Where is the depth?
February 16th 2007 09:25
There was a lot of talk about the "depth" of the talent of the cricketing talent in Australia. I didn't see that depth today against New Zealand today. The team that is playing right now in New Zealand is an Australian team, not a modern day all dominating Australian team but one to rival the team of the mid to late eighties. I have issues with this new team and some of the players in and around it.
I am sincere when I say that I don't know how Andrew "The Happy Hooker" Hilditch got to be chairman of selectors. He was a sucker as an opening batsman and he seems to be an even bigger sucker as a selector. Here are my selectors choices.
Ricky Ponting needs to stop the practise of having his best mates in the team when they either aren't performing or don't deserve to be there to begin with.
The continued selection of Brad Hodge is as mystifying as it is stupid. Yes he made a ninety nine not out to guide Australia to a win. That doesn't make him a top flight batsman. Besides that score of 99* he has done very little. Out of the five or six matches he has played he hasn't made a score above 20 and yet he's still there! What are the selectors waiting on?
Every player that has ever played for Australia has to be replaced at one time or another and no player is indispensible. Thats accepted as a hard and fast rule. I have real trouble comprehending why Gilchrist and McGrath were selected to go to the world cup. I can't see it being based on performance alone. Both have looked flat and tired throughout the summer. Gilchrist made two scores above fifty in the one day series in ten games and McGrath just seems to have lost his fire. I wouldn't take either.
What can I say about Shaun Tait? Quick? Very. Wayward? As much as he is quick. I'm not sure I'd take such a bowler to such an important one day tournament as the world cup. I think that Stuart Clarke is a better option. At least he has line and length. Hilditch says Tait's a match winner. That for me is like Mr Hilditch promising me that he's not going to play the hook shot when he's out in the middle. I have to see it to believe it.
In todays match I saw nobody in the Australian team that impressed me. I watched Shane Watson bowl and thought to myself "Is this the guy that everybody was pushing so hard to get into the test team?" For what? The bowling from the one day series had serious problems at the end of an innings keeping down the opposition runs and yet it continues. I find it hard to see Australia lifting the world cup with this bowling attack on West Indian pitches without help from Brett Lee. I hate to say it but no Brett Lee equals no world cup finals berth.
I absolutely disagree with taking an unfit Andrew Symonds when he may or may not be fit in time for the final rounds. If he isn't fit and ready in time then he is just taking up space that could have well been taken by someone who could have played. He also runs the danger of completely ruining his arm. I'm not sure thats something that anybody wants to live with if it happens.
Who is at the reigns of Cricket Australia? Australia right now on a slippery slope right back to the good old days of the 1980's. It wasn't what AB and Simmo planned for when they started to build from the ground up.
Australia based on their performance today was instructive in that wiithout the core players of Ponting and Lee (and if Gilchrist is out of form) then I find it hard to see Australia winning any series (tests or ODI's) let alone the world cup for the third straight time.
I am sincere when I say that I don't know how Andrew "The Happy Hooker" Hilditch got to be chairman of selectors. He was a sucker as an opening batsman and he seems to be an even bigger sucker as a selector. Here are my selectors choices.
Ricky Ponting needs to stop the practise of having his best mates in the team when they either aren't performing or don't deserve to be there to begin with.
The continued selection of Brad Hodge is as mystifying as it is stupid. Yes he made a ninety nine not out to guide Australia to a win. That doesn't make him a top flight batsman. Besides that score of 99* he has done very little. Out of the five or six matches he has played he hasn't made a score above 20 and yet he's still there! What are the selectors waiting on?
Every player that has ever played for Australia has to be replaced at one time or another and no player is indispensible. Thats accepted as a hard and fast rule. I have real trouble comprehending why Gilchrist and McGrath were selected to go to the world cup. I can't see it being based on performance alone. Both have looked flat and tired throughout the summer. Gilchrist made two scores above fifty in the one day series in ten games and McGrath just seems to have lost his fire. I wouldn't take either.
What can I say about Shaun Tait? Quick? Very. Wayward? As much as he is quick. I'm not sure I'd take such a bowler to such an important one day tournament as the world cup. I think that Stuart Clarke is a better option. At least he has line and length. Hilditch says Tait's a match winner. That for me is like Mr Hilditch promising me that he's not going to play the hook shot when he's out in the middle. I have to see it to believe it.
In todays match I saw nobody in the Australian team that impressed me. I watched Shane Watson bowl and thought to myself "Is this the guy that everybody was pushing so hard to get into the test team?" For what? The bowling from the one day series had serious problems at the end of an innings keeping down the opposition runs and yet it continues. I find it hard to see Australia lifting the world cup with this bowling attack on West Indian pitches without help from Brett Lee. I hate to say it but no Brett Lee equals no world cup finals berth.
I absolutely disagree with taking an unfit Andrew Symonds when he may or may not be fit in time for the final rounds. If he isn't fit and ready in time then he is just taking up space that could have well been taken by someone who could have played. He also runs the danger of completely ruining his arm. I'm not sure thats something that anybody wants to live with if it happens.
Who is at the reigns of Cricket Australia? Australia right now on a slippery slope right back to the good old days of the 1980's. It wasn't what AB and Simmo planned for when they started to build from the ground up.
Australia based on their performance today was instructive in that wiithout the core players of Ponting and Lee (and if Gilchrist is out of form) then I find it hard to see Australia winning any series (tests or ODI's) let alone the world cup for the third straight time.
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