*Official* New Zealand in England 2015

[Skyliner]

I wouldn't worry too much about the high scores because in this series the four best batsmen across both teams have all scored prolifically. Root, Morgan, Taylor and Williamson are collectively averaging about 90.

Yes, their exceptional and consistent batting has been the big feature of the series. Baz has hardly scored a run with his big dense bat on these flat pitches with small boundaries et al.

 

[JediNudist]

The series has had some positives.

Santner will feel good for his batting yesterday. Taylor is back in form. Guptill getting some starts. But when Ronchi bats 6, and Southee bats 8, the team balance is off. Way off.

Yeah balance isn't what it was at the world cup. If Milne , Anderson and Boult back then Southee batting at 9 or 10.

Just read a hilarious Stuff.co.nz rant in the comments section where someone was saying NZ bowling depth is non existent Boult is out only decent bowler , Milne is all hype , Southee cant bowel without swing and the rest wouldn't make training Aus or SA training squad and SA and Aus bowlers will chew us up

 

[Skyliner]

Wasn't it just 2? Distinctly remember Australia getting bowled out for **** all one match

Yeah, that was the sh*t game in the series. The pitch was doing a bit, by the time the Aussies adapted their innings was in the toilet, and then I think we chased it down for none or one down. Hardly exciting cricket, great if you like to see NZ stuff Australia. Would have been embarrassing if it'd been the other way around....a match decided on a coin toss.

 

[JediNudist]

It wasn't that long ago that teams used to dawdle through 'middle overs' at four an over, saving everything for the charge at the end. You had bowlers with wonderful figures because no-one was prepared to take the slightest risk. That was the 'good old days'.

Yep think the matches in Aus during world series cricket in the middle 90s. I watched a lot as TV3 had the rights. Teams would go at 3.5 to 4 an over between 16 and 40 and in some cases leave it ill the last 5 overs for a charge. Aus used to prepare pitches to benefit Shane Warne though,. If you got 250 you batted well . In Sydney 230 was almost impossible to get chasing,. Especially with Warnie bowling

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

Yeah balance isn't what it was at the world cup. If Milne , Anderson and Boult back then Southee batting at 9 or 10.

Just read a hilarious Stuff.co.nz rant in the comments section where someone was saying NZ bowling depth is non existent Boult is out only decent bowler , Milne is all hype , Southee cant bowel without swing and the rest wouldn't make training Aus or SA training squad and SA and Aus bowlers will chew us up

Milne is certainly not hype. He has raw talent. Pace with fair control. He needs to bowl more aggressively to intimidate batsmen, however.

I do agree however, that the rest of the NZ bowlers outside Anderson, Boult, Southee and Milne would not make the Aus or SA training squad presently. Seriously, James Pattinson is a world beater. Doug Bollinger would have played a lot more tests and ODIs. South Africa don't even have room for Merchant De Lange.

They'd walk into this current NZ team given the injury crisis.

 

[Skyliner]

Yeah balance isn't what it was at the world cup. If Milne , Anderson and Boult back then Southee batting at 9 or 10.

Just read a hilarious Stuff.co.nz rant in the comments section where someone was saying NZ bowling depth is non existent Boult is out only decent bowler , Milne is all hype , Southee cant bowel without swing and the rest wouldn't make training Aus or SA training squad and SA and Aus bowlers will chew us up

Southee's figures have been in the toilet in this series. He is predominantly a swing bowler. Apart from the outlier of the performance against the poms in Wellington he didn't have a great WC. Milne's fast but he needs to get the ball moving off straight. Boult is our stand out now that Vettori's retired.
It wasn't me having that rant btw.

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

I have the English innings recorded, but I do not feel the inclination to watch it.

I'm guessing that McClenaghan bowled rubbish. Matt Henry did his best impersonation of Mitch. Taylor would have dropped some catches in the slips. And Wheeler was out of his depth?

if I am wrong about Wheeler, let me know. because he went alright the previous game.

 

[JediNudist]

Southee's figures have been in the toilet in this series. He is predominantly a swing bowler. Apart from the outlier of the performance against the poms in Wellington he didn't have a great WC. Milne's fast but he needs to get the ball moving off straight. Boult is our stand out now that Vettori's retired.
It wasn't me having that rant btw.

Remember that our test bowling is a lot better. Wagner and Braces are pretty good with Southee and Boult. That would still be my attack along with either Neesham or Anderson as the alrounder or both perhaps . A six seem attack against Aus in the tests plus Sodhi.

