***Official*** India in Australia 2011/12

[Arjun]

The Indians need to take a leaf out of the Australian batting unit's approach in both innings- if all else fails, pinch singles and rotate the strike. Boundary-or-bust won't help them at all. We've seen them cave in after playing long stretches of dots and eventually getting out cheaply despite spending time in the middle. Dots to ones, ones to twos, twos adding up, that can only be good for them. The risk is a lot less if they pinch more than a few singles, and it can eventually open up for them, to the point of boundary-bound balls coming up.

 

[howardj]

Agree very much Arjun. It's one of those pitches where you don't want to let the bowlers get at you (the same batsman) for too many deliveries in a row. Rotation of the strike will be all important.

Just on that, you get the feeling that India will just never get a run out this series. They don't seem capable of throwing one of the Australians out. This aspect of their game really needs to improve.

 

[Jono]

Third day in a row I went to the MCG and today was, objectively, the best day's viewing.

In for an awesome day tomorrow, and I will be there again.

cbf reading most of the thread, but I'm sure there was some lol @ Haddin and Dhoni's ****ness with the bat. Both should just gagf.

Also a great day for everyone who has been backing Yadav. There's a few of us on the forum.

 

[Jono]

Just on that, you get the feeling that India will just never get a run out this series. They don't seem capable of throwing one of the Australians out. This aspect of their game really needs to improve.

Not going to improve with 38, 37 and 33 year olds (and Zaheer, the 33 year old, is in a 40 year old body).

It was very different in batting too. Fair enough Kohli failed but being at the ground, it was amazing seeing him take quick singles when I had seen Sehwag, Sachin and Dravid bat and making no such attempt to take such a single.

What can you do when your best batsmen and bowler are old ****s though? Lol, not much.

 

[howardj]

Both of the bowling attacks have surprised me in this match.

They've done really well, and have set up a thrilling denouement.

 

[Ruckus]

Not going to improve with 38, 37 and 33 year olds (and Zaheer, the 33 year old, is in a 40 year old body).

It was very different in batting too. Fair enough Kohli failed but being at the ground, it was amazing seeing him take quick singles when I had seen Sehwag, Sachin and Dravid bat and making no such attempt to take such a single.

What can you do when your best batsmen and bowler are old ****s though? Lol, not much.

Ponting takes umbrage.

 

[Jono]

Ponting didn't improve as a fielder as he got older. Neither did Hussey. They were/are awesome from young. Same with their running between the wickets.

How can Laxman and Zaheer significantly improve his run out abilities at 37 and 33? Very unlikely to happen.

Concentrate on the future youth.

 

[ganeshran]

Our test fielding is poor, but not much can be done about it. The main culprits are way too good batsmen to be dropped and too poor to improve at this age. The best hope is to keep them in the outfield where fast reflexes and a good aim are not a prerequisite.

to begin with, Kohli must start manning the slips instead of Dravid, he drops way too many regulation chances.

 

[Jono]

You put Kohli in slips to spin and you don't have him in the infield. It's tricky.

When Rohit Sharma and Rahane etc. join him in the team India's fielding standards will improve (whilst simultaneously losing batting quality obviously). Watching Kohli on the field compared to the rest is ridiculous. He stands out so much.

 

[benchmark00]

Hi Jono,

Glad you had a good day at the cricket. Sorry you couldn't join us in this thread, but I've outlined the highlights of the days play for you below.

Cheers,
Benchmark00.

Gambhiring v

A term to describe the writing off of one's team in an attempt to jinx the opposition's team.

Example: fmd, did you see Jono Gambhiring the other day saying that Tendulkar has run his course and won't make a score for the rest of the series and Australia will win even though India only need 20 runs with 8 wickets in hand? What a **** Jono is.

Kohli can suck a fat one.





Hi Jono if you're reading this.

 

[Noble One]

Kohli would be such a waste in slips. His value in the field is his flexibility to take the key positions dependent on the bowler and batsman at the crease.

 

[Ruckus]

Yeah I agree it's unlikely to happen. But if there is anything Sachin et al. can be inspired by in Ponting, it's the amazing physical part of his game (running between wickets, fielding etc.) which hasn't deteriorated really at all as he has aged.

 

[benchmark00]

Kohli would be such a waste in slips. His value in the field is his flexibility to take the key positions dependent on the bowler and batsman at the crease.

Yeah thought the same (still do) when Clarke moved into slips.

Fortunately there hasn't been a genuinely bad fielder to play for Australia for ages.

 

[TT Boy]

Yeah thought the same (still do) when Clarke moved into slips.

Fortunately there hasn't been a genuinely bad fielder to play for Australia for ages.

Shaun Tait?

 

[Spark]

Kohli would be such a waste in slips. His value in the field is his flexibility to take the key positions dependent on the bowler and batsman at the crease.

Yep, and the Clarke comparison is a superb one.

 

[benchmark00]

Shaun Tait?

Maybe, was more talking about test cricket and he hasn't played since 2008 from memory.

He's not the worst outfielder in the history of cricket. Not great, but not a liability when he was fit.

 

[ganeshran]

Kohli would be such a waste in slips. His value in the field is his flexibility to take the key positions dependent on the bowler and batsman at the crease.

Dravid's catching has been a huge disappointment off late and Kohli is the best guy to replace him there. He is a great fielder too, but slip catching is more crucial.

 

[howardj]

Shaun Tait?

Phil Scissorhands Jaques

 

[benchmark00]

Phil Scissorhands Jaques

Jaques spent most of his time under the lid. Wasn't that bad.

 

[Spark]

Dravid's catching has been a huge disappointment off late and Kohli is the best guy to replace him there. He is a great fielder too, but slip catching is more crucial.

I've seen enough gun fielders (Symonds, Clarke) become mediocre slippers to know that this is no guarantee of an improvement. It's a special art and in many ways somewhat separate to fielding more generally.