2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

[Grantysghost]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

Wtf SA!

That's a massive series. T20 was always a big threat to test cricket ; decisions like that help nail the coffin.

[GVGjr]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

Wtf SA!

That's a massive series. T20 was always a big threat to test cricket ; decisions like that help nail the coffin.

South African cricket is doing something similar to what Hansie Cronje did all those years and allowing a financial windfall to dictate when they will field a competitive side.
I hope we never accept private ownership into our T20 sides.

[Grantysghost]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

South African cricket is doing something similar to what Hansie Cronje did all those years and allowing a financial windfall to dictate when they will field a competitive side.
I hope we never accept private ownership into our T20 sides.

Unfortunately capital motivates in our system. You would hope they could generate enough through the Test series especially with India playing? Billion eyes on it. Crazy.

[ledge]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

It?s not like Sth Africa?s first team is any good either, all out for 55 at home and they chose to bat.

[jeemak]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

NZ is in a lose lose situation with the upcoming tour of SA on their shores. If they kick up a stink then the players are under huge pressure to wipe the floor with SA. If they don't then a they're seen as just mollycoddling the powers that created this mess. If they smash SA then everyone says it's a nothing series.

India takes 40% of cricket revenue generated via the ICC. At the same time they have the most powerful 20-20 owners paying the most in-country worldwide for the IPL, who are also about to start up a 10-10 format clogging up the calendar further. And if that's not enough it's the same owners funding the South African domestic 20-20 league.

The simple answer is to starve India of teams and players - and review the ICC revenue share. If Australia, England and New Zealand, with maybe one of Pakistan and Sri Lanka onside said enough is enough what would that do? Maybe just enough to stop the double dipping from ICC revenues and IPL fees at the same time, and get them to the table to negotiate.

Tell me I'm dreaming though - there's just not enough money in cricket outside of India to help even Australia and England keep their gun players lubricated enough to stay onside and not play in the IPL or stay loyal to longer formats of the game.

[FrediKanoute]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

Sadly, Australia and England both voted with their wallets freezing out the smaller nations and condemning cricket and especially test cricket to a lesser state. The fact india have never been a sustained power when it comes to the long form of the game made it easier for them to just toss it on the scrap heap.

[jeemak]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

Sadly, Australia and England both voted with their wallets freezing out the smaller nations and condemning cricket and especially test cricket to a lesser state. The fact india have never been a sustained power when it comes to the long form of the game made it easier for them to just toss it on the scrap heap.

That's the major part of my diatribe that was left out and a point well made.

Short sighted idiot administrators who aren't incentivised for the long term outcomes/ benefits of decisions they make really shat the bed on this one.

[Axe Man]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

The word is that Bancroft will be left out of the squad to face the Windies - either Smith or Green to open.

[GVGjr]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

The word is that Bancroft will be left out of the squad to face the Windies - either Smith or Green to open.

That seems to be the likely scenario. I guess the question for most of us is if Bancroft should genuinely be considered?

[Sedat]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

That seems to be the likely scenario. I guess the question for most of us is if Bancroft should genuinely be considered?

All things being equal, of course he should have been considered. He went away and worked on his game at the lower level and has been the standout opener for the last 2 seasons, and at 31yo is in his batting prime (Rogers and Khawaja both successfully came back into the test team as openers much older). That is all you can ask of test aspirants.

Of course that is not how things work in the inner sanctum of the Australian cricket bubble. He is permanently exiled and will remain so for the rest of his career. And to be frank, if the entire bowling line-up doesn't want a certain player in the team (not matter how petty or unfair the reasons), they will always win that selection battle having delivered for the national team in spades over the last 12 months. A happy team is a successful one more often than not.

So instead they will elevate someone 3 years older to open, who has never opened before at first-class or test level and who is already a stellar contributor in the middle order (risking destabilising a very settled and strong batting order), so they can bring in another all-rounder who has yet to fully grasp their chance at test level in the batting discipline, rather than like-for-like replace a retiring opener with the next best performed next-in-line opener who has smashed out the runs for the last 2 Shield seasons. Make it make sense.

None of this will matter anyway as they are playing one of the most inept teams in world cricket, and everybody will cash in.

[Bulldog Joe]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

All things being equal, of course he should have been considered. He went away and worked on his game at the lower level and has been the standout opener for the last 2 seasons, and at 31yo is in his batting prime (Rogers and Khawaja both successfully came back into the test team as openers much older). That is all you can ask of test aspirants.

Of course that is not how things work in the inner sanctum of the Australian cricket bubble. He is permanently exiled and will remain so for the rest of his career. And to be frank, if the entire bowling line-up doesn't want a certain player in the team (not matter how petty or unfair the reasons), they will always win that selection battle having delivered for the national team in spades over the last 12 months. A happy team is a successful one more often than not.

So instead they will elevate someone 3 years older to open, who has never opened before at first-class or test level and who is already a stellar contributor in the middle order (risking destabilising a very settled and strong batting order), so they can bring in another all-rounder who has yet to fully grasp their chance at test level in the batting discipline, rather than like-for-like replace a retiring opener with the next best performed next-in-line opener who has smashed out the runs for the last 2 Shield seasons. Make it make sense.

None of this will matter anyway as they are playing one of the most inept teams in world cricket, and everybody will cash in.

With everybody cashing in Smith is likely going to perform exceptionally well as an opener, but the real proof of the viability will be in subsequent tests against better opposition.

[chef]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

I dont follow cricket as closely as i used too as its such an likeable team, but why is Bancroft on the outer and Warner a national hero?

[Grantysghost]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

I dont follow cricket as closely as i used too as its such an likeable team, but why is Bancroft on the outer and Warner a national hero?

Warner is a national disgrace. He doesn't represent me in any shape nor form.
Bancroft isn't part of the boys club is the simple answer.
No one I know thinks Warner is anything other than a cheating (cricket and wife) thug with the IQ of a rotten gherkin.
Bancroft has done the hard yards in shield and should be given the chance. Smith's move seems incredible arrogant to me.

[Axe Man]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

That seems to be the likely scenario. I guess the question for most of us is if Bancroft should genuinely be considered?

The biggest problem is we simply must get Green back into the team. He's 24 and the rest of the team is old, with the next youngest 29. Marsh has cemented himself at 6 for the time being.

Without the Green conundrum I would be fine to give Bancroft another try, although I remain unconvinced on him at test level (the same could be said for Harris and Renshaw). I'm willing to see how Smith goes opening, it's not ideal and as mentioned we will have to wait at least until the NZ tests to get a decent idea of how he will fare.

[GVGjr]

Re: 2023/24 - Australia Summer of Cricket

The biggest problem is we simply must get Green back into the team. He's 24 and the rest of the team is old, with the next youngest 29. Marsh has cemented himself at 6 for the time being.

Without the Green conundrum I would be fine to give Bancroft another try, although I remain unconvinced on him at test level (the same could be said for Harris and Renshaw). I'm willing to see how Smith goes opening, it's not ideal and as mentioned we will have to wait at least until the NZ tests to get a decent idea of how he will fare.

I fully agree that this is an ageing side that would probably benefit from an injection of some younger players but it's also a successful side so we have an almost Geelong challenge where we need to see how much more we can get out of this group.
Is that by picking a youngster or specialist opener?

If Smith goes to the top of the order then Green is probably best placed to come in and bat at 4 but I'm not sure Green should open at the expense of Bancroft or one of the other specialist openers.