***Official*** West Indies tour of Australia, Jan–Feb 2024

[Gnske]

I think it’s a decent wake up call for Aus re the batting, and also the ongoing reluctance to rotate the quicks at times. It’s a long summer.

Yeah Morris really should have had a gig this summer just to get some visibility on how he'd go.

 

[mr_mister]

Smith carrying his bat second test as an opener. Love to see it

 

[TheJediBrah]

Also think it’s stupid to pick anyone with covid ffs, especially up in that **** hole with how humid it is. It’s an energy sapping illness even in a first world civilisation.l let alone Qld

i forgot we had this excuse, void the result

 

[Spark]

I genuinely wonder if Smith is thinking that he should have just faced every ball from Shamar and trust Hazlewood to get off strike/see off Alzarri. The difference in threat between the two ends was vast.

 

[Qlder]

Smith carrying his bat second test as an opener. Love to see it

He's also now averaging 60.00 as an opener

 

[TheJediBrah]

Smith carrying his bat second test as an opener. Love to see it

Also this is the real story here

 

[Gnske]

I genuinely wonder if Smith is thinking that he should have just faced every ball from Shamar and trust Hazlewood to get off strike/see off Alzarri. The difference in threat between the two ends was vast.

You'd think he could have especially with Alzarri's bowling and the spread field. Haze really isn't up to holding an end.

 

[Bahnz]

I genuinely wonder if Smith is thinking that he should have just faced every ball from Shamar and trust Hazlewood to get off strike/see off Alzarri. The difference in threat between the two ends was vast.

Yeah this, the second Smith gave up the strike I leaned so far forward I almost fell off my sofa. You’d never back a number 11 to last more than a few balls against bowling of that quality.

 

[Burgey]

I dunno, I think he played it pretty well. If he couldn’t survive two an over I don’t see him lasting six, although the other bloke was clearly not as threatening.

 

[Burgey]

Yeah this, the second Smith gave up the strike I leaned so far forward I almost fell off my sofa. You’d never back a number 11 to last more than a few balls against bowling of that quality.

He left him two tbf. If he doesn’t take the one he bowls two bouncers and Hazlewood has six to face at the other end.

 

[TimAngas]

I genuinely wonder if Smith is thinking that he should have just faced every ball from Shamar and trust Hazlewood to get off strike/see off Alzarri. The difference in threat between the two ends was vast.

I have a feeling the Stokes approach would have been to take it much deeper into the over before looking for the single. It's not like Smith doesn't have the ability to do move around and manufacture a run even with the field up. It was clear that two balls was a set plan though, because he'd taken that run twice already, so you can't really be too critical.

 

[Spark]

Yeah this, the second Smith gave up the strike I leaned so far forward I almost fell off my sofa. You’d never back a number 11 to last more than a few balls against bowling of that quality.

Plus he almost certainly gets a chance to hit a boundary off the last ball. It's something he'll think about for sure.

 

[Aidan11]

Why is everyone asleep in the crowd.

This is the greatest test match since WIs beat Australia an hour ago.

 

[Spark]

I have a feeling the Stokes approach would have been to take it much deeper into the over before looking for the single. It's not like Smith doesn't have the ability to do move around and manufacture a run even with the field up. It was clear that two balls was a set plan though, because he'd taken that run twice already, so you can't really be too critical.

Oh no this is like ultra-nitpicking levels of "criticism", it's definitely a perfectly fine thing to do to have that 4/2 split. But Shamar was bowling hand grenades and Alzarri... wasn't

 

[danzydab]

bowling 150 kph with a broken toe and taking 7 wicket in one day. i cant remember a better spell of fast bowling in australia in recent times

 

[BazBall21]

The greatest and most iconic spell by a West Indian since the days of Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh. Nicest thing to happen in cricket for a long time.

 

[Gnske]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1751524539069296713

I give it until the next IPL auction, at best

First reply to this tweet is also an alltimer

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1751525818998612207

 

[Kirkut]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1751524539069296713

I give it until the next IPL auction, at best

First reply to this tweet is also an alltimer

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1751525818998612207

Like on of those New Year's resolutions.

 

[Spikey]

It just doesn't work for us for whatever reason. I'd even argue that it didn't work with Voges and that's the closest you can get - we didn't pick him to pile on runs against the worst WI attack ever fielded at home, we picked him to score runs in England in 2015 and he failed dismally.

a true disgrace that voges was allowed to stay in the team after he failed the actual mission

 

[Spikey]

Tbf all of those selections were related to Hughes either getting dropped short term or being a PROTECTED species against SA.

Hate to speak ill of the dead, but we all saw it happen and Doolan and Quiney were most certainly short term bait.

the protection thing never made sense. iirc the old man selector said it, but Quiney had runs on the board. it was a logical selection in the sense that he had form and stuff.

it wasn't logical in that he was clearly not better than hughes, but it's no different to Harris/Burns/Wade getting opening gigs over Usman, we often don't pick the best player, just the narrative.

likewise Cowan was a narrative selection. A ton in the shield final and a very hot start to the season. "form"