**Official** 1st Test @ Perth, 22nd-26th November

[Johan]

So great to see Kohli back. Hope he can get that average back to 50 and call it a day.

48.1 rn

 

[kevinw]

Renshaw just hit a hundred in a shield match and is playing India in the PM XI on 30th Nov. If he does well there it's time to get a real opener back for Australia (rather than a fabricated opener)

Not convinced Bancroft or Harris will score if they get a Test return but Renshaw is still young enough to invest in. McSweeney should get the series though unless he is woefully out of his depth in the second test.

 

[TimAngas]

Well will be interesting to see if there's a reaction to this from selectors or they double down. I don't think Australia have been as bad as the scorecard suggests (it was certainly easier to bat today) but there's definitely some warning signs in the batting effort and speeds from the quicks quite down. If they'd come out with the same intensity as they had after tea they might been able to make a match of it, but by then both openers looked in.

Well I'm leaning towards wanting wholesale changes.

Bumrah is clearly terrorising our batting line up right now. To succeed for a long time at the top level I am inclined to think you need to come to some sort of inner peace at the summit. Marnus and Smith right now look like they're together blowing a bubble of ever more frantic neurotic energy and it is preventing them from making clear decisions under duress of the potential in-ducker. Marnus should probably be dropped for the next test, even though he made 90-odd in the last one; he looks too far gone.

Do we even have any proper front foot players in the Shield right now? The most consistent player in the Shield is Handscomb and his technique looks designed to be exploited by Bumrah. Maybe bring in someone like Ollie Davies to at least provide the energy and innocence of youth and a more enterprising style.

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

Sack Cummins as captain as obviously his tinkering with the batting order is the problem.

Promoted himself to #8 and then Starc demoted to #9 out-batted him, so he made himself nightwatchman at #3 over Nathan Lyon who has done it forever...

Another case of someone batting well in a recent ODI game getting undeserved test skill credit

Starc should be the #8, but does it really matter who gets picked 8 and who gets picked 9? The nightwatchman call obviously went very wrong!

 

[Shri]

@Gnske is Michael Schumacher's skiing technique better than Marnus' batting technique atm

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

Well will be interesting to see if there's a reaction to this from selectors or they double down. I don't think Australia have been as bad as the scorecard suggests (it was certainly easier to bat today) but there's definitely some warning signs in the batting effort and speeds from the quicks quite down. If they'd come out with the same intensity as they had after tea they might been able to make a match of it, but by then both openers looked in.

Ironically if India had got a middling score in the first innings they may well be in a worse position in the match, they got out early enough to get Australia in while the conditions were bowler-friendly. Still, while scoreboard pressure is a thing, and while India’s bowling is majestic, 107 ao and 12/3 is not good in anyone’s book, Labuschagne looking like a flat track bully these days, Khawaja and Smith look like they’re nearing the retirement home and McSweeney doesn’t look up to it

 

[TimAngas]

Ironically if India had got a middling score in the first innings they may well be in a worse position in the match, they got out early enough to get Australia in while the conditions were bowler-friendly. Still, while scoreboard pressure is a thing, and while India’s bowling is majestic, 107 ao and 12/3 is not good in anyone’s book, Labuschagne looking like a flat track bully these days, Khawaja and Smith look like they’re nearing the retirement home and McSweeney doesn’t look up to it

I would give McSweeney more time but Cowan definitely looking exonerated about complaining he was an open-faced-slapper. Didn't really look like he wanted to meet the ball at all.

 

[wellAlbidarned]

guarantee you if marnus edges that drive rather than middles it they’re whinging about the lack of footwork and the big big fish outside off in this situation rather than lauding it as a positive shot

cc @wellAlbidarned in re the footwork thread

it's a real 'once you see it you can't unsee it' thing

 

[Chin Music]

Labuschagne looking like a flat track bully these days,

I rated him when he showed some real guts in the 2019 Ashes series, but to be honest, I think he went down the FTB route some time ago.

 

[Son Of Coco]

According to the SMH -


STUMPS: Australia 3-12 chasing 534
‘That couldn’t possibly have gone worse for Australia.
To say they’re on the ropes is underselling it. They’ve already been knocked out. Barring some unprecedented form of cricketing miracle, India will rock up tomorrow and probably have the win officially in the bag before lunch.’

Tomorrow is going.to be an hour or two watching us bound to the ropes whilst India punches the **** out of us.

Our bowlers.must be pretty shitty after the first innings. They did their job, and then the bats came out and ****ed it completely. Looks like only one half of the team got the memo to actually train in the lead up to this.

 

[Silver Silva]

Jasprit Bumrah's bowling average is currently under 20 . 180 test wickets @19.94


Only Sid Barnes finished with 150+ Test wickets at an average under 20.

 

[social]

Renshaw just hit a hundred in a shield match and is playing India in the PM XI on 30th Nov. If he does well there it's time to get a real opener back for Australia (rather than a fabricated opener)

Got 14 today and is averaging 20 odd this season

 

[govinda indian fan]

What a day for us not even in wildest dream imagined we would dominate Australia in perth great from jaiswal and well done kohli and boom. Need to get job done tommrow

 

[govinda indian fan]

Not convinced Bancroft or Harris will score if they get a Test return but Renshaw is still young enough to invest in. McSweeney should get the series though unless he is woefully out of his depth in the second test.

I would give macsweeny three tests before deciding. He played in seaming conditions in first dig and got worst conditions in second

 

[Gob]

Well I was expecting India to win the series but this is coming as a bit of a surprise tbh. I expected both teams bowling to be very good and batting to suck equally making it a closer contest but this is a massacre its almost like Ashes 10/11 on steroids

It would be interesting how rest of the series would pan out. I felt they were a bit lethargic in their attitude coming in with India's home defeat to NZ and thought India can be pushed over. This will be one of the great wins if they turn it around as unlikely as it looks now

 

[social]

Well I was expecting India to win the series but this is coming as a bit of a surprise tbh. I expected both teams bowling to be very good and batting to suck equally making it a closer contest but this is a massacre its almost like Ashes 10/11 on steroids

It would be interesting how rest of the series would pan out. I felt they were a bit lethargic in their attitude coming in with India's home defeat to NZ and thought India can be pushed over. This will be one of the great wins if they turn it around as unlikely as it looks now

It’s only one test

I predicted 2-2 because both batting lineups are fragile and there will be plenty of collapses

 

[RossTaylorsBox]

India got bowled out for 36 and won last time, anyone predicting the series from here is insane.

 

[Molehill]

It’s only one test

I predicted 2-2 because both batting lineups are fragile and there will be plenty of collapses

A number of series recently have seen the away side win the First Test but not the series. England in Pakistan with a similar hiding to kick things off.

Having said that, the future of this Aussie team when certain bowlers retire looks pretty average.

 

[OverratedSanity]

India got bowled out for 36 and won last time, anyone predicting the series from here is insane.

We're also getting our captain back after the first test instead of losing him. Basically guarantees an Aussie win imo.

 

[Molehill]

We're also getting our captain back after the first test instead of losing him. Basically guarantees an Aussie win imo.

This really does smack of England in Pakistan. Stokes return screwed it all up…. Tell Rohit to enjoy some more baby time.