Test Cricket Draft

[Noobz0r]

Ohhhhhh, apologies

 

[Carbine Chaos]

I'm guessing both of you have mis-interpreted his comment.

He was saying that the selection of Hanif and Bedi weakened his unselected eleven because now he has to pick someone else, rather than those two.

Ohhhh shit, is Howard Littlejohn the guy who is picking the leftover XI?

I am very sorry, my friend. Accept this egg on my face and make a wonderful omelette.

 

[Torz]

And he missed out on Hanif by this small of a margin. Devastated!

 

[The Speaker]

Gak Attack

 

[Carbine Chaos]

And he missed out on Hanif by this small of a margin. Devastated!

So happy I stumbled upon him. Plan was all along to have Saeed Anwar as my Pakistani so had to do some serious searching.

 

[Gak Attack]

I guess it's Kiwi time.

John Richard Reid (the other John Reid would of been decent too)

DrVanNostrand

 

[DrVanNostrand]

William Morris Lawry. Not just a beloved TV commentator.

Good luck getting through that defense, gentlemen. 5234 runs @ 47.15, and hit a mighty 15 sixes over his 123 Test innings. Potential captaincy material also. Playing in the same side as Warnie, the dressing room shenanigans will be outrageous. Neutralised some of the world's greatest bowlers, dealing with an avalanche of political bullshit from the ACB for his entire career. This is how an opening batsman should go about his business. 50 FC tons, with an average well over 50.

From Cricinfo:

Lawry's courage was a byword, and he withstood fearsome bombardments from Trueman and Statham in the infamous Ridge Test at Lord's in June 1961, and from Hall and Griffith on an underprepared Sydney surface in February 1969. Twice, too, he carried his bat through completed Test innings.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Ohhhh shit, is Howard Littlejohn the guy who is picking the leftover XI?

I am very sorry, my friend. Accept this egg on my face and make a wonderful omelette.

No worries. I can see where the misinderstanding happened. I can also see why people wouldn't care about a team not chosen as part of the draft. It will be far, far weaker than any of the drafted teams.

 

[Carbine Chaos]

No worries. I can see where the misinderstanding happened. I can also see why people wouldn't care about a team not chosen as part of the draft. It will be far, far weaker than any of the drafted teams.

I'm pretty keen to see it, tbh. I'm just scared you'll have some gems in there and I'll smack my forehead that I forgot them.

 

[The Speaker]

MG MG

No worries. I can see where the misinderstanding happened. I can also see why people wouldn't care about a team not chosen as part of the draft. It will be far, far weaker than any of the drafted teams.

I think it wouldn't look too bad. There are a fair few gems still out there, especially bowlers.

 

[Noobz0r]

Yeah, I get the feeling that we may all end up looking a little silly with regard to some of your selections

 

[Carbine Chaos]

Yeah, I get the feeling that we may all end up looking a little silly with regard to some of your selections

Speak for yourself champ.

 

[Torz]

Speak for yourself champ.

You already look silly.

 

[Carbine Chaos]

You already look silly.

Should I have included the ?

 

[Torz]

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Yeah, I get the feeling that we may all end up looking a little silly with regard to some of your selections

I don't think so. I'm not doing much research, so there will be a lot of worthy players that I simply don't think of. Some I thought might slip through, like Bedi, have since been taken.

 

[The Speaker]

Torz

 

[Torz]

I'll do mine soon.

 

[DrVanNostrand]

Gutless.

 

[Torz]

Gutless.

Nope, just would rather not do it on my phone. Can't make it look pretty.

 

[Gak Attack]

Old hold everyone up guy.

 

[Torz]

Anil Kumble​

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Bounce and subtle variations were Kumble's weapon of choice as well as a brilliant wrong-un and flipper. The third highest wicket taker in test cricket with 619 wickets at an average of of 29, Kumble is one of the few players to achieve the ultimate bowlers goal of claiming all ten wickets in an innings. Some claim his success is purely based on dry indian pitches, however Kumble's accuracy allows for an end of economy if the pitch suits the faster bowlers. No mug with the bat either, an average of almost 18 with a century to his name and a solid defence - he is the leader of my tail.

MG MG
stevemac

 

[stevemac]

An old foe to finish off my side...

