*Official* Australia in India 2010

[Jono]

My point isn't to say that Watson/Katich aren't very very good, same with Clarke. But simply that you've gotta be realistic with what you've got.

The only test match that Australia definitively should be embarrassed of losing is the 2nd test vs. Pakistan in England. Otherwise, they were beaten by teams equal to or better than them, practically and on paper.

 

[Teja.]

Bottom line is that we should not have gone from world domination to no. 4/6 in the world with the talent at our disposal and the quality of opposition

The rankings are largely irrelevant between 1-4 atm, IMO. Will be a good 2 years before a team emerges as clearly better.

 

[vcs]

The rankings are largely irrelevant between 1-4 atm, IMO. Will be a good 2 years before a team emerges as clearly better.

Was about to say the same. I think SL are capable of joining the pack as well but for some reason they don't seem to play enough Test cricket outside the subcontinent.

 

[social]

My point isn't to say that Watson/Katich aren't very very good, same with Clarke. But simply that you've gotta be realistic with what you've got.

The only test match that Australia definitively should be embarrassed of losing is the 2nd test vs. Pakistan in England. Otherwise, they were beaten by teams equal to or better than them, practically and on paper.

Firstly, I predicted that Oz would lose 1-0 in India

Nothing to do with talent, just a statement of where they are atm away from home

Having said that, by rights, India should not have a hope in hell against SA in SA later this year - one decent quick, hopeless keeper, aging greats with deteriorating reflexes, young bats who are hopeless against the short ball

Does that mean they'll lose?

Doubt it

 

[Teja.]

Was about to say the same. I think SL are capable of joining the pack as well but for some reason they don't seem to play enough Test cricket outside the subcontinent.

I reckon, Malinga has the talent to become an insanely good test bowler, was absolutely fantastic in the last series despite the pitches not being helpful. Murali obviously has left a huge hole and IMO, a spinner from SL has to step up and take Murali's spot in the team in order to make SL an equivalent to the other four.

The replacement obviously might not be close to as good as Murali(Who is?), but a solid spinner who does well consistently at home and does not fall apart away will do. Randiv has very good potential IMO, but I still hope he dies in a fire somewhere.

I still have a fair few doubts about the English bowling attack's capability away. Really looking forward to the Ashes.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Was about to say the same. I think SL are capable of joining the pack as well but for some reason they don't seem to play enough Test cricket outside the subcontinent.

SL currently ranked above Oz & us, ftr. Linky.

Pretty sure they'll go backwards without Murali tho.

 

[kingkallis]

To be honest, the real difference in the current Aussie team and that awesome team is Gilchrist, McGrath and Warne!

 

[vcs]

I reckon, Malinga has the talent to become an insanely good test bowler, was absolutely fantastic in the last series despite the pitches not being helpful. Murali obviously has left a huge hole and IMO, a spinner from SL has to step up and take Murali's spot in the team in order to make SL an equivalent to the other four.

The replacement obviously might not be close to as good as Murali(Who is?), but a solid spinner who does well consistently at home and does not fall apart away will do. Randiv has very good potential IMO, but I still hope he dies in a fire somewhere.

I still have a fair few doubts about the English bowling attack's capability away. Really looking forward to the Ashes.

SL currently ranked above Oz & us, ftr. Linky.

Pretty sure they'll go backwards without Murali tho.

AWTA. Murali will be a big miss obviously, but they'll still make themselves hard to beat at home.

 

[Evermind]

To be honest, the real difference in the current Aussie team and that awesome team is Gilchrist, McGrath and Warne!

Hayden and Langer >>>>>> Hughes, Katich, Jacques, etc etc etc.

Watson's doing really well atm, but the guy could very easily go the Bond/Flintoff way.

 

[pasag]

Sick of hearing about Warne and McGrath and co. Someone add them to the filter.

 

[four_or_six]

Sick of hearing about **** and **** and co. Someone add them to the filter.

Who?

 

[Cevno]

nope. you are not winning frequently because you dont have great bowlers. a johnson and a hilfenhaus and a bollinger and a hauritz dont look good enough to play 30 tests together. whenever australia was on top in world cricket they have had at least two world beating bowlers. and they played in 20-30 games together, at least. must be true for all successful test teams in history. india's best phases coincided with the peaks of bedi/chandra and kumble/bhajji. australia's best in recent times were when lillee/thomson, mcdermott/hughes and mcgrath/warne were doing well series after series. the bowling attack of the present team doesnt look settled. a few shakeups later we may find a working unit. but the present one has the feel of a temporary line up written all over it.

The Aussie Bowling attack is pretty good at the moment.Yes maybe not all time great but their pace attack is for me the best in the world currently.
Yes,they lack a quality spinner though,but then currently so do many teams.

It's their batting that is letting them down. The difference between India and Australia was batting in the first test,not the bowling.
Just look at India currently.They are going through a very good phase not because they have a great bowling attack ,but because their batsmen are compensating for the deficiencies in the bowling.

 

[howardj]

Nah I disagree. At times previously it has felt like a temporary lineup, but not this one. Hauritz perhaps the exception, but not the pace attack.

I think you're using the term 'transition' too freely bagapath. You can't use it as if its a transition from the Warne/McGrath/Gilly era to whenever the next all time great Australian team lines up.

The transition occurred from 2006-2008. Maybe 2009 at a stretch.

This is now the Australian team. Australian fans do need to get used to not dominating every test series. That is a fact. They need to understand that Clarke isn't THAT good, Ponting isn't anywhere near what he was in 2006/2007, and Katich and Watson, for all their talent, are no Hayden and Langer as a unit.

But they most certainly don't need to get used to North being in the team, or White being played as a spinner (2008) or other obvious selection errors.

That's a great post.

Some of the selection blunders and batting collapses in my opinion have nothing to do with transition - everything to do with mediocrity.

 

[silentstriker]

Wow, if that decision had been given on the overthrows, would this conversation be taking place? A bit of an overreaction one feels. Teams wins in India rarely, even with an all time great lineup. And India never have pace bowlers. So the fact that they came so close is a very positive sign.

 

[GotSpin]

The Aussie Bowling attack is pretty good at the moment.Yes maybe not all time great but their pace attack is for me the best in the world currently.
Yes,they lack a quality spinner though,but then currently so do many teams.

It's their batting that is letting them down. .

Yeah agree with this. I think we have a fairly good bowling attack but our batting is failing atm.

 

[outbreak]

Our bowlings problem to me is Johnson's consistency. He needs to be more of a strike bowler. When he does that we do ok but he goes through too many patches of bowling poorly. Hilfenhaus and Bollinger are good at what they do but we need a strike bowler

 

[GotSpin]

Our bowlings problem to me is Johnson's consistency. He needs to be more of a strike bowler. When he does that we do ok but he goes through too many patches of bowling poorly. Hilfenhaus and Bollinger are good at what they do but we need a strike bowler

Well like its been said on a number of times, you just don't know whose going to turn up.

 

[Manee]

For someone like Johnson, who is a strike bowler and has very good overall stats, I guess you do have to take the good with the bad. When he is good, he is pretty much unmatched and that just about justifies the times where the cut strip is a metre or so too narrow.

 

[Jono]

Kind of feel that Australian fans have to just accept Johnson for who he is.

If a better fast bowler emerges, then pick him ahead of Johnners, but he's going to sometimes wow you with his bowling (and batting) and he's also sometimes going to disappoint.

Just the way he is.

 

[GotSpin]

Better if he found his inswinger again. Would be so devastating if he had it.