Strauss Dropped

[flanflinger]

Originally Posted by Ernest

True also taking into account Harmison's dislike of touring,

Harmison does not like long drawn out tours, this type of three match tour probably suits him down to the ground. For a guy who does not like being away from home, this year he is spending time before the tour away from home to get fit and ready. For me that is the commitment we have not see before from him.

I also concur with Rachael, one spinner and we will lose the series. Two and I feel we take the attacking edge. But there is no way that the two seamers should be Sidebottom and Hoggard. If we go for two seamers we need the pace and bounce of Harmison, with the swing of Sidebottom or Hoggard. Personally I would opt for Hoggard in that case.

[engssmoothcriminal]

Originally Posted by Rachael

Look at the last last time Australia toured Sri Lanka:

1st Sri Lankan innings: 136 overs.... but the seamers contribute just 51 overs and 3 wickets.

2nd Sri Lankan innings: 45 overs... but seamers contribute just 14 overs and 1 wicket.

3rd Sri Lankan innings: 63 overs... kasrowicz masterclass means seamers contribute 36 overs and 5 wickets

4th Sri Lankan innings: 73 overs... but the seamers contribute just 37 overs (though 5 wickets)

5th Sri Lankan innings: 127 overs... but the THREE seamers contribute just 64 overs and 5 wickets

6th Sri Lankan innings: 94 overs... but the THREE seamers contribute just 40 overs and 3 wickets.

Note: in the first innings of the 3rd Test, occasional spin accounted for more overs than were contributed by any frontline seamer; in the second innings of that Test... the third seamer contributed 5 overs (and produced no wickets)... whereas an occasional spinner contributed 17 overs (and 3 wickets).

Bottom line: a passable spinner is worth more than even a good seamer on most Sri Lankan wickets....and both Swann and Panesar are more than just "passable".

This would be the 2004 Australian tour of Sri Lanka? Hardly the most relevant recent example and a hell of a lot has changed since then namely Sri Lanka unearthing a high quality pace attack which I suspect will have considerable baring on the pitch preparation. In the series you mentioned Sri Lanka put all their eggs in a Murali shaped basket and served up some substandard tracks that were turning square from day 1 even from second rate twirlers like Dharmasena who in fact opened the bowling with Vaas in the first test as they went in with 3 spinners. Australia didn't win the series on the back of second spinner MacGill who made minimal contributions with the ball but because of some truly outstanding batting (particularly by the unsung duo Lehman and Martyn) against Murali which allowed them to pick off the dross served up by the token spinners at the other end. Had McGrath been fit and played instead of MacGill they would have won far more comfortably particularly in the close 2nd test when MacGill contributed the mammoth sum of 17 ineffectual overs.

Bottom line: a passable spinner will get caned by world class players of spin whatever the surface.....Swann may spin the ball further than Batty and Udal but he's sadly for all his recent ODI exploits very much in the same class of bowler and let's not forget Monty is still very much an unproven commodity away from home.

[Rachael]

Originally Posted by flanflinger

I also concur with Rachael, one spinner and we will lose the series. Two and I feel we take the attacking edge.

To my mind the seamers should just be present to take the new ball, to take advantages if (as occasionally happens in Sri Lanka) the new ball will swing and to bowl a couple of tight overs at the start of each session / when a new batsman is at the crease / in the interests of mixing things up a little.

The games should hinge on long spells of Swann and Panesar in tandem: that's a good pairing and on Sri Lankan wickets they should exert a level of pressure that no recent England seam bowling pairing (not even Flintoff and Harmison) could match.

[Maranello]

I think you should also look at more recent precedent Rachael.

Pakistan won a two Test series in Sri Lanka in 2006, thanks mainly to M.Asif. The first Test was a draw where Murali et al were unable to make much headway even on a fifth day pitch. Asif took eleven wickets in the second Test (in 35 overs), whilst Kaneria, Muralitharan and Bandara managed 9 between the three of them, in 55 overs. Pakistan didn't use Kaneria at all in the second innings, whilst Bandara managed two overs in the whole match!