Official - Road to Ashes 2023

[trundler]

What is it about being isolated from the rest of the world that makes a country grotesquely over rate their journeymen cricketers to the point of comedy? The only rival Australians have in this regard are the Kiwis who have somehow gaslit the world into thinking Chris Harris was a good cricketer. Anyway, can the Aussie contingent pick one between Burgey, TJB and SoC as their Migara-like mascot? Having one around to point and laugh at is good for the forum ecosystem as they represent meme opinions no one takes seriously but one-eyed nationalistic dick waving is only funny when microdosed.

 

[TheJediBrah]

What is it about being isolated from the rest of the world that makes a country grotesquely over rate their journeymen cricketers to the point of comedy? The only rival Australians have in this regard are the Kiwis who have somehow gaslit the world into thinking Chris Harris was a good cricketer. Anyway, can the Aussie contingent pick one between Burgey, TJB and SoC as their Migara-like mascot? Having one around to point and laugh at is good for the forum ecosystem as they represent meme opinions no one takes seriously but one-eyed nationalistic dick waving is only funny when microdosed.

Dude your years-long obsession with this fantasy enemy is getting ridiculous. It's not even remotely relevant to anything being discussed right now either. Sometimes you need to take a step back

 

[Spark]

Less than impressive Starc and injury prone Hazelwood aren't a match for Gillespie/Lee so you are suggesting Cummins > McGrath?

Lee was a mediocre Test bowler.

What is it about being isolated from the rest of the world that makes a country grotesquely over rate their journeymen cricketers to the point of comedy? The only rival Australians have in this regard are the Kiwis who have somehow gaslit the world into thinking Chris Harris was a good cricketer. Anyway, can the Aussie contingent pick one between Burgey, TJB and SoC as their Migara-like mascot? Having one around to point and laugh at is good for the forum ecosystem as they represent meme opinions no one takes seriously but one-eyed nationalistic dick waving is only funny when microdosed.

This is a horrendous post.

 

[Spark]

Smith out now for 89 - third LBW in a row...

 

[the big bambino]

Geez I’d pick McGrath on his own if it was a choice between him and Cummins Starc and Haze, When we had McGrath we had one of the ATG sides whereas we’re nothing like it now even with Cummins and Smith.

 

[Prince EWS]

Geez I’d pick McGrath on his own if it was a choice between him and Cummins Starc and Haze, When we had McGrath we had one of the ATG sides whereas we’re nothing like it now even with Cummins and Smith.

That's because we also had Warne and a batting lineup that could make runs away from home.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Geez I’d pick McGrath on his own if it was a choice between him and Cummins Starc and Haze, When we had McGrath we had one of the ATG sides whereas we’re nothing like it now even with Cummins and Smith.

Yeah I think it's not insane to say Starc/Haze are about a match for Gillespie/Lee but McGrath is so far ahead of Cummins that they're not really a match

Obviously not fast bowlers but Warne v Lyon blows it even further out of the water as overall bowling units

 

[Spark]

Geez I’d pick McGrath on his own if it was a choice between him and Cummins Starc and Haze, When we had McGrath we had one of the ATG sides whereas we’re nothing like it now even with Cummins and Smith.

To be fair McGrath is probably #3 on the list of things that made that side what it was (the top order and Warne being #1 and #2). He was peerless ofc but people forget that it was the top order that made that team what it truly was; even when the bowling is great you need runs on the board to play with, even Warne took his wickets at one every ten overs.

 

[TheJediBrah]

That's because we also had Warne and a batting lineup that could make runs away from home.

No it was all McGrath

 

[the big bambino]

That's because we also had Warne and a batting lineup that could make runs away from home.

Michael Holding identified McGrath as the teams best bowler even with Warne. He’s probably our best ever bowler clearly above Cummins let alone the other two. There were no holes in McGraths record unlike Warne and no batsman his master.

 

[RossTaylorsBox]

Less than impressive Starc and injury prone Hazelwood aren't a match for Gillespie/Lee so you are suggesting Cummins > McGrath?

