New Zealand A Tour of India and Sri Lanka

[Maximas]

good stuff from the NZ video analyist there

 

[Kippax]

good stuff from the NZ video analyist there

WAC. Jimmy's ER is looking impressive in bad company.

 

[hendrix]

Bracewell under real pressure here.

Hesson putting him on this tour is showing that he's not an automatic selection. Looking for Milne or Henry to get the call up IMO.

 

[Hurricane]

I was about to say I prefer henry as he can swing it but Milne did develop swing in his last season.

Anyway my question for those bored on a friday night - has any seamer taken 200 wickets for any country that was a hit the deck seam bowler who could not swing it?

 

[Daemon]

Ntini? I mean he did swing the ball, any pace bowler will, but I from what little I remember watching of him he didn't get swing very often.

 

[Maximas]

Ntini? I mean he did swing the ball, any pace bowler will, but I from what little I remember watching of him he didn't get swing very often.

 

[Maximas]

oh **** you Daemon, you got your damn edit in while I was posting my vid

 

[Hurricane]

After I made my post I wondered whether someone might say Ntini. Happy with that answer. And thanks for the video Max.

 

[Kippax]

Zol, Nayar score centuries in drawn match | Cricket Match Report | Wisden India

Vijay Zol showcased his class for India A in the presence of the national selectors with an impressive century to grind the New Zealand A bowlers down on another hot and humid day in Visakhapatnam as the three-day fixture at the Port Stadium ended in a draw on Friday (August 30).

Zol’s knock came on the back of an excellent bowling performance from Jalaj Saxena, who picked up six wickets, to bowl New Zealand A out for 310 on Day 2. While Zol’s knock flattened the opposition, Abhishek Nayar added insult to injury by smashing a quickfire 102 as India A finally finished on 388 for 7 when the players shook hands.

While the result was a given following a washout on the opening day, the India A batsmen had an opportunity to dig in and bat out a possible 98 overs. They started slowly with Jiwanjot Singh (48) and Sarabjit Ladda (15) playing out the first hour with very little discomfort before Todd Astle gleefully accepted a simple return catch from Ladda to give New Zealand A an opening.

While the Indian spinners extracted a hint of turn, there wasn’t much in sight for the New Zealanders who struggled for any sort of rhythm on a placid pitch. Jiwanjot’s patience stood out and his footwork against the pacers, especially during the initial burst, was proof of his solid technique. The bowlers were unable to go past the outside edge even once in the first two hours and a big score was there for the taking before a rare lapse in concentration saw Jiwanjot’s attempted drive off Ish Sodhi, the legspinner, land in the safe hands of slip at the stroke of lunch.

From there on, the spectators who trooped in on a holiday thanks to a state-wide strike, were treated to some delightful strokes by Zol. At no stage did it appear as if Zol, on first-class debut, was intimidated by the bowlers, some of who had already played Test cricket. While the bowling was largely one dimensional, Zol didn’t miss out on any opportunity to put the bad balls away.

His 97-run stand for the fourth wicket with Manprit Juneja (43) improved the scoring rate significantly in the second session. Juneja’s footwork, especially against the spinners, stood out as he took a liking to Astle in particular, tonking him for two huge sixes before being done in by a delivery that skidded on.

As much as New Zealand A tried to force Zol into play big shots as he neared a century, he continued to accumulate runs in a sedate manner. After Zol had passed 80, a short burst from Doug Bracewell tested him. But Zol’s response showed signs of maturity. A fierce cut shot past point brought up a chanceless century, but the celebration that followed was enough indication of his temperament. While he looked set to carry on, a rare misjudgment of length caused him to to play back to a full delivery and Zol was bowled for 110.

After that, Nayar brought the curtains down with some enterprising strokes that saw him smash a fifty off just 31 balls. Even as wickets continued to tumble, Nayar made merry with the only academic interest following the start of the mandatory overs being his century. Play was called off as soon as Nayar reached his century, with a boundary over mid off.

Nayar’s innings injected life into an otherwise dull final session, but on the day, it was still a sideshow to Zol’s brilliance.

 

[JontyPanesar]

Not sure what to make Zol's 100 given that he hasn't played Ranji yet.

Jiwanjot might just sneak in to the SA tour's squad if he does well in the second match at Vizag and keeps performing at a high level in Ranji. Not saying it will be a warranted selection but Vijay is looking fragile, Gambhir still looks like a mess given how he's doing for Essex, Jaffer has been written off as too old by selectors. Or Pujara will be made the de facto backup opener to make space for another middle order bat (Rohit) in the squad (the second unofficial test b/w India A and SA A would indicate as much). The latter seems more likely but India's depth in terms of openers is still woeful despite the arrival of dhawan; the selectors might just get desperate and send him on the flight.

Jiwanjot looks like he has the makings to be a very useful opener osc from what I've seen of him but he is a bit shocking versus spinners.

 

[Cevno]

Can totally see them selecting Gambhir for his experience. Making Pujara open won't be the worse option either if Vijay or Dhawan dud.

I like Jiwanjot from what i've seen so far anyway but Has a tendency to get bogged down a bit at times. Still has a bit to learn to be ready for test cricket probably and in SA first series might be a bridge too far.

