Gideon Haigh SLAMS Justin Langer. Destroys Cricket Australia with logic and facts.

May 5, 2016
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Maxwell's record is not very good - 104 innings, 21 fifties and only 7 hundreds. Finch has already been dropped. None of these blokes are what you would call very good, but replacing them with Maxwell would be just more of the same. Harris and Head were the leading run scorers for Australia this series so are unlikely to be dropped. Even if they were, Maxwell is not a solution, his record does not stand out as a potential test player. We are scrapping the bottom of the barrel already, and Maxxy has had his churn.

It would be just replacing Southwark with Emu Export - neither of them are particularly palatable options.


Career wise his record stands out like dogs balls because out of anyone who has played more than a handful of first class games in Australia, he is one of only two (Burns is the other) I can think of who average over 40.
 
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Maxwell's good for 30-35, is worth at least 20 in the field, and is handy with the ball when conditions suit.

He is an absolute walk up start in the current side based on this.
 

Admiral Byng

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Career wise his record stands out like dogs balls because out of anyone who has played more than a handful of first class games in Australia, he is one of only two (Burns is the other) I can think of who average over 40.

Averaging 40 with only 7 hundreds from 104 innings means lots of getting a start and then getting out in the 20s and 30s. Exactly the opposite of what to look for in a test batsman, you want blokes that can get the big hundreds. Including his test hundred he averages a hundred less than once a year in first class cricket.
 
May 5, 2016
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Averaging 40 with only 7 hundreds from 104 innings means lots of getting a start and then getting out in the 20s and 30s. Exactly the opposite of what to look for in a test batsman, you want blokes that can get the big hundreds. Including his test hundred he averages a hundred less than once a year in first class cricket.


Aside from Renshaw, every other batsman who’s name has been tossed up is basically in the same boat, with the ‘bonus’ that they can’t bowl, and get even less starts than Maxwell, and don’t field as well.
 

corbies

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Career wise his record stands out like dogs balls because out of anyone who has played more than a handful of first class games in Australia, he is one of only two (Burns is the other) I can think of who average over 40.
Patterson does too.
 

TommyD13

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He’d have been my next guess but thought he was a fraction below.

White, Burns, Maxwell and Patterson are all above 40 of those currently out the test side. Thats obviously not including Warner and Smith and also not including Pucovski and Matt Short who have only played 8 and 13 matches respectively which is not a large enough sample size imo. Also interesting to note only Marsh and Khawaja of the current side average above 40 in FC cricket which is pathetic when compared to the whole top 8 of India averaging above 50.
 

archibald

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Averaging 40 with only 7 hundreds from 104 innings means lots of getting a start and then getting out in the 20s and 30s. Exactly the opposite of what to look for in a test batsman, you want blokes that can get the big hundreds. Including his test hundred he averages a hundred less than once a year in first class cricket.

Well there was that particularly obscure justification of his non selection being due to his low % of 30+ plus scores. Although thats non relevant for Shaun Marsh strangely enough.
 

Admiral Byng

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Well there was that particularly obscure justification of his non selection being due to his low % of 30+ plus scores. Although thats non relevant for Shaun Marsh strangely enough.

Just saying "Marsh is a dud" does not make maxwell any better.

Marsh is too old now, should retire and earn a living for the twilight of his career in limited overs cricket.

Maxwell can be a handy limited overs player. bats a bit, bowls a bit, good fielder, has a good eye and can tonk a few boundaries. But he relies on his eye rather than his technique for batting, so long innings are rare. Not suited to long form of the game. At his age he would be best suited to making a living as a touring professional too.
 
May 5, 2016
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White, Burns, Maxwell and Patterson are all above 40 of those currently out the test side. Thats obviously not including Warner and Smith and also not including Pucovski and Matt Short who have only played 8 and 13 matches respectively which is not a large enough sample size imo. Also interesting to note only Marsh and Khawaja of the current side average above 40 in FC cricket which is pathetic when compared to the whole top 8 of India averaging above 50.

Ah yes, white. Who I would have had no problem seeing given more opportunities at times
 
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White, Burns, Maxwell and Patterson are all above 40 of those currently out the test side. Thats obviously not including Warner and Smith and also not including Pucovski and Matt Short who have only played 8 and 13 matches respectively which is not a large enough sample size imo. Also interesting to note only Marsh and Khawaja of the current side average above 40 in FC cricket which is pathetic when compared to the whole top 8 of India averaging above 50.

I don’t think the numbers for India’s batsmen really should be compared to ours. No doubt that there batsmen are better but I think you have to take into consideration the opposition that the Indians face at first class level at home compared to ours. They have well over 30 first class teams in comparison to our 6. A state level batsmen could turn up and face the prospect of having to deal with our first choice test bowling attack (NSW - Starc, Hazelwood, Cummins, Lyon). The Indian batsmen wouldn’t have any chance of facing a test level bowling unit like our first class cricketers do.

