Player Ratings - As We Go By....

[MW1304]

Kimber: Shane Watson's a myth as he never learns | Cricket News | Australia in England - The Investec Ashes | ESPN Cricinfo

Decent article that picks up on the inadequacies of Watson that the largely ex-player media seems to completely miss. Although it still conveys a tinge of hope that he still might come good; 32-year-old who's played 43 Tests ffs.

 

[Uppercut]

Yeah, I think the issue is exactly what GIMH has said. He was one of only two batsman who ever looked comfortable for a decent length period today. And it's always the case. He always looks one of the best batsman in the match. Until he plants his front leg and misses one. Despite always looking one of the best batsman going, you can still count the number of match winning performances with the bat on one hand. I think what pisses people off is he still seems to have a rep of being one of the best players in the side, both by CA and the general public and media, when really, he's still not really peforming and hasn't done much since the last Ashes. The side is often doing things to accumulate him, whether it be wherever he wants to bat in the order, or whether he wants to bowl, and he's not really repaying the faith.

He gets unfair slack on CW, mostly I feel as a reaction to his perhaps overhyped reputation outside of the forum, and he's really valuable to Australia because of his bowling - I'd take him in the England team in a heartbeat - but he's still part of the greater problem with the Australian batting line up. His dismissall today was a massive boost for England and a big kick in the teeth to Australia, both because of how well he was batting before that, and because of the selfish and idiotic use of the review, which must be terrible for team morale.

I don't know if he does always look particularly good, he always looks like getting out lbw for the first 30 runs, then eventually does. He's spectacularly good at some shots but a propensity to miss straight balls isn't really a manageable weakness.

It's funny that you think he now gets unfair slack on CW because he used to be the most popular player on the whole site. I sort of missed the point when he went from ***y-god-Watto to the team ****.

 

[grecian]

I don't know if he does always look particularly good, he always looks like getting out lbw for the first 30 runs, then eventually does. He's spectacularly good at some shots but a propensity to miss straight balls isn't really a manageable weakness.

It's funny that you think he now gets unfair slack on CW because he used to be the most popular player on the whole site. I sort of missed the point when he went from ***y-god-Watto to the team ****.

Well, I think he started being hated by a lot of Oz fans, then in a CW turn-around a few guys started loving him and it steam-rollered to him being liked, now it seems to be back where it started.

 

[Cabinet96]

I don't know if he does always look particularly good, he always looks like getting out lbw for the first 30 runs, then eventually does. He's spectacularly good at some shots but a propensity to miss straight balls isn't really a manageable weakness.

Well, tbf, he usually connects with them pretty well early on. There's obviously a chance he'll miss one and it raises the old oh's and ah's, but when he smokes it through straight midwicket of middle stump it certainly looks good. At least to me.

 

[Pothas]

Well, I think he started being hated by a lot of Oz fans, then in a CW turn-around a few guys started loving him and it steam-rollered to him being liked, now it seems to be back where it started.

This can never be allowed to happen with Ravi and will not of course because he is not a massive ****.

 

[91Jmay]

I wouldn't take Watson in the England side. A 32 year old with two test tons in 77 innings? No thanks. His bowling is useful, but not enough to usurp a young batter.

 

[grecian]

Watson 4 Took a decent wicket, but then was ineffectual with the ball, batting same ol same ol.
Rogers 1 Out hideously both innings
Khawaja 5 Terrible dismissal first innings, played like a test match player in the second, which is a rarity.
Hughes 0 just rank, I really don't rate him
Clarke 6 Looked their best bat by miles, but we knew that. Still had no major effect on the game though.
Smith 6 Reverted to type as batsmen, but caused a bit of a ripple with the ball.
Haddin 2 Kept badly, batted poorly, poor really
Agar 2 Not a Test Match bowler at present, 4th best one in this match, not good in the field
Siddle 5 Bowled well in the second dig.
Patto 5 Again bowled a lot better in the second Innings, one of their better bats
Harris 8 Top notch with the ball, best bowler on display, useful runs to help make this the ultimate number XI series.

