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***Official*** India in New Zealand 2013/14

Days of Grace

International Captain
Crowe wears his heart on his sleeve, aye?

I brood over things, but even I don't think I would be getting down about scoring 299 some 22 years after the event.
 

sreeku7

School Boy/Girl Captain
Been a great tour to watch from a cricketing point of view. Lots of amazing performances throughout. Once again, a series full of missed opportunities for us. The scoreline night show we lost 4-0 and 1-0 but it doesn't show that we competed intensely, which makes it even more gut wrenching how often we've let slip golden chances to push home the advantage in virtually every single game in the series . I'm torn between being very hopeful for the future because of the fact that we haven't been pushovers overseas even with a very young side and trepidation that if we don't start winning one of these games soon, our confidence will take a beating. Every single youngster impressed me at some point on this tour and just goes to show that we need to start trusting them and giving them more opportunities to prove themselves at the international level. I love what you did for our team from 2007-2011, Zak, but it's time to go. And Dhoni can just **** off with his captaincy, need someone to knock sone sense into him or just get another captain.

To NZ, wonderfully played. This is the first real look I've had of Southee and Boult in their home conditions and they're great to watch, quality bowlers. Mccullum shocked me, I never imagined he was capable of playing one of the ATG rearguards. Deserving winners, really. They won the big moments and we didn't
Poor team management and inept captaincy cost the series (as was the case in SA)Losing 0-1 instead of winning 2-0 which was possible, is disappointing but not unexpected with Dhoni at the helm..Playing Zaheer was a mistake both here and in SA.There is no place for him in this young Indian side.
As for Southee's performance he took 7 for 64 in India in an an innings in the only Test he played there and seems to continuing in that vain.NZ deserved victory,but had a batting collapse in each Test(105 at Auckland and 192 at Wellington)against an ordinary attack which does not augur well for the team's forthcoming tours.IOn the other hand India's batting was better than that of many previous touring Indian teams.Lot of of positives but a disappointing result.
 

G.I.Joe

International Coach
TBF Test cricketers aren't exactly psychologically like the rest of us.
Yeah, that's true. Reminds me of that stat about cricketers being more prone to suicide than the rest of the population...

Even so, Crowe's always seemed a bit different to me. Came up with a new format of the game (although that might just be him having a more receptive audience in NZC. Tendulkar had no such luck with the BCCI) and his articles always seem to bring out a facet of the game and the players that other ex-cricketers don't seem capable of doing.
 

hendrix

Hall of Fame Member
to be completely honest, I find most of his latest articles gratuitous and indulgent.

I suppose that's not an awful thing when you're trying to capture the emotion of a moment - and I certainly think he has his heart in the right place - it's just hard for me to take some of it seriously.

The recent article about Jesse Ryder was a case in point - the whole thing was written based on weird little anecdotes like the fact that he didn't appear to be upset when he got out, with a few out of place quotes, and pretty much nothing factual. Lo and behold, things weren't actually all that great with Jesse, no matter how much he appeared to not give a crap...
 
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Kippax

Cricketer Of The Year
Martin Crowe: Jesse Ryder, to hell and back | Cricinfo Magazine | ESPN Cricinfo

Another exaggerated personality stereotype conspiracy brought to you by Crowe. Tbf he has admitted he's got himself into a yeah dude, life is.....so real Jeff Buckley space these days, he's hoping less toxic thoughts will prevent the cancer coming back.

It could be that Brendon McCullum may then be ready to just focus on the short forms himself, given his ageing and sore body. A rest from the demands of more travel and long days in the field during Tests may be a smart move. Jesse would easily step into that No. 5 slot with aplomb. By then Kane Williamson will be ready to be Test captain, and McCullum could extend his run to the end, wheeling in fast food feats to further his "brand". It could work as easily as that after the World Cup.
Yeh Crowe, Talk Nah.
 

Blocky

Banned
To be fair, after all of the news and interviews of Jesse, no one anticipated or expected he'd go and do what he did - I think the management structure within that allowed him to go out and partake in alcohol needs a bit of admonishment there too.

Crowe has a genius level intellect and is driven by the need to perfect anything he does, you can see it now in his writing style and the types of topics he will address and you saw it in his batting when he went from crushing everything that was bowled to him in youth cricket to struggling initially in test cricket, rebuilding his technique and psyche to get the tools to succeed but that doesn't mean he can't get subjects wrong and he often does.
 

SteveNZ

Cricketer Of The Year
He can get a bit giddy, but to me his writing is a welcome relief from some of the turgid crap out there. And fair play to a bloke for not being scared to express his emotions, when the done thing is probably going the other way. If that's the way he felt about 1992/299, that's a hell of a cross to bear.

I agree completely that McCullum (and Ross previously) has now created a blueprint; a high watermark that I believe, and hope, will take us to a whole new level.
 

Blocky

Banned
He can get a bit giddy, but to me his writing is a welcome relief from some of the turgid crap out there. And fair play to a bloke for not being scared to express his emotions, when the done thing is probably going the other way. If that's the way he felt about 1992/299, that's a hell of a cross to bear.

I agree completely that McCullum (and Ross previously) has now created a blueprint; a high watermark that I believe, and hope, will take us to a whole new level.
I think his major issue is that he constantly wants to see the best out of newcomers to the side and constantly expects the worst from guys who have been in the side for a few years. His viewpoints on Sodhi for instance, versus how he had been talking about McCullum until recently.
 