DOUGLAS JARDINE (c)

22 Tests, 1296 Runs @ 48.00

Nothing like a tough c_ to captain my side and instill a bit of killer instinct. No more Rahul Dravid quietly contemplating his next innings in the dressing room, he is now a member of this eleven man killing machine. And don't doubt Jardine's abilities as a player, he had a healthy Test batting average of 48 and once took on 5 hours of Bodyline tactics from the mighty West Indians, scoring a century to prove that all that was needed against aggressive bowling was a bit of 'resolute'. A first class bowling average of 31 suggests that his legbreaks can supplement that hard toil placed on this side's sole spinner.


HUGH TRUMBLE (12th Man)

32 Tests, 141 Wickets @ 21.78
World Drinks-Carrying Championship - Gold Medal 1893, 1897, 1989, 1900

I'm still a bit lost on the concept of 12th man in relation to this draft, but my side is a little weak on spin so I'll go the next best spinner who can bat a bit (Anil Kumble until 30 minutes ago - thank you Torz). I contemplated Harbhajan until I did a quick Statsguru filter on his pathetic performances outside the subcontinent - and besides the fact I can't bring myself to pick him. Trumble was almost unplayable in his day as a tall offspinner with a deadly slower ball and was a more than useful batsman with an average just under 20. Took two Test hat-tricks and for 80 years held the record for Best Baggy Green moustache until DC Boon set foot in the Australian dressing room.

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[Torz]

Check out that 'stache!

 

[stevemac]

STEVEMAC'S SAVAGES​

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Barry RICHARDS​

4 Tests, 508 Runs @ 72.57​

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Geoff BOYCOTT​

108 Tests, 8114 Runs @ 47.72​

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Rahul DRAVID​

164 Tests, 13,288 Runs @ 52.31​

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Mahela JAYAWARDENE​

133 Tests, 10,540 Runs @ 50.43​

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Everton WEEKES​

48 Tests, 4455 Runs @ 58.61​

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Douglas JARDINE*​

22 Tests, 1296 Runs @ 48.00​

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Mark BOUCHER+​

147 Tests, 532 Catches & 32 Stumpings, 5515 Runs @ 30.30​

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Daniel VETTORI​

112 Tests, 360 Wickets @ 34.42, 4516 Runs @ 30.10​

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Michael HOLDING​

60 Tests, 249 Wickets @ 23.68​

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Waqar YOUNIS​

87 Tests, 373 Wickets @ 23.56​

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Glenn MCGRATH​

124 Tests, 563 Wickets @ 21.64​

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Hugh TRUMBLE (12th Man)​

32 Tests, 141 Wickets @ 21.78​

stevemac's savages​

My strategy was very simple but it took until my third pick to work it out. Firstly, select the best players from the teams which don't have many stars and secondly, to select the bowlers before the batters.

My initial selections of Richards and McGrath were rushed. Having had my time again, I would have made a smarter decision in place of Richards. No regrets with McGrath.

Hence, Vettori, Waqar and Jayawardene were some of the first players picked in my side, overlooking some very quality players in the process. However by selecting Vettori, I couldn't really select a quality spinner to accompany the best fast bowling line-up out of the lot. In fact the selection of Vettori really upset the balance of my side - not good enough as a batsman and not a world-class spinner.

Perhaps my batting line-up is a little weaker than others, but this team's strength is that it would function very well as a unit. There are no egos in this team - only a collection of cool, wise heads and a brain's trust which could take down any challenge.

Some of my selection dilemmas: I picked Dravid over Sehwag because although Sehwag has the potential to destroy an attack by scoring a run-a-ball 200, I felt Dravid would be more consistent and reliable/more likely to score big on a given day. In addition, the side already had an attacking opening batsman. I selected Jardine over Compton because I think a good captain can make a big difference to a side and from what I've read about Jardine, he was one of the most ruthless. He could have got that 10% extra out of every player. I chose Boycott over G.Smith because although statistically Smith appears better, I tend to value a batting average of 45-50 in the 70's higher than a batting average of 45-50 today. Boucher over Stewart because although his batting was a touch weaker, his keeping was superior, especially against spin. Trumble over Harbhajan because Harbhajan is a sooky la-la.

Seriously considered apart from the already mentioned.. Lance Gibbs, KP, Wes Hall, Hussey, Langer, Nourse.