Test AUSTRALIA v SOUTH AFRICA Second Test. Dec 26-30, MCG, Melbourne. 10.30am AEDT.

[Seedsfan]

Right so we don’t refer to Afrikaaners as Afrikaaners anymore then. We just call them Africans and then have to have a back and forth as to which members of the South African racial tapestry they belong to because you’re too deliberately upset about something that you know wasn’t a racially biased comment.

Good to know.

Don’t call people Cape Coloured as that could be a reference to anyone from Cape Town who doesn’t identify as white.

That’s how moronic you sound.

Champ cape colours are descended from the Khoisan people who are native to the African continent. So to say that they aren’t African is ridiculous.

Afrikaners a merely Europeans who came sometime in the 1600’s.

 

[danstar]

So there's basically one side in world cricket who competes with us in Australia now that South Africa don't, test cricket will be a mess in the future. People joke about only the big 3 nations touring each other, but I can honestly see it happening. Lesser nations will continue to lose players to franchise cricket, as being a long format player becomes less appealing when you can get paid more elsewhere. Windies and Pakistan next summer, another summer whitewash coming up. Pretty sad tbh, good for Australia though.

Test cricket will always be the superior form of cricket. They will find a way to lift players wages to meet the franchise model and then normal service will resume.

 

[Gavin Excell]

Test cricket will always be the superior form of cricket. They will find a way to lift players wages to meet the franchise model and then normal service will resume.

There are very few teams that can compete Test level
Sad what it's become which is largely non competitive

 

[Santana]

There are very few teams that can compete Test level
Sad what it's become which is largely non competitive

That has always been the case.......

 

[frankrizzo]

Sad what it's become

Home teams have always dominated though, even when aussies were shithouse in the 1980's it was still only england and windies(both clearly superior teams then) that beat us at home.

When people are wistfully recalling this era where all sides were apparently even and everybody was competitive away from home can i ask them what era they are actually talking about? 1980's? 1970's? 1990?

 

[Santana]

Home teams have always dominated though, even when aussies were shithouse in the 1980's it was still only england and windies(both clearly superior teams then) that beat us at home

Point still stands but NZ did once too

Don't get you know who started by missing that

 

[frankrizzo]

Point still stands but NZ did once too

Don't get you know who started by missing that

Oops forgot that one, god we really were s**t in the mid 80's.

 

[PhatBoy]

Champ cape colours are descended from the Khoisan people who are native to the African continent. So to say that they aren’t African is ridiculous.

Afrikaners a merely Europeans who came sometime in the 1600’s.

Oh I’ve been champed now. Oh well I guess I’m a little out of my league because someone can read a Wikipedia page and regurgitate a line people use when they don’t know what else to say.

What makes Afrikaners of today any less African.

Seems like a double standard to me just because you have a bee in your bonnet that someone doesn’t agree with you about a vaguely related issue.

I’m talking about black African people such as Kagiso Rabada who are not defined as ‘cape coloured.’ Happy ‘champ’?

 

[PhatBoy]

There are very few teams that can compete Test level
Sad what it's become which is largely non competitive

Is that true?

NZ: have been largely competitive with most opposition for the last 3-4 years.
SA: same despite what’s happening at the moment.
England: always strong at home and more recently beating Pakistan away
SL: still hard to beat at home, won a series in SA two years ago
Pakistan: never know what you’ll get and struggle on the road but rarely are they relentlessly bad
Bangladesh: just won their first test outside Asia last summer against NZ and were a bee’s proverbial from beating India last weekend. Took tests of Australia and England in their last home series against them.
India: strong everywhere at the moment.
Australia: very strong at home, getting better on the road. Their reluctance to go to some countries is odd but they’re good.
West Indies: have won tests in the UAE last time they went (a while ago now), in England last time they were there, have beaten England at home in a series this year, drawn with Pakistan and SL at home last 4 times they’ve played them, easily beat Bangladesh in WI last time they hosted them and washed them 2-0 away last time they went there.

