Post Line-ups Elite League: Australia VIII | Round 2 - Not the way you want to start off..

[Fenil]

^
An interesting exercise for you:

Calculate the average age of your squad.

No,seriously...will be very interesting indeed.

An interesting exercise for you:

Calculate average age of world ODI squad of the year.

No, seriously...will be very interesting indeed.

None of the players are under 30 years of age except for Morne, Cook and Wade.

Yes but I'm glad I've those players who are, and perform, way better than the young guns out there.

 

[Fenil]

Trades thus far:

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[Fenil]

Hussey to lead West Coast again!​

In a surprising move West Coast boss Fenil has decided to be with Michael Hussey as the skipper of the team despite having the likes of Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Alastair Cook and Kumar Sangakkara in their ranks. The move had many eyebrows raised. To this Fenil, while addressing the media said: "Huss has been so very good in leading the team in the inaugural season where we saw him leading the team from the front. The likes of Ricky, Gilly, Sanga and Cook will be a great help for him in this respect as they have experience of leading a side in international cricket and their tips will be a crucial in taking on-field decisions." Dipak, whose decision to include Marcus North did wonders has also been awarded with an extension to his contract.

Michael Hussey addresses the media​

A relaxed looking Hussey said: 'We have got a brilliant combination. This season, we have got only better. Dipak and Fenil are wonderful off-field assets for the team and it feels honored to lead such a talented bunch of players. The boys are raring to go and hopefully we will successfully defend the title.'

 

[Fenil]

West Coast Fever Name Squad

The defending champions West Coast Fever's 18 men squad was announced earlier today. The squad has many impressive inclusions this time around. With the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Alastair Cook, Brett Lee, Adam Gilchrist and Ricky Ponting joining the side, West Coast is expected to taken the league by storm with the iconic players they have. The newly singed players replace Virender Sehwag, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mitchell Starc, Adam Voges and Matthew Hayden. The 18 man squad is as follows -​

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Michael HUSSEY

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Sachin TENDULKAR|

Ricky PONTING|

Alastair COOK|

Adam GILCHRIST|

Kumar SANGAKKARA

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Matthew WADE|

Shane WATSON|

Jacques KALLIS|

Marcus NORTH|

Ryan TEN DOESCHATE|

Brad HODGE

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Daniel VETTORI|

Nathan HAURITZ|

Mitchell JOHNSON|

Brett LEE|

Morne MORKEL|

Doug BOLLINGER​

 

[Prithvi]

West Coast and Adelaide have submitted their finalized squads. Rest, do it ASAP.

Also guys, for the upcoming two weeks, this will not run soo fast due to Ganesh Navratri celebrations in our committee.

 

[Ahmad Shah]

West Coast and Adelaide have submitted their finalized squads. Rest, do it ASAP.

Actually, I was waiting to do a final trade with Andrin if he agrees then that will finalize our squad for the season.

 

[Prithvi]

Actually, I was waiting to do a final trade with Andrin if he agrees then that will finalize our squad for the season.

Well, do it within 12:00 GMT.

 

[Fenil]

We will be more dominating this season - Fenil​

Welcome to T?te-?-T?te with Truman! I'm your host Truman Lee and today we have in our studio is Elite League Australia's winning team West Coast Fever's owner, Fenil! Without wasting much time, lets start the show.



Truman: Hello and welcome to our show, "T?te-?-T?te".

Fenil: Thank you.

Truman: I'm sure you will be chuffed that your side won the inaugural season of ELA, the latest version of Australian Premier League. Partied hard after the win?

Fenil: Yes, we did! There was a big reason to celebrate and it went on till wee hours next day!

Truman: Was it hard to control the star players you've got in the team? I mean did you face any ego problems and such things?

Fenil: Of course not. The players are well matured and know their role. There is a sense of unity in the side. In fact, the experienced players like Kallis, Hussey, Sanga and Vettori are give their inputs to the team management and also try to improve the gameplay of younger players by giving them tips. This has taken a huge load off me.

Truman: That great! Must say that is one thing every owner would like to have in his team. You have some great signings this season making your team much more stronger.

Fenil: Yes, Sachin, Gilly, Lee, Cook and Punter are fantastic inclusions I think. They are the best out there and I'm glad to have them all in one team.

