***Official*** Australia/South Africa/Zimbabwe Triangular ODI Series 2014

[harsh.ag]

Fyi they have a billion dollar breakfast.

 

[Maximas]

Harare is a lovely little ground, even those unsightly big scaffolding-like stands looked good with the crowd jumping around

 

[OverratedSanity]

Yeah, tbf, in the last year or so, Zimbabwe have beaten Pakistan in a test, gave a decent account of themselves against SA in that one off test, and have now beaten Australia. Better than Bangers easily.

 

[OverratedSanity]

Harare is a lovely little ground, even those unsightly big scaffolding-like stands looked good with the crowd jumping around

Yeah, I've always liked it

 

[harsh.ag]

Harare is a lovely little ground, even those unsightly big scaffolding-like stands looked good with the crowd jumping around

Yeah, it reminds me of simpler times, and non-testosterone-pumped ODIs from the 80s and 90s

 

[Maximas]

Yeah, tbf, in the last year or so, Zimbabwe have beaten Pakistan in a test, gave a decent account of themselves against SA in that one off test, and have now beaten Australia. Better than Bangers easily.

Zimbabwe really is a tragic story as far as I'm concerned, despite the cream of the crop being lured elsewhere, the shoddy administration and the sparse scheduling they still make a very decent account of themselves, not just coming close but pulling off big wins. Would love to see what they'd achieve if given a proper opportunity with the talent they produce

 

[Dan]

Happy for Zimbabwe; no way Australia deserved to win it, but FMD that's embarrassing.

Steve Smith plays for Forkers Faulkner and we win that game 99 times out of 100.

 

[Prince EWS]

Yeah, tbf, in the last year or so, Zimbabwe have beaten Pakistan in a test, gave a decent account of themselves against SA in that one off test, and have now beaten Australia. Better than Bangers easily.

Yeah; it's just a question of how long it can last with the background issues. It's constantly one step forward, one step back. Most of the steps forward have actually been on the field of late which is nice, but you wonder about the sustainability of having a team even this good. There's basically a cap on how good you can get as a Zimbabwe cricketer before you start attracting interest overseas that's too hard to say no to -- most domestic contracts pay vastly more than a ZC central contract -- so Zimbabwe is effectively in a position where the ideal skill level to develop players to is basically Brendan Taylor. Beyond that, the coach is insane, the board is corrupt and the government is a crippling drag on everything that goes on inside the country (even moreso than every other government in the world ). Zimbabwe Cricket has always had to overcome unique obstacles but there comes a point where they're insurmountable.

But **** that for now, got to enjoy the win!

 

[Burgey]

Fantastic by Zimbabwe. Really did a number on Australia with the ball.

We really need to think about the balance of the attack in these series. We need to find a decent second ODI Spinner for these types of surfaces.

 

[Spark]

finding more than one competent batsman against decent spin who actually plays ODIs would be a good help too

 

[Spikey]

Zimbabwe v Australia, tri-series, Harare : Michael Clarke unhappy with Steven Smith omission | Cricket News | Zimbabwe Triangular Series | ESPN Cricinfo

we should make the captain a selector imo

 

[morgieb]

Yeah; it's just a question of how long it can last with the background issues. It's constantly one step forward, one step back. Most of the steps forward have actually been on the field of late which is nice, but you wonder about the sustainability of having a team even this good. There's basically a cap on how good you can get as a Zimbabwe cricketer before you start attracting interest overseas that's too hard to say no to -- most domestic contracts pay vastly more than a ZC central contract -- so Zimbabwe is effectively in a position where the ideal skill level to develop players to is basically Brendan Taylor. Beyond that, the coach is insane, the board is corrupt and the government is a crippling drag on everything that goes on inside the country (even moreso than every other government in the world ). Zimbabwe Cricket has always had to overcome unique obstacles but there comes a point where they're insurmountable.

But **** that for now, got to enjoy the win!

Is it possible to let players take up overseas contracts without jeopardising their eligibility for the national side? Would allow them to actually keep their best players and help them make a living.

Certainly at full strength you'd expect them to compete at international level more consistently.

 

[Contra]

Wait the selectors decide which team is picked on a particular day? I always thought the selectors job was to pick a squad for a tour and the rest is for the coach/cap and management to decide the playing 11?

 

[Dan]

Is it possible to let players take up overseas contracts without jeopardising their eligibility for the national side? Would allow them to actually keep their best players and help them make a living.

Certainly at full strength you'd expect them to compete at international level more consistently.

Not really; Vusi Sibanda came over here to play Grade cricket a couple of years ago, and it ruled him out of the Test side because he wasn't playing Zimbabwean FC cricket (which obviously isn't of that high a standard anyway).

 

[Top_Cat]

I'm a little bit surprised at the Aussie inability to play good spin considering Boof's involvement. If there's one bloke who knows how to not just survive but dominate when it's turning, it's him. Makes me wonder how much influence he has over the bats.

 

[Jono]

Wait the selectors decide which team is picked on a particular day? I always thought the selectors job was to pick a squad for a tour and the rest is for the coach/cap and management to decide the playing 11?

Nah not really, otherwise the whole "captain shouldn't select the team" point would still be an issue.

 

[Contra]

Nah not really, otherwise the whole "captain shouldn't select the team" point would still be an issue.

I don't see why the captain shouldn't have a say in team selection, its one thing to have a say in squad selection but to simply be told that this is the playing 11 you are gonna play today sounds a bit restrictive to me. Not saying it should only be the captain but at least he should figure in the discussion.

 

[Dan]

He's got an informal say in it, iirc, but no formalised decision-making power.

Positives and negatives both ways; Steve Waugh hated selecting the XI, especially when it came to tough decisions related to dropping mates (Shane Warne never forgave him for the West Indies in 1998/99, I believe), but that's set against picking the guys you want beside you (to use that frustratingly pointless war metaphor).

 

[Dan]

I love how it goes around and around in circles though. If the captain is a selector, he shouldn't be; if he isn't a selector, he should be.

It's like Phil Hughes syndrome all over again.

 

[Jono]

I don't see why the captain shouldn't have a say in team selection, its one thing to have a say in squad selection but to simply be told that this is the playing 11 you are gonna play today sounds a bit restrictive to me. Not saying it should only be the captain but at least he should figure in the discussion.

Either go all the way or don't. What's the point in him being given a squad with players he doesn't like and then having the freedom of being able to select from those players he thinks are crap?

Happy for the merits to be argued whether the captain should have selection choice or not. I think they should but hey, can see the other argument. But if you aren't going to give him a say in squad selection, then there is no point giving him team selection. You'll end up with Dhoni playing Binny types of incidents.