 

[JontyPanesar]

Oh yeah, I'm not saying its likely or desirable but the probability is nontrivial given how the summer has gone for Vijay and Gambhir. The selectors prefer having proper openers, which is how dhawan leapfrogged the pack, but i think pujara as backup opener is the most desirable. If gambhir's horror show continues, he's as likely to be in the squad as Sehwag, but then again the selectors have done dafter things...

Personally, I'd be ok with Jaffer as backup opener for the inevitable Vijay flop (though I hope he can learn from his failures)

 

[JontyPanesar]

Anyone else surprised not to see Mukund in the side. I know he had a down year in Ranji last season but he was India A captain a year ago on the tour of NZ, and did well too

 

[Arjun]

I'd prefer Jaffer-Dhawan or Rahane-Dhawan as openers for this tour. Vijay's uninspiring, and so are the middle-order batsmen promoted to open. Pujara, I can't say much about, he's a little less of an opener than Rahane, who's either opened or walked in to bat at three after the early dismissal of the wicketkeeper. Slight tilt towards Rahane opening, but I'd still preffa the Jaffa.

 

[JontyPanesar]

Rahane isn't opening. He doesn't want to open. The selectors don't want him to open. And besides, is feet don't get moving early on in his innings...him opening in SA would be disastrous IMO. Pujara is a better makeshift opener

Also, while Pankaj Singh deserves pity, lets not kid ourselves. If you've seen him bowl, it's in the mold of joginder and vinay: effective for Ranji and not much else

 

[Arjun]

Of Rohit, Rahane and Pujara, Rahane has faced the new ball most often, because he's batted at three and Mumbai has often opened with a wicketkeeper- when he hasn't opened, of course. We've seen the Indian team management try to make an opener out of Sehwag with a lot of success, and repeatedly with wicketkeepers, without sustained success anywhere, so Rahane opening is an option.

Pankaj Singh, for all practical purposes, is at least better than Ishant Sharma by a long way, and India have sustained Ishant for a long time. He's a much better alternative to Ishant, and with Umesh's and Aaron's frequent breakdowns, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar not being the complete package as a specialist bowler, let's not forget him.

 

[JontyPanesar]

Pujara has ably handled himself opening in the second India A match, and at Delhi v aus. And he impressed everyone at Durban when handling Steyn and morkel's spell when batting with Laxman. He's decisive with his feet too, Rahane's better when coming in against an older ball. Regardless, it's obvious Rahane won't open. Rohit opening would be even dumber.

Everyone is better than Ishant. Ishant will turn into a limited overs specialist bowling short filth at the death, with Dhoni just setting his fields accordingly. Aaron shouldn't be anywhere near the picture until he can gain some degree of control. Pankaj Singh is no more a complete bowler than bhuvi. I wonder when Praveen will be taken out of the timeout corner. Zak, Praveen, bhuvi, Umesh, and ishwar would be my preferred for SA.

Sorry to derail my first thread here...I'm really hoping to see more of dhawal kulkarni on future tours in some favorable conditions though. He can really swing the ball at acceptable pace, but I suspect it's his accuracy and consistency that let him down most

 

[JontyPanesar]

I really hope management isn't trying to find or make another Sehwag...

 

[Arjun]

We're not looking at a makeshift opener here, but someone who can be eased into a long-term role, like Sehwag or Gambhir- spot the promoted opener here. If Pujara can manage it in a few games, it's good, but we're looking at converting this trend into a long-term choice. Of course, it goes without saying that this bloke does not play T20Is.

We haven't seen much of Pankaj Singh at the top level. He's one bloke who will have earned his place in the national side, at a time when places in the team are given away to kiddos like gifts at a Christmas party, on age instead of performance. Much of your concerns about Pankaj Singh also apply to Bhuvi, a lot more, because he's young, small and underpowerd- and he's already shown success in ODIs so far, so we know how good a bloke is depending on chances he gets. Pankaj has got only one chance which gives no indication whatsoever, and he's a huge improvement over all the blokes playing for India- more experienced, more consistent, more results, better physique.

Praveen Kumar is finished. He's struggling to even stand up, much like Varun Aaron, and he anyway doesn't cut it unless the ball can swing like a banana- flat pitch means it's over for him. Zaheer opening would be ideal, but he's struggling with fitness and hasn't played active cricket in some time. Dhawal Kulkarni had two good seasons when he started, but struggled since, on flat decks. Lack of pace and power will be an obstacle. He can turn it around by scoring lots of runs, since he too doesn't have it in him as a specialist bowler. You can't build a great pace attack with little slow men.

 

[JontyPanesar]

I've seen Pankaj in some Ranji matches. There really isn't much there that's translatable to the test level, though I do agree that he should be playing A team matches. He has earned the right to fail and I'm all for restoring meritocracy

Praveen did well in WI and has a good Ranji average...two clear cut examples where the ball doesn't swing like a banana. He didn't even go for many runs in England when the pitches flattened out. Yes, he looks like a useless medium pacer at times, but he produces results in the end

If there are guys with pace who can deliver the goods, like Umesh, I'll take it. But no Ishants and no Vinays please.