ICC Champions Trophy

[GVGjr]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

NZ batted first and made just 200 after 50 overs.
After a couple of early wickets Watson and White steadied the ship and we are coasting towards victory. Watson in particular has batted very well.

Currently Hussey is 10 and Watson is 76.

Vettori couldn't play today because of an injury and Ferguson injured his knee and can't bat.

Shane Bond is a great bowler and they have missed him over the last few years.

[GVGjr]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

Talked too soon. Hussey just gone.

[mighty_west]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

NZ batted first and made just 200 after 50 overs.
After a couple of early wickets Watson and White steadied the ship and we are coasting towards victory. Watson in particular has batted very well.

Currently Hussey is 10 and Watson is 76.

Vettori couldn't play today because of an injury and Ferguson injured his knee and can't bat.

Shane Bond is a great bowler and they have missed him over the last few years.

I have been a big fan of Bond, love my fast bowlers, but unfortunatly injury has cruelled his career, he could have been anything, and remember one World Cup game when he just ripped right through us.

How good were Watson's last 2 innings? I started watching our innings in the semi, you could just see he was seeing the ball like a basketball, everything was hitting the middle of the bat, just couldn't get past the field, a few straight drives past the bowler later, you know when you're playing shots like that, you are in the zone, and from then on, he just looked as good as he ever has with the willow.

The great debate continues, is he considered an all rounder? In the one dayers, he has played around 90 games, a batting average in the high 30's & bowling average under 30, thats pretty good going, let's just hope he can stay injury free, along with Mitch, 2 big weapons in the side for the next 6-8 years.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

I have been a big fan of Bond, love my fast bowlers, but unfortunatly injury has cruelled his career, he could have been anything, and remember one World Cup game when he just ripped right through us.

How good were Watson's last 2 innings? I started watching our innings in the semi, you could just see he was seeing the ball like a basketball, everything was hitting the middle of the bat, just couldn't get past the field, a few straight drives past the bowler later, you know when you're playing shots like that, you are in the zone, and from then on, he just looked as good as he ever has with the willow.

The great debate continues, is he considered an all rounder? In the one dayers, he has played around 90 games, a batting average in the high 30's & bowling average under 30, thats pretty good going, let's just hope he can stay injury free, along with Mitch, 2 big weapons in the side for the next 6-8 years.

He's a good enough bowler that he could bowl 1st change on a pitch where you wanted to play 2 spinners (assuming we actually had 2 spinners).

[mighty_west]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

He's a good enough bowler that he could bowl 1st change on a pitch where you wanted to play 2 spinners (assuming we actually had 2 spinners).

Such as in India, he was our best performed bowler last time around, but even as a second change bowling option, like what we had in this series, he just gives us another option, and like with most all rounders, if they are struggling at one part of their games, at least they have a back up.

I much prefer Watson compared to James Hopes, as long as he can stay fit, the irony with this latest series, was that his first two innings making ducks, finishing off in the big games with 2 great tons.

I still don't like him opening the batting in the Tests, but in the shorter forms, no drama's.

[GVGjr]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

The great debate continues, is he considered an all rounder? In the one dayers, he has played around 90 games, a batting average in the high 30's & bowling average under 30, thats pretty good going, let's just hope he can stay injury free, along with Mitch, 2 big weapons in the side for the next 6-8 years.

I agree with Sockeye that his best value with the ball is around being used as the 3rd quick when we play 2 spinners.
I'd prefer to play him just as a batsman who bowls a few overs than try and make him into a genuine all-rounder. If he can hold his spot at the top of the order with the bat and provide some decent overs then he should go OK. Long stints with the ball will mean he needs to bat in the middle order.

[GVGjr]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

I have been a big fan of Bond, love my fast bowlers, but unfortunatly injury has cruelled his career, he could have been anything, and remember one World Cup game when he just ripped right through us.

He's always bowled well against us but I'm not sure that injuries have been the only reason he hasn't played much for NZ over recent years. Didn't he retire from test duties in order to play in the T/20 games in India? I seem to recall that he made himself available to play for NZ after that but they knocked him back until this series.
I think NZ took a dim view on players that wanted to pick and choose when they would represent their country and as a result Bond missed a number of games he was actually available to play.

[mighty_west]

Re: ICC Champions Trophy

He's always bowled well against us but I'm not sure that injuries have been the only reason he hasn't played much for NZ over recent years. Didn't he retire from test duties in order to play in the T/20 games in India? I seem to recall that he made himself available to play for NZ after that but they knocked him back until this series.
I think NZ took a dim view on players that wanted to pick and choose when they would represent their country and as a result Bond missed a number of games he was actually available to play.

Would him picking & choosing be a factor for being injured so much though?

I agree and NZ should take a dim view, but the T/20 games in India, the amounts of cash being waved around would be a massive carrot for some of these guys, especially if players are only required to bowl 4 overs a game, compared to 10 in the one dayers, and a very big work load in Tests.

Just on this current series, and it has been highly regarded, it just seemed to lack something compared to a World Cup and even the IPL, or maybe the amounts of cricket played these days, we just expect too much.