***Official*** Australia in India 2017

[stephen]

I'd rather have a green seaming pitch with no spin that suits Australia 100% rather than having a batting friendly pitch. I'm so freaking tired of watching sessions where the biggest mystery is when the team will declare or what the strike rate of the next centurion will be. I prefer matches where there could be a wicket every delivery. If you don't like this type of wicket, fine. But please no batter friendly ones.

More batting-friendly != complete highway.

Adelaide is a road that produces results.

I want a batting friendly pitch that offers something for the bowlers, particularly on days 1, 4 and 5.

Good test match cricket should reward good batting, good bowling and good fielding. The two tests we've seen on this tour have both rewarded good bowling but not so much the other two disciplines.

The fact is that we've seen one century across two tests and to get that Smith was put down 5 times.

 

[stephen]

Mate, I have watched lots of games over the years when balls kept even more low. A lot of tracks in India do that and I have seen batsmen make very conscious attempts to get forward. Smith does not have a frontfoot movement to help him play such balls. He kept going back and across but cut down his backlift and trusted his eye to keep out the grubbers, which as you said, he was doing successfully till then. But it does not take away the fact that had he gone on the front foot he would have had more chance to at least get an inside edge on the ball. I am not saying it was something he should have easily kept out but batsmen do play that. It was not as impossible as he made it seem.

In fact, the comms mentioned how he was not putting away some balls to the boundary because he was so worried about the grubber and was always looking for it. Mitch Marsh got a number of boundaries because he had put that out of his mind and was looking to score. And lo and behold, he smashed them off their lengths. There are various ways to counter low bounce and grubbers, no matter how low they keep mate. That is all I am pointing out. Read my previous post to know what I felt of the pitch. I was just responding to someone saying it was impossible to play that. I have seen enough cricket to know that it is not really true.

Who scored more runs between Smith and Mitch Marsh in this test?

Anyway inconsistent bounce is OK on days 4 and 5 but there were balls shooting through from day 1. It's rubbish and makes for poor quality cricket. India don't need to doctor pitches like this to beat Australia.

This pitch absolutely needs to be rated poor by the match referee. I'd also like to note that this isn't sour grapes talking, I've been critical of both pitches from day 1.

So far, in both tests the side that has played better has come out on top. I always thought that we were perhaps 50 runs sort in our first innings and I think the events of yesterday have born that out. If India had have batted somewhat competently on day 1 this would have been an absolute thrashing and the pitch would be largely to blame.

Pitches that have deteriorated before the match has begun will always favor the batting side since batting largely gets harder and harder as the game progresses. On a pitch like this, winning the toss is probably worth 150 runs. You effectively get two batting innings to your opponents 1.5 innings. We benefited last test and India this test.

I only hope that the next test produces a pitch that rewards both batsmen and bowlers, not just bowlers.

 

[GotSpin]

Smith lacking abilities in French cricket clearly his downfall

 

[OverratedSanity]

Pitches that have deteriorated before the match has begun will always favor the batting side since batting largely gets harder and harder as the game progresses. On a pitch like this, winning the toss is probably worth 150 runs. You effectively get two batting innings to your opponents 1.5 innings. We benefited last test and India this test.

Are we sure on this? When India batted well in the 2nd innings, people said the pitch had eased out and slowed down, which in fairness it probably had a bit. But immediately after the ChePu - Rahane partnership was broken, the pitch became worse? I don't buy it. Australia had this game won when they took a lead of 87 (which on thus pitch is massive). Don't think the toss played any role. Neither in this test nor in the first.

I do agree with the rest of what you said. The pitch was too much of a crapshoot for batsmen.

 

[Arachnodouche]

What's with traditional venues being given the shaft? Pune and Ranchi ffs; I get this country is a bureacratic ****hole but are we going to give each little hamlet a Test of its own?

Great for Dharamshala, though. Hope it goes five days there.

 

[quincywagstaff]

While Australia’s ongoing problems with 6/7 are their biggest long-term batting issue, for this series their biggest issue now is David Warner.

As someone said on Twitter, if you just watched how they played this series you’d think Renshaw is the senior opening partner. In a batting lineup that isn’t particularly attacking by Australian standards, Warner’s aggressiveness is pivotal; if he can get a big century in one of the final two Tests it would go a long way towards Australia winning. But the way he’s playing this series (especially against Ashwin) I can’t really see it occurring.

 

[Zinzan]

It's difficult not to think India will romp home with it now. It really needed to be 2-0 to Aust, with India under pressure to bring it back to 2-2 for me.

I can just see the challenges of an India tour; heat, exhaustion (mental and physical) along with Indian confidence and momentum just being too much for Australia. Although don't expect Aust to lay down.

 

[stephen]

Are we sure on this? When India batted well in the 2nd innings, people said the pitch had eased out and slowed down, which in fairness it probably had a bit. But immediately after the ChePu - Rahane partnership was broken, the pitch became worse? I don't buy it. Australia had this game won when they took a lead of 87 (which on thus pitch is massive). Don't think the toss played any role. Neither in this test nor in the first.

I do agree with the rest of what you said. The pitch was too much of a crapshoot for batsmen.

