WTC Final 2025

[eth-dog]

If fit Hazlewood. Always been the way.

Dont see Green opening. Marnus if they wanna make a change. Konstas the omission.

Neither do I. Hence him batting 3.

 

[MarcMaverick]

If Green opened the batting, he'd be the tallest opener by a huge margin.

 

[PhatBoy]

If Green opened the batting, he'd be the tallest opener by a huge margin.

Not quite.

Green is listed as 1.98m

Peter Fulton played almost exclusively as an opener for NZ and is listed the same.
Tom Moody is listed as either 1.98 or 1.99 depending where you look and opened a number of times as well.

 

[BGman]

Understand this is the same squad for the Caribbean tour. Gotta say typical 'jobs for the old boys' policy from Mac and George. Why not use the tour to blood at least one emerging bowler, say Fergus O'Neil who has just come off a successful county stint or a fit Lance Morris who would have ruffled some Windies feathers with his sheer pace.

 

[corbies]

Didn't realise Coetzee and Burger were injured as well, bit of a loss for them but they have a plethora of fast bowlers so they'll be fine in that area

I keep reading Coetzee is injured but he's just flown back to the IPL and will play when it resumes. He's just been left out.

 

[corbies]

Understand this is the same squad for the Caribbean tour. Gotta say typical 'jobs for the old boys' policy from Mac and George. Why go with a 35 and a 31 yr old as the reserve bowlers when you have someone like Fergus O'Neil who not only is far younger, he has been playing county red ball and is in prime form. A fit Lance Morris would also have ruffled some Windies feathers.

Hopefully the selectors have learnt from the Cooper Connolly experience and continue to just pick the best players for Test cricket regardless of age. Just replace the 38 year olds with 30 year olds and go again.

 

[jannissary]

keen to watch it, i think konstas will flounder, rabada will trounce him.

 

[Rookie]

you realise that Amazon gobbled up all the rights to ICC tournaments, right?

Can't say I've kept up. I only watch the late stages of the ODI/T20I cups these days. I guess I was a Prime member or used free-to-air during the last world cups and the last WTC.

Certainly getting to the point where content is spread out over so many services that it's hard to keep up. I regularly subscribe and unsubscribe, currently on Kayo and Disney. I haven't paid for Amazon membership for a couple years now but I guess we can rotate back to it...

 

[JackOutback]

keen to watch it, i think konstas will flounder, rabada will trounce him.

Konstas likely isn't playing.

 

[010203]

I get this potentially benefits Australia but this grubby from India. South Africa should have every right to prepare for the WTC final in a manner that suits them, not India.

Starc to make IPL call on Friday as South Africa debate availability

Mitchell Starc is set to make his call on whether to return to the Indian Premier League on Friday, a week after Starc and Australian women’s captain Alyssa Healy fled the country.

www.smh.com.au

My point about India being grubby still stands, but sanity has prevailed:

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/...players-set-to-miss-ipl-2025-playoffs-1485970

 

[Around the Wicket]

its a pick'em.. both have quality fast bowlers.. tbh I still believe the final should be over 3.

 

[PhatBoy]

its a pick'em.. both have quality fast bowlers.. tbh I still believe the final should be over 3.

One off probably gives SA their best chance I reckon. Their batting is thinner than Australia’s since Smith rediscovered some form and with Carey becoming more reliable, Khawaja MAYBE, and Head being a bit of a wildcard. I’m not really sold on what happened in Sri Lanka as the bowling over there was a lot different to what it will be and even allowing for the different conditions it was sub par. You’d assume things will get harder.
Over 3 tests Australia’s batting would be more likely to click.

SA’s is vulnerable but talented so maybe they get ‘lucky’ in the one off game and it happens for them

 

[squirtle004]

Marnus' horrid run with bat continues - a 7 ball duck in the county championship this morning.

 

[Cleavy]

Marnus' horrid run with bat continues - a 7 ball duck in the county championship this morning.

was he opening?

