The Ashes 2006/07: The Brisbane Test Thread - Day Five

[Ernest]

Originally Posted by flanflinger

woefully under-prepared for this game, and we have not learnt any of the lessons of the last three tours!!

For once I don't blame Fletcher - I believe the England player insisted on going home after the ICC Trophy, rather than coming to OZ to get some practice in.
The cracks - well Flintoff managed to hit them, the other England bowlers could not.
Can England come back? of course they can - it must be remembered that Australia won the first Test at Lords with McGrath taking 5 wickets then also.

That Australian victory was every bit as impressive as this, England surrendered HOME ADVANTAGE, so what's new.

We did have better bowlers then that's a fact, Simon Jones is missed.

Will harmison come good? - I doubt it very much, if the truth be know he has not played well for some time, and was just as horrible in South Africa, making his stay on for the one dayers was shocking from vaughan and Fletcher, that could not help.
Changes for Adelaide - ll the obvious one is Mahmood for either Harmison or Anderson, I was told before this Gabba match that mahmood would get carted - Like er Anderson/Harmison didn't.
Panesar/Giles does not matterm Giles is more experienced I suppose, but has played little cricket.

Vaughan is hanging arround, if he is so fit, why can't he bat even if that means a runner, failing that we have no batting subs bar Joyce.

[Teatime FatCat]

Hear hear Flanny!

No excuses - England were outplayed and simply were not ready for the game. However, I expect them to put up a better show in the next test. Unfortunately, they are now chasing the series.

The players are to blame, but they have not been helped by the ECB agreeing to a crap schedule with virtually no aclimatisation to the Australian wickets. They have also not been helped by the management - pointless exercise taking Harmy to the champions trophy - leave him at home with his family for 4 weeks and give players like Lewis and Broad the experience for when Harmison is (inevitably) dropped and sent home. Playing Gilo in this test is a backwards step - yes I know he scored runs, but he'll not win us a single test.

I propose a change of plan for the next test. Pick your 4 best bowlers, who will take wickets and possibly win you matches. Then pick 6 batters, at least 2 of whom can bowl 12-20 overs bewteen them in a match to give your main boys a rest. And seeing as Adelaide may spin, make sure one of those batters can turn a ball!

Strauss
Cook
Bell
Joyce
Pieterson
Collingwood
Flintoff*
Jones+
Hoggy
Harmy
Monty

[Ella Wilson]

yesterday,indian cricket team were not perform well as we accepcting, except Rahul and Dhoni. and the result is that south africa won the match.

[Occasional Fan]

Originally Posted by Ernest

Vaughan is hanging arround, if he is so fit, why can't he bat even if that means a runner, failing that we have no batting subs bar Joyce.

Surely you can only have a runner if you are injured during the game. You cannot have one if you start off unable to run.

[flanflinger]

Originally Posted by Notts Exile

Arrogance or incompetence?

The reason seems to be to make the players lives better - staring the tour two weeks earlier and getting two extra games in would mean two more weeks away from family.. But as this leaves us under prepared they may as well not bother going at all!! Also, the families will all be arriving soon, so I just don't get the point.

For me it's incompetence, we know batters need time in the middle and bowlers need overs, and playing two three days games (one not even first class) is not preparation for a Test series (where they play for five days!!). This has to be sorted out and if it isn't then we can expect to continually fail when we tour.

[Maranello]

Originally Posted by flanflinger

The reason seems to be to make the players lives better.

I agree that is the reason, but frankly, that is pure nonsense. If the players miss their families so much, they should change careers. The life of an international cricketer offers a lucrative career, with fame, money and a very early retirement as a well-off individual, things which most of them could not even dream off with their educational qualifications or business skills - the trade-off is that they are on the road a lot. If they can't hack that, they should get a job stacking shelves at their local Tesco's .

PS: Apologies if the above sounds like a draconian 19th century edict. But really - representing your country at cricket should be an honour and a privilege. The national cap bestows so many perks and advantages on the individual, and all it asks in return is commitment. If some players cannot even respect their national caps, and would rather be in Durham eating fish n'chips, then frankly, their attitude and commitment is pathetic. Whether its the fault of the players themselves, or of the coaching set-up and so on, is a different debate.

[Rachael]

Originally Posted by Aussie-Yank

Mike, I am struggling to figure out how you can come to the decision that the pitch was sub-standard?

By Gabba standards this wicket was disappointingly flat... so flat that even balls which deviated (like the ones that got Cook and Pietersen the first innings) were only really a threat to a batsman not using their feet and/or not playing a shot. You could actually argue that the pitch contained too little for the bowlers... especially for the spinners... and that it was not sufficiently result oriented: let's face it... without massive assistance from the batsmen... we'd have seen barely two wickets fall each day!

If one were to criticise the groundsman it would be for taking too much grass off and for letting the pitch dry out too much ahead of day 1: a green tinge and some moisture would have made for a better game... and strikes me as essential on a pitch that is going to be so unrewarding for the slow bowlers.

[Notts Exile]

Originally Posted by Maranello

PS: Apologies if the above sounds like a draconian 19th century edict. But really - representing your country at cricket should be an honour and a privilege. The national cap bestows so many perks and advantages on the individual, and all it asks in return is commitment. If some players cannot even respect their national caps, and would rather be in Durham eating fish n'chips, then frankly, their attitude and commitment is pathetic. Whether its the fault of the players themselves, or of the coaching set-up and so on, is a different debate.

No apology required. I am in complete agreement. There are many of us who would gladly swap places with them for a fraction of the financial benefit. Unfortunately not all of them have the same love for the game as Shane Warne!

[Seamer]

Originally Posted by Mike

I wonder what the ICC will make of this pitch. Some deliveries have either kept low, taken off or deviated sharply from the cracks. Is that a good pitch? I don't think so. The amount of runs has more to do with the short boundaries and quick outfield. I think the pitch is sub-standard and the Ground management ought to be fined. .

I agree totally Mike. Would'nt say anyone should be fined - the stain on Michell Jr's reputation would be punishment enough.
Statistically, with an average of approx 100 runs/2 wickets per session, it was an excellent pitch. But it was a very un-Gabba like pitch and an odd one from Mitchel Jr and in the end could only be considered substandard.
I am only guessing, but i suspect he may have recieved an edict to shave the grass off the wicket to produce as good a batting track as possible. It did'nt work out that way and he should leave the experiments for first class games in future. I have heard stories that the composition of the soil has changed blah, blah, blah but that is absolute rubbish, because all the other first class matches i have watched last season and this season has been on normal Gabba wickets.
If he wants to start producing dry cracked up wickets like the WACA of old, then they should send him off to Perth and get someone in who can prepare a traditional Gabba wicket. Just because the English played silly buggers with their wickets in 2005 does'nt mean we should.

[Mike]

The pitch was a disgrace. It was deliberately made to crack to suit the line and length seamers who could exploit them (McGrath, Clark, Flintoff). Swing bowlers (Hoggard and Anderson) couldn't exploit the cracks when pitching the ball up trying to get swing. It was too flat for Harmy and Lee. It had plenty of rough caused by the bowlers foot marks for Shane Warne to exploit but was not that helpful for the finger-spinners (Giles, Pietersen).

If all the pitches in this series are as flat as that then Harmison and Flintoff will be negated. This series is already shaping up as a bumper one for McGrath and Clark. Those two can apply pressure with their nagging line and length. England will need to find a ground that will encourage reverse swing if they hope to win a match and square the series.