***Official*** India in Australia 2014-5

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You can't pull your socks up when you're wearing thongs

yeah you can

 

[Burgey]

I think, apart from the couple of unlucky dismissals, Pujara's also regularly come in at really awkward times. It's usually 15-20 overs to stumps when he comes in after a long day in the field. He survives till stumps and has to start all over the next day. Not ideal for someone already in bad form.

Yeah look, I rate Pujara but is doesn't cut it as an excuse. It's his job.

 

[Spark]

Yeah look, I rate Pujara but is doesn't cut it as an excuse. It's his job.

In fairness I don't think Pujara has actually ever gotten out during those periods.

 

[Riggins]

Yeah look, I rate Pujara but is doesn't cut it as an excuse. It's his job.

Surprised you rate him at all tbh. He makes lots of runs in the sub continent but stays very leg side of the ball and seems to struggle when there's any bounce.

India firm on short-ball plan for Haddin | Cricket News | Australia v India | ESPN Cricinfo

The level of stubbornness and refusal to accept mistakes is honestly appalling. Their attitude really stinks. You can't hope to improve as a player with everyone around you giving excuses all the ****ing time.

Oh Ashwin did the press conference?? No way!!

 

[Johnners]

They shouldn't have a plan because the bowlers can't execute ****. There should only be one standard plan for an attack so inept, the one which Burgey has been teaching kids for the last 150 years.

That's kinda my (admittedly poorly made) point. They have a plan, and if that doesn't work they don't appear to know where to go from there. I don't see anything wrong with having a plan for a particular batsman, but if it doesn't work, surely they need to fall back to top of off etc, instead of whatever it is they're trying to do atm.

 

[Pratters]

I wonder what the problem with Shami is. He looked like some one who could have developed into a Zaheer Khan kind of bowler for India. Reliable to an extent. It takes a certain level of game readiness to be able to bowl great in tests. Shami lacks that to some extent but it can be developed if he is keen on that as well. I wish Shami develops some how as that will mean some more test wickets for India as he does have the ability to take wickets.

His "problem" is that he's a 24 year old fast bowler who hasn't even been on the scene for 2 years. Expecting any sort of serious development into some sort of reincarnation of Zaheer is ****ing mental at this stage.

Only the truly great bowlers hit the ground running and even the very best have some sort of initial teething problems. Look at the top bowlers in the world today:

Steyn - pretty much the exception to this rule but did get a flogging in his debut series against England
Anderson - in and out of the side for 5 years before properly establishing himself
Broad - spent 4 years bowling too short
Harris - spent years as a hack at First Class level
Johnson - demolished South Africa in 2009 then spend the next 4 years bowling to the left and bowling to the right
Southee - bowled garbage for ages before maturing into a world class talent

Even Zaheer spent ages being average to poor (statistically he's the worst ever Test quick to take as many wickets as he has) and it took a spell in County Cricket for him to really come of age as a bowler.

India have a few promising quicks. They always have done since I've started watching cricket. I know what I'm saying will come as a shock to people who know how little I rated their attack in 2011, but let me run with this. They've always had bowlers who have had the basic tools to become really good Test bowlers. India's problem is their entire system does not seem condusive to nurturing that talent. This isn't an argument about pitches - Pakistan's pitches were always just as bad and the greatest Pakistani bowlers bowled better there than in more traditionally bowler friendly countries - it's about the whole culture that sorrounds Indian cricket. They play an insane amount of One Day cricket, not enough really competitive First Class cricket and there's a lot of importance around the IPL. That combined doesn't make for the greatest conditions to develop Test class bowlers, then you throw in the lack of an experienced spearhead - even when they did have Zaheer, he spent half the time injured. This has meant that Ishant in particular has carried far too great a burden on his young shoulders - he's been relied upon too often to be the experienced leader of the attack when it's clear that he still hasn't properly pieced together his own game. Other bowlers have been chopped, changed, fallen by the wayside, turned out to be absolute idiots, gotten injured - it's utterly useless trying to mould an attack out of that.

