Michael Clarke - all hype, no performance

[marc71178]

In the most recent tour there wasn't much to counter the contents of the title.

Do you actually watch the same game as everyone else?

 

[marc71178]

Not a great shock that you refuse to acknowledge the fact that he was clearly one of Australia's best batsman in the series.

Indeed not.

Before the series I was very sceptical about him, and have made many comments about him on here in the past.

I have to say that he impressed me greatly.

 

[Richard]

I wasn't disagreeing about that. On a number of occasions though i recall the commentators claiming that the ball was conventionally and reverse swinging at the same time when it wasn't.

Do you?
I only recall one or two, and I examined it (once assisted by Simon Hughes) and found it to be correct.

 

[Richard]

Do you actually watch the same game as everyone else?

Possibly not, given that some have made the utterly ludicrous claim that he was unlucky when in fact he was extremely lucky.

 

[Richard]

Indeed not.

Before the series I was very sceptical about him, and have made many comments about him on here in the past.

I have to say that he impressed me greatly.

In other words you made up your mind before watching him (!)
Who does that accusation remind me of, now...

 

[greg]

Do you?
I only recall one or two, and I examined it (once assisted by Simon Hughes) and found it to be correct.

Yes. Otherwise i wouldn't have written it.

 

[Richard]

Well I wasn't able to watch every session on C4 due to work, so you clearly had more scope than me.
All I can say, however, is that there were a couple of occasions where the commentators said conventional and reverse swing were happening at the same time and it was true.

 

[marc71178]

Possibly not, given that some have made the utterly ludicrous claim that he was unlucky when in fact he was extremely lucky.

Hmm, here we go again - everybody else is wrong, and I'm right...

 

[marc71178]

In other words you made up your mind before watching him (!)
Who does that accusation remind me of, now...

No, in other words I was sceptical as to how good he actually was because his record wasn't that great.

If I'd made up my mind, why would I then have posted that?

 

[Richard]

Hmm, here we go again - everybody else is wrong, and I'm right...

So explain to me how someone who has had at least 7 pieces of good luck and 1 piece of bad in a series was unlucky...

 

[Richard]

No, in other words I was sceptical as to how good he actually was because his record wasn't that great.

If I'd made up my mind, why would I then have posted that?

And his record still isn't that great... he still doesn't look like he'll make an especially good player.
Of course, things can change.
Such an extraordinary coincidence that you can do the typical praise of a young player now that your team has beaten the team he's involved in...

 

[Mister Wright]

Not a great shock that you refuse to acknowledge the fact that he was clearly one of Australia's best batsman in the series. Only Langer looked more consistently comfortable against the swing and seam of the England seamers, and Clarke was easily the best against Giles. Overall, Langer was better, Ponting played one great innings, but Clarke had a very solid and actually quite unlucky series. He still has some problems with shot selection, but his technique is utterly superb and stood the test of the Ashes series extremely well.

That is highly debatable (sp).

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

That is highly debatable (sp).

I don't think it's debatable that:
a) Clarke looked the most comfortable of any Australian batsman aside from Langer and Ponting against swing and seam during the Ashes
or b) Clarke is clearly the best player of spin in the Australian team... especially now that Martyn has been dropped.

That amounts to a superb technique. The vast majority of his dismissals during the Ashes were caused by poor shot selection, he was never technically exposed by any bowler, despite the fact that his supposed weakness was genuine pace.

 

[Richard]

I don't think it's debatable that:
a) Clarke looked the most comfortable of any Australian batsman aside from Langer and Ponting against swing and seam during the Ashes
or b) Clarke is clearly the best player of spin in the Australian team... especially now that Martyn has been dropped.

That amounts to a superb technique. The vast majority of his dismissals during the Ashes were caused by poor shot selection, he was never technically exposed by any bowler, despite the fact that his supposed weakness was genuine pace.

Clarke is a better player of spin than Hayden...?
Just possibly Clarke might have been better exposed had he not been so remarkably lucky. Indeed I'd like to know how he wasn't technically exposed by Hoggard's working-over in that shocker of an innings at The Oval.

 

[howardj]

On balance though, he had a solid series. Definitely a pass mark. That, in itself, was a very good achievement against some absolutely world class fast bowling - which was formerly a weakness of Clarke's.

 

[marc71178]

He did indeed Howard - and shut a fair few people up at the time.

Now you just need to find another 6 batsmen of quality

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

Clarke is a better player of spin than Hayden...?
Just possibly Clarke might have been better exposed had he not been so remarkably lucky. Indeed I'd like to know how he wasn't technically exposed by Hoggard's working-over in that shocker of an innings at The Oval.

Hayden's play of spin has declined just like his play of seam. The powerhouse that tore apart India in 2001 has been reduced to playing the sweep or the slog down the ground and nothing else, his footwork has declined hugely and he is prone to hitting the ball straight to fielders in the deep off spinners. He is still a good player of spin, but certainly not as good as he once was, and Clarke and Martyn are obviously more reliable these days.

And, as far as The Oval goes, conditions were difficult for batting, the bowling was good and Clarke was under directions to score runs quickly. It hardly invalidates what he achieved earlier in the series.

 

[howardj]

He did indeed Howard - and shut a fair few people up at the time.

Now you just need to find another 6 batsmen of quality

First time you haven't barked at one of my posts. This could be the embryonic stages of a wonderful friendship.

 

[howardj]

Hayden's play of spin has declined just like his play of seam. The powerhouse that tore apart India in 2001 has been reduced to playing the sweep or the slog down the ground and nothing else, his footwork has declined hugely and he is prone to hitting the ball straight to fielders in the deep off spinners. He is still a good player of spin, but certainly not as good as he once was, and Clarke and Martyn are obviously more reliable these days.
.

What do you mean? Hayden was "batting really well the whole summer"

http://foxsports.news.com.au/story/0,8659,16760357-23212,00.html

Seriously, I think some of these lads have swallowed Buchanan's quote books.

 

[greg]

What do you mean? Hayden was "batting really well the whole summer"

http://foxsports.news.com.au/story/0,8659,16760357-23212,00.html

Seriously, I think some of these lads have swallowed Buchanan's quote books.

It's come to something when a player defends himself by effectively saying

"class is temporary, form is permanent"