**Official** New Zealand v Australia

[Josh]

Well if they never changed anything, I'd dare say Kasprowicz would have sailed right into the distance.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

Well if they never changed anything, I'd dare say Kasprowicz would have sailed right into the distance.

I believe Kasprowicz came in in Sri Lanka because Bracken and Williams didn't perform against India, and McGrath was injured. Kasprowicz, however, has performed so far.

 

[Mister Wright]

I believe Kasprowicz came in in Sri Lanka because Bracken and Williams didn't perform against India, and McGrath was injured. Kasprowicz, however, has performed so far.

Give it up Sammie. Josh is as one-eyed as they come.

 

[Retox]

He's bowled well in the ODIs, granted, but so has Kasprowicz. Then consider that raw pace, which is what Lee's got, often works better in ODIs than in Tests. There just isn't a place for him in the side - four bowlers who are performing excellently, why change something that's working?

Might as well change it (even vs NZ) its not like NZ is gonna win

 

[mavric41]

Might as well change it (even vs NZ) its not like NZ is gonna win

It devalues the baggy green. Its something that should be earnt, not given because you are a blond headline.

 

[Retox]

It devalues the baggy green. Its something that should be earnt, not given because you are a blond headline.

He has the the nzers worried and they seem to fear him. Devalues? He had the Nzers scared. Its not like he is some 21 year old who has never been in the test side. He has played test cricket so the baggy green will still be valued. And they should pick the best team and I think Lee (as he has the nzers done) should be in the side

 

[Mister Wright]

He has the the nzers worried and they seem to fear him. Devalues? He had the Nzers scared. Its not like he is some 21 year old who has never been in the test side. He has played test cricket so the baggy green will still be valued. And they should pick the best team and I think Lee (as he has the nzers done) should be in the side

Yeah, but it isn't like Kasprowicz isn't taking wickets either. It seems such a shame that a guy who has had to wait so long to become a regular member of the side, now he is bowling the best he has ever bolwed and can't keep his place in the side because some bloke is scaring batsman. Lee is likely not to get a bowl if he doesn't take the new ball, McGrath will probably have 5 wickets before he finishes his first spell.

 

[Retox]

Yeah, but it isn't like Kasprowicz isn't taking wickets either. It seems such a shame that a guy who has had to wait so long to become a regular member of the side, now he is bowling the best he has ever bolwed and can't keep his place in the side because some bloke is scaring batsman. Lee is likely not to get a bowl if he doesn't take the new ball, McGrath will probably have 5 wickets before he finishes his first spell.

I would rather Kaspz in the side but I think the selectors are trying to figure out stuff for the future.

Can Lee hack it at test level?

 

[Mister Wright]

I would rather Kaspz in the side but I think the selectors are trying to figure out stuff for the future.

Can Lee hack it at test level?

There's plenty of time for that. Trust me, if Lee was the incumbent and performing as well as Kasprowicz, and someone else was in Lee's shoes, there would not be anywhere near as much fuss.

 

[marc71178]

That's beside the point - a 50/50 record plus two of the remaining three games in which Bond played, New Zealand should've won. They didn't and thus the game is not included in the overall record, but certainly deserves a mention.

So you disregard them if NZ should've won but didn't?

 

[Retox]

There's plenty of time for that. Trust me, if Lee was the incumbent and performing as well as Kasprowicz, and someone else was in Lee's shoes, there would not be anywhere near as much fuss.

Yeah I agree. But the selectors have this hard on for Lee that no amount of cold water can fix.

 

[Mister Wright]

Yeah I agree. But the selectors have this hard on for Lee that no amount of cold water can fix.

The selectors have their throats currently throttled by the N.S.W. media who pretty much control the selection panel and have Lee as their pet project. They got Michael Clarke's name on the selection table, now they won't stop until Lee is in the test side, why? Well they make headlines, be that good or poor, and they are who the N.S.W. public want to read about.

 

[anzac]

Lee was / is the poster boy for AUS cricket & still features prominantly in plenty of Ad compaigns................

yes Kasper is bowling well & has done everything asked of him & more since his return, however IMO you play to your strengths & afaic Lee exposes a weakness in the NZL batting that only those few at express pace can, and the results can be spectacular collapses - just look back to last season's test loss to PAK.................

also I think they will be wanting to see how he goes in similar conditions to those to be found in The Ashes tour..................

 

[anzac]

The selectors have their throats currently throttled by the N.S.W. media who pretty much control the selection panel and have Lee as their pet project. They got Michael Clarke's name on the selection table, now they won't stop until Lee is in the test side, why? Well they make headlines, be that good or poor, and they are who the N.S.W. public want to read about.

maybe so but Clarke won the AB Medal in his debut season so they got something right in that regard..............

don't let your QLD v NSW bias stand in the way of the National team..............

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

It's ludicrous to suggest that Lee is favoured because he is from NSW. He was kept out of the team for the whole year while Kasprowicz was performing after all. The selectors have decided they want more variation in the attack, and Lee has been so utterly dominant in the ODIs that he made an irresistable case. If he doesn't perform in the tests he will undoubtedly be left out for Kasprowicz down the line. Allan Border has said that the only problem he can see with the pace attack is that it is one-paced and has little variation, and Lee should be able to change that.