Cook 3 Poor run with the bat, not sure why people are that surprised he goes through these every now and again, did nothing wrong captaincy-wise.
Root 8 Yes, probably stingy, but looked very nervous at first in both innings. Nice wickets too, but not great batting.
Trott 5 Solid 50
KP 1 Doesn't really look right, took a good catch
Bairstow 7 Oh I dunno, looked all at sea most of the time, but scored 87 runs, I'll mark him high, because I marked him low last time.
Prior 2 see Haddin
Bell 8 Very good first innings, gimmee runs in the second.
Bresnan 7 Took wickets, played in an important partnership, a decent return
Broad 6 Good innings which gave England some momentum, and bowled a lot better then his figures suggested IMHO.
Swann 7 Tricky one this, don't think he actually bowled that well, got a gift of a pitch, and some horrendous batting. Nice runs though
Anderson 6 Bowled better than his figures, but not the major force he was at TB

 

[GIMH]

Cook 4 - no runs but like I used to do with Strauss gets a couple of bonus points for being the winning captain
Root 9 - top all round display
Trott 5 - easy to be critical but his 50 was crucial or we'd have been in a heap of trouble
Bell 9 - in the form of his life. Should have got twin tons
Bairstow 6 - key partnership with Bell first time round, looked all at sea second dig
Prior 3 - did little
Bresnan 7 - I read a comment on cricinfo from an Aussie fan saying his selection had given them the momentum, well that was a little silly. Played well.
Broad 6 - unlucky with the ball, useful with the bat
Swann 8 - figures may have flattered him but a very good all round contribution
Anderson 6 - bowled pretty well but it anything this match proved that we aren't a one man team


Watson 10 - an Australian hero. I love his crusade against overturning umpiring decisions by minimising the reviews available to his team
Rogers 2 - felt sorry for him, just didn't get going
Khawaja 5 - embarrassing first time out came back strongly
Hughes 1 - very poor and wasted reviews Watson style
Smith 5 - abysmal with the bat but very good with the ball
Haddin 2 - did nothing
Agar 1 - ouch
Siddle 7 - deserves better team mates
Pattinson 4 - useful runs but very poor with the ball
Harris 9 - deserved to be on the winning side

 

[Furball]

Cook - 3 - bonus points for being the winning captain
Root - 9 - great 2nd innings, bonus wickets always good
Trott - 5 - vital 1st innings runs. Needs to stop impersonating Watson and go on with his scores once in a while
KP - 1 - gets a point for taking catches
Bell - 9 - should have been twin tons but vital first innings
Bairstow - 7 - came to the wicket at a potentially sticky time, got a stroke of luck but made it stick.
Prior - 4 - well below his usual standards
Bresnan - 8 - bowled and batted tidily
Broad - 6 - tad unlucky with the ball
Swann - 9 - will bowl better for less return but can't really argue with 9 wickets. Cheeky wee innings to annoy Australia day 2.
Jimmeh - 7 - bowled well, magic ball to get rid of Siddle in the 2nd innings

Watson - 0 - usual **** **** innings, wasted a review, bowled floaty unthreatening rubbish.
Rogers - 1 - clearly part of Team Clarke going by his leaving skills
Khawaja - 0 - absolutely inconsequential 2nd innings 50, in part because of his **** **** effort in the 1st innings. The fact that some commentators praised him for sticking it out for a couple of hours and making 50 is indicative of where Australia's problems lie with their batting, nowhere near good enough in the circumstances.
Hughes - 0 - undoing all his Trent Bridge good work by looking clueless against Swann
Clarke - 2 - gets a point for innovative captaincy to dismiss Cook in first innings
Smith - 0 - poor with bat, good with ball day 1, loses all points for being a cheat and claiming an obviously grassed catch. Should count himself lucky to avoid a life ban frankly.
Haddin - 1 - reverted to type and batted uselessly in a crisis. Missed a sitter to get rid of Root for 8 in 2nd innings
Agar - 2 - fairly unthreatening with the ball
Siddle - 7 - bowled like a hero in the 2nd innings. Along with Pattinson showed up the top order in 2nd innings.
Pattinson - 3 - bring back Mitchell Johnson. Could have scored useful runs in both innings if the batsmen had actually given him anything to work with.
Harris - 9 - an inspiration to those of us with only one knee. Absolute class act with the ball.

