***Official*** England in South Africa 2015/16

[cnerd123]

I know I'm commiting a very obvious selection fallacy, but I'd keep Morris for his catching/batting and drop Rabada.

 

[cnerd123]

Indications are that SA will play 4 seamers and leave elgar with the spinning duties. Indications are for a fast pitch and for some thunderstorms to be around for the game. So believe they will play abbot,morkel,radaba and morris.

Thats terrible. Piedt has done nothing wrong, and at time has looked like SA's best bowler.

 

[Prince EWS]

I know I'm commiting a very obvious selection fallacy, but I'd keep Morris for his catching/batting and drop Rabada.

Nah rigid team balance ideas are the fallacy. I'd keep Rabada but there's nothing wrong with considering non-bowling aspects.

 

[Woden]

Hope the go with Viljoen instead of abbot... Fast and unknown to the Poms

 

[91Jmay]

If Abbot had played in CPT the result might have been other than a draw.... You need one bowling allrounder in your four main bowlers. Zondi hinted that a four seam attack was an option if the pitch warranted it.

Absolutely no chance. Morris batted well but the Saffers would have survived without his.

 

[Prince EWS]

Absolutely no chance. Morris batted well but the Saffers would have survived without his.

Yeah but Abbott would've got Stokes out for a duck and England would've lost late on Day 4.

 

[91Jmay]

Yeah but Abbott would've got Stokes out for a duck and England would've lost late on Day 4.

True, but Broad scoring the fastest double hundred in test history would have been amazing to watch.

 

[Stefan9]

Thats terrible. Piedt has done nothing wrong, and at time has looked like SA's best bowler.

Except for Warne don't recall any spinner doing anything at wanderers. Pitch doesn't tend to spin much.

 

[Niall]

I know I'm commiting a very obvious selection fallacy, but I'd keep Morris for his catching/batting and drop Rabada.

So who is your fourth non white player if you drop Rabada ?

 

[kykweer.proteas]

Would be sad if we had to greet Steyn like this... However he has nothing left to prove, ATG.

 

[Stefan9]

Would be sad if we had to greet Steyn like this... However he has nothing left to prove, ATG.

Would be disappointing if he doesn't get the all time wicket taker for SA thought, he deserves it.

 

[Black_Warrior]

Based on how South Africa always prefer to play an extra batsman (they would get ABD to keep every time if they could), I am pretty sure Morris will play especially after demonstrating batting credentials. Rabada/Abbott is a tough call, I love both, but Rabada might get the chop here as he went for a few.

So

Morkel
Abbot
Morris
Piedt


The problem with this is the risk that you might always be left with only 3 bowlers, because if Morris goes for plenty again, you are left with a depleted bowling attack pretty fast.

My personal solution to this is to get Amla to open with Elgar but I don't think this is going to happen

Elgar
Amla
Faf
ABD
Bavuma
De Kock
Morris
Abbot
Morkel
Piedt
Rabada

I think 8-11 should always be picked primarily for their bowling. If they can bat, that's great.

 

[Compton]

Based on how South Africa always prefer to play an extra batsman (they would get ABD to keep every time if they could), I am pretty sure Morris will play especially after demonstrating batting credentials. Rabada/Abbott is a tough call, I love both, but Rabada might get the chop here as he went for a few.

So

Morkel
Abbot
Morris
Piedt


The problem with this is the risk that you might always be left with only 3 bowlers, because if Morris goes for plenty again, you are left with a depleted bowling attack pretty fast.

My personal solution to this is to get Amla to open with Elgar but I don't think this is going to happen

Elgar
Amla
Faf
ABD
Bavuma
De Kock
Morris
Abbot
Morkel
Piedt
Rabada

I think 8-11 should always be picked primarily for their bowling. If they can bat, that's great.

Everyone likes picking five bowlers, but that line up is definitely a batsman light.

 

[Howe_zat]

If Abbot is fit he should play ahead of Morris, nothing else will change

 

[kykweer.proteas]

Morkel really needs to step up now, for years we have heard how he has lived in the shadows of Dale and Vern... We really require Morkel to lift his game considerably and stop these ****ty no balls.

 

[Stefan9]

Morkel really needs to step up now, for years we have heard how he has lived in the shadows of Dale and Vern... We really require Morkel to lift his game considerably and stop these ****ty no balls.

Morkel and his no balls is like an old dog who can't learn new tricks. Sad thing is seems he is influence KG with it as well...

 

[Black_Warrior]

I used to feel that way too for a while but to be honest, he has been incredible this year, both in India and in this series. No complaints there.