No doubt there’s a massive gulf in terms of batting depth between the two countries but with Smith and Warner we win this series.

Even still we need to sit down every batsmen under the age of 30 and ask do you want to prioritise test style cricket or T20.
 

archibald

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Just saying "Marsh is a dud" does not make maxwell any better.

Marsh is too old now, should retire and earn a living for the twilight of his career in limited overs cricket.

Maxwell can be a handy limited overs player. bats a bit, bowls a bit, good fielder, has a good eye and can tonk a few boundaries. But he relies on his eye rather than his technique for batting, so long innings are rare. Not suited to long form of the game. At his age he would be best suited to making a living as a touring professional too.

Didn't say he was a dud, just pointing out the inherent inconsistencies in the messaging which is the point that Haigh and the majority of objective observers are making. Also you cant really say he's 'not suited' to the long form of the game when he has one of the best first class averages around presently & scored a century 4 tests before he was dropped.

They can let the depressingly known quantity of Marsh ride off into the sunset or take a chance on someone who is a potential match winner with a good 4-5 years of quality cricket.
 
May 5, 2016
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I don’t think the numbers for India’s batsmen really should be compared to ours. No doubt that there batsmen are better but I think you have to take into consideration the opposition that the Indians face at first class level at home compared to ours. They have well over 30 first class teams in comparison to our 6. A state level batsmen could turn up and face the prospect of having to deal with our first choice test bowling attack (NSW - Starc, Hazelwood, Cummins, Lyon). The Indian batsmen wouldn’t have any chance of facing a test level bowling unit like our first class cricketers do.

No doubt there’s a massive gulf in terms of batting depth between the two countries but with Smith and Warner we win this series.

Even still we need to sit down every batsmen under the age of 30 and ask do you want to prioritise test style cricket or T20.

Every bit of sense you make is completely undone with that silly notion that ‘with the two missing guys we win.’

No one knows that.

With a spinner in Perth - either of the two who have 5 test hundreds between them and 3 first class triple centuries - maybe India don’t get so badly bollocked. With Rishabh Pant maybe they don’t open most of their innings like an under 8s team.

Edit: Prithvi Shaw.

Four letter surnames confuse dumb people like me
 
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I like how Langer plays favourites in spite of dropping Mitch twice in a handful of matches.
He's only given 2 crap Bushranger players Finchy and Lead Boots a go. Needs to stack nearly half the team with them to show some balance.
 

Admiral Byng

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Didn't say he was a dud, just pointing out the inherent inconsistencies in the messaging which is the point that Haigh and the majority of objective observers are making. Also you cant really say he's 'not suited' to the long form of the game when he has one of the best first class averages around presently & scored a century 4 tests before he was dropped.

They can let the depressingly known quantity of Marsh ride off into the sunset or take a chance on someone who is a potential match winner with a good 4-5 years of quality cricket.

Maxwell is not the potential match winner you are looking for. Even Jake Lehmann has better figures in the Shield this season.

He is not in the top 10 batsmen this Shield season.
Maxwell: 2 matches, 4 innings, 126 runs at 42.00 with HS of 57. 0 hundreds, 1 fifty.
S Marsh: 3 matches, 6 innings, 443 runs at 88.60 with HS of 163*, 1 hundred, 3 fifties.

At least S Marsh was in the top 10 in the Shield for the early part of the summer, so were Harris and Handscombe. Given how badly they have struggled against India I doubt Maxwell could do any better starting off on worse form. The level in quality between a Shield attack and top shelf test attack is so great that anyone even slightly off will be found out.
 
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Maxwell is not the potential match winner you are looking for. Even Jake Lehmann has better figures in the Shield this season.

He is not in the top 10 batsmen this Shield season.
Maxwell: 2 matches, 4 innings, 126 runs at 42.00 with HS of 57. 0 hundreds, 1 fifty.
S Marsh: 3 matches, 6 innings, 443 runs at 88.60 with HS of 163*, 1 hundred, 3 fifties.

At least S Marsh was in the top 10 in the Shield for the early part of the summer, so were Harris and Handscombe. Given how badly they have struggled against India I doubt Maxwell could do any better starting off on worse form. The level in quality between a Shield attack and top shelf test attack is so great that anyone even slightly off will be found out.

Are you an accountant, because that's some creative bookwork right there.
 

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No doubt that there batsmen are better but I think you have to take into consideration the opposition that the Indians face at first class level at home compared to ours. They have well over 30 first class teams in comparison to our 6. A state level batsmen could turn up and face the prospect of having to deal with our first choice test bowling attack (NSW - Starc, Hazelwood, Cummins, Lyon). The Indian batsmen wouldn’t have any chance of facing a test level bowling unit like our first class

You do realise their first class sides are split into divisions dont you?
 
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I got it from Cricinfo, didn't make any of it up.


I was more referring to your selectivity.

Maxwell is a better option than 4 blokes that HAVE played test cricket this summer.

I'm not claiming he's ideal, I'm just claiming he IS better than some who have played.
 
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