What would your stats be if you actually played international cricket?

[Flem274*]

i couldn't bat even in middling grade school cricket (got used as a sacrificial opener sometimes because i can block) and my medium pacers get some nice flight if i really slow it down and hooping swing both ways (because they're so jammy) so id not even try to bowl at full pace and hope i can troll them. 1 with the bat, a million with the ball, and let's not even go near my fielding if im in the outfield and have time to think about a high catch. those catches go up ****ing far.

not that i'd want to be in close either. ross taylor could have killed someone at pukekura park once with his sixes due to that tiered embankment.

I am a lower order club hack. I have, however, faced a number of former test/ODI level bowlers in the nets, when they were well past their prime. The issue is not being able to see the ball, it's being able to play a shot in time.

this is the weird thing about batting, at least for an incompetent hack like me. i can't speak for other hacks but it seems you feel similar.

it's not the seeing the ball that's the issue, its the "oh yup, that's a full half volley, put that **** through the covers"

and then it beats your outside edge.

in summary, batting is the most infuriating part of a sport to ever be invented.

 

[kiwiviktor81]

i couldn't bat even in middling grade school cricket (got used as a sacrificial opener sometimes because i can block) and my medium pacers get some nice flight if i really slow it down and hooping swing both ways (because they're so jammy) so id not even try to bowl at full pace and hope i can troll them. 1 with the bat, a million with the ball, and let's not even go near my fielding if im in the outfield and have time to think about a high catch. those catches go up ****ing far.

not that i'd want to be in close either. ross taylor could have killed someone at pukekura park once with his sixes due to that tiered embankment.


this is the weird thing about batting, at least for an incompetent hack like me. i can't speak for other hacks but it seems you feel similar.

it's not the seeing the ball that's the issue, its the "oh yup, that's a full half volley, put that **** through the covers"

and then it beats your outside edge.

in summary, batting is the most infuriating part of a sport to ever be invented.

I'm of the opinion that one of the most important skills for an international batsman is reading the body language of the bowler. By this I mean looking for subtle clues in their approach and delivery that might suggest the ball would be here or there. Against the quicker bowlers in ODIs there's often an element of premeditation even for textbook shots. I suspect much of this is the batsman working out the trajectory of the ball before it's left the bowler's hand, by looking at where their elbow is, the angle of the shoulder and elbow, the direction of the follow-through etc.

It has always seemed that the mark of the real quality batsmen is time to play your shots. KW is a master at this - he makes all the bowlers look 10km/h slower. AB de Villiers also appears to have a near-psychic ability to predict where the ball is going to pitch and to wind up for the right shot. Probably this time to play shots isn't simply a function of reaction speed but also includes the batsman's ability to anticipate.

 

[Hurricane]

I'm of the opinion that one of the most important skills for an international batsman is reading the body language of the bowler. By this I mean looking for subtle clues in their approach and delivery that might suggest the ball would be here or there. Against the quicker bowlers in ODIs there's often an element of premeditation even for textbook shots. I suspect much of this is the batsman working out the trajectory of the ball before it's left the bowler's hand, by looking at where their elbow is, the angle of the shoulder and elbow, the direction of the follow-through etc.

It has always seemed that the mark of the real quality batsmen is time to play your shots. KW is a master at this - he makes all the bowlers look 10km/h slower. AB de Villiers also appears to have a near-psychic ability to predict where the ball is going to pitch and to wind up for the right shot. Probably this time to play shots isn't simply a function of reaction speed but also includes the batsman's ability to anticipate.

Yeah agree with all of that. I have read books about it as well. IF the bowler pulls his left arm down faster then it will be a shorter ball and you can rock back before he has bowled it.

Look I wanted to make my own quick observation. I was batting one day with the pearce cup guys. I looked like a regular Joe hitting the ball. The fellow at the other end was the opening batsman for our top team. He would make his shot selection later than me but then execute the shot far faster than I was executing my shot. It gave him a lot more options and time to play. I remember thinking "watching you bat is like watching someone on TV, while watching me bat is like watching a park cricketer". Not because of the quality of our shots, just due to the speed issue and the aesthetics of our shots.

 

[Daemon]

I played and missed 2 deliveries from Maharoof off a 5 step run up when I was in school (I edged one as well but I can't remember whether that was Maharoof or Tharanga). Could see the ball and played the right shot, but just too late. I can dead bat 130 against the bowling machine. Would back myself to average 1 against quicks and 0 against spinners.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Well judging from the fact I never even saw the ball that yorked me in my last match (was coming out of trees with no screen) not very many.

Michael Jeh the cricinfo writer was a University cricketer. I got him out once. About the highlight of my career other than playing for Shrewsbury under 16's as a 10 year old as somebody never turned up and took 2 wickets.They did have a couple of players who played more than 10 years of minor county cricket for Shropshire in the side though so they were by far the best side in the county at the time so carrying a muppet like me was easy.

 

[harsh.ag]

Judging length has been much tougher than judging line and pace for me.

 

[fredfertang]

At Uni I played once against a bloke who had represented Sri Lanka Under 19s and who, looking him up on cricketarchive this morning, I am surprised to see never played the game at a higher level - anyway he was well out of my league but I did get to bat against him once - he was quite a good mate and told me at the beginning of the over that he wouldn't get me out until the last delivery. He proceeded to bowl me three leg breaks and two googlys. The only aspect of it that does me any credit is that I was able to pick the googlys from the dip of his shoulder, but he spun all five far too much for me to be able to lay a bat on any of them, even the rank hop he slipped in. I wasn't sure what the sixth one was but when I saw it coming dead straight was confident I'd survived the over - turned out to be a top spinner and it bowled me.

