With just a couple of days to go before the start of the series, I thought I’d start a thread about it. The last series between these sides was merely great. The series before that in India was jaw-dropping. This one should hit those heights again.
I visited India directly from the Test at the MCG in the last series. Telling people I’d been at the match on the second afternoon before going to the airport was an extraordinary “in” to talking to Indian people whilst standing outside a coffee shop watching the ODIs. This respectful rivalry has established itself amazingly quickly. It’s more than a few close matches and Indians loving Steve Waugh and Australians loving VVS Laxman and Sachin - although seeing tears come to a Calcuttan’s eyes talking about the former Australian captain on a train journey was quite something.
I’m so looking forward to this series. There are so many interesting tests aside from who will win.
Last time Dravid’s reputation against the best was made. Can he go on and be the best classical batsman in living memory?
The Turbanator: was the last series in India a freak? Could he be even more effective with quality support?
Warney: he’s a drug cheat in the twilight of his career. He’s never performed against the best players of spin - right back to Ravi Shastri - or in the spinners’ supposed paradise. Yeah, there have always kind of been reasons. Despite eveything, I reckon he knows he needs vindication.
McGrath - how can people think he’s finished?
Partiv et al - why can’t you have an all left arm fast/medium attack?
Kaspar v Lee: Is Lee just a two-length show-pony or can he actually bowl? I know who I’d prefer bowling to a set Rahul Dravid after tea - and he hasn’t got a signature series of watches.
Yuhrav - the best batsman outside Test cricket gets his chance to show he’s serious. People say he’s a Tendulkar-lite - to me he looks more like Viv.
Lehmann - my pick for player of the series. A fine player of spin, well seasoned.
So many stories to follow. Shame I’ve got to go work some hours.
I am fairly ingnorant of the physical requirements of professional cricket, but I must confess that when you think of “drug cheats” cricket does not readily come to mind. Cricket (from what I have seen of it on TV) seems like a game where nimble reflexes are going to be more important than explosive power and muscle mass.
Regarding the series, I think India’s batting will struggle. Sehwag is in woeful form (and should be dropped), Tendulkar hasn’t played for several months through injury, and Laxman’s form appears to have tailed off a bit too. Dravid has great technique and application, while Ganguly can’t be discounted. Bowling-wise, I think Australia (Gillespie, McGrath, Kasprowich, Warne, Lehmann and co) hold the edge too.
What you say about India’s batting, roger thornhill, makes a lot of sense in terms of form. But there’s so much class in India’s batting. It’ll be interesting to see whether Sewag can fight his way out of a bad patch, but Dravid, Laxman and Ganguly will surely find a way, particularly if Chopra can see off the new ball.
The pitch - having been scoured with steel brushes! - will be very Kumble-friendly. That’s a big adjustment for the Australians, and Anil will be keen to show he can compete with the best. If Australia have to bat last it will be very tough.
I think Australia will win this time, but I think and hope it will be another great series.
India might be in trouble in this series, if the first day’s play is anything to go by. Harbhajan and Kumble bowled 52 overs together on the first day, but even on the scoured pitch they could only muster four wickets for 191 runs between them. Surely the pitch will get worse as the match progresses, and Kumble and Harby will have better results, but that might not be enough to save India here. I can’t see them winning this match batting last.
Clarke looks like a genuine find. He played the spinners aggressively and very well. If Australia are savvy they will keep him in the side throughout the series.
I thought this series would be very close too, but now I’d be putting money on Australia taking it 2-0 or 3-0.
I’m sure that Clarke will retain his belated place in the test side but the Australian selectors are hardly savvy. As backup to Warne they have taken two non-entities who will play no part while ignoring the second best spinner in Australia. I think Lehmann is the least deserving player to be selected for Australia for many years and I am confident that Martyn will fail far more often than he succeeds. It seems to me that over the last 18 months or so the selectors heve decided to follow arcane philosophies that are too clever by half, and have ignored the claims of obvious candidates (such as Clarke) while playing their own games.
Warne’s record in India is no surprise even Muralitharan has a bowling average over 40 in India. For this reason I think India even without Tendulkar will not lose the series. I think the current test will develop into a very tedious draw as the pitch will hold together for days.
Taking the two spinners for the experience, when there are hardly any warm-up games played these days, is odd. Who would you have in the middle order in place of Lehmann (and Martin), given that Ponting is out for the time being. What specifically are the arcane selectorial philosophies that you refer to? And who for that matter are the current Aussie selectors?