I agree that Kasprowicz is hard done by, but Lee has the ability to be so devastating that he's definately worth another try. At the heart of it, he is also a significant part of the visible future for the Australian pace attack, and if they can groom him now into a test class bowler it will be worth more to the Australian team than keeping an in-form Kasprowicz in the side.

The one thing the Australians will really miss without Kasprowicz is his uncanny ability to get left-handers out with the ball that angles across them. But as a supporter of the Australian team, I'm glad Lee has been picked, if only to give him an opportunity he has clearly earned.

 

[Mister Wright]

All may not be as clear cut as it seems with the selectors set to select Lee as opening bowler they feel Kasprowicz would be better suited at first change than Gillespie....read on:

Lee to create Dizzy spell

 

[Top_Cat]

If Lee makes the Test side, there's something seriously wrong. Kasper is bowling beautifully and so is Gillespie. The TEAM (remember that, selectors?) balance is working so very well and Lee coming in will likely de-stabilise that. Yes Lee is bowling very well and does deserve to be in the Test side on form but no more than all of the others and seeing as they have performance over him, he shouldn't get a look-in.

Also, there's a vast difference between bowling flat-out for 10 over in two spells and bowling 20 overs in a day. There's less pressure to score in Tests too so the batsman can wait him out and sweat on the bad ones. And if Lee doesn't get wickets as quickly as in the ODI's, who's to say he won't get frustrated and start bowling not so well? Too many questions to be asked of Lee whereas with Kasper, McGrath and Gillespie, you have guys who are unquestionably bowling well in Tests. That, to me, suggests that Lee should not be picked yet.

 

[Mister Wright]

If Lee makes the Test side, there's something seriously wrong. Kasper is bowling beautifully and so is Gillespie. The TEAM (remember that, selectors?) balance is working so very well and Lee coming in will likely de-stabilise that. Yes Lee is bowling very well and does deserve to be in the Test side on form but no more than all of the others and seeing as they have performance over him, he shouldn't get a look-in.

Also, there's a vast difference between bowling flat-out for 10 over in two spells and bowling 20 overs in a day. There's less pressure to score in Tests too so the batsman can wait him out and sweat on the bad ones. And if Lee doesn't get wickets as quickly as in the ODI's, who's to say he won't get frustrated and start bowling not so well? Too many questions to be asked of Lee whereas with Kasper, McGrath and Gillespie, you have guys who are unquestionably bowling well in Tests. That, to me, suggests that Lee should not be picked yet.

Top post. Top Cat. Couldn't agree more.

 

[SJS]

If Lee makes the Test side, there's something seriously wrong. Kasper is bowling beautifully and so is Gillespie. The TEAM (remember that, selectors?) balance is working so very well and Lee coming in will likely de-stabilise that. Yes Lee is bowling very well and does deserve to be in the Test side on form but no more than all of the others and seeing as they have performance over him, he shouldn't get a look-in.

Also, there's a vast difference between bowling flat-out for 10 over in two spells and bowling 20 overs in a day. There's less pressure to score in Tests too so the batsman can wait him out and sweat on the bad ones. And if Lee doesn't get wickets as quickly as in the ODI's, who's to say he won't get frustrated and start bowling not so well? Too many questions to be asked of Lee whereas with Kasper, McGrath and Gillespie, you have guys who are unquestionably bowling well in Tests. That, to me, suggests that Lee should not be picked yet.

Its totally inexplicable. Worse than picking Yuvraj over Kaif maybe.

 

[social]

If Lee makes the Test side, there's something seriously wrong. Kasper is bowling beautifully and so is Gillespie. The TEAM (remember that, selectors?) balance is working so very well and Lee coming in will likely de-stabilise that. Yes Lee is bowling very well and does deserve to be in the Test side on form but no more than all of the others and seeing as they have performance over him, he shouldn't get a look-in.

Also, there's a vast difference between bowling flat-out for 10 over in two spells and bowling 20 overs in a day. There's less pressure to score in Tests too so the batsman can wait him out and sweat on the bad ones. And if Lee doesn't get wickets as quickly as in the ODI's, who's to say he won't get frustrated and start bowling not so well? Too many questions to be asked of Lee whereas with Kasper, McGrath and Gillespie, you have guys who are unquestionably bowling well in Tests. That, to me, suggests that Lee should not be picked yet.

The only reason Lee shouldnt be picked is because of the question mark over his match-fitness for a five-day test.

Unfortunately, given the way tours are structured these days, that line of thinking could be used to remove Lee from the consideration for tests in both New Zealand and England as, barring injuries, the next time he will play in a match other than an ODI is next summer.

Lee is bowling accurately at speeds up to 160 ks. There is no-one else in the world capable of doing that consistently (Akhtar only bowled a handful of balls in the 150s on the entire Australian tour) and, on form alone, he should be picked.