***Official*** Australia in India 2017

[bigmitch]

I think I'm about the only Australian who thinks we should stick with M Marsh. I don't think we can judge any improvement in his batting based on these two tests. In the first innings he got a ball that would have gotten anyone out. The second innings he got out for 13 when our top scoring batsman got 28. The first test he had a valuable contribution in the second innings.

I think he should get the rest of the series, particularly if the next test is a road. The final test is supposed to aid fast bowlers so he will be valuable there too.

Keep the faith. This side is the one that can retain the trophy.

If we won this and he made those scores I'd be inclined to agree. Not sure how we can keep him in for a crucial juncture in the series now IMO he is a future 'potential' player, should rediscover form in the Shield before coming back

 

[Zinzan]

btw didn't watch the previous series you mentioned but how did the pitches compare to these ones?

Much better decks overall, but generally deteriorating on days 4 & 5, making the toss more critical than this series. 2nd Ind/NZ Test conditions though, would have suited Hazel & Starc down to the ground.

 

[Burgey]

Wish they'd fly Moises over tbh. Bloke is in ridic form with the bat and if Marsh is only going to be bowling four overs per test, Henriques can do the same.

 

[Zinzan]

Wish they'd fly Moises over tbh. Bloke is in ridic form with the bat and if Marsh is only going to be bowling four overs per test, Henriques can do the same.

I don't get the Marsh Jr selection at all, but forgetting Moises, Maxwell's a much better punt on these wickets isn't he? I think his innocuous looking accurate spinners could have been useful on the two pitches to date.

 

[Daemon]

Wish they'd fly Moises over tbh. Bloke is in ridic form with the bat and if Marsh is only going to be bowling four overs per test, Henriques can do the same.

I remember he hit a 70 odd in his first game in India or something and Benchmark was all like I knew this guy was amazing all along.

Ditto with Marsh wasn't it? So many people were saying he's a future top 4 bat. Y'all know nothing.

 

[sunilreddy]

Lol @ Smith

 

[honestbharani]

Today I learned you can keep out 140kph grubbers that go underground by getting on the front foot

I hope this will help my game

Yes, playing cricket WILL help your game and maybe your posting? Well, I can dream.

 

[honestbharani]

Balls were running along the ground on day 1

Anyway, the problem with your theory is that it only works when the bounce is consistently low and that was not the case here as evidenced by the dismissals of Renshaw, Pujara, etc and a host of other batsmen who were hit on the handle, glove and body

Dude, I said this was not that kind of pitch. All I said was the variance in the variable bounce had become lesser by day 3 and 4 than it was on day 1 or 2. Maybe it was coz the wicket slowed down which allowed batsmen to adjust after the ball had pitched. Anyways, you and I are actually in agreement (somewhat) on this issue. So lets just leave it at that.

 

[sunilreddy]

Under-Arm, Healy & Waugh claiming catches that were grassed, Ponting sydney incident,, Gilchrist Golf ball and now this Idiot Smith these Australian cheaters would never change and when others does that they cry like Bitches...shame on you A**Holes..

 

[honestbharani]

Grubbers pitching short of a length, mind you

That's the key, when it's short of a good length, the batsmen don't have a price.

Got to get on the front foot regardless. Smith just doesn't have that particular skill-set though.

Yes no batsman in the history of cricket has ever got on the front foot knowing there is low bounce on the wicket to short of length balls. Really, some posters here sometimes...

 

[OverratedSanity]

Under-Arm, Healy & Waugh claiming catches that were grassed, Ponting sydney incident,, Gilchrist Golf ball and now this Idiot Smith these Australian cheaters would never change and when others does that they cry like Bitches...shame on you A**Holes..

Very eloquently put

 

[Daemon]

Under-Arm, Healy & Waugh claiming catches that were grassed, Ponting sydney incident,, Gilchrist Golf ball and now this Idiot Smith these Australian cheaters would never change and when others does that they cry like Bitches...shame on you A**Holes..

Very true. It's really quite shameful.

It was a squash ball btw

 

[honestbharani]

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.

Its exactly what I said about the pitch too mate.

 

[honestbharani]

Smith lacking abilities in cricket clearly his downfall

 

[cnerd123]

Under-Arm, Healy & Waugh claiming catches that were grassed, Ponting sydney incident,, Gilchrist Golf ball and now this Idiot Smith these Australian cheaters would never change and when others does that they cry like Bitches...shame on you A**Holes..

Agreed

 

[honestbharani]

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.

On second thoughts, I dont think the variable bounce changed that much but the pace off the wicket definitely slowed down by days 3 and 4 and hence it was more negotiable. For instance, I think Pujara could have played the ball he got much better than he did coz I do think there was that bit of more time for the batsmen to adjust by each team's second innings. As I said, I feel it was more of the #intent that had cost Australia just as India were finally starting to fight tooth and nail.

 

[Kirkut]

Still, the Bengaluru pitch was nowhere as difficult to bat on as the Pune pitch.

 

[honestbharani]

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.

There is this happy balance between attack and defence, what Ravi Shastri loves to call #tempo, which seems to come naturally to batsmen like Smith, Kohli, KW, Root etc. Its what seperates the good from the great for me. Warner is just not able to find it. And its usually such a fine line that you end up erring on both sides and paying for it. If he gets lucky and gets off to 40 odd though, he can easily get back into the groove. And Ranchi should suit him. It is a very traditional late season Indian slow and dry wicket. Batsmen can get big runs on day 1 there, esp. guys like Warner who can take the attack to the opposition, esp. their new ball bowlers. Our best hope is to keep giving the new ball to Ashwin hoping he can get inside Warner's head.

 

[Spark]

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.

Can you even compare? The challenges faced by Root and Smith have been completely different IMO.

 

[honestbharani]

Still, the Bengaluru pitch was nowhere as difficult to bat on as the Pune pitch.

I dont think that is right though. The ball certainly did less than in Pune but this pitch was much much more unpredictable. I mean the first day wicket was something where only one particular style of one particular type of bowling to one particular stanced batsmen was going to work. That is not a good pitch. I would say overall it was an OK pitch given all the roads we end up getting otherwise, but I do think this was a tougher wicket overall for batsmen than Pune simply because you might be deceived that you are in and worked out the pitch and then something happens that you never expected here. I do not think that would have happened at Pune.