Say Hello to the No.1 Test team in the World

[sohum]

Plus we go to India AGAIN this time next year for another 7 match one day series.

The South African board is probably not complaining given that the World Cup will take place there just a few months after.

 

[drainpipe32]

Plus we go to India AGAIN this time next year for another 7 match one day series.

That SA tour in 2011 is very interesting, its in September/October, 3 tests and one dayers. I wonder why it was scheduled that early in the SA season? Maybe to avoid the back to back test series of the past 16 years between SA and Aus. Plus right before that series we go to SL for 3 tests and one dayers too in Aug/September, what a cramped schedule.

2011 looks like our busiest year ever, World Cup too.

Yeah I was thinking the same thing. I remember after the last summer everyone was complaining about the back to back Aus-SA series.

2011 is shaping up to be pretty hectic, but should be exciting!

 

[Robelinda]

Yeah I was thinking the same thing. I remember after the last summer everyone was complaining about the back to back Aus-SA series.

2011 is shaping up to be pretty hectic, but should be exciting!

Plus we host Zim in April/May, i'm assuming in cairns/ Darwin, and before that we tour Bangladesh, coming off a big summer before that. So in 2011 there's two 3 week breaks, and thats it for the whole year. Look forward to a bucketload of injuries that year. The selectors had better rest our best test players a lot. Plus the bloody IPL will be in there too!

 

[drainpipe32]

I reckon by then we'll really need to have very different ODI and Test Squads.

Draft off the top of my head:

Test 13:
Hughes
Katich
Ponting
Clarke
North
Ferguson
Haddin
Johnson
Siddle
Hilfenhaus
Hauritz
Bollinger
Holland


ODI 15
Watson
Warner
Hughes
Marsh
Ponting
Clarke
Hussey
Tim Paine
Johnson
McKay
Holland
Hauritz
Ferguson
Hopes
Hughes

Pretty random squads, but pretty different as well. Looking for those older players to play just one format to ensure longevity.

It was supposed to be a Test 15, but I couldn't think of two more player. Any Ideas?...

 

[rahuldravidfan]

...People seem to have forgotten what happened in the current climate where everyone loves to take a stab at Indian cricket.

That part is the highlight of your answer. Great point you've made. Its a given that people loving having a go at anything even remotely Indian, be it the Board President or a poor security guard or even a hapless groundsman. What they fail to notice however is that their countries are equally, if not more, ridiculous in all the aspects they criticize India about.

And the thing these days is that fellow Indians have stopped taking all this rubbish lying down and are giving back in kind, which these chaps don't expect, and what we see is a backlash. Its there everywhere really. Even in this thread a bit .

So we must all respect each other, opinions articulated by each other and get on with it

rahuldravidfan added 1 Minutes and 40 Seconds later...

I reckon by then we'll really need to have very different ODI and Test Squads.

Draft off the top of my head:

Test 13:
Hughes
Katich
Ponting
Clarke
North
Ferguson
Haddin
Johnson
Siddle
Hilfenhaus
Hauritz
Bollinger
Holland


ODI 15
Watson
Warner
Hughes
Marsh
Ponting
Clarke
Hussey
Tim Paine
Johnson
McKay
Holland
Hauritz
Ferguson
Hopes
Hughes

Pretty random squads, but pretty different as well. Looking for those older players to play just one format to ensure longevity.

It was supposed to be a Test 15, but I couldn't think of two more player. Any Ideas?...

Why isn't Ashley Noffke in? And no Lee in ODIs

 

[Robelinda]

Noffke isnt really on the radar anymore, getting old and not really showing much pace these days. Only got offered a one year deal for his state which shows where he is at with his career. Had to move states in the end to WA.

I reckon Krezja or Steven Smith will be in one of the teams by then too. Maybe even Alaistair McDermott or someone like Aaron Finch.

 

[drainpipe32]

I reckon Smith is a chance. Probably no healthy to jump the gun with him though, as a young leggie.

Gazza_11 added 1 Minutes and 32 Seconds later...