 

[morgieb]

Watson 4 - ummm two starts are better than most of the other **** that they gave. Took a wicket.
Rogers 1 - worse was the manner of dismissal.
Khawaja 4 - showed some signs of heart in the second innings but really needed a big one to at least make Australia say "not too bad I guess".
Hughes 0 - urgh. Loses any points he had for doing the Watson review in the second innings.
Clarke 5 - only batsman that looked like doing anything, but really shouldn't waste starts.
Smith 4 - bowled well I guess.
Haddin 2 - deary me. At least his keeping was OK in the first innings.
Agar 2 - reverted to type. Won't get dropped but probably should be.
Siddle 6.5 - good spell to start the second innings, but didn't do much other than that.
Pattinson 4.5 - not great with the ball, showed a little bit of fight with the bat.
Harris 9 - should've played in the first game. Was great.

Cook 2 - the fact that he isn't scoring runs and England are still winning says a lot.
Root 9.5 - loses .5 of a mark only for flopping in the first innings. What a game.
Trott 5 - scored a good 50, England could've been in all-sorts of trouble otherwise.
Pietersen 1 - see Cook.
Bell 9 - loses points for not going on in both innings to make daddy hundreds. Yes he was probably lucky but I'm not Richard, he deserves points for making the most of it. Has been awesome so far.
Bairstow 7 - key runs in the first innings.
Prior 2 - see Cook and Pietersen. Better keeper than Haddin I suppose.
Bresnan 8 - arguably changed the game with the Watson dismissal. Key partnership with Root locked out any hopes of an Australian victory.
Broad 6.5 - bowled well without luck, gets extra points for a good last wicket partnership with Swann.
Swann 9 - but most of his wickets were taken off retards so they don't count.
Anderson 6 - see Cook, KP and Prior (though obviously for a different part of the game ). Though his bowling was still generally good.

 

[Jarquis]

Yeah, we've been hugely reliant on Anderson's runs in the past so to be coping without them is a great sign.

 

[Cabinet96]

Cook - 3 - One point for being the winning captain
Root - 9 - Played well in the second half of the match, but he could've got a first ball and bowled pies and we'd have still won by loads
Trott - 4 - Getting annoying now with the lack of conversions.
Pietersen - 2 - One of his rubbish tests. He'll probably hit 150 if he's fit at Old Trafford
Bell - 9 - Hero in the first innings, fortunate in the second but gave some brief punishment. Always been England's best short leg
Bairstow - 7 - Valuable fifty first dig
Prior - 3 - Failed with the bat and missed a stumping
Bresnan - 7 - Hardly outstanding, but did the job
Broad - 7 - Thought he bowled much better than his figures suggested. Sealed the match with his dismissal of Clarke on day two. Batting was great to watch
Swann - 9 - Much better than Trent Bridge
Anderson - 7 - Never really bowls poorly anymore does he?

Watson - 4 - Standard
Rogers - 2 - Lucky to get any marks after his first innings dismissal. Guess I'm feeling generous.
Khawaja - 4 - Horrific in the first innings but by far Australia's best bat in the second.
Hughes - 2 - Worryingly poor
Clarke - 5 - Time to take his shoe laces out of his grasp
Smith - 4 - Good with the ball but failed with his main suit.
Haddin - 2 - At least Wade tried to catch the ball
Agar - 2 - Rubbish, out bowled by the part timers, looked like he was bowling in a different universe to Swann
Siddle - 6 - Bowled decently
Pattinson - 5 - Poor in the first innings but improved a lot in the second
Harris - 8.5 - Unfairly let down by his batsman counterparts

 

[91Jmay]

