Then you need to re-read last years England-India thread, and go back to this one where there were Indian supporters saying the decks in England were "green tops" last year. They weren't.
Look, I didn't want to say...
Was the Sydney pitch turning in the 90's? Because the Australian teams that came over here in '96 and '98 ('01 as well with the exception of S.Waugh and Hayden) were comically inept against spin.
Yes it was. See post above.
Yeah, it's always the dominant factor. I'd love nothing more than to see Sydney like it was in the 80s and early 90s, but I can't see it happening again for a good while, if ever. But I think out cricket would be better if it did go back to the way it was.
Not as much as the 80s I think. Waugh grew up on it, but iirc Hayden had benefitted from a long session at an academy in India hasn't he, practicing against spinners on your pitches for a few months?
TBF, even if they were green tops, which they absolutely weren't, saying so isn't whining. That's Test cricket. Learn to bat on them.
When did it start to go off the boil? Was it the mid 90s or a bit later?
our only draw in 91 was at sydney
I think there's always been assistance for spin bowlers there, but there's definitely not as much in the past 5 or so years.
Yeah that was the big Shastri-Tendulkar partnership match wasn't it? Saw two or three days of that game. Brilliant batting.
Brutal by mid afternoon. Punishing stuff.
Ah, the I've got Indian friends defence.
And that's the way you get batsmen who're capable of batting in alien conditions - Batsmen who've come through a certain domestic setup working on their deficiencies in other countries and adapting their game. Not by making bouncing pitches for visiting teams.
Interesting point.
