Thread: The intruiging case of the Aussie all-rounder
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Old 01-11-2005, 07:58 PM in reply to Ninjaman's post starting "Sometimes you do write some things I..."
Rachael Rachael is online now
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(ENG-captain) Passed Mike Atherton's 7728 Test runs
  
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I'm not suggesting that it's easy to play as Ponting and Lara do.. or that it's easy to score runs. I'm not even suggesting that it's easy to play as Mark Richardson did. I'm not even suggesting that anyone with the sporting credentials to be playing Test cricket can be taught to be more than just a bunny (i.e. useful) with the bat... and that many can be taken a lot further than that.

Take Hoggard as an example: a guy who can now do a wonderful job for his team. He doesn't excercise great judgement when playing outside off stump... the plays the line of the off stump (as Hussain did) and just concentrates on not following the ball (not a great temptation to him as he hardly ever looks to score). Does he have anything to offer to the short ball? No: and nor need he. Again.. he doesn't look at the short ball as a scoring opportunity... doesn't regard the bat as something to be used in self defense.... and is therefore unlikely to EVER get out to a ball that would go more than 6" over the stumps.

IF you packed the top order with players like Hoggard you'd never win anything as they would mostly get just the streaky runs off thick edges. That said... if your tail has a few players like that the top order bats can build decent partnerships and push the score along. It will not happen everywhere.. and if your opposition has a guy sending down reverse-swinging yorkers as Waqar Younis often did at his peak.. it's going to be even less common... but let's get this in perspective - Flintoff bowling at his very best could do absolutely nothing about Brett Lee's batting at Edgbaston... and that's bowling to a guy who bats at 9!

Piling on the runs is tough.. but if Flintoff can become a top 6 bat (he was not EVER a natural like Gower or Mark Waugh: recent success comes through improving his technique and that's been down to nothing but hard work) then the likes of Kamran Akmal, Bravo, Read and many others should be able to do the same.

If McGrath can get a Test 50... most bowlers can also do that. IF Devon Malcolm can score 100 at ANY level... there's hope for number XIs anywhere.