Truman: Some question your move to pick the likes of Alastair Cook, Brett Lee and Adam Gilchrist.

Fenil: I know some critics are saying that picking retired players like Gilly and Binga is not a good move but I'd like to tell them that both these guys played professional cricket very recently and have showcased a high standard of play. This is ample to show that they are not only fit but also match fit and are very good players. Cook on the other hand, has scored 1263 runs in just 30 matches that he has played in last two years with 8 fifties and 4 centuries, 3 each coming this year with an average of over 47 and total of 663 runs in mere 15 innings, the highest by an Englishman, which shows the form he is in for the past two years. He was also selected as a member of ICC World ODI team of the year for his spectacular performance. On the other hand, Viru hasn't been in form for long now. This year he averages a mere 23. This is a one of the best trade I'd say.

Truman: Time and again, this team has been compared to your own Basnahira Bears that won 8th edition of Champions League which is considered to be the best ever side on planetcricket. Your take on that?

Fenil: I don't really comparing side. Basnahira Bears was a legendary side but since you have asked the question, I'd say we have a better lot all thanks to much better locals and new signings.

Truman: You start as favorites. How burdensome this expectations are?

Fenil: They are professional cricketers and pressure is a part of our lives. That said, I don't think any team is favorite. One needs to perform in order to win.

Truman: Despite having Ricky Ponting, -- who is considered as one of best captains ever -- you have chosen not to change the captain. Any strong reason behind that?

Fenil: Hussey did a wonderful job last season with Sanga, Dan and Kallis giving him tips and the senior players taking keen interest in on field decisions. Also, as Huss is handling the job extremely well, I feel there is no point in changing the skipper. I'm sure Hussey's captainship will flourish in the company of Punter, Sachin, Sanga and Gilly with the experience they have.

Truman: On being called a bunch of oldies...

Fenil: In a tournament like this, experience, skill and excellence matter the most and not the age of the players. If you have a look at recently announced World ODI team of the year, you will see that most of the players are of 30+ age. If a player is performing well and good, one should not look at his age. After all, its the runs and the wickets that count at the end of the day and not the age of the players. I'd obviously go for a 35 year player who can lead the team from the front than picking a young kid who is inconsistent or whose inclusion is not fruitful/beneficial for the team.

Truman: Your thoughts on Dipak as a coach?

Fenil: He is a wonderful coach. So involved with the team behind the scenes. In fact, he is on the field as we talk here. Sometimes its hard to reach him when in nets. Substantial amount of credit for our win goes to Dipak. He contributed to the team in many ways but his move to get Snorks in the side proved to be a master stroke.

Truman: Your thoughts about the league and something you would like to say to The Author?

Fenil: It was a wonderfully managed season. It was, and is, a great honor to be a part of such an iconic league. That said, I would like to say that despite the wonderful league, one thing that he could have done to keep the things better is updating the stats and the matches played time and again. Stats play such an important role in decision-making process of a team and by updating the matches played, one can remove any possibility of confusion. If you tell me to rate his work, I'd give 3.5/5.

Truman: Something you would like to see in the coming season?

Fenil: I'd like to see the "stats" and "matches played" updated as and when possible. It is very essential to be aware of these two things for a manager to try and field the perfect combination in a match. Also, I'd like to see more matches in the tournament this time around. Most of the other nation based league are nowhere near to the completion and if we go with these little amount of matches, we would have a winner for 2nd season before the ongoing season of other leagues get their team for the champions league. This should be a priority in my opinion to avoid any problems for champions league campaign of an ELA based team.

Truman: How excited is your team for the second season?

Fenil: The lads are raring to go and hopefully we will be more dominating this time around.

 

[Fenil]

Well, do it within 12:00 GMT.

You mean 0000 hours GMT, right?

 

[Aislabie]

West Coast look unbeatable.

Just putting that out there.

 

[Sartaj]

The squad that I last posted is what we'll be going with this season.

 

[Dipak]

Thanks for all the praise, Fenil.

Sometimes its hard to reach him because his PM are always full

Corrected.

 

[Andrin Issac]

Ahmed ... reply fast

 

[Fenil]

Ahmed ... reply fast

Trading window is already closed, my friend.

 

[RPHKR]

West Coast Fever, ditto of Bashnahira Bears, eh?