1. ODI Cricket. We were toweled up, but how infrequent are the games.... this can't help. In the old days they played four a week! We just might become world beaters in T20 now the BBL is set in stone. The scheduling needs some work however. Surely the BBL can have its best players for those finals! Expect us to fade fast in all ODI comps. We play our domestic ODI comp in October and have been outplayed. Stoinis is a great bat, but his bowling is ho hum really, regardless of pace. Maxwell continues to disappoint when the pressure is on.
Aaron Finch too has so much talent, but unless he gets fitter, he will only ever be a T20 player at best. A liability in the field and forever injured.
2. U/19 leg spinner Lloyd Pope - 'Popey' . Talk of the next Warnie...Please, we have been waiting for the next Sterlo... Bradman... they never come. A talented kid who did well in one game and may have a good future ahead. Full stop. Maybe he is just a kid playing a game he loves.
A great U/19 effort by Australia against England. Better than a few of our main Australian players who it must be said have struggled. Smith and Warner in particular. Time for others to step up. Cameron White is surely gone. I don't think we have enough batsmen. We are one short. We also need a more aggressive approach where the skipper supports the spinner more. Smith has been terribly defensive. Zampa is used as a stock bowler, not a wicket taker. That is a huge problem. Tim Paine is also not the ODI answer. He cannot hit the ball off the square under pressure.
3. IPL Auction. A foot in the IPL door and then a decent performance or two in the IPL will make you a multi-millionaire these days. Look at Coulter-Nile and Tye. Billy Stanlake has gotten $200K...he could surprise. While their country is in abject poverty, cricket remains a goldmine. Lynn, Starc, Finch, Stoinis, Maxwell are all continued millionaires...even Shane Watson ($800K if you don't mind). Great to see AJ Tye and D'Arcy Short clean up too. Compare the cash to EPL and Spanish/ Italian league soccer players...ashtray change.
4. ATP Tennis. As mentioned a couple of weeks back, the ATP Tennis money grab worldwide is at the expense of players. The season has one month's off season lay off. Nadal got cut short, but blaming the schedule is silly given he made the final last year. No wonder tanking and match fixing is rife however. So many games and do they all matter with a new tournament to get to tomorrow? The heat is something else on that court (that Korean player's blister was awful!) but Federer gets a lot of night games because he is a TV favourite. This is a massive help to your longevity through the tournament.
5. The Australian Open Tennis Final. Federer was absolutely brilliant in the first and third sets. Awesome big time player. Cilic is tidy as a player and is at the peak of his powers. Sadly he had to play against Federer who is the best ever and more than likely to win. 20 Grand Slams will never be broken in our life times. He was never losing to Cilic.
6. BBL. The spate of poor catching in the Big Bash is a worry. My theory is that these players rarely if ever play under lights. That and they are not geared liked they used to be in this part of the game. Easier to get money from ramp shots and reverse sweeps. We saw a bit of it in the Australian team as well. Not to worry, Brad Haddin, our fielding coach, will fix it all. Bob Simpson, for all his faults, brought Australian cricket to a new level with his focus on it - and Buchanan through the US fielding coach, Mike Young.
7. Rugby Sevens. Men and Women teams both win! Such a better product. It might take over the main 15 a side game! The crowds were pretty solid too. A strong win by the Australian team. Good to see an ex Oakhill College lad win the Man of the Final - Lachlan Anderson.
8. Darts, F1 and Boxing. A big worldwide push to eliminate 'walk on' girls from these events is gathering power. Maybe they should allow women to participate in these sports to enhance them. Women's darts - why not? The women's Rugby 7s is a fantastic level of sport. More entertaining than the blokes for large chunks of time. The Australian women's team smashed them this weekend.
Sunday, January 28, 2018
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Wrap - ODI Shellacking
1. Lyon. Gee you would be disappointed if you were Nathan Lyon. Adam Zampa bowled a nice wrong ‘un, tonight but he is too predictable. Against Lyon’s 290 Test wickets, it is hard to imagine how Zampa gets the nod. The generational bowling of Australia in the ODI format is of serious concern. Cummins has been very short. At 150 mph he can get away with it. Today v Jos Butler, he did not.
The Australian ODI need for a class spinner has never been stronger. To bowl Stoinis, Mitchell Marsh...same old, same old. Memo to selectors: Travis Head is not the spinning answer. He is flat out getting runs, which should be his main gig. Head has no form this season in all forms. The Poms were simply too good! They are aggressive and powerful and bat deep.
2. Tennis I. Always love the mock shock when Australians are "bundled out" of the Australian Open. It is almost as though we should be dominating all draws because it is in our country. When you look at it the Round of 128 (first round) - 64 (second round) - 32 (third round) - 16 (fourth round) - 8 (quarter finals) - 4 (semi finals) - 2 (final), represents levels in the world which are well beyond their world rankings. They are actually over achieving.
