Team for Hobart.

[stickman11]

So what? He's still there, it's not his fault that Akmal can't catch.

Fact is he's 73 not out while besides Watson's 97 everyone else has been next to useless.

Lucky. You have to admit, he was gifted some lives. I thought Hughes was unlucky. Good catch from a team that can't normally catch. If Ponting had have been dropped, he may have gone on to make a bigger score.

The only problem with Hussey is that he is aging fast like ponting and just can't dominate a game anymore. And he is playing well down the order.

 

[Axel.]

Katich
Hughes
Watson
Clarke
Ponting
Hussey
Haddin
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle
Bolly

ah that's a good team.

 

[stickman11]

Katich
Hughes
Watson
Clarke
Ponting
Hussey
Haddin
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle
Bolly

Anyone know how long til Hifly is fit? Siddle bowls well but just isn't getting the rewards. Hopefully it will click for him.

Hussey has to stay. He's in form. Next time he has a slump he'll be out>

I'd dump Ponting as captain after the Hobart test and replace him with Katich. Tactically he's woeful. I'd bat 95% of the time after winning a toss, but that pitch was ridiculaously green and I'm at a loss how anyone would bat first on it.

Katich wasn't a good captain for NSW. Haddin had far more success than Katich.

 

[Dez!]

Lucky. You have to admit, he was gifted some lives. I thought Hughes was unlucky. Good catch from a team that can't normally catch. If Ponting had have been dropped, he may have gone on to make a bigger score.

The only problem with Hussey is that he is aging fast like ponting and just can't dominate a game anymore. And he is playing well down the order.

No doubt it was lucky, but only the best batsmen make the opposition pay for costly mistakes like that which he's doing.

 

[bunsen burner]

I'd love to see Hughes stay but moved to 4 where he can work out his game without the pressure of opening. Way too talented to be dropped, especially with our aging side. And to be fair, he showed more fight than the middle order.

I agree. Hughes has to play. Whether it's at the top of the order or lower order, it doesn't matter. Just play him and get experience into his legs.

I don't like him at 4 though. I like Clarke at 4, or maybe 3, and Ponting at 5. Open or maybe 6 for me.

 

[stickman11]

ah that's a good team.

Any team with Hauritz isn't a good team. Only spin from Hauritz you'll see is in his press confrences.

 

[bunsen burner]

Katich wasn't a good captain for NSW. Haddin had far more success than Katich.

Put Haddin in then. Ponting has to go. Our side is weak at the moment and we at least need someone who chooses the right tactics. If they choose Katich or haddin it will always be a short term option. I'd be reluctant to choose Clarke because he's be a long term option and my gut feeling is he's the wrong man down the track.

 

[Zeke]

I would sooner bring in Mitch Marsh before I brought in Shaun.

Mitch hasn't even hit a Shield century. I've seen him bat live and agree that he is a classy future prospect, but Sean is having a great summer. He has performed at international level and knows his way around the Australian team. He's the perfect replacement for North who has been very disappointing this summer, imo.

Hilfenhaus isn't fit and even if he is he won't have the match fitness or form, besides Siddle bowled well this Test but was very unlucky.

My selection was assuming fitness. Not sure he is (or will be), but he offers something Siddle doesn't - movement through the air at pace. Siddle hits the deck hard, glares, postures and generally appears to be a strike bowler except for the fact that he can't buy a wicket this summer.

Although I applaud you on being one of the few who isn't dropping Hussey, his form in Australia has been very good recently and watching this innings he's the only thing holding us up. The only other bloke that pulled his weight in this innings has been Watson.

Hussey, Clarke and Watson are the only blokes who have batted at a consistently satisfactory level during the summer. The rest have been below par.

 

[HugeJohnson]

Watson
Katich
Hughes*
Ponting*
Clarke*
Hussey
Haddin
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle*
Bollinger

Players with * need a strong performance. Less so Clarke and Siddle but they still need to do better than they have been lately.

 

[bunsen burner]

ah that's a good team.

It's about as good as we can get atm. The cold hard truth is we just don't have the cattle.

Hopefully Smith we be the real deal and apparently there are a couple of punks from NSW who are likely pace types. Hopefully one of them is the real deal. Hopefully Johnson can tighten his average and consistency because he knows how to get wickets.

 

[Rids]

I wouldn't be making wholesale changes. The only really out of form players are Ponting and North. Ponting is obviously safe and given North's impressive South Africa/England form he may get another chance.

If North is to go though I would like to see Klinger get a game - has been in outstanding form for the past 2 seasons and getting a spot in the test side at a relatively late age didn't seem to hurt Hayden, Langer and Hussey in recent years. The other option is obviously to retain Phil Hughes (assuming Katich is fit) which I would also be happy with.

 

[bunsen burner]

Watson
Katich
Hughes*
Ponting*
Clarke*
Hussey
Haddin
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle*
Bollinger

Players with * need a strong performance. Less so Clarke and Siddle but they still need to do better than they have been lately.

Ponting and Clarke have plenty of points in the bank before anyone questions their position in the team.