This pitch did get a bit easier on days 2 and 3 when it slowed a bit. Our bowling was both poor and a bit unlucky on day 3, which is largely the reason we lost.

 

[Arachnodouche]

Ashwin's not in great nick, but he's obviously got inside Warner's head, and that's as good a reason as any to get behind him. One good knock from Warner on these pitches will win the match for Aus, so it's crucial we keep our foot on his throat.

 

[TheJediBrah]

While Australia’s ongoing problems with 6/7 are their biggest long-term batting issue, for this series their biggest issue now is David Warner.

As someone said on Twitter, if you just watched how they played this series you’d think Renshaw is the senior opening partner. In a batting lineup that isn’t particularly attacking by Australian standards, Warner’s aggressiveness is pivotal; if he can get a big century in one of the final two Tests it would go a long way towards Australia winning. But the way he’s playing this series (especially against Ashwin) I can’t really see it occurring.

It's not going to happen on these pitches. He's a perfectly honed machine for playing on Australian pitches, and most other decent pitches tbh. He won't do **** on these dustbowls, all of which you could say about most Australian batsmen. That's the whole reason these wickets are being prepared as they are.

As far as what you could do about it, I don't know. You can't drop half your team because they don't know how to play on doctored pitches, but unless some sense and decency comes into the Indian curators I wouldn't expect to see any Warner centurys

 

[Spark]

While Australia’s ongoing problems with 6/7 are their biggest long-term batting issue, for this series their biggest issue now is David Warner.

As someone said on Twitter, if you just watched how they played this series you’d think Renshaw is the senior opening partner. In a batting lineup that isn’t particularly attacking by Australian standards, Warner’s aggressiveness is pivotal; if he can get a big century in one of the final two Tests it would go a long way towards Australia winning. But the way he’s playing this series (especially against Ashwin) I can’t really see it occurring.

Warner doesn't look so much overaggressive as lost tbh. He's definitely trying extremely hard to apply himself, but he doesn't seem to be completely up to it technically.

 

[Arachnodouche]

A question: what is the status quo on negative bowling? Does it qualify as negative bowling when bowlers are trying to hit the cracks outside leg in a push towards victory?

EDIT: Silly question, when I think of it. Obviously shouldn't.

 

[Daemon]

Warner doesn't look so much overaggressive as lost tbh. He's definitely trying extremely hard to apply himself, but he doesn't seem to be completely up to it technically.

Yeah he's struggling big time against Ashwin. 9 dismissals to him so far in Tests if I'm not wrong.

 

[Burgey]

A question: what is the status quo on negative bowling? Does it qualify as negative bowling when bowlers are trying to hit the cracks outside leg in a push towards victory?

I don't think so, though I do recall a few instances where Warne was wided when he bowled around the wicket and the ball didn't turn and kept going down the leg side.

 

[OverratedSanity]

Warner doesn't look so much overaggressive as lost tbh. He's definitely trying extremely hard to apply himself, but he doesn't seem to be completely up to it technically.

Looks awful against Ashwin who isn't even bowling at his best.

Big part in that has been that the pacers have generally kept it relatively tight against him too. Last thing you want is Warner on 40(25) before the spinners ever come on.

 

[Zinzan]

Warner doesn't look so much overaggressive as lost tbh. He's definitely trying extremely hard to apply himself, but he doesn't seem to be completely up to it technically.

Will be interesting to look back retrospectively at the end of this series which of the NZ/Eng/Aus bastmen managed to best cope with this bowling attack though. The technical challenge is enormous for any batsmen. Still picking only Root & Smith will be the only two from the 3 sides to average >45.

 

[Arachnodouche]

Will be interesting to look back retrospectively at the end of this series which of the NZ/Eng/Aus bastmen managed to best cope with this bowling attack though. The technical challenge is enormous for any batsmen. Still picking only Root & Smith will be the only two from the 3 sides to average >45.

In emphasis. This series calls for not just on-the-fly thinking by batsmen out in the middle, but also brings behind the scenes coaching into focus. More than any series in recent memory. Stuff like the tweak Rahane made in the second dig, getting outside the line and sweeping. Fascinating to watch it all unraveling from the comfort of the living room; also the reason why no one should be too harsh on these players. They are obviously giving it their all under immense pressure; soak it in and support your teams of choice.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Will be interesting to look back retrospectively at the end of this series which of the NZ/Eng/Aus bastmen managed to best cope with this bowling attack though. The technical challenge is enormous for any batsmen. Still picking only Root & Smith will be the only two from the 3 sides to average >45.

More so conditions than the bowling attack. This series even SOK and Lyon are looking unplayable at times.

btw didn't watch the previous series you mentioned but how did the pitches compare to these ones? Would obviously be a bit silly comparing Root's average to Smith's here if the wickets during the England series were anything like people have been saying.

 

[OverratedSanity]

More so conditions than the bowling attack. This series even SOK and Lyon are looking unplayable at times.

btw didn't watch the previous series you mentioned but how did the pitches compare to these ones? Would obviously be a bit silly comparing Root's average to Smith's here if the wickets during the England series were anything like people have been saying.

They were roads for the most part.

 

[Gob]

Think thats it for Aust in this series. Gave almost everything anf to think how close they were to 2-0 must be so mentally draining for them. Expecting a 3-1 here for India