That being said, I wouldn't mind seeing him play a few internationals this summer...

 

[rahuldravidfan]

Noffke isnt really on the radar anymore, getting old and not really showing much pace these days. Only got offered a one year deal for his state which shows where he is at with his career. Had to move states in the end to WA.

I reckon Krezja or Steven Smith will be in one of the teams by then too. Maybe even Alaistair McDermott or someone like Aaron Finch.

Hmm. I'm a big Noffke fan. He is a pretty awesome bloke with his bowling and a now a bit with his batting as well. Age... well, you never know. Ganguly made a comeback at the age of 34 (although he was one of the best cricketers of this generation) and Mike Hussey made his debut at 32. So nothing is impossible in cricket. I'd like to see him become a permanent fixture in the Aussie team and with injuries to most Aussie pacers, maybe he'll get his due soon .

Aaron Finch is another good bloke. Heard lots about him

 

[Robelinda]

He sure brings a bit to the table, big hitting, solid leg spin. I'm not sure he's the kind of player that we want to see play 8 years for NSW before given a go, when he would learn more in international cricket than state cricket, given his current skill level. If he has the right temperament then get him in and around the team.

Robelinda added 3 Minutes and 29 Seconds later...

Hmm. I'm a big Noffke fan. He is a pretty awesome bloke with his bowling and a now a bit with his batting as well. Age... well, you never know. Ganguly made a comeback at the age of 34 (although he was one of the best cricketers of this generation) and Mike Hussey made his debut at 32. So nothing is impossible in cricket. I'd like to see him become a permanent fixture in the Aussie team and with injuries to most Aussie pacers, maybe he'll get his due soon .

Aaron Finch is another good bloke. Heard lots about him

Oh I'm a Noffke fan too, but his time has well and truly gone, too many injuries too have hampered his chances, he bowls pretty slow these days compared to how he bowled 5 years ago. Unlike Hussey in 05, Noffke isnt dominating any of the matches he's playing, Hussey back then couldnt stop plundering triple/double hundreds in first class cricket . It would be a bad step backward to considering him, he only has 2 or 3 years left anyway at state level, but hey anything could happen.

 

[drainpipe32]

Yeah, would like to see him as the second spinners on some tours. Was disappointed not to see Holland in the Ashes squad, would have done him a lot of good to be around the team and play some tour matches.

Andrew McDonald was a real passenger for mine.....

 

[Robelinda]

McDonald currently getting more wickets for the Vics as I type....

 

[drainpipe32]

Yeah but I don't really know what he's gonna do for the them team.

He can't bat, that's for sure

His bowling is good, but not deadly and definitely not good enough to make up for his lack of batting performances at international level....

 

[Robelinda]

Remember Steve Waugh didnt do so good either for many tests, though I do think SRW had a little bit more batting skill at that age.

 

[SaiSrini]

2011 will be awesome. World Cup, India in England and India in Australia. Best year for the Indian greats like Dravid, Tendulkar and Laxman to make one final splash and retire (yes, from all forms). Atleast two of them should go (maybe Tendulkar and Laxman). Let Dravid continue till we find an able replacement for him.

 

[Cricketman]

2011 will be awesome. World Cup, India in England and India in Australia. Best year for the Indian greats like Dravid, Tendulkar and Laxman to make one final splash and retire (yes, from all forms). Atleast two of them should go (maybe Tendulkar and Laxman). Let Dravid continue till we find an able replacement for him.

I expect Sachin to go for sure. It'll be like 22 years of international cricket for him in 2011, and the Australia series will be a fantastic farewell for him. He might bow down from ODI cricket at the end of the WC too, but only if we win it. If not, it'll probably be after the Australian ODIs.

Laxman as well, he's fit but I have a feeling that he will enjoy one last Kangaroo thrashing before kicking back in retirement. Hopefully he'll still be around by then though, he's always had to fight for his spot.

Don't think Dravid will stay either. Definite retirement from ODIs if he isn't included in the squad for me.

Lots of changes.