Cook - 4 Few nice bits of captaincy (Root having a leg slip for e.g) but needs runs.
Root - 9.5 Big ton and two set batters in 2nd innings - would have been a perfect 10 but he dropped a dolly.
Trott - 6 Looked in good nick but needs to stop his new habit of giving it away.
KP - 2 - couple of good catches but he seriously needs runs
Bell - 9.5 I have to dock him marks for getting out to such a terrible ball but was brilliant in the first innings and imperious in the 2nd.
Bairstow - 7.5 Vital innings in the 1st but getting out to a full bunger is poor. Second innings was a no win situation for him really. Also a terrific fielder.
Prior - 3 Poor. Missed a stumping of Clarke on 2 and another big name who needs runs.
Bresnan - 8 Took wickets, kept an end tight and ground down any hope the Aussies had on morning of day 3.
Broad - 7 Got the big fish first innings and roughed him up in the 2nd. Catch dropped but generally bowled pretty well.
Swann - 8.5 Didn't bowl as well as most 9 wicket hauls but needed to take wickets in these conditions and did. Batted well to steal back momentum.
Jimmeh - 7 Didn't bowl many overs as we didn't need him to, a quiet test match but 3 wickets and economical spells.

Watson - 4 Bowled well and got two starts which is more than most. Rating this match in isolation. There were plenty worse.
Rogers - 1 Out of his depth
Khawaja - 3 Stuck around a bit in the 2nd innings but not really impressed considering the game was already lost by then and how clueless he looked against Swann. Also feel he should have caught Broad in the 1st innings and Root in the 2nd on the fence but was wierdly 5 yards off the rope.
Hughes - 0 Doesn't have the technique for this level.
Clarke - 4 Captained well and got a 50 but shocking dismissal in the 2nd dig.
Smith - 1 Bowled a few nice balls on day one but the pies and nothing with the bat means he deserves no more.
Haddin - 0 Nothing with the bat and should have taken Root for 8.
Agar - 1 Pie bowler.
Siddle - 7.5 Poor first innings but sensational spell second dig.
Pattinson 4 Terrible first innings but a good spell in the 2nd and looks a good batter.
Harris - 8 Great new ball bowler, struggles a bit when it gets older. Applied himself with the bat.

 

[morgieb]

Yeah, we've been hugely reliant on Anderson's runs in the past so to be coping without them is a great sign.

I meant that without him taking wickets England still played well. Don't be pedantic.

 

[Uppercut]

Too much Rogers hate imo. I genuinely think he looks pretty good. Barely a false shot until his dismissals, the first of which should never, ever have been given out.

I guess you can't give him any marks or anything but despite not quite making the runs he does look like one of Oz's better batsmen.

 

[Burgey]

Watson - 0
Rogers - 0
Khawaja - 0
Hughes - 0
Clarke - 0
Smith - 0
Haddin - 0
Agar - 0
Siddle - 0
Patto - 0
Harris - 8

They're ratings btw, not the batting card.

 

[straw man]

Khawaja 5 Terrible dismissal first innings, played like a test match player in the second, which is a rarity.

Khawaja 5 - embarrassing first time out came back strongly

Khawaja - 0 - absolutely inconsequential 2nd innings 50, in part because of his **** **** effort in the 1st innings. The fact that some commentators praised him for sticking it out for a couple of hours and making 50 is indicative of where Australia's problems lie with their batting, nowhere near good enough in the circumstances.

Khawaja 4 - showed some signs of heart in the second innings but really needed a big one to at least make Australia say "not too bad I guess".

Khawaja - 4 - Horrific in the first innings but by far Australia's best bat in the second.

Khawaja - 3 Stuck around a bit in the 2nd innings but not really impressed considering the game was already lost by then and how clueless he looked against Swann. Also feel he should have caught Broad in the 1st innings and Root in the 2nd on the fence but was wierdly 5 yards off the rope.

Khawaja - 0

GingerFurball and Burgey are right - ****ty arse-saving fifties when the team has already lost should not be awarded even the faint praise of 'some good signs'. That self-delusion is the realm of the NZ cricket follower (and we like it that way). Otherwise, try scoring runs when it matters.