 

[Stefan9]

Article on why SA is very likely to go with 4 quicks at wanderers.

Stats don't bode well for Piedt
2016-01-12 08:30 SHARE THIS




Cape Town - A closer look at Test cricket played at the Wanderers since readmission suggests that the Proteas could get away with not playing a specialist spin bowler against England on Thursday.

South Africa go into the third Test 1-0 down in the series with two to play, desperate for a result to keep their hopes of winning the series alive.

The talk is that the ground staff in Johannesburg will look to produce a 'result wicket', and with a bit of rain and overcast conditions expected throughout the Test there could be something in it for the seamers.

It has all led to speculation over whether the Proteas will take four seamers into the match at the expense of off-spinner Dane Piedt, who took 3/38 in the second innings of the Cape Town Test.

On Monday, Dale Steyn was ruled out of the third Test with a shoulder strain, but Kyle Abbott and Hardus Viljoen are both fit and ready should the selectors opt for a four-pronged pace attack.

A look at how ineffective spin has been at the Wanderers over the years suggests that it might not be such a bad idea.

Since readmission, no South African has taken a five-for at the Wanderers and the last visiting bowler to do so was India's Anil Kumble in 1992 - his 6/53 in the South African second innings formed a large part of his eight wickets for the match.

And, in the last 10 Tests played at the Wanderers, South Africa have gone into three of them without a specialist spin bowler.

South Africa, quite simply, need to take 20 wickets in the third Test match to make the Centurion finale as exciting as possible - and the stats suggest they have a better chance of doing that with pace than they do seam.

Of the 359 wickets to have fallen at the Wanderers in the last 10 Tests played there, 45 have been taken by spin bowlers ... that's 12.5%.

Match figures for every spinner to have played at the Wanderers since 2005:

January 2005 - England beat SA by 77 runs

Nicky Boje 0/101, Ashley Giles 2/49

March 2006 - Australia beat SA by 2 wickets

Shane Warne 4/139, Andrew Symonds 1/44, Nicky Boje 2/75

May 2006 - SA beat NZ by 4 wickets

No spinners played by either side

December 2006 - India beat SA by 123 runs

Anil Kumble 5/55, Graeme Smith 0/26 (No specialist spinner for SA)

November 2007 - SA beat NZ by 358 runs

Daniel Vettori 2/144, Paul Harris 1/11

February 2009 - Australia beat SA by 162 runs

Paul Harris 3/100, JP Duminy 0/54, Marcus North 1/56

January 2010 - SA beat England by an innings and 74 runs

Graeme Swann 2/93, JP Duminy 2/10 (No specialist spinner for SA)

November 2011 - Australia beat SA by 2 wickets

Nathan Lyon 4/109, Michael Clarke 2/8, Imran Tahir 4/118

February 2013 - SA beat Pakistan by 211 runs

Saeed Ajmal 1/142, Younis Khan 1/16, Mohammad Hafeez 4/48, Robin Peterson 0/24

December 2013 - SA v India - match drawn

Imran Tahir 2/116, JP Duminy 2/117, Ravichandran Ashwin 0/108, Murali Vijay 0/3

TOTAL SPIN CONTRIBUTION:

45/1766 at an average of 39.24

Stats don't bode well for Piedt | Sport24

 

[91Jmay]

Wouldn't say Morkel has been incredible in this series at all. Amla hasn't used him that well but he has bowled plenty of those good looking but ultimately pointless back of a length spells.

 

[Black_Warrior]

Article on why SA is very likely to go with 4 quicks at wanderers.



Stats don't bode well for Piedt | Sport24

Funny because the one that I read on Cricinfo suggests the exact opposite.

The first question they will face is whether to include a spinner on what is expected to be a pitch with some life for the quick bowlers. Domingo admitted he would be hesitant to go all-pace even if conditions suggested he should. "I am one of those coaches that likes to have a spinner but the Wanderers is notorious for not having a spinner," he said. "We need to look at conditions. Once we've done that, we will have a discussion with the selectors. It's not unheard of to go into a Wanderers Test without a spinner. It's often been done."

If they listen to the groundsman, Bethuel Buthelezi, it should not be done this time. Buthelezi, who is preparing his first Test pitch, has promised bounce, pace, and turn and said if it was up to him, he would play a spinner. That does not automatically mean Dane Piedt, who took three wickets at Newlands, will keep his place. South Africa could also go back to JP Duminy after he responded to being dropped from the Test XI with a career-best unbeaten 260 for Cape Cobras in a domestic first-class game last week although how he would fit into the balance of the side would be a conundrum.

Dale Steyn ruled out of third Test | Cricket | ESPN Cricinfo