Big Cricket Thread

[The Passenger]

To be honest ball tampering should be punished much harsher than it has been. Fielding teams and bowlers have been getting away with far too much for a long time.

The other option is just let it become a free for all. Despite the above comments, I'm not totally opposed to going down this path. It's the shadiness about it that is worse than the actual misdemeanour and although I'd prefer ball tampering not to be a thing at all, human nature tells us that it will always be there in some form or another. So if you want to stick your spikes into the ball? go for it. Sandpaper? Hell yeah. At least it will take ball tampering out of the sphere of "the dark arts", as it is called. This puts every team on an equal footing without having to see who is sneaky enough to get away with concealing sandpaper underneath finger strapping, as was the scuttlebutt about Dave Warner in the lead up to the Cape Town debacle.

Rightly or wrongly, the punishments were as much for the botched attempt at a cover up and payment for sins of Australian teams in recent years who bemoaned other teams cheating whilst claiming to be clean skins ourselves. The cricketing world had been waiting to pounce on Australia for a long time and when the opportunity presented itself they were coming with every bit of ammunition they had. The fact Dave Warner was involved meant they could sharpen those blades even more than they already had.

 

[ep2018]

I doubt Smith was in on it. Warner convinced a first gamer into cheating. Warner should have been sacked imo. Bancroft's suspension was appropriate. Smith was the captain, he went down with the ship so to speak.

 

[Truckosaurus]

Vaughn calls for the use of Kookaburra balls in county cricket.
https://www.watoday.com.au/sport/cr...and-to-brink-of-disaster-20211222-p59jga.html

I'm in Bizarro world, aren't I?

 

[Bender_]

Vaughn calls for the use of Kookaburra balls in county cricket.
https://www.watoday.com.au/sport/cr...and-to-brink-of-disaster-20211222-p59jga.html

I'm in Bizarro world, aren't I?

We see what you're doing, Michael:

 

[DickDunn]

Don’t think anyone’s ever doubted Smith’s tactical nous (all the more striking when contrasted to Root’s terrible decision making). The problem is his obsessiveness and lack of roundedness as a person.

Regardless of whether the punishment was too harsh, sandpapergate was most definitely a cultural failing permitted to happen by a captain who was too consumed by the job and running on fumes for a lot of his tenure. Having Cummins in charge with Smith as his deputy is the right mix imo

 

[Ochre]

Vaughn...

No thanks

 

[Agent93]

It speaks volumes about the Aussie fast bowling depth atm and especially the youngsters. At 25 Richo is considered young. 10 years ago we had cummo/starc/hazelwood/Patto coming through and they were 17-21 at the time.

It happens when you have a solid crop of players in any position. In the '06/'07 Ashes where JL retired at 36 you had Hayden, Martyn, and Gilchrist at 35, Ponting at 33, and Hussey at 31. Michael Clarke* was considered young at 25 at that point when he'd finally ousted Boof (also 36). Simon Katich was also thereabouts the test side at, also at 31.

*bearing in mind that both him and Pie debuted in tests at age 23. Edit: so did Hazlewood. Starc and Pattinson were at 21, and Cummins at 18. IIRC all of those bowlers bar Haze debuted because Ryan Harris and Mitch Johnson kept getting injured. Similar siutation here for Pie and Neser.

 

[Agent93]

To be honest ball tampering should be punished much harsher than it has been. Fielding teams and bowlers have been getting away with far too much for a long time.

Fielding teams and bowlers have been on the short end of the technology stick for the past two decades. They can't just swing a tree stump to cover for a lack of technique.

 

[FKASC]

Will the Renegades chase down this 200+ total?

 

[Ochre]

Will the Renegades chase down this 200+ total?

Gonna do with 10 overs to spare at this rate.

 

[Agent93]

This bowling is garbage.

Gonna jinx it, but Tye has been good.

 

[FKASC]

Not sure the bowling has been that bad, they’re just swinging at everything and connecting

 

[FKASC]

Tymal Spills

 

[DanWCE]

Piss off Renegades. This is a joke chase

 

[Truckosaurus]

Any chance that something isn't middled?

 

[DanWCE]

This bowling is garbage.

Gonna jinx it, but Tye has been good.

Delete your account

 

[FKASC]

Mills dropped the game prob

 

[FKASC]

Funny how much better batters suddenly get when they can just throw caution to the wind

 

[FKASC]

M Bison!!

 

[Truckosaurus]

Is Mitch is God

 

[Truckosaurus]

Let's hope none of the other Renegades got the memo with the cheat codes in it.

 

[Doashuey]

Gades be ****ed now

 

[Dazzler9]

Yeah yeah, well done Scorchers.

Switching gears, I just want to acknowledge this stat:

Labuschagne, who on Wednesday leapfrogged England captain Joe Root into No. 1 spot on the ICC Test batting rankings, has scored at least 47 runs in the first innings of all 14 Tests he’s played since Lord’s 2019.

Some of you may not be impressed by that stat. After all, 47 is not a massive score. And you're right. But to achieve that as a minimum score, mostly batting at 3, for 14 consecutive Tests in the first dig (the most crucial runs), while establishing your career, is stratospheric.

 

[Truckosaurus]

Batting mostly at 3 and typically coming in before the first drinks break.

 

[Ochre]

Never in doubt