 

[watson]

Always wanted to a be Sydney Barnes type bowler and play against the West Indies side of 1984.

Basically Allan Border scores all the runs and I take 42 wickets at 17 runs a piece. Australia wins 3-2. Naturally, I take 8 for 43 on the 5th Day of the 5th Test as Richards' side collapse while chasing 129.

......thus conclusively proving that one medium paced spinner is better than four fast bowlers.

 

[Marius]

I made 31 once against a team with guy who'd played a few games at provincial level. He was very quick - he was short so it was also very skiddy. I only hit one four in that innings and that was a glance off my hip from the provincial bowler.

I do think that was a fluke though, in my entire cricketing career I think I've got past 20 less than ten times.

I used to bowl OK leggies, but I would get hammered against any batsman who actually played regular first team cricket.

If I played 100 Tests I would have a batting average of about two and would be very surprised to take more than 5 wickets.

I think the standard of cricket at Test level is mind boggling.

I also heard that Allan Donald used to bat at number 4 his club team, and he only ever scored one first-class fifty.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

In 100 Tests I would expect to score 15 runs and take 4 wickets.

 

[Burner]

Averaging about 10 wouldn't surely be THAT hard?

 

[mr_mister]

I srsly think we'd all be better against spinners than quicks. It's like, use your feet, get to the pitch of the ball, youll at least snag a run. Even Joey johns got some that way

 

[Dan]

...but what would our stats be if we hopped in a time machine and were dropped into 1929?

 

[Migara]

I have played with or against few quality players, but most of them were settling in cricket or has given up. My university team had Saman Jayantha, Kumar Sangakkara, Jehan Mubarak and Hemanta Boteju, all international players at various times. There were two blokes who played FCC as well.

Saman Jayantha was scary to bowl, because he hits the spinners so hard. some of his sixes don't even get up more than 3 meters. However after some heavy punishment, I bowled him neck and crock with a slider. Jehan was very, very good. He toyed with University team bowling. Only a wild fast bowler on matting troubled him (must have been clocking 140) with some fiery perfume balls, but Kumar had ages to even play that bowler. Jehan never played big shots against my leg breaks (may be because of drift, he's still poor when spinners start drifting it a long way), but just placed my bowling where ever he liked. I bowled off spin to Kumar, and we had an even exchange, and his weakness against arm ball was well exploited. Hemantha was a pretty big hitter, but had some tough time against me, because he was piss poor when ball pitches on his blind spot. Hemantha's bowling was way too quick for most of us, although he was a 125-130k medium fast bowler.

 

[Son Of Coco]

*Piers Morgan

True, but we can always dream.

 

[mr_mister]

I have played with or against few quality players, but most of them were settling in cricket or has given up. My university team had Saman Jayantha, Kumar Sangakkara, Jehan Mubarak and Hemanta Boteju, all international players at various times. There were two blokes who played FCC as well.

Saman Jayantha was scary to bowl, because he hits the spinners so hard. some of his sixes don't even get up more than 3 meters. However after some heavy punishment, I bowled him neck and crock with a slider. Jehan was very, very good. He toyed with University team bowling. Only a wild fast bowler on matting troubled him (must have been clocking 140) with some fiery perfume balls, but Kumar had ages to even play that bowler. Jehan never played big shots against my leg breaks (may be because of drift, he's still poor when spinners start drifting it a long way), but just placed my bowling where ever he liked. I bowled off spin to Kumar, and we had an even exchange, and his weakness against arm ball was well exploited. Hemantha was a pretty big hitter, but had some tough time against me, because he was piss poor when ball pitches on his blind spot. Hemantha's bowling was way too quick for most of us, although he was a 125-130k medium fast bowler.

you played alongside Kumar? badass dude, badass.

 

[Son Of Coco]

Having experienced a game against a few guys who were, or had been, at this level I can confidently say I'd average 4 with the bat and 45 with the ball...although I lasted 1 ball against pace, and didn't pick it up until a split second before it cannoned into middle. Also only got a wicket when a bloke charged me and missed.

Over 100 games I'd expect to average around 0.35 with the bat and 1170 with the ball.

 

[GIMH]

...but what would our stats be if we hopped in a time machine and were dropped into 1929?

Unacceptable posting. Don't drag feuds from other threads here. Final warning or you'll get eight extraction points for ignoring poster instructions.

 

[GIMH]

If I played 100 Tests, let's say batting 11 I could expect to come out to bat 160 times (plucked that number out of the air). I would therefore expect to score 40. Hopefully rack up a few 0* over the years though.

If the captain was stupid enough to bowl me in each match, I reckon I'd get 3 wickets, declaration charge wickets most likely but.

I'd drop all catches and **** up run outs.

But I'd do it all with a smile on my face so CW would love me.

 

[Dan]

If I played 100 Tests, let's say batting 11 I could expect to come out to bat 160 times (plucked that number out of the air). I would therefore expect to score 40. Hopefully rack up a few 0* over the years though.

If the captain was stupid enough to bowl me in each match, I reckon I'd get 3 wickets, declaration charge wickets most likely but.

I'd drop all catches and **** up run outs.

But I'd do it all with a smile on my face so CW would love me.

Sounds a lot like your posting career here, tbh. And we certainly don't love you