I stand by an Aussie win - batting first is important. But they will need to score quickly from hereon in to give Warne and co. enough time to bowl India out twice.
All going to plan for the Strines so far. At the end of day 2 in the first Test, it’s Australia 474, India 150/6.
The wisdom of Gilchrist coming in at 7 is once again proved. India’s two best bats are removed by great balls from the two players most responsible fro Australia’s dominance in recent years. McGrath’s offcutter (which got Dravid) is a - perversely - a great weapon because he bowls it so infrequently. Warne’s bowling of VVS Laxman will be savoured - to get a good player bowled when set with a leg break harks back to the fat boy in his pomp. Kasprowicz’s effectiveness surely condemns Lee to a spell as drinks waiter.
roger, Hohns and Border (and IIRC, Geoff Marsh) are the selectors. The selection of Hauritz and White above MacGill can only mean that they only mean to play one spinner and that the lads are along for the experience of ordering 20 veg thalis, a bucket of beans and a slab of Kingfisher every night.
I’ve raised the odd eyebrow at selectorial decisions for a long time. Why isn’t Love in the party? Is Hodge - despite a great last couple of seasons - really in play? Why go back to Elliot for a single Test? In Sri Lanka, why play Symonds in place of Katich - instead of telling him to practice his offies for a few years?
But it’s hard to criticise their methods, since we’re the most dominant team since Clive Lloyd’s West Indies of the 1980s.
Not even stumps on the fourth day and it’s all over bar the shouting, with India 91-6. Australia have only needed the four frontline bowlers they went in with, while India’s batting one-day woes transfer to the Test arena. Sehwag needs to be rested before he loses all confidence, while Laxman’s brittle confidence may be further exploited by the Aussies with their tails up.
For Australia, Lehmann’s place must be under the microscope, even if Ponting is unable to resume for the second Test.
We whomped in the first Test in 2001 too. It’s far from over.
My suggestion that Lehmann is going to star isn’t looking too hot. He’ll be struggling to keep his spot.
Gilchrist should not be allowed anywhere near the captaincy. His bowling of Warne in pursuit of the record was very foolish. India will take considerable heart from the last day. You’ve got kick sides when they’re down. If Warne had been bowled in short spells he would have come out of this Test as the guy who got Laxman twice. As it is, he’s the tired guy whose personal milestones (and tiresome rivalry with Murali) were put ahead of the team both on the day and in the series, and who got tonked around by the tail.
CricInfo is now reporting that Tendulkar may miss the entire series. Actually, considering how anxious the BCCI is to keep the news of his injury quiet, it’s likely he will miss the next three Tests. Bad news for India, which looked about one great batsman short of saving the first match. Looks like I’ll stick with my prediction of 2-0 or 3-0 to Australia then.
No struggling at all it seems, he’s volunteered to surrender it in favour of Clarke once Ponting is fit again. What a guy.
Australia 0/111 at lunch (and glad they’re not English!), scoring at 4.44 runs per over. Whew. Early days yet, but you couldn’t ask for a better start.
Things changed just a bit after lunch. Harbhajan got Hayden to loft across the line and had him caught at long off. Then he Langer caught at slip. Then Kumble took the next seven wickets to dismiss Australia for just 235.
And at lunch, the series had looked as good as over.
India is 1/28 at stumps, with Warne equalling Murali’s tally with a big turner to Yuvraj, well caught by Gilchrist.
Once again, two Aussies walked - Kasprowicz after being given not out. I’m not sure about this trend. On the one hand, I’m glad to see someone showing they care about the game. On the other, I’m concerned that if Gilchrist appears to nick one and doesn’t walk, he’ll now be labelled a cheat.
I have to admit, I didn’t see that coming…but it looks like the pitch is a minefield. Ten wickets falling to spinners on the first day, with the eleventh a McGrath run-out? This one could be over in less than three days, and 235 might actually be a winning total.
I thought the Aussies’ motto re umpires was ‘You do your job. We’ll do ours’. I’m a qualified umpire, and very few top eight batsmen in Hong Kong Leagues walk, Aussies, Pakistanis and Brits included.
Maybe the Aussies are just getting bored with winning so easily so they are handicapping themselves by walking on close calls… although India is the one place where they sould revise the policy.