This is where someone like the much maligned Peter Siddle has been invaluable for Australia. Did he merit his dropping - absolutely. But I don't think you can overstate the importance of having a dependable workhorse as your third seamer when you're constantly rotating Harris and his only good knee, waiting for Johnson to remember he's meant to be aiming at the stumps and rotating virtually every promising quick under the age of 25 because they keep breaking down with injuries. That's where you need your consistent, solid presence who'll keep the batsman honest (cliche alert) run in all day and pitch in with wickets. This is probably the role Ishant should be in by now, but he's had to contend with leading the attack when he hasn't been ready for it and playing about 17 billion ODIs (at least 16 billion of which were against Sri Lanka). Is it perhaps significant that of the Aussie quicks, Siddle, Harris and Pattinson have played basically **** all ODI cricket between them? Who knows, but like I said, the environment the Indian quicks are growing up in isn't helping their development.

So yeah, I digressed a bit from Shami to "what's wrong with Indian bowling" in general. But expecting a guy 2 years into his career to even begin to resemble your best bowler of the last 10 years and the only world class bowler produced in that time is a ****ing huge ask.

Talk about an over reaction. I do not expect Shami to become a Zaheer Khan kind of bowler as Zaheer Khan was at his best immediately. However, I am not happy with the direction Shami has taken. He had a very good first few tests but his level has gone down completely after that for tests. I don't expect him to be a world beater. However, the way his line his suffering and he is bowling all over the place right now is just not on.

Now Zaheer had variable years too in the beginning, however, his was more of a fitness issue where he would get unfit, gain weight, and then be inefficient. He had his coach identified the issue and sorted it out eventually.

I hope we treat him well and he is able to make the most of his potential to take wickets.

 

[Antihippy]

What they need to do is stop using the short ball strategy. That completely derailed them today. Said it at the end of day 1 that they probably went 2 overs too many with that strategy and I couldn't believe that they continued it next morning.

Honestly what I saw of shami yesterday was pretty good. Sticked to good line and lengths. Just make him to that. He doesn't have the pace to bounce people out.

 

[dognutz]

yeah you can

So wrong.....

 

[Burgey]

England and australia should refuse to allow Indian players to come here to play FC if they ask. I know the bcci won't let australian batsmen go over there to live in squalor and learn to play on spinning decks (dunno why you'd want to, sc records always have an asterix next to them anyway), so it's only fair we reciprocate and give them **** all.

 

[duffer]

Yawn

 

[Riggins]

England and australia should refuse to allow Indian players to come here to play FC if they ask. I know the bcci won't let australian batsmen go over there to live in squalor and learn to play on spinning decks (dunno why you'd want to, sc records always have an asterix next to them anyway), so it's only fair we reciprocate and give them **** all.

has it been suggested that they might ask?

 

[weldone]

Pujara and Aaron have played County. I don't think anyone wanted to play in Australia yet. Why would they?

 

[Swingpanzee]

Gotta love Ashwin for claiming that 530 is par score.

 

[dognutz]

Pujara and Aaron have played County. I don't think anyone wanted to play in Australia yet. Why would they?

Meaning what?

 

[OverratedSanity]

Fletcher said this in 2011.

Impressed with the young side that has dominated West Indies in the ongoing ODI series, India's new coach Duncan Fletcher declared that given the talent, his wards can dominate world cricket for the next 5-10 years.

India can dominate world cricket for next 5-10 years: Fletcher - Economic Times

Time running out, eh, Duncan?

 

[Pratters]

I don't see why people are always after Fletcher more than Dhoni.

 

[Burgey]

Pujara and Aaron have played County. I don't think anyone wanted to play in Australia yet. Why would they?

Well, if more of their players played here and got exposure to the conditions, they might one day win a series here. I know it sounds stupid, but things like that actually help.

 

[the big bambino]

India's short bowling plan is fine as long as its targeted. Yadav is India's most versatile bowler and is able to get into the left handers hip pocket on leg stump and hurry up Haddin. Shami is better off pitching up and similarly Sharma looking for bounce off a length, despite his effort at Lords.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Good catch but crap shot in the early stages of a day.

 

[Contra]

terrible shot to be playing