 

[yabsy]

was he opening?

No.3

 

[BGman]

Cameron Green with another WTC warm up ton in England over nite.

 

[Freezin]

Cameron Green with another WTC warm up ton in England over nite.

Two tons in 4 matches.....good effort byvthe big fella, two tons bookending some single digit failures, but greatcto see the big fella back....definitely an in for me, not sure top 3 is an option I like for him though.....Smith to 3 perhaps?....

Labs is a consistent worry.....will be rabbit fodder for Rabada no matter where he bats in the top 6. Perhaps being a one off, Head goes in earlier for the kill factor.

 

[Westend]

Yup good stuff green dog

 

[BGman]

Labs is a consistent worry.....will be rabbit fodder for Rabada no matter where he bats in the top 6. Perhaps being a one off, Head goes in earlier for the kill factor.

Agree. Cannon fodder more like it. Yes perhaps Head or even Konstas, who can forget the way the rookie took apart the worlds #1 rated bowler. Rabada is good but not in the Bumrah calibre.

 

[DaRick]

Two tons in 4 matches.....good effort byvthe big fella, two tons bookending some single digit failures, but greatcto see the big fella back....definitely an in for me, not sure top 3 is an option I like for him though.....Smith to 3 perhaps?....

Labs is a consistent worry.....will be rabbit fodder for Rabada no matter where he bats in the top 6. Perhaps being a one off, Head goes in earlier for the kill factor.

Wouldn't put Head up the order in English conditions.

If I was to replace Labu, it would be with Green, with Konstas being a high-risk, high-reward proposition as opener.

 

[JackOutback]

Agree. Cannon fodder more like it. Yes perhaps Head or even Konstas, who can forget the way the rookie took apart the worlds #1 rated bowler. Rabada is good but not in the Bumrah calibre.

I would suggest Konstas caught Bumrah off-guard. After that first innings, it became a lot harder for him. Rabada won’t be caught off guard and has more research to work with. Not saying Konstas can’t make it, just don’t think he can go up to international level and think he can tonk the worlds best bowlers around.

 

[PhatBoy]

Agree. Cannon fodder more like it. Yes perhaps Head or even Konstas, who can forget the way the rookie took apart the worlds #1 rated bowler. Rabada is good but not in the Bumrah calibre.

That depends. Rabada at his best has been better. He still boasts a strike rate clearly superior to Bumrah. What he doesn’t do as well as Bumrah as tie batsmen down and basically make it impossible for them to score; he goes for 0.6 runs per over more, hence his average is about 3 higher than Bumrah’s.

I’m still somewhat staggered that an hour of chaos is being regarded as such a definitive exposition on the status of a player who to this point in his career, has passed 100 in one first class match.

On the balance of probability - he MAY, if he gets the chance, serve it up to Rabada. Who knows. He produced something on debut that no one saw coming and many who watched it still can’t really believe.

But if you were to frame a market as a bookmaker would you back that to happen again for the opener with one first class match where he’s hit a century, or back the guy with 327 wickets at the best strike rate in history?

 

[Freezin]

But if you were to frame a market as a bookmaker would you back that to happen again for the opener with one first class match where he’s hit a century, or back the guy with 327 wickets at the best strike rate in history?

SA top six haven't got a hope in hell then v Cummins, let alone with Starc and Hazlewood/Boland trundling in helping Cummins out...a one off test enables anyone to have their day in the sun I guess...no matter how good or bad their playing record may look.

 

[PhatBoy]

SA top six haven't got a hope in hell then v Cummins, let alone with Starc and Hazlewood/Boland trundling in helping Cummins out...a one off test enables anyone to have their day in the sun I guess...no matter how good or bad their playing record may look.

You answered your own question - there’s 6 of them which increases their odds, plus their general level of success has been better.

 

[magpiemaniac44]

IMO its between Marnus or Konstas

I'd lean towards Marnus despite his form purely because of his runs on the board