For ODIs Wheeler is pretty raw but has promise , same for Santner who batted brilliantly, . But I have been very dissapointed in Henry and Mitch for this series, Both bowled poor last night . Both just haven't performed at all to support Southee who hasnt bowled well either. If Milne and Boult came back from injury for the SA odi series Mitch and Henry would be out.

 

[JediNudist]

I have the English innings recorded, but I do not feel the inclination to watch it.

I'm guessing that McClenaghan bowled rubbish. Matt Henry did his best impersonation of Mitch. Taylor would have dropped some catches in the slips. And Wheeler was out of his depth?

if I am wrong about Wheeler, let me know. because he went alright the previous game.

Yeah I recorded the England innings after staying up to watch NZ bat. I have deleted it without watching it. Watched highlights on Stuff and other websites.
NZ bowlers were doing the usual short pitch delivery all innings which England feasted on
Henry and Wheeler bowled well 3rd game but along with Mitch seemed to have no clue this match. Once Morgan and co started the assault the bowlers completely crumbled , bowling short and wides.

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

Yeah I recorded the England innings after staying up to watch NZ bat. I have deleted it without watching it. Watched highlights on Stuff and other websites.
NZ bowlers were doing the usual short pitch delivery all innings which England feasted on
Henry and Wheeler bowled well 3rd game but along with Mitch seemed to have no clue this match. Once Morgan and co started the assault the bowlers completely crumbled , bowling short and wides.

Don't suppose Shane Bond wants a part time job coaching with the Black Caps?

Adam Milne should be banned from playing red ball cricket and just become a pyjama specialist.

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

Mitchell McClenaghan: I like being aggressive and getting in people's faces | Stuff.co.nz

"It is a philosophy that has worked really well with me. It is a role I do well. I like being aggressive. I like getting in people's faces. You can change the game in many ways. At times you need to be aggressive and guys will make mistakes just from your presence," McClenaghan told ESPNcricinfo as the spotlight fell on him for the title match.

The 28-year-old said he was encouraged by his father to up the ante, a philosophy that has helped him to 35 ODI appearances and 16 T20s for New Zealand as well as gaining a place in the game's most high-profile league.

"Like every New Zealander, on green wickets I used to just bowl medium pace, nibble it in, swing it. I must have been 17 or 18 when my dad said to me, if you want to play first-class and international cricket you need a point of difference," McClenaghan said.

"He said every bowler in the country can run in and swing the ball, but there are not enough guys who run in, bowl quick, bowl heavy and bowl bouncers. So it was his motivation that kind of pushed me to want to run in hard, try and bowl quick, and my game has developed from there."

McClenaghan said the bouncer was a key part of his armoury for both economy and wicket-taking.

"You bowl to hopefully put them on the back foot so that they make the wrong decision. I don't use them to hurt people but I use them as a means of setting them up to change the game for me or the guy at the other end," he said.

"I might not be the most economical bowler but with the way the game is going and how flat the pitches are around the world, there needs to be a point of difference. You need to have someone in your team who can run in and change the game without the ball swinging, seaming, turning. You need to have an aggressive bowler who can enforce himself. And whether that brings some wickets or that means they have to attack the guy at the other end, which give him the opportunity to take wickets …"

McClenaghan has described himself as "ultra-competitive, aggressive, maybe a little bit crazy sometimes on the field" and has admitted to even biting himself to get his aggressive juices flowing.

"It seems to give me that adrenaline kick. When people get hit during a fight, their senses get heightened, so it is a bit of a weird one but it has worked for me to pump myself up for some spells at times," he said."It is a philosophy that has worked really well with me. It is a role I do well. I like being aggressive. I like getting in people's faces. You can change the game in many ways. At times you need to be aggressive and guys will make mistakes just from your presence," McClenaghan told ESPNcricinfo as the spotlight fell on him for the title match.

I blame the parents. Does he really confuse bowling at 130 kmh, pitching short and squeeling like Sharipova as bowling fast, aggressive and getting into the face of the batsmen?

"I bowl a heavy ball".

