Sport The Hangar Cricket Thread IV

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Despair

Club Legend
Jul 5, 2013
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(Quotes from Jan 2015)

Hey eth-dog, have you been enjoying watching Mitchell Marsh flap around like Magikarp at the crease?

18 innings, 0 100s, 1 50 - average: 23.68

My favorite part was where you suggested he has a better technique than Watson lmao

Heh. He's still better than Watson mate.

Update:

29 innings, 0 100s, 2 50s - average: 24.00

He's on the rise eth, gee you might have been on to something.
 
Dec 14, 2008
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MICHAEL Clarke has spoken publicly for the first time on his infamous dressing room bust-up with Simon Katich after the Sydney Test of 2009 — and has admitted his share of blame.

In an interview with 60 Minutes, Clarke said his choice of words were a contributing factor to the altercation which led to Katich grabbing his younger teammate by the throat.

“I think a lot of us were getting wound up,” Clarke said. “So I think I had every reason to be pissed off. But I don’t think my language was appropriate to Kato.”

Katich has long held the belief his axing from the Test team coincided with Clarke’s ascension to the captaincy.

The row began after Australia had beaten South Africa at the SCG in 2009. Clarke wanted the team song to be sung so he could leave to attend a function.

As the official leader of Australia’s victory song, ‘Under the Southern Cross I Stand’, Katich believed Clarke shouldn’t have left until the tune had been sung.

Katich expanded on the issue during a commentary stint on ABC Grandstand last year.

“There was a little bit of a rush that night to go onto the next venue,” he said at the time.

“Michael Hussey was particularly keen to stay in the dressing rooms, Matty Hayden was sitting down there in what turned out to be his last Test match. He wanted to savour the moment in those SCG dressing rooms.

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Michael Clarke on 60 Minutes last night.Source: The Daily Telegraph

“As we all know there was a little bit of a disagreement in terms of when that timing should be, as a result of that I got a little bit ... it bugged me.”

Clarke admitted Hayden was angry over the incident.

“It turned out, I found out four days later, that Matthew Hayden was going to retire after that Test match,” Clarke told 60 Minutes.

“So I think Haydos was pissed off as well that that happened in his last Test.”

In a wide ranging interview, Clarke addressed several controversies that erupted during his captaincy, including one with his then-vice captain Shane Watson.

It was reported during the 2013 Ashes tour that former Australian coach Mickey Arthur alleged Clarke had described Watson as “a cancer on the team”.

That remark was supposedly made during Australia’s tour of India in 2012, when Watson was among four players stood down during the “Homeworkgate” saga.

Arthur’s claim emerged from leaked court documents, however Clarke denied ever directly calling Watson “a cancer”.

“I said that there is a number of players, a group in this team at the moment, that are like a tumour and if we don’t fix it, it’s going to turn into a cancer.

“Shane was one of those players, yes.”

Clarke added: “I know (the team) respected me as their captain. I know they believed in the calls I made and they knew I would put that team in front of any personal relationship.

“I would like both (to be liked and respected), but I care about one.”

Clarke addressed his feud with Cricket Australia in the days before the death of Phillip Hughes and his emotions heading into the Adelaide Test.

“Two weeks earlier they wouldn’t pick me in the Test match when I was fitter than what I was come the Adelaide Test,” he said.

“A week and a half on I lose my best mate and they beg me to play in that Test match. So I was burning inside because of that.”

Clarke was a tower of strength for his teammates at the time, but admitted cricket was never the same for him after the tragic accident at the SCG that claimed his friend’s life.

Michael Clarke says it was always hard to play cricket after the loss of his friend and Australian teammate Phillip HughesSource: Getty Images

“I guess I probably tried to tell myself that there was a chance he’d be OK,” an emotional Clarke said.
“But I think I knew there wasn’t.

“I spent the whole night talking to him. That breaks my heart the most.
“It was always hard to play cricket after that. I felt fear for the first time in my life when I played cricket.”

Clarke’s wife Kyly said: “I personally saw a change in him after that happened. Once Michael went back on tour I don’t feel like he was ever the same.”

Clarke, who went onto lead Australia on 47 occasions, also said that he wasn’t a good captain under predecessor, Ricky Ponting, and that early on his career he didn’t dream of leading his country.

“I don’t think I was a good vice-captain at all,” he said.

“As soon as I got given the vice-captaincy, I think the perception was I was automatically the next captain and that built ...

“I think he (Ponting) feels that I let him down. I think if I performed well, I was happy. If I performed badly, I was shattered.

“Not at all. I never dreamt of captaining Australia. I couldn’t care less if I captained Australia early on. It made no difference. I was really happy with where I was; I had my own goals.”



then Katto Replies...

Simon Katich has refuted Michael Clarke's claims the two have a healthy, friendly relationship after the pair's well-documented dispute in 2009.