Siddle would be in trouble if Hilfy was fit. He bowls well but doen't have the knack of wicket taking that Johnson seems to have. Not sure if this will change though. I think in 3 years time Johnson will survive, but we will have some young prospects not disimilar to Hughes in that they will be a cut above their peers and we will play them because we will be reasonably sure they will be 10 year players.

 

[Spikey]

Any team with Hauritz isn't a good team. Only spin from Hauritz you'll see is in his press confrences.

Has 19 wickets this summer. I don't care how big or little his spin is if he keeps that up.

 

[stickman11]

Put Haddin in then. Ponting has to go. Our side is weak at the moment and we at least need someone who chooses the right tactics. If they choose Katich or haddin it will always be a short term option. I'd be reluctant to choose Clarke because he's be a long term option and my gut feeling is he's the wrong man down the track.

All captains make bad decisions. Waugh and Taylor made a few howlers. People have to realise, we are not that good - don't have the players to be good.

Johnson, Howritz and Bollinger don't = Mcgrath, Warne and Gillespie

Haddin dose not = Gilchrist

Hayden, Langer gone = Ponting is getting older, Hussey (old) and Carke has never been really damaging.

The trouble is we've always been too slow finding young players. Even Hayden and Langer were tossed aside for long periods even though their talent was recognisable.

Think, we had Warne and McGill, now we have Hauritz. Somethings are just not fair.

 

[stickman11]

Has 19 wickets this summer. I don't care how big or little his spin is if he keeps that up.

Most have been flukes and tailenders. If the windies were and pakies had better batsmen, he'd be punished. But if you compare him to the other spinners, he has been quite poor.

 

[lionbear]

What I would like to see

Watson
Hughes
Katitch
Ponting
Clarke
White
Paine
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle
Bollinger


Reality is our moron selectors will just say out Hughes in Katitch

Not sure about White, but I don't mind this side besdies that

 

[Spikey]

Most have been flukes and tailenders. If the windies were and pakies had better batsmen, he'd be punished. But if you compare him to the other spinners, he has been quite poor.

Statistics say no. As many wickets as Benn with a better average and strike-rate. Comfortably outperformed the Pakistani guy last match.

Kaneria outperforming him this match, although when one spinner is able to bowl without having to worry about runs and the other isn't it's not surprise to see the first one perform better.

 

[bunsen burner]

Has 19 wickets this summer. I don't care how big or little his spin is if he keeps that up.

In the scheme of things he is filler. A real spinner has the ability to consistently bowl teams out on 5 day wickets. He's serviceable.

 

[The Cotch]

Hughes
Watson
Ponting
Hussey
Clarke
Katich
Haddin
Smith
Johnson
Siddle
Bollinger/Hilfenhaus

 

[bunsen burner]

All captains make bad decisions. Waugh and Taylor made a few howlers. People have to realise, we are not that good - don't have the players to be good.

Johnson, Howritz and Bollinger don't = Mcgrath, Warne and Gillespie

Haddin dose not = Gilchrist

Hayden, Langer gone = Ponting is getting older, Hussey (old) and Carke has never been really damaging.

The trouble is we've always been too slow finding young players. Even Hayden and Langer were tossed aside for long periods even though their talent was recognisable.

Think, we had Warne and McGill, now we have Hauritz. Somethings are just not fair.

You are in complete denial and hiding behind things largely irrelevant.

Wugh and taylor did make a few mistakes but largely were astute tacticians. Ponting has all the attributes except he is a woeful tactician. Time and time again he makes poor decisions. Often howlers. He lost a series because he bowled spinners instead of the quicks who had the opposition on the ropes. He's hopeless and during the week I listened to the radio a bit and nearly all the commentators agreed he was a poor tactician.

How much more evidence do you need?

 

[Spikey]

In the scheme of things he is filler. A real spinner has the ability to consistently bowl teams out on 5 day wickets. He's serviceable.

Don't disagree. But people seem to ignore A) He's doing a very decent job and B) There's no other spinners* when they criticise him

*Don't say Krejza.

 

[aussie1st]

Katich/Hughes
Watson
Ponting
Hussey
Clarke
Hughes/Katich/White/Marsh
Haddin
Johnson
Hauritz
Siddle
Bollinger

Marsh and White have the ODI experience and White also has the Test so I don't think they will look outside of the 3 I mentioned for a one off match. If it was a series Bailey, Klinger and co would come into it.

 

[lionbear]

I agree with the Cotch...

Bolinger and Hilfenhaus should be fighting for number 11, Haddin will play but I would love to see paine play a home test to let haddin know he has to work for his spot.

 

[bunsen burner]

Statistics say no. As many wickets as Benn with a better average and strike-rate. Comfortably outperformed the Pakistani guy last match.

But Benn rolled us for 150 and single-handedly got his team back into the match. Something Hauritz has (to my knowledge) not even done in state cricket.

You're not a real spinner unless you can turn or win a game when the wicket is turning.

 

[Donners]

Ponting has played unfit in this Test, so I don't think that will stop him for the next.

Hussey and Haddin aren't going anywhere.

North is the only one who's in slight danger. Even then, the most obvious replacement - Ferguson - is injured. Bailey, Dave Hussey and Cosgrove were mediocre last season and Voges was terrible. The only player to really put his hand up, and hold his form, is Klinger, and I just don't think the selectors are interested in him.