***Official**** Sri Lanka in New Zealand 2014/2015

[ohnoitsyou]

Matthews coming on is game over for rudds

 

[Blocky]

Matthews coming on is game over for rudds

Not if he bowls it that short and wide.

 

[hendrix]

The only way we stop that in my view is promoting either Williamson or BMac up the order and giving Latham some video footage of how Sangakarra has countered Southee and Boult in this innings by batting on off stump, leaving everything outside the line of his eyes and making them pay for being on his pads.

Get rid of Rutherford, shift everyone in the order up one - find yourself a #5 which should be easier than a #2 and be done with it.

There's no need to alter Latham's set-up.

He's had a few wafts outside off stump that have given away his wicket in his fledgling career but there's nothing technically wrong with him as a batsman.

 

[YorksLanka]

would have fancied my chances on that short wide long hop from angie...

 

[straw man]

yeah theres nowt like pressure is there, the poor lad has the world against him by the sounds of it...
edit-,responding to strawmans comment

Yes I think the general NZ feeling is that Rutherford hasn't done anything to deserve this recall, hasn't gone away and improved, so he's not getting the usual young-guy-good-feelings vibes from commentators etc any more.

Two years in domestic cricket required and then try to convince Essex to have him back (he didn't impress when he was last there).

 

[Flem274*]

Rudds plays a leg side shot!

 

[Blocky]

Rutherford's legside game will really struggle due to his front foot action straight down the line of middle stump, he has to play around his pad constantly. It's why his off side game is so good once you're three stumps wide of off stump but it makes his legside game mud.

I think he's got a good eye, just terrible setup due to his footwork. I think you get him to leave his foot on the leg side of the ball and you'll get a massive improvement immediately.

 

[Flem274*]

I feel like I'm being too mean so I'll say I'm hopeful Rutherford does come through because an aggressive dominant opener to partner the more classical Latham would be perfect.

 

[straw man]

If they're not going to consider Guptill and Brownlie because they're seen as middle order blokes then Papps, Flynn and Redmond are the only blokes scoring lots of runs in FC.

It's unfortunate Brownlie hasn't had much chance to score domestic FC runs opening and may not for the rest of the season either, if he's in the World Cup squad.

 

[Blocky]

There's no need to alter Latham's set-up.

He's had a few wafts outside off stump that have given away his wicket in his fledgling career but there's nothing technically wrong with him as a batsman.

Ok, talk to me in a years time if he hasn't changed his back foot play outside off stump after he's faced Broad and Anderson to see if he still averages above 35.

 

[Blocky]

I feel like I'm being too mean so I'll say I'm hopeful Rutherford does come through because an aggressive dominant opener to partner the more classical Latham would be perfect.

This assumes Latham is going to be able to keep up his play to date. I hope he can but I'm seeing a weakness in his game that every video analysis person around the world will be instructing bowlers about.

 

[YorksLanka]

Yes I think the general NZ feeling is that Rutherford hasn't done anything to deserve this recall, hasn't gone away and improved, so he's not getting the usual young-guy-good-feelings vibes from commentators etc any more.

Two years in domestic cricket required and then try to convince Essex to have him back (he didn't impress when he was last there).

to be honest my knowledge of NZ cricket is poor but the commentators stated there wasnt anyone else around?Surely not?There has to be someone doesnt there?Having said that, he is doing ok in terms of the runs, agree his technique has flaws but he is providing a stable opening partnership by the looks of it..

 

[ohnoitsyou]

Rudd's does play the odd leg glance or pull shot, he just needs to have his eye in and pick it up really early.

 

[Chubb]

Yes I think the general NZ feeling is that Rutherford hasn't done anything to deserve this recall, hasn't gone away and improved, so he's not getting the usual young-guy-good-feelings vibes from commentators etc any more.

Two years in domestic cricket required and then try to convince Essex to have him back (he didn't impress when he was last there).

My granddad has watch a lot of Essex cricket in his life. He thought Rutherford was rubbish. Kept asking me where he came from and why he played for NZ.

 

[SteveNZ]

I feel like I'm being too mean so I'll say I'm hopeful Rutherford does come through because an aggressive dominant opener to partner the more classical Latham would be perfect.

It would, but it ain't going to be Ruds.

 

[hendrix]

Ok, talk to me in a years time if he hasn't changed his back foot play outside off stump after he's faced Broad and Anderson to see if he still averages above 35.

I agree that it's a slight issue (Williamson had/has the same problem) but it's more of a shot-selection issue than technique - although there is a technical component that I'll go into down the page.

Rutherford's legside game will really struggle due to his front foot action straight down the line of middle stump, he has to play around his pad constantly. It's why his off side game is so good once you're three stumps wide of off stump but it makes his legside game mud.

Hendrix's Batting Weakness Analysis:

As well as #shotsoffbothfeet, batsmen can generally be categorised as those who are good at playing in line with the ball - when the ball if carrying on would hit the body (i.e. leg glance, pull shot, nurdles to the leg side) and those who stay side-on to the ball and need the space to free their arms - cut shot, flays outside off stump.

Extreme examples of those who always get in line with the ball:
Graeme Smith
Simon Katich

Extreme examples of those who stay leg-side of the ball
Shikar Dhawan
Hamish Rutherford

Most batsmen fall mildly on either side of this spectrum. Williamson and Latham are more towards the get-in-line side - and you can see that both prefer the back-foot drive to the cut shot, for example, which is a weakness for them.

McCullum is slightly towards the stay-leg-side, but not to an extreme degree. Sehwag was somewhat similar.

Very few batsmen are proficient at the cut shot as well as the back-foot cover drive.

 

[straw man]

My granddad has watch a lot of Essex cricket in his life. He thought Rutherford was rubbish. Kept asking me where he came from and why he played for NZ.

Yes it was too much too soon for him.

 

[Blocky]

It would, but it ain't going to be Ruds.

Who would you play? Raval?

 

[ohnoitsyou]

My granddad has watch a lot of Essex cricket in his life. He thought Rutherford was rubbish. Kept asking me where he came from and why he played for NZ.

More importantly, how did England let him score a big daddy

 

[Blocky]

I agree that it's a slight issue (Williamson had/has the same problem) but it's more of a shot-selection issue than technique - although there is a technical component that I'll go into down the page.

Williamson's batting weakness wasn't the back foot drive, his batting weakness was coming inside out at the ball and constantly pushing away from his pad be it in front foot defense or back foot defense. His back foot punch was made to look problematic because again, he was coming inside out and against quicker bowlers he didn't have the time to catch the ball.

Latham actually comes down very square towards the ball in defense, the problem is that he's playing too tight to his body with the back foot punch and tends to hang the bat out there early, rather than waiting for it to come to his eyeline.

Complete different weaknesses to be honest, Latham's is shot selection, Williamson's showed itself any time he was facing fast bowlers on defense.

As for Rutherford being "leg side of the ball" - I disagree.. he does what Matthew Hayden used to do and plonks his foot right down the line of the stumps, the difference is that Hayden was great at bludgeoning the ball off his legs once you were there because he was quick enough to bring his foot back.

It means he's subject to LBW's if the ball swings back towards him, will struggle to catch up with anything on his pads unless it's short and will constantly feel like the ball is wider of off stump than it actually is.

If you look at Latham's setup - he's legside of the ball when it's delivered, moves his foot into line and then plays the shot. The problem with this against the shorter ball is that it means he's getting too close to the ball for anything other than defense and means he doesn't have the freedom to push the bat through the ball for the cut shot or backfoot drive, meaning he's often just hanging the bat out there.

In any case, great start by these two this morning - quick runs.