devon Thomas is fit it has to be his spot? He scored a century in his last A team match and kept very tidily indeed.

Isn't Jahmar Hamilton keeping Thomas out of the Leeward team right now? i don't mind either way, but the kid Hamilton looks like he could be something special imo.

 

[maxtop123]

You're contradicting yourself, first you claim "Nash has to stay in the side over Deo because he's done the business" but then try to justify Dawes inclusion in the A-team who hasn't done any better than the likes of Shannon Gabriel?!!! as i said a typical jamaican bigging up his players , furthermore Deo has been in good form in more than "one innings", incase you didn't notice he also done well in a few Odi's in Australia and also won us two vital games against Zimbabwe, not to mention he's been better than Nash in our domestic competition, as i said it should be either Shiv or Nash, both of them in the same side doesn't make sense to me.

hELLO, nowhere have I suggested that Dawes MUST play in the A team. I have not even suggested an A team becaue I have no idea where to start. I said do not be surprised if the selectors go beyond the stats. Very few pace bowlers have the stats that say PICK ME. The two who do would be Lionel Baker who was a part of a WI team and is in a provisional T 20 squad. The other is Perdro Collins who well has been there and done that. Also Baker has very little pace.

So what we basically have after that is a set of pacy youngsters with limited FC experience and who have potential. That is what the selectors have to pick from and given that reality it is anybody's guess who they'll come with. Will be quite a few "gut feelings" and "how they look" and "potential "selections when it comes to the quicks.

So argue with what I said not with something you have contrived to interpret.

 

[maxtop123]

We were in a good position before Nash decided to stop batting for over an hour!!, that's a fact, as i said i won't have any problem with Nash retaining his spot if Shiv is out of the side, too many players who are one paced and can't accelerate the run rate won't get us anywhere, Barath is slow, Chanders is slow, we need someone who can actually win us a game from the middle order, and like i said Deo has more shots in his make-up and bowls decent spin too, sometimes you have to make big decisions Mike, sticking with the status quo won't move us forward.

Umm we NEED the slow Nash and Chanderpaul for the sake of stability. No team is built around an array of strokemakers. Barath slow? He scored his test century off 104 deliveries. Gayle and Barath are strokeplayers. So is Sarwan and so is Bravo down the order. How many more strokemakers do you need?

And btw, Deo modelled his game on Chanderpaul. He is not really a strokemaker and the partnership with Nash showed it. Sure he'll play shots if they're on once he's set. So does Chanderpaul. Both he and Nash got stalled as the Aussies tightened the bowling but let's be honest, in spite of getting as close as we did, we blew it when we bowled poorly to give up 500+ runs and then blew a position of 214/2 giving up a 200+ lead on first innings. This is how we lost the game.Oh yeah and the dropped catach of Watson when he was on 9 by the cappo when Ramdin failed to move.

 

[WindieWeathers]

hELLO, nowhere have I suggested that Dawes MUST play in the A team. I have not even suggested an A team becaue I have no idea where to start. I said do not be surprised if the selectors go beyond the stats. Very few pace bowlers have the stats that say PICK ME. The two who do would be Lionel Baker who was a part of a WI team and is in a provisional T 20 squad. The other is Perdro Collins who well has been there and done that. Also Baker has very little pace.

So what we basically have after that is a set of pacy youngsters with limited FC experience and who have potential. That is what the selectors have to pick from and given that reality it is anybody's guess who they'll come with. Will be quite a few "gut feelings" and "how they look" and "potential "selections when it comes to the quicks.

So argue with what I said not with something you have contrived to interpret.

So when i was bigging up Holder, Gabriel and Johnson for the A-team didn't you start moaning about me not mentioning Dawes? you can't have it both ways, the provisional squad don't mean nothing, most of them won't make it to the final 15 anyway, Baker might not have the pace of Roach but the kid can run and his bowling seems to have improved of late, the stats suggest he was the best pacer of the last domestic season and i think there's no better person to improve his game than Ottis Gibson.

 

[WindieWeathers]

Umm we NEED the slow Nash and Chanderpaul for the sake of stability. No team is built around an array of strokemakers. Barath slow? He scored his test century off 104 deliveries. Gayle and Barath are strokeplayers. So is Sarwan and so is Bravo down the order. How many more strokemakers do you need?