As far as regularly getting good close competitive games goes I would agree that there is a shortage of them recently: most draws are as much a result of benign conditions as they are sides being evenly matched. But as far as each team having regular enough good results goes, test cricket is quite competitive at the moment.

 

[Richard Pryor]

I'm not sure how much Cricket South Africa are doing to develop talented young black cricketers there but I know that Rabada came from quite a privileged background with his dad being a doctor and going to one of the best schools there. They didn't just pluck him out of the Soweto slums.

I don't know much about Bavuma or Ngidi's backgrounds but I suspect it might be similar with them.

Mfuneko Ngam from the early 2000's is sadly a player who is pretty representative of the issues in SA. Had a decent run but was crippled by stress fractures brought on by malnutrition in his youth.

 

[Seedsfan]

Oh I’ve been champed now. Oh well I guess I’m a little out of my league because someone can read a Wikipedia page and regurgitate a line people use when they don’t know what else to say.

What makes Afrikaners of today any less African.

Seems like a double standard to me just because you have a bee in your bonnet that someone doesn’t agree with you about a vaguely related issue.

I’m talking about black African people such as Kagiso Rabada who are not defined as ‘cape coloured.’ Happy ‘champ’?

You have NFI. You got it wrong now it’s time to move on.

 

[PhatBoy]

You have NFI. You got it wrong now it’s time to move on.

Lol. Ok mate. I got it wrong about what I meant. That’s an interesting notion.

 

[Seedsfan]

Lol. Ok mate. I got it wrong about what I meant. That’s an interesting notion.

You’re clueless. You’re just embarrassing yourself now. Especially trying to compare Cape Coloureds to Afrikaners when one are decedents from natives the other migrants.

 

[Gethelred]

I don’t really get what playing an extra spinner on what is usually not a spin friendly wicket in Sydney, against inferior opposition does to help us prepare for the India tour.

Doesn’t a win in Sydney put us in the WTC final regardless of what happens in India? Surely that is the priority.

Lets the new spinner get their debut/return out of the way and the pressure off some before they go to another country. Hopefully gets them a few cheap wickets in a dead rubber before the real stuff.

It's the bowling equivalent to Cam Green's 50 in the Boxing Day test; pressure right off, bowling tired and exhausted, partner at the other end in excellent knick and rotating the strike and team run rate at 4+ an over so there's no run pressure, but still test runs and confidence that you fit in and can do it.

SA will lose wickets to any spinner at a reasonable level because their batters go out pretty reliably. If the surface turns, that gets magnified. They get wickets, they get form, they go to India with some form under their belt and confidence to boot.

 

[Gethelred]

Is that true?

NZ: have been largely competitive with most opposition for the last 3-4 years.
SA: same despite what’s happening at the moment.
England: always strong at home and more recently beating Pakistan away
SL: still hard to beat at home, won a series in SA two years ago
Pakistan: never know what you’ll get and struggle on the road but rarely are they relentlessly bad
Bangladesh: just won their first test outside Asia last summer against NZ and were a bee’s proverbial from beating India last weekend. Took tests of Australia and England in their last home series against them.
India: strong everywhere at the moment.
Australia: very strong at home, getting better on the road. Their reluctance to go to some countries is odd but they’re good.
West Indies: have won tests in the UAE last time they went (a while ago now), in England last time they were there, have beaten England at home in a series this year, drawn with Pakistan and SL at home last 4 times they’ve played them, easily beat Bangladesh in WI last time they hosted them and washed them 2-0 away last time they went there.

As far as regularly getting good close competitive games goes I would agree that there is a shortage of them recently: most draws are as much a result of benign conditions as they are sides being evenly matched. But as far as each team having regular enough good results goes, test cricket is quite competitive at the moment.

No it isn't but Australian cricket fans only enjoy cricket through whinging about it.

