**Official** Australia in India Thread

[Arjun]

You mean Agarkar. Zaheer bowled quite well. Agarkar was bowling looseners with a couple of real balls every 2 or 3 overs...

Forget Agarkar. He bowls at least 2 looseners an over. No wonder he's got such a high average. He can't even make an Indian team, let alone AUS/ENG/NZ/SA/PAK. Still, Zaheer could have done better. That reminds me. If everyone blames Parthiv for 2 drops, why not Agarkar for 18 bad overs?

 

[Arjun]

Everyone talks of the problems Agarkar created for Langer. ow about the problems created by Langer (and the rest of the top 6) for Agarkar?

 

[JustTool]

maybe interesting for the Indian fans..coz India will tend to win those contests.

Maybe India need to learn how to play on a variety of wickets..if they did that then MAYBE they would have a legitimate shot of at least the number two slot in the world...I think number one is a step to far for this Indian team

Here you go again. 'Variety' is a code word for pitches that are fast and bouncy.
By the way, did you miss the Test in Australia India won ? India beat Australia in 2001 in India, drew the series in Australia, and this would be tied but for the rain in Chennai. They beat Pakistan in Pakistan. Let's wait till the series is over and then you can make your judgement.

 

[Arjun]

What on earth is Sunil Gavaskar doing with Chopra?

Anyway, Slats said that they're not getting enough runs in singles. Valid point.

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

I can see your point of view. When was the last time an Australian groundsman pepared a turning track for a Test with India ?
I don't know which God has mandated that fast, bouncy pitches are the standard by which picthes should be judged. Maybe the standard should be turning tarcks and to prepare fast, bouncy pitches would be 'cheating' ? You see, it's all a matter of pespective. In fact Test matches are always more interesting on turning tracks and alomst always provide a result.

Nobody is accusing anybody of cheating, are they? As far as pitches in Australia are concerned, if the Australian groundsmen wanted to make things as hard for India as possible then the Gabba would have been a green top and one of the tests would have been at the WACA. As it was, Adelaide turned a lot on the last two days and assisted Kumble in ripping through the Australian lineup in the second innings in the one test India won.

Groundsmen should be free to make whatever kind of pitch they feel would be best, and should only be discouraged from preparing pitches which do cricket a disservice. For example, if a team is 2-1 up in a 4 test series and the 4th test pitch suddenly turns out to be a strip of concrete with no hope of a result, that is unsportsmanlike and should be discouraged. In fact, pitches which will not produce a result should always be avoided. Preparing a pitch which assists the home side however is just cricket. Australian wickets will be fast and bouncy, Indian and Sri Lankan wickets will be slow, low and dust up and West Indian wickets in the 80s were often minefields.

Having said that, accusing a groundsman who makes a pitch which isn't the best imaginable for the home side of being incompetent is ridiculous. The Nagpur pitch is perfectly decent for both sides, and the Indian bowlers performed quite well on it. It simply assists pace bowling more than usual in India, and that helps the Australians. If you consider that this ground is well known for being a flat track with lots of high scoring draws, the groundsman has done an excellent job.

 

[Deja moo]

BTW, does anyone know when are the tickets for the Mumbai test going to be sold ?

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

As per cricinfo...sure

It was a bit high, considering aleem didnt give the chopra one, this was one was a bit shocking

I am not complaining, just writing what I felt

A bit high? Tendulkar is not exactly a giant and it hit him below the kneeroll inside the crease. If there was any worry about the decision it was that it might have been going down the leg side. Having watched the replays however, it seems clear to me that it would have hit the stumps, and everything else was fine. Tendulkar didn't even give the umpire a second glance, he watched the ball through to the slips, gave the umpire a quick look and walked off calmly.

 

[Swervy]

Here you go again. 'Variety' is a code word for pitches that are fast and bouncy.
By the way, did you miss the Test in Australia India won ? India beat Australia in 2001 in India, drew the series in Australia, and this would be tied but for the rain in Chennai. They beat Pakistan in Pakistan. Let's wait till the series is over and then you can make your judgement.

well no team that is no good on fast bouncy pitches deserves to be considered up with the best in the world.

Lets not go on about a series that happened 3 years ago..its hardly relevent to the present really...oh and it is only your opinion that India would have won the second test without the rain....and Pakistan are notoriously poor playing at home at the moment in tests.

 

[Deja moo]

Nobody is accusing anybody of cheating, are they? As far as pitches in Australia are concerned, if the Australian groundsmen wanted to make things as hard for India as possible then the Gabba would have been a green top and one of the tests would have been at the WACA. As it was, Adelaide turned a lot on the last two days and assisted Kumble in ripping through the Australian lineup in the second innings in the one test India won.

.

Did you watch that test ?

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

Warne gets Laxman AGAIN. Not the masterful deception seen in the first innings of the first two tests, but still a wicket. Looks like we have the first real predator-bunny situation of the series.

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

Did you watch that test ?

The Adelaide test? Yes, although I got the bowler wrong and it was Agarkar who destroyed Australia in the second innings. Regardless, the pitch WAS doing a lot, and certainly wasn't fast and bouncy with nothing for the spinners.

 

[Eclipse]

I always used to think Laxman was a great player of leg spin but Warne has really owned him in this series and even Magoo got him out a few time's in oz.

 

[Swervy]

If Australia get Dravid out soon, I think the series is Australia's (maybe I am jumping the gun a bit,but it certainly seems that India are going to struggle to fight back out of this one)

 

[shaka]

Agarkar had a shocking comeback, at one stage after 12 overs, he was hit for 68 runs without any wickets.

 

[Dydl]

I have noticed that the Indian batsmen tend to get hit on the helmet a lot. They seem to take their eyes off the ball more frequently than any other international test team.

 

[shaka]

Laxman out to Warne, Warne's current figures 1/0, Kaif is in, score: 77/4, in serious trouble now.

 

[Dydl]

His figures are 1/3 which is almost as good as 1/0.

 

[Jono]

If everyone blames Parthiv for 2 drops, why not Agarkar for 18 bad overs?

Difference being, Agarkar is in because of two fast bowler injuries. Patel is our first choice keeper.

 

[Dydl]

Difference being, Agarkar is in because of two fast bowler injuries. Patel is our first choice keeper.

Spot on.

 

[Arjun]

Difference being, Agarkar is in because of two fast bowler injuries. Patel is our first choice keeper.

Are the Indian selectos really so bankrupt of options?