And btw, Deo modelled his game on Chanderpaul. He is not really a strokemaker and the partnership with Nash showed it. Sure he'll play shots if they're on once he's set. So does Chanderpaul. Both he and Nash got stalled as the Aussies tightened the bowling but let's be honest, in spite of getting as close as we did, we blew it when we bowled poorly to give up 500+ runs and then blew a position of 214/2 giving up a 200+ lead on first innings. This is how we lost the game.Oh yeah and the dropped catach of Watson when he was on 9 by the cappo when Ramdin failed to move.

The problem is when Nash stays at the crease and refuses to make shots it puts huge pressure on his batting partner, which was in clear evidence when he partnered Deo, in Deo we seem to have a guy who can do both jobs, if he needs to just stay at the crease then he can do that or if he needs to put his foot on the gas he can also do that, Nash just seems far too one paced for my liking, imo Darren Bravo has much more talent and i hope he makes a big statement in the A-team, i just believe our middle order needs something new, having a slow coach like Nash is only conducive if we've got a healthy amount of runs on the board imo, if our top order get out early i'm not sure he's someone we can rely on to rescue an innings.

 

[Athlai]

Nash is exactly the type of player you want when the top order gets out early. He'll stick around, Deo just panicked.

 

[maxtop123]

So when i was bigging up Holder, Gabriel and Johnson for the A-team didn't you start moaning about me not mentioning Dawes? you can't have it both ways, the provisional squad don't mean nothing, most of them won't make it to the final 15 anyway, Baker might not have the pace of Roach but the kid can run and his bowling seems to have improved of late, the stats suggest he was the best pacer of the last domestic season and i think there's no better person to improve his game than Ottis Gibson.

Frankly I don't really think much of Baker. Never did. He does not impress me and what I saw in him in his few matches seems like an honest trier but bot very threatening. I kept you honest regarding Dawes. You wnet as far as mentioning Delorn Johnson but no mention of Dawes. If you are to tthonkof promising quicks/pacers you have to look at Bess, Pascal, Dawes, Holder, Johnson, Gabriel. What about Dawnely Grant who has yet to make his debut for Windward Islands? He played U-19s and was in the same squad with Dawes and Johnson. Now Grant wouldn't be an option yet. My view is that they are ALL options and it is up to the selectors to decide who are the best given the limited opportunities they had this year.


If there was evidence that we need a longer season, this is it.

 

[WindieWeathers]

Nash is exactly the type of player you want when the top order gets out early. He'll stick around, Deo just panicked.

I agree he can stick around, but if he's not making runs his efforts will be all in vain more often than not, as for Deo, i'm not sure that he "panicked" i just think he tried to put the pressure back onto the bowlers because they had Nash totally tied down, and the funny thing is Nash went soon after Deo didn't he?!! so all that waiting for an hour without making a run was a waste of time really.

 

[WindieWeathers]

Frankly I don't really think much of Baker. Never did. He does not impress me and what I saw in him in his few matches seems like an honest trier but bot very threatening. I kept you honest regarding Dawes. You wnet as far as mentioning Delorn Johnson but no mention of Dawes. If you are to tthonkof promising quicks/pacers you have to look at Bess, Pascal, Dawes, Holder, Johnson, Gabriel. What about Dawnely Grant who has yet to make his debut for Windward Islands? He played U-19s and was in the same squad with Dawes and Johnson. Now Grant wouldn't be an option yet. My view is that they are ALL options and it is up to the selectors to decide who are the best given the limited opportunities they had this year.


If there was evidence that we need a longer season, this is it.

Yes lots of people have doubts about Baker including me to be honest but he did have a very good domestic season and maybe he's improved? he'll be working with the best bowling coach in the game (Gibson) imo so if he's not good enough believe me he won't be anywhere near the side, i mention Johnson because even though he only just made his FC debut for Winwards he's a talented kid and the bonus is he's a 6 foot 6 lefty, we haven't had a good lefty for years man, another young kid to look out for is Guyana's left arm pacer Andre Stoll, he's 18 and was on the reserve list for Guyana last season, i think he'll make a name for himself next season that's for sure.