 

[Skyliner]

According to the Stuff article, 'McCullum lamented a patchy bowling performance'....it's a bit rich: he's been the foremost proponent of the Mitch style of bowling, a juvenile concept of 'aggression' that seems to have evolved into a whole lot of short pitch bowling at medium pace.
Two things I think we've done that in hindsight haven't been too smart. One is essentially goading England by carrying on about 'aggressive cricket' at every single opportunity. Hubristically, we've become too big for our boots.
The other dumb thing was to hand over our intellectual property on how we play 'aggressive cricket'.....we just give our players the licence, and if it doesn't come off, no probs, no repercussions. It's been reported in all the English papers, their public are now conditioned to accept it when their team does it. Apart from what's been said, it's evident from the attitude to our captain: he has a larrup in the first over and gets out, and his status if anything rises. He has the ultimate free license. As someone commented (slightly hysterically) on the Stuff article: "McCullum is untouchable! The propaganda around him is incredible!"
If we just went out and scored 350 to 400 runs and didn't make a song and dance about it, maybe England would stil be playing their stodgy conservative cricket.
It's all very well bowling 'aggressive' (short pitch stuff and Yorkers at 134 kph) if your opponents are the Windies, and it's all very well gloating about your 'aggressive' cricket, but it's a different story if your opponents turn out to have better players capable of turning your own template against you.

 

[Skyliner]

Mitchell McClenaghan: I like being aggressive and getting in people's faces | Stuff.co.nz



I blame the parents. Does he really confuse bowling at 130 kmh, pitching short and squeeling like Sharipova as bowling fast, aggressive and getting into the face of the batsmen?

"I bowl a heavy ball".

'He's ultra competitive, aggggresssive, maybe a little bit crazy'.....all of that means sod all if the batsman ignores it, plays the ball on it's merits and simply slots it away for another boundary.

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

'He's ultra competitive, aggggresssive, maybe a little bit crazy'.....all of that means sod all if the batsman ignores it, plays the ball on it's merits and simply slots it away for another boundary.

Who needs seam, swing or turn when you have Mitch spraying crazy heavy ball bouncers all over the place at 130 kmh?

 

[kiwiviktor81]

I'd much rather that we aggressively attacked the stumps than "aggressively" bowl short pitched stuff at 130ks. In my day that was known as "**** bowling".

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

I'd much rather that we aggressively attacked the stumps than "aggressively" bowl short pitched stuff at 130ks. In my day that was known as "**** bowling".

Still hasn't changed to today. Only person who should be bowling short like that is Milne. Who will do it with far greater accuracy and pace. Two to the three short right at the batsmen, forcing him to play, many at the ribs, two to three on the top of off stump per over from Milne would be ideal.

 

[Skyliner]

Still hasn't changed to today. Only person who should be bowling short like that is Milne. Who will do it with far greater accuracy and pace. Two to the three short right at the batsmen, forcing him to play, many at the ribs, two to three on the top of off stump per over from Milne would be ideal.

Milne bowls at pace, with no overblown histrionics. It's a simple formula.

 

[CaptainGrumpy]

Milne bowls at pace, with no overblown histrionics. It's a simple formula.

Word of the day! Thanks for that.

But I agree. Mitch, and the culture of players like Mitch, is a problem for NZ Cricket.

His bowling certainly looks like it deserves a first class average of 40. You just cannot buy wickets the way Mitch does and expect to succeed.

I mean he talks himself up as the ultimate two card trick. Except the batsmen now know that he isn't bowling within himself ready to bluff them with a 145-150kmh screamer.

He may have a priaprism for bowling short and agressively, but at 130kmh and lacking control of placement, he is practically infertile to ever conceive economical wickets.

 

[NZTailender]

Wasn't it just 2? Distinctly remember Australia getting bowled out for **** all one match

For like 140-150 and we chased it 0 down (Lou and Flem).

Shane Bond played that match, and missed the next two due to injury

 

[JediNudist]

Word of the day! Thanks for that.

But I agree. Mitch, and the culture of players like Mitch, is a problem for NZ Cricket.

His bowling certainly looks like it deserves a first class average of 40. You just cannot buy wickets the way Mitch does and expect to succeed.

I mean he talks himself up as the ultimate two card trick. Except the batsmen now know that he isn't bowling within himself ready to bluff them with a 145-150kmh screamer.

He may have a priaprism for bowling short and agressively, but at 130kmh and lacking control of placement, he is practically infertile to ever conceive economical wickets.

The enigma that is Mitch McClenaghan . Quickest NZ bowler to 50 wickets ever

When NZ got a first ever ODI series win in SA Jan 2013 Mitch made his debut that series

in Paarl 4-20 of 10

then 0-50 of 10 in Kimberly

then 2-70 of 10 in Potchefstroom

So he started off with a hiss and a roar

Still has an average of 28 all things considered. But boy when he bowls bad he bowls REAL bad .