2/10 - only to differentiate him from Hughes, Smith and Rogers

 

[LongHopCassidy]

Let's see:

Watson 3 - top scored in first innings and dismissed Cook, but obliterated team morale with his review
Rogers 1 - both dismissals unbecoming of the trumpeted English conditions specialist
Khawaja 5 - first innings hole-out was disgusting but relative to the rest of the batting, did well
Hughes 0 - would be dropped if he was anyone else
Clarke 4 - injudicious with reviews, let the English tail run riot but redeemed by fifty
Smith 4 - poor with the willow but was the main reason we didn't lose by an innings
Haddin -2 - all the runs Root made after the missed catch count as negative runs in his account
Agar 1 - did nothing with the ball, dropped catch and nothing special with the bat
Siddle 7 - inspiring spell on day 3 and fine batting
Patto 3 - see Siddle, but without the bowling - him and Bird are neck-and-neck for Old Trafford
Harris 9 - best bowler of the match considering the arseyness of Swann's 5-fer

Cook 3 - awful batting but decent on the field
Root 10 - 180 and dismissed both set batsmen in the second innings, couldn't have done more
Trott 4 - underrated first innings stand with Bell
KP 1 - failed in both innings
Bairstow 6 - made Australia pay for the Siddle no-ball
Prior 2 - nothing with bat, disgraceful missed stumping
Bell 9.5 - stopped the England collapse in both innings, which may have made the game much closer
Bresnan 8 - not given enough credit for his batting, fine bowling in both innings
Broad 5 - excellent batting, indifferent bowling
Swann 9 - good batting, second innings bowling deserves more credit than his first
Anderson 5 - relatively quiet game

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Cook 4 - Not at his best but a captain gaining 2 wickets with a part timer deserves some credit.
Root 9.5 - Let off with the catch early in 2nd dig and punished them for it, good wickets but loses .5 for dropping a dolly.
Trott 5 - Important first innings effort to help recovery.
Pietersen 1 - Out cheaply and injured.
Bell 9 - Great hundred, should have walked for the catch.
Bairstow 7 - Batted well after let off, important runs again at a tricky time. Needs a big one now.
Prior 5 - Still not firing with bat but kept better than Haddin.
Bresnan 8 - Great return. Unexpected bonus given his poor record at ground. Vital batting at start of 3rd day to end Aussie hopes.
Broad 5 - Struggled, like when he was on 99 he is trying too hard on 199 and failing.
Swann 9 - Brilliant performance, Aussies couldn't cope with him.
Anderson 5 - Wasn't really needed but got some vital wickets at important times.

Watson 4 - Same old Watto
Rodgers 2 - Had a shocker but should be stuck with, catches well for an old speccy.
Khawaja 1 - Brainless dismissal showed lack of mental ability. Runs in losing cause were pointless.
Hughes 0 - Has no idea against spin or short outside off stump. As bad technically as any player I have seen in a supposed top nation.
Clarke 3 - Battles but pressure seems to be getting to him. He fails team fails.
Smith 4 - Surprisingly good spell with ball, bad game with bat.
Haddin 0 - Shocking with bat and gloves.
Agar 1 - Gets that for smiling. Woeful test. Welcome to real cricket son, you have a lot to learn.
Siddle 7 - Bowled heart out and looks to have better technique and more fight than most of the top 7.
Pattinson 3 - Bowled like a drain in 1st innings, better in 2nd and fought with bat.
Harris 8 - Feel for him, bowled brilliantly and was out on feet on day 3 with no rest. Got some deserved victims on day 4 for his efforts earlier. Needs help from bats or will break down again.

 

[uvelocity]

Watson - 0
Rogers - 0
Khawaja - 0
Hughes - 0
Clarke - 0
Smith - 0
Haddin - 0
Agar - 0
Siddle - 0
Patto - 0
Harris - 8

They're ratings btw, not the batting card.

yep