In a new autobiography and a number of promotional interviews, Clarke has opened up on his and Katich's spat, which reached a climax with a physical altercation in the SCG changing rooms in January, 2009.

Clarke had claimed the pair had put their issues behind them and had met on occasion for coffee, but while commentating for ABC Grandstand, Katich set the record straight.
"I think that's a bit of a stretch to say we are mates," Katich said.

"It's a bit of a stretch of the imagination given I've hardly spoken about it since it all happened, and obviously haven't played since he took over as captain.

"[Our relationship] has been non-existent, so to suggest we are mates now after everything that has happened is a bit of a stretch."

Katich never played a Test once Clarke took over the captaincy from Ricky Ponting, and believes this was no coincidence despite Clarke's claims of a reconciliation.

"The opposite happened. I never came back in that dressing room," he said.

"I felt given the time of Ricky moving on from the captaincy to him, that coincided with me not being contracted. I put two and two together and feel like that probably played a part."

One of Clarke's most explosive revelations was his reference to Shane Watson as a "cancer" and "tumour" on the team.

Watson responded to the comments by saying they were "more a reflection of the person he is", and Katich seems to agree.

"I saw Shane Watson's comments during the week, and I thought he hit the nail on the head with it," he said.
"I thought it was rather ironic that he was called the tumour."

Above all, Katich was keen to leave the "old news" behind him and had a simple explanation for the story's revival.

"I guess at the moment he's trying to sell a book, so it's amazing how more and more of the story comes out."
 

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I reckon both South Africa and Pakistan will be stiff competition.

Though, no De Villiers is a huge blow for the Saffers.

I'm expecting more out of Pakistan than out of South Africa. Partly because they're a better team, but also partly because the absolutely shocking pitches we've had across the country will actuall suit Pakistan very well.
 

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THE GOVERNOR
Oh god... Don't remind me about that bloke.

I'm almost certain it's because he (Maxwell) broke team rules over something and they're keeping it quiet.
 
Tell you what, Kurtis Patterson may well be the next "great" Aussie bat. Averages 41 at FC level with 4 hundreds at 23 years old.

Playing a very sensible innings here to guide NSW to victory in the final too.
Bossing a pretty handy Queensland attack on a green top as well. Ton in the first game of the season.
 
I'm pretty happy to let Patterson just keep going, rather than giving him a Test spot too early.
I am too, but if his form continues like this it'll be hard to ignore.
 
Dec 14, 2008
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good yarn...

MARK Nicholas enjoyed a decorated county cricket career in England as a batsman remembered for his suave appearance and as perhaps one of the best players of his generation never to play a Test for the Poms.

By the mid 2000s he’d also begun a distinguished broadcasting career, anchoring Sky Sports’ cricket coverage on Channel 4 in the UK and also, with the help of close friend and radio legend Alan Jones, landing a role with Channel 9 in Australia.

But as he began his second summer alongside commentary legends like Richie Benaud and Bill Lawry at the Kerry Packer-owned TV network, Nicholas was still unsure of his place among such luminaries.

On a cold and damp day at Bellerive Oval on January 16, 2005, where he was calling a one-day international between the Aussies and Pakistan, he was left with little doubt exactly where he stood.

As revealed in his new book A Beautiful Game: My Love Affair With Cricket, Nicholas had been sympathising with the local crowd, and the fielding visiting team, as the icy conditions took their toll. During the break between innings the mobile phone of Nine producer Graeme Koos rang. “Mark, it’s Kerry, for you,” Koos said.

Benaud looked up with interest and Nicholas’s heart began thumping in his chest. He put the phone to his ear.

“Son, it’s Kerry Packer,” said the gravelly voice on the other end of the line. “Son, stop bagging the f***ing game.”

“Pardon, Mr Packer? I’m sorry, I missed that,” replied Nicholas, as he battled with a bad connection.

Packer: “I said stop bagging the f***ing game, son. Celebrate the game, talk it up.”


Nicholas: “But Mr Packer, people tell me I’m too busy talking the game up and that I should toughen ...”

Packer (with raised voice): “I’m not people, son, I’m the boss. You listen to me.”

Nicholas: “I’m trying, Mr Packer. It’s not a great line. I think it’s better here. I think I’ll hear you better now.”

Packer: “Son, stop telling us how f***ing cold it is in Hobart and how the fielders’ are wringing their hands and how people are wrapped in anoraks and having a s*** time. The only people having a s*** time are those of us at home who have to sit here f***ing listening to you. And son, we’re a commercial network. We sell the game. It’s not over till it’s over. I don’t care how far in front the Aussies are, it’s never over. Our business is numbers, son, eyeballs. And another thing, when you’re next in Sydney, come and see me. Ring my secretary and make an appointment.”

Nicholas: “Yes, Mr Packer, when should I ...”