SteveNZ

Cricketer Of The Year
His views on McCullum has historically been reasonably skewed by his close relationship with Ross, I would imagine. He even admits he knows little about Brendon, which is strange given the closed shop environment of New Zealand Cricket and our pre-eminent players, both ex and current. I don't know if he expects the worst from experienced guys as a rule, given his admiration of Ross, rating of Kane etc
 

hendrix

Hall of Fame Member
There was a quote taken out of context from Crowe on McCullum which someone put to McCullum on talkback radio, and it basically sounded way more offensive than it was meant to. McCullum, on the defensive, said something along the lines of "Noone listens to Martin Crowe anymore". Which was kinda true.

And then Crowe subsequently became deeply hurt by the remark.

Sad, because Crowe does genuinely know a lot about batting, obviously.
 

Blocky

Banned
His views on McCullum has historically been reasonably skewed by his close relationship with Ross, I would imagine. He even admits he knows little about Brendon, which is strange given the closed shop environment of New Zealand Cricket and our pre-eminent players, both ex and current. I don't know if he expects the worst from experienced guys as a rule, given his admiration of Ross, rating of Kane etc
Personality wise, I think he and McCullum are very similar with the combination of arrogance and aggressiveness that means they'll never meld well as friends - Ross is a lot more humble as a character, a lot more passive - part of the reason I felt he never made a particularly good captain. Crowe probably looks at a guy like McCullum and thinks "Boy, with the talent you've got, why aren't you averaging 40+?" which I think is fair, but you can only judge players on their recent exploits in my view, something Crowe often fails to do.

I also think Crowe as a batting coach only really works with guys who need a final bit of polish and touch on their technique, his issue is that he's a perfectionist and believes that you need to do what he did, i.e adopt the most textbook of techniques in order to be successful. By all accounts, he was horrible at coaching guys like Matt Sinclair who wasn't textbook at all and instead of trying to encourage the strengths, he would just bitch about the weaknesses which makes no one want to work with him.

I think the most untapped resource in NZ around batting is Mark Richardson - unfortunately his comical persona that he puts on to be a better presenter probably nullified him in the eyes of others, but for a guy who knows the process of fine tuning the strengths of your technique, limiting the weaknesses and constructing a plan for both practice and play which maximises what you do well, he'd be the guy that I'd turn to if I was someone like Hamish Rutherford.
 

SteveNZ

Cricketer Of The Year
Couldn't agree more with your points there, particularly the last one. Unfortunately I think it's more that Richardson is happier to play the clown, talk a bit of rubbish and play golf than he is to impart knowledge. It's a shame, because we have plenty of blokes with more talent than Richardson, who could average 40+ with the right approach.
 

Blocky

Banned
Couldn't agree more with your points there, particularly the last one. Unfortunately I think it's more that Richardson is happier to play the clown, talk a bit of rubbish and play golf than he is to impart knowledge. It's a shame, because we have plenty of blokes with more talent than Richardson, who could average 40+ with the right approach.
His book should still be on the "must read" list for any aspiring NZ Cricketer though - Thinking Negatively is probably the best read about the process of refining technique through practice and setting yourself up for success through game planning that I've come across. I've even referred it to people I know in the business world who suffer with anxiety issues and not knowing where or what their next step is and they always give great feedback about it.
 

Kippax

Cricketer Of The Year
Cricket: Dilemma of allround duo - Sport - Hawke's Bay Today News

Hesson made it clear before the final Indian test that legspinner Ish Sodhi would return in the Caribbean, where conditions will be more favourable than at the Basin Reserve and more balance is required.

Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Neil Wagner - especially with his old ball ability and fierce determination - are settled.

The numbers don't add up. Something has to give.

"To play with the freedom and skill he did was exceptional," coach Hesson said of Neesham's century.

Hesson acknowledged the curly nature of the situation, even raising the prospect of playing two spinners in the West Indies, depending on the pitches.
 

hendrix

Hall of Fame Member
Barring injury, the only way Neesh will play against the Windies is if they decide he's a better bowler than Wagner, and that's just not happening.

We do need a spinner in the West Indies and I don't mind the Sodhi selection. If he continues to fail spectacularly, fine, drop him. You have to give him a proper run though, and a proper run doesn't include playing India on green NZ wickets.

He did reasonably well in Bangladesh (read:poorly but showed enough potential) so there are plenty of reasons to think he'll continue improving in WI.
 

Kippax

Cricketer Of The Year
Replay: Live chat with Jimmy Neesham - Cricket - NZ Herald News

February 20 2014 11:34 AM
Jimmy, you really are a true all-rounder. Batting, bowling, and looking after mates on the sauce. What are you best at?

February 20 2014 11:36 AM
I know which one I enjoy the most! Haha. That's obviously been an overriding factor in the media over the last couple of weeks. To come out and score runs in the test and shake the 'minder' tag was pretty pleasing.

February 20 2014 11:36 AM
Some have suggested you could be an opening test batting all rounder ala Shane Watson. Have you ever opened and would you like to?

February 20 2014 11:38 AM
I opened for a year in school. I would be open to the idea but obviously it's about what's best for the team. I think that would be an incredibly challenging role to play in a team. Imagine fielding 140 overs, bowling 30 then having to strap the pads on straight away. It would be nice to bat with all the fielders in the cordon though!
 

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