It's why the proof that test cricket isn't dying in this country is every voiced or written opinion that test cricket is dying.

Outrage when we lose, 'test cricket is dying'/'They didn't pick my bloke'/'I hate the coach'/'poor over rates'/'I hate reverse sweeps' when we win. It's why the Cricketing stuff that annoys me thread will never run dry; we are a Pandora's box of discontentment on this sunbaked little isle.

 

[99 Problems]

Lets the new spinner get their debut/return out of the way and the pressure off some before they go to another country. Hopefully gets them a few cheap wickets in a dead rubber before the real stuff.

It's the bowling equivalent to Cam Green's 50 in the Boxing Day test; pressure right off, bowling tired and exhausted, partner at the other end in excellent knick and rotating the strike and team run rate at 4+ an over so there's no run pressure, but still test runs and confidence that you fit in and can do it.

SA will lose wickets to any spinner at a reasonable level because their batters go out pretty reliably. If the surface turns, that gets magnified. They get wickets, they get form, they go to India with some form under their belt and confidence to boot.

The flip side is if they don’t perform they go in with no confidence, and possibly even with pressure on their spot in the team before the series starts. Given that there’s no cricket between now and the tour, and that they’ve gone with an experienced player, you’d have to assume Agar is in the team for the first test already.

 

[Freo Big Fella]

Match thread: "bUt WhY iSn'T hE bATtInG fAStEr!1?!?!"

 

[PhatBoy]

You’re clueless. You’re just embarrassing yourself now. Especially trying to compare Cape Coloureds to Afrikaners when one are decedents from natives the other migrants.

Im not comparing them.

I was comparing the status within cricket of the kind of coloured Africans with whom Kagiso Rabada shares genetic history (it’s the only way I could think to say it without you getting menstrual) to the West Indians’ status when Frank Worrell took over you imbecile.

 

[Seedsfan]

Im not comparing them.

I was comparing the status within cricket of the kind of coloured Africans with whom Kagiso Rabada shares genetic history (it’s the only way I could think to say it without you getting menstrual) to the West Indians’ status when Frank Worrell took over you imbecile.

Mate you are often very knowledgeable when it comes to cricket and I appreciate the insight you do provide. Let’s agree to disagree and can’t be ****ed. Happy new year’s

 

[revo333]

Only reason Agar is picked is to potentially bat at 7. In India when Green is back and we have our normal top 7, you'd assume they'd pick Cummins and Lyon + best quick and spinner which I think would be Murphy. Only reason Agar is picked is for batting depth if he plays, because Cummins isn't a #7

And he is a left armer who turns the ball away so they might use this test as a warm up incase he is needed in India.

 

[LukeParkerno1]

And he is a left armer who turns the ball away so they might use this test as a warm up incase he is needed in India.

Turns the ball is generous for sure. Bowls flat darts that do work in Indian conditions

 

[PhatBoy]

Mate you are often very knowledgeable when it comes to cricket and I appreciate the insight you do provide. Let’s agree to disagree and can’t be ****ed. Happy new year’s

Fair enough. Take care mate.

 

[HODGEYROAD]

What a complete performance with bat and ball that was by Australia.

Now hold the trophy vs everyone in world cricket bar India.

 

[Pollywaffle]

Test cricket will always be the superior form of cricket. They will find a way to lift players wages to meet the franchise model and then normal service will resume.

Difficult as long as IPL so dominant and crowds, TV etc are drawn to the shorter ‘throw away’ formats. Those of us who existed in the 80’s and 90’s probably experienced a golden time for cricket that will never be repeated.

 

[Blue1980]

Oops forgot that one, god we really were s**t in the mid 80's.

85-86 was when the side was at its worst, India probably should of beaten us in the test series here too.

There was incremental improvement from there until 89 (87 World Cup win was a sign of things to come, but improvement didn’t really translate to tests until 89)