Packer: “Are you f***ing deaf, son? I said come and see me when you are next in Sydney. And son, bring those two other young blokes, (Mark) Taylor and (Ian) Healy, with you.”

Benaud, Lawry and Tony Greig immediately attempted to soften what was a devastating blow.

“He puts a marker on most people who represent the network,” said Greig, while Lawry recalled the time Packer had told him “stop copying Benaud and start f***ing talking”.

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Kerry Packer.Source:AFP

The next phone call Nicholas received was just as extraordinary. Packer’s son, James, had been with his father while he tore apart Nicholas and had been concerned enough to call Nine CEO David Gyngell.

“I hear the old man gotcha,” said Gyngell, to a still flummoxed Nicholas.

“You could say that, Gyng,” Nicholas replied.

Gyngell: “Must have been a good one, mate, even by his standards, because James (Packer) was sitting with him watching the cricket and heard him going hard at you. James just rang to tell me, reckoned you copped it and could do with a call.”

Nicholas: “Well, that’s good of him. And of you, Gyng, thanks.”

Gyngell: “Anyway, call him back and tell him he’s talking s***.”

Nicholas: “I’m sorry?!”

Gyngell: “Call him back and tell him he’s talking s***. Seriously, it’s the only way with Kerry, and he’ll respect you for it in the end. He wouldn’t have you on the network if he didn’t think you were up to it, so call him and stand your ground.”

Nicholas: “Are you f***ing mad?”

Gyngell: “No, mate, I mean it.”

Nicholas: “No way, Gyng.”

Gyngell: “Your call. Anyway, glad you’re okay. Make sure you give as good as you get tomorrow. If it’s any consolation, I get one of these a month. I’ve learnt to give it back to him. It’s the only way. You’re doing a good job, mate, hang on in there. Catch up soon.”

Nicholas didn’t call Packer back but, along with Taylor and Healy, was put on a flight to Sydney the following day to meet with the man who would decide their futures. After a standard half hour wait, the trio sat down in Packer’s office.

“Without warning, he launched into a spellbinding attack on our commentary,” Nicholas wrote. “He talked quietly but firmly and with a sense of threat. His words were less advice than instruction and the long and short of them was: stop telling us something is interesting, the viewer can decide whether it’s interesting; don’t use that word ‘clever’ — it’s a game of cricket, that’s all; stop asking questions of other commentators and excluding the viewer; stop telling us about s*** weather; cut out the in-jokes — we’re not interested in your tennis and golf games or your fish and chips; keep women, kids and blokes who don’t play the game in the loop by keeping it simple and explaining it for dummies; call the f***ing game, not the peripherals; tell us about the game but don’t analyse everything — it’s not science, it’s a game, and all that analysis is boring; call the game; know the players, know the figures, know the conditions and take us inside the game. Don’t lecture. Call the bloody game.”

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Mark Nicholas and Ian Healy.Source:News Corp Australia

But the most tense, and in hindsight most hilarious, moment was still to come as Packer turned on Healy.

“The other night you called the game against the Kiwis over when they needed 13 an over and they got up. It’s never over, son. Listen, you blokes, we’re a commercial network. We survive with good ratings and good revenue. Never, ever call a game over until it’s over, son. You called the game against the Kiwis over,” Packer said.

“No I didn’t, Kerry,” Healy replied.

Nicholas couldn’t believe his ears. “Oh my god, did he just say that? And Kerry? Did he call him Kerry?” he thought.

Packer: “You f***ing did, son.”

Healy: “No I didn’t, Kerry.”

Packer: “Son, I’m not an idiot. You called it over when they needed 13 an over.”

Healy: “I didn’t, Kerry. I was rostered off the game. I wasn’t even there.”

Packer: “You f***ing were, son.”

“It was a robust exchange,” Nicholas wrote. “I gave the points to Healy. He was right, he wasn’t there, which would have been funny at any other time than this. It was me who called the game over.”

From that point Packer began quizzing Taylor — who was on the board of Cricket Australia — and Healy — who had a similar role with the Cricketers’ Association — about their thoughts on the future of the game.

Over three and a half hours later Packer, having shown the awestruck trio cricket bats previously owned by Sir Garry Sobers and Sir Don Bradman, a golf club used by Jack Nicklaus, and shared a fascinating discussion about a range of sports, bade them farewell.

“Take care of the game,’ he said, “Because it won’t take care of itself.”

“That was it, the only time I met Kerry Packer,” Nicholas wrote. “Unforgettable.”
 

Pweter

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Not just Kerry; Benaud and Greig are dead too, and Lawry is only half there now.

Only Chappell of the old guard left now.
True, lack of mentors and the apparent lack of execs who keep them on the ball seems to have lead to the circus that's the commentary box these days.

eth-dog I'd be interested to know where you rate Chappell among the current crop of commentators. I know you haven't rated him in the past but the benchmark is a lot lower these days.
 

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