***Official*** New Zealand in Australia 2011

[KiWiNiNjA]

Look at that experience.

 

[chalky]

No not at all. Good on him for batting well though.

NZ are only 29 runs behind, Australia might end up having a testing little total to chase.

A 150 lead would be interesting

Doesn't look likely now Hussey gets Vettori

 

[morgieb]

Out to Hussey

 

[BoyBrumby]

Ah, bloody hell Danny.

 

[Flem274*]

If we bowl, bowl beamers. Practice beamers on our own batsmen in the nets beforehand.

 

[Cabinet96]

Why are Australia having to bowl the part timers? If they don't have confidence that their 3rd choice seamer can keep it tight then why are they playing him? England are successful because their 3 seamers are fit and can keep it tight, so can therefore bowl a lot of overs.

Lol and Hussey get Vettori just as I start to write

 

[SteveNZ]

Look at that experience.

Haha, cricket is all about timing. Mine was as good as Dan's back cut to 1st slip.

On the bright side, we just found the guy to do the nicking to the cordon before a day's play. Expert.

 

[Spark]

Why are Australia having to bowl the part timers? If they don't have confidence that their 3rd choice seamer can keep it tight then why are they playing him? England are successful because their 3 seamers are fit and can keep it tight, so can therefore bowl a lot of overs.

Lol and Hussey get Vettori just as I start to write

There's your answer, in case the dropped catch didn't it to you.

 

[Cabinet96]

Lol Hussey's bowling average is lower than Siddle's.

 

[KiWiNiNjA]

Lol Hussey's bowling average is lower than Siddle's.

And Brownlie's batting average is Bradman-esque.

 

[straw man]

****.

Heh, I've found it much easier to watch play today with the mindset that the match is already over and today's play is only academic.

 

[_Ed_]

Heh, I've found it much easier to watch play today with the mindset that the match is already over and today's play is only academic.

I tried to think about it that way too, but I couldn't help feeling a little flicker of hope in that Brownlie-Vettori partnership.

That has now been extinguished.

 

[straw man]

If we bowl, bowl beamers. Practice beamers on our own batsmen in the nets beforehand.

Is it possible for all eleven players to be removed from the bowling crease for bowling beamers? Would be an interesting experiment. We might have to set Australia a target of at least 33 though...

 

[L Trumper]

jeremy coney is ****ing legend in analyst role.. sky should sign him on permanent basis ala Holding

 

[straw man]

I tried to think about it that way too, but I couldn't help feeling a little flicker of hope in that Brownlie-Vettori partnership.

That has now been extinguished.

Foolish . My attitude to any thoughts of hope at the start of today was 'talk to me if we get to 200/2'.

We didn't get to 200/2.

 

[Furball]

Think it's fair to say Coney's less than impressed.

 

[Spark]

Think it's fair to say Coney's less than impressed.

Quotes required

 

[KiWiNiNjA]

jeremy coney is ****ing legend in analyst role.. sky should sign him on permanent basis ala Holding

I thought he was busy pursuing his thespian dream.

 

[Scaly piscine]

New Zealand fans should be happy, their team is getting experience of collapsing - which means it won't happen again right?

Experience is a funny thing, get experience of collapsing and choking and you might well get better at it. See England in the 90s and South Africa. Playing completely freely without the battle scars and that fear - like say Cummins - is sometimes what you need.

I think people confuse experience with an awful lot of things like knowing your own game, composure, intelligence. With so much technology and the support staff it cuts out a lot of the benefit of experience.

 

[Flem274*]

Jesus Christ. Almost out to Warner.

NZ to lead by 50. Australia to win by five wickets. DAJ Bracewell 5/20 with six catches dropped.

New Zealand 500/3 dec at the close of play. You heard it here first.

Dougeh is going to score 120* (80) tomorrow, dropped four times by Clarke along the way.

Siddle will rip his heart out, lob it up and smash it for six first ball.

Oh Martin's bowling. Ponting will be out second over.

Ponting will be out in the first over.

Hadlee in this match would be overkill tbh.

Right, I'm off to the pub. Will return with sober and thoughtful comments after we wipe this Australian rabble off the park.

Kane will score the winning runs with a front foot cover drive to take him to 31*

We have an NZ victory in the bag tbh.

Time to go down ridiculously biased swinging with the predictions.

-Brownlie will be the only Australian batsman to score a century
-The only exception is Mitchell Starc, who will make a century at the bowling crease
-Doug Bracewell is on for a 5fer

He's still going to be the best Australian batsman in this match.

I missed his early work (including the drop), but what I saw wasn't terrible. Can play off the back foot nicely, but doesn't get forward enough at times when the ball is pitched up. That Hussey lbw shout is a case in point.

And the same will still apply after we thrash you at the Gabba.

Heh, funny you say this because imo if we lose this series, I seriously give up hoping to ever beat a top four side and will descend down the optimism scale to Bahnz.

You have Siddle and a bunch of pick and hopes. No doubt the Australian system will make them good players long term but they're ripe for the picking atm.

The only thing holding me back from expecting to win convincingly is we have two workhorses and two very inexperienced strike bowlers in our four man attack (if we go with the four bowlers). The draw is the favourite in this series unless we get a bowling friendly pitch. Martin might have his rare day of brilliance, but usually you get 3/90 from him and Vettori. Need Southee and Dougeh to come good tomorrow.

Australia should make the Gabba a green top. Yeah they're collapse prone, but (never thought I would say this) we have the most experienced bowling and they need to even up the bowling vs batting somehow. They need to give their young seamers a hand, and the batsmen can harden up. McCullum and Guptill will be very vulnerable early on if its green, and you want Williamson, Taylor and Ryder in as early as possible.

In Hobart I'd prepare a spinning deck. Lyon has taken a few wickets in tests and isn't terrible, so give him a crack. I'm more confident in this particular NZ batting unit against spin than others, but day 5 turners are hard on anyone.

Four bowlers? Weak. Brisbane will be a draw.

Two rookie strike bowlers isn't enough, especially now Ponting is showing signs of form. Brownlie is the seventh best batsman in the squad ffs, why can't anyone but CW see it?

Four bowlers is even more stupid when Tim Southee has only just returned from injury. Unless Australia feel like collapsing to Vettori or chasing defensive wide bore draw material from Martin, we need Southee and Dougeh to go nuts.

I'm cautiously optimistic about our bowling provided the ball swings and we go in with a five man attack.

I should stop making predictions.