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*Official* Ashes Build Up
- Thread starter Neil Pickup
- Start date
aussie_beater
State Vice-Captain
It depends on what you mean by the term premier.
Ashes of today is far from being premier in terms of "first in position, rank or importance". Its only claim to being premier is by virtue of it being "first in time".
Neil Pickup
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What else would be the Premier Series? The major ones used to be Eng-Aus, Eng-WI and Aus-WI, and they're not that hot atm.
Pak-Ind never happens, so what else is there?
Anyhow, back to the point - England had better hold their catches in the Tests. Martin Love's not that hot, he shouldn't be getting 250s against the cream of English bowlers!, looks a bit of a flat pitch however. Maybe it's time for Vaughan to get past 197
Pak-Ind never happens, so what else is there?
Anyhow, back to the point - England had better hold their catches in the Tests. Martin Love's not that hot, he shouldn't be getting 250s against the cream of English bowlers!, looks a bit of a flat pitch however. Maybe it's time for Vaughan to get past 197
Top_Cat
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Well here's what I think of the two sides:
Australia's Ashes team
http://www.cricketweb.net/news/EpFVVpZyFFvIIbdkVO.shtml
England's Ashes team
http://www.cricketweb.net/news/EpFVFuEkkVixwtiabi.shtml
hehe
In all seriousness, I think the key point will be in the first Test at the 'Gabba if England bowl first. If Gough or Caddick get some quick early breakthroughs, it could set the tone for the series. However, if Hayden and Langer get away early, England could be chasing a lot of leather for the series.
Australia's Ashes team
http://www.cricketweb.net/news/EpFVVpZyFFvIIbdkVO.shtml
England's Ashes team
http://www.cricketweb.net/news/EpFVFuEkkVixwtiabi.shtml
hehe
In all seriousness, I think the key point will be in the first Test at the 'Gabba if England bowl first. If Gough or Caddick get some quick early breakthroughs, it could set the tone for the series. However, if Hayden and Langer get away early, England could be chasing a lot of leather for the series.
aussie_beater
State Vice-Captain
IMO, right now the premier series would be Aus-SA inspite of the drubbing that SA got last time.Aus-India would have top billing too.
Well I read in the paper that the pitch would have been better suited to a game of ten pin bowling it was so flatOriginally posted by Neil Pickup
Anyhow, back to the point - England had better hold their catches in the Tests. Martin Love's not that hot, he shouldn't be getting 250s against the cream of English bowlers!, looks a bit of a flat pitch however. Maybe it's time for Vaughan to get past 197
The premier test series in world cricket right now is:
Australia vs South Africa
simply because they are the two best test teams at the moment.
England vs Australia used to be exciting and competitive once upon a time but for the past 15 years or so, it 's been a series for the Aussies to fatten up their averages in batting and bowling and improve their already impressive record. England have been such soft targets for such a long time that it has started to look less like a rivalry and more like a massacre.
Australia vs South Africa
simply because they are the two best test teams at the moment.
England vs Australia used to be exciting and competitive once upon a time but for the past 15 years or so, it 's been a series for the Aussies to fatten up their averages in batting and bowling and improve their already impressive record. England have been such soft targets for such a long time that it has started to look less like a rivalry and more like a massacre.
The build-up is there because of tradition and nothing else. The discussion is how much of a fight England can put up, right? Not about whether they can bring back the Ashes which is practically impossible for this English team against this Aus team.
The Aus-SA series did not evoke that kind of feeling because they did not have that kind of tradition and past history. If premier series means the greatest rivalries, then it used to be WI vs Aus in the 70's, 80's and 90's because the Aussies were the only side which used to give the great WI sides a good fight(they would lose but go down with a fight). England, if you remember used to be regularly whitewashed by the Windies back then.
Still, the Ashes used to be more competitive back in the 70's and 80's. Now it is more a question of predicting and arguing whether the score line will be 5-0 or 4-1 in favour of the Aussies. No one even dares to go as far as 3-2 forget an English victory and it usually doesn't happen either.
Top_Cat
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Anil, Pakistan drew two Test series against the West Indies in the late 80's so I would say that THEY were the only team to give the West Indies team a decent fight. The Aussies used to just get hammered and didn't start putting up a fight until 1992. Before that, the only Tests they won was when the series was all over.