 

[roseboy64]

If people who hate Nash are automatically naming him in their preferred XIs that should tell you something. He stays. End of. Anything else is rubbish and not logical. Not even something to be argued.

 

[Athlai]

I agree he can stick around, but if he's not making runs his efforts will be all in vain more often than not, as for Deo, i'm not sure that he "panicked" i just think he tried to put the pressure back onto the bowlers because they had Nash totally tied down, and the funny thing is Nash went soon after Deo didn't he?!! so all that waiting for an hour without making a run was a waste of time really.

Not scoring runs doesn't equate to the bowlers not being under pressure. Most bowlers say Dravid is the hardest batsman to bowl too precisely because of his immovability.

 

[shivfan]

Pollard will be in India for the duration of the A team matches. As for the wicket keeper surely if Devon Thomas is fit it has to be his spot? He scored a century in his last A team match and kept very tidily indeed.

Ah yes, I'd forgotten about the IPL....

And that's a good point about Devon Thomas. He probably deserves his place ahead of Hamilton right now.

 

[shivfan]

I'm sorry, Windie, but your arguments for getting rid of Nash are nothing short of ridiculous....

Only a batsman who has no clue how to play Test cricket would get himself out just because Nash is batting slowly. I repeat, Tests are played over five days, not 20 overs.

 

[WindieWeathers]

If people who hate Nash are automatically naming him in their preferred XIs that should tell you something. He stays. End of. Anything else is rubbish and not logical. Not even something to be argued.

As i said Jamaican's will always stick up for their guys!! , Deo is a better player, that is so obvious to most WI fans imo.

 

[WindieWeathers]

I'm sorry, Windie, but your arguments for getting rid of Nash are nothing short of ridiculous....

Only a batsman who has no clue how to play Test cricket would get himself out just because Nash is batting slowly. I repeat, Tests are played over five days, not 20 overs.

Clearly you've failed to comprehend what i've been saying Mike!! , Nash stood at the crease for over an hour and a half and didn't make a SINGLE run, which in turn put his batting partner (Deonarine) under massive pressure to increase the run rate, when Deo went what happened? did Nash take it upon himself to carry the innings home? nah he got out a few balls later!! , like i said it should be either Shiv or Nash, NOT BOTH!!.

 

[roseboy64]

As i said Jamaican's will always stick up for their guys!! , Deo is a better player, that is so obvious to most WI fans imo.

Xavier Marshall is crap. Am I sticking up for him?

 

[WindieWeathers]

Xavier Marshall is crap. Am I sticking up for him?

If he was still playing for WI i'm sure you'd be singing a different tune!! .

 

[shivfan]

Clearly you've failed to comprehend what i've been saying Mike!! , Nash stood at the crease for over an hour and a half and didn't make a SINGLE run, which in turn put his batting partner (Deonarine) under massive pressure to increase the run rate, when Deo went what happened? did Nash take it upon himself to carry the innings home? nah he got out a few balls later!! , like i said it should be either Shiv or Nash, NOT BOTH!!.

So what? This is Test cricket, not 20/20 cricket. Batsmen go thru testing periods. The problem with WI batsmen is that when they get bogged down, they lose their patience, and throw away their wickets. The difference with Shiv and Nash is they don't. They just be patient, and the runs will come.

It's absolutely ridiculous to say that Nash going thru a quiet time put pressure on Deonarine. This is not a limited overs match....

What matters in the end is the runs, and as I've said several times before, Nash was the fourth-highest run-scorer on that Test tour. Those are the raw, hard stats, and that's what's needed. If others had scored the runs he did, we would not have lost the final Test, and may even have won it and tied the series.

Your anti-Jamaican stance doesn't wash. we're talking cold, hard stats here. Nash outperformed all WI batsmen, except Gayle, on that Test tour....

 

[roseboy64]

If he was still playing for WI i'm sure you'd be singing a different tune!! .

Yeah ok. Nice to make assumptions. If you check the history you'd probably find some post of mine wondering why he was called up against the Aussies two years ago.