Lee is the worst of those bowlers by some distance.

 

[Prince EWS]

You swap McGrath and Cummins in those two teams and you're getting extremely similar results on both sides of the swap IMO.

I think McGrath was probably the best bowler ever but I think Cummins will approach it if he has a similar length career as well, and the difference between the best and 10th best bowler or whatever is nothing compared to the difference between Hayden and Warner, Head and Waugh, Warne and Lyon, or Gilchrist and Carey. McGrath vs Cummins was definitely not the reason for the difference in quality between those teams.

 

[Spark]

the difference between the best and 10th best bowler or whatever is nothing compared to the difference

This is the key point for me. You can argue until the clouds come home that McGrath was better, and yeah he was, but he wasn't so much better that it negates the fact that swapping out any of the non-Smith and non-Khawaja batsmen in the top seven for their batting order replacements , say, the 2001 side is an enormously greater improvement in comparison. In that sense the Cummins/McGrath swap is frankly a wash.

EDIT: The only caveat to that is none of us frankly really know how good Green is actually going to be.

 

[the big bambino]

You swap McGrath and Cummins in those two teams and you're getting extremely similar results IMO on both sides of the swap IMO.

I think McGrath was probably the best bowler ever but I think Cummins will approach it if he has a similar length career as well, and the difference between the best and 10th best bowler or whatever is nothing compared to the difference between Hayden and Warner, Head and Waugh, Warne and Lyon, or Gilchrist and Carey. McGrath vs Cummins was definitely not the reason for the difference in quality between those teams.

Australia had great batsmen and team then for sure. But we’re not too shabby atm either. But it was always McGrath who dominated the opposition irrespective who it was. All the other great players we had then had their poor runs or sides they struggled against. Not so McGrath who was the best of the lot. I think if you swap Cummins and McGrath the two teams get closer together.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Australia had great batsmen and team then for sure. But we’re not too shabby atm either. But it was always McGrath who dominated the opposition irrespective who it was. All the other great players we had then had their poor runs or sides they struggled against. Not so McGrath who was the best of the lot. I think if you swap Cummins and McGrath the two teams get closer together.

If I had to pick 1 factor that made that team the greatest, ahead of Gilchrist, top-order batting or Warne, it would probably be McGrath.

But you're missing the point that out of all those factors, replacing McGrath is the only one that the current Aus team even comes close to being able to do. So it's not the biggest point of difference

 

[the big bambino]

If I had to pick 1 factor that made that team the greatest, ahead of Gilchrist, top-order batting or Warne, it would probably be McGrath.

But you're missing the point that out of all those factors, replacing McGrath is the only one that the current Aus team even comes close to being able to do. So it's not the biggest point of difference

That’s not my point, dummy. That’s someone else’s. The most I’ll go down that road is saying whomever McGrath plays for improves. Plus the way he dominated means he would make our comparatively weaker side more competitive.

What I’m saying McGrath is clearly better and I’d pick him on his own over the other three.

 

[Molehill]

Smith out now for 89 - third LBW in a row...

Looked a somewhat questionable one again, although he had survived a couple of decent shouts against Neser earlier in the morning. But is 3 lbw's in a row something the England bowlers will look to exploit?

 

[Spark]

Looked a somewhat questionable one again, although he had survived a couple of decent shouts against Neser earlier in the morning. But is 3 lbw's in a row something the England bowlers will look to exploit?

Robinson would have to have rocks in his head to not try to target it in particular.

Though, given his history, he might just...

 

[mackembhoy]

Looked a somewhat questionable one again, although he had survived a couple of decent shouts against Neser earlier in the morning. But is 3 lbw's in a row something the England bowlers will look to exploit?

Aye thats missing off pretty poor call. The one last week was plumb yet he was stood looking incredulous at the umpire, karma is what i'd call that.

 

[Nintendo]

Less than impressive Starc and injury prone Hazelwood aren't a match for Gillespie/Lee so you are suggesting Cummins > McGrath?

Starc>Lee by a massive margin.