3. Tennis II. Nadal and Federer look like they are on the same collision course for a Grand Slam final. How good are they both? Both are supreme athletes. Kgyrios played extremely well and fought all the way. Losing three tie breaker sets to the third best in the world is no disgrace. A top 8 in the world (quarter finals) would have been a superb result for the first Slam of the year.
4. Man Mundine v Jeff Horn. Nothing surprises, but the Man is a clown. He has had his day and needs to concentrate on his NRL comeback.
6. Lleyton
Hewitt into the quarter finals of the doubles....amazing effort with Sam Groth. Money for jam!
The Australian ODI need for a class spinner has never been stronger. To bowl Stoinis, Mitchell Marsh...same old, same old. Memo to selectors: Travis Head is not the spinning answer. He is flat out getting runs, which should be his main gig. Head has no form this season in all forms. The Poms were simply too good! They are aggressive and powerful and bat deep.
2. ODI. Our key ODI weaknesses are four fold: (i) no class spinner (ii) an inconsistent middle order (iii) lack of a strike power wicketkeeper with the bat (Carey for Paine should occur) (iv) our fielding is not slick enough around the park...sadly Finch, Kawaja (not selected because of this), Hazelwood...not crisp enough. Our fielding was better tonight but basically lacks polish and speed across the park. Oh for the days of Symonds, Ponting, Blewett, a couple of Waughs and Bevan....
By contrast, England were fast, agile and nimble. Cameron White's dropped catch was appalling at a key time. Did he drop the series - and himself simultaneously? (Mind you the BBL catching this season has been pretty poor too). Our lack a power striker in the middle order - maybe pride and ego may allow Glen Maxwell to come back - and strengthen our fielding! So much unfairly rides on Steve Smith. Aaron Finch has batted magnificently - but so has England who were simply much better than us. 5-0 beckons!
3. Gotta love the BBL (a summer divorce accelerator). The commentary team that does not rotate at all over the match...the fans enjoy it and actually learn a lot more. Ponting, Gilly, Fleming are the pick of them. A seriously new approach at Channel 9 is required. When they started they were revolutionary in World Series cricket. Now they are tired. Do you lose much getting rid of Healy, Nicholas, Clarke, Chappelli? Just keep Warne, Slater, Taylor and Bull...!
3. Tennis II. Nadal and Federer look like they are on the same collision course for a Grand Slam final. How good are they both? Both are supreme athletes. Kgyrios played extremely well and fought all the way. Losing three tie breaker sets to the third best in the world is no disgrace. A top 8 in the world (quarter finals) would have been a superb result for the first Slam of the year.
4. Man Mundine v Jeff Horn. Nothing surprises, but the Man is a clown. He has had his day and needs to concentrate on his NRL comeback.
5. Football/ Soccer. How
long does it take for a Socceroo coach to be announced? How hard is it? Graham Arnold
is our best domestic coach in all domestic sport, maybe outside Justin Langer. Forget about Edward von
Dickens and the rest.
Monday, January 15, 2018
Wrap - New and Old English Patriots
1. Ashes. A crushing Ashes win in the end against an English team who really under performed. Our bowling was very good and reminds us all of some great eras of Australian bowling when we dominated. However, it is unbelieveable that some dim wit at the SCG/ Cricket Australia permitted that ridiculous four finger backdrop to be used at the final presentation. Just watch that the English Cricket Board don't want to use the back of it in 2019.
2. ODI Cricket v England. Our ODI form is a concern. We seem to have fallen behind the world badly in recent times. The absence of a class spinner is one key reason. Adam Zampa seems a great young kid, but he simply does not take wickets at this level. Nor did many others, but beyond this game, it is a big problem. A bloke by the name of Nathan Lyon apparently goes alright. Some of the BBL leg spinners should feature. Another bloke who seems to have been wiped who takes wickets is Fahad Ahmed. He spins the ball more than most others. Pace on a good drop in MCG wicket (any complaints that there were too many runs scored?) seems unlikely to do the job.
What an innings by Jason Roy? High class against a strong attack. The Sydney Sixes will be wondering where this was for them.
3. India v South Africa. How good are Indian cricket fans to their players worldwide? It does not matter where, those Indian flags and their patience/ enthusiasm is a big reason why they lift and perform. The great Virat Kohli is amongst the runs in South Africa (85no) again. A super talent. Remember he averages over 50 in all three forms of the game.
4. Keep an eye on this South African cricket opening batsman - Aiden Markram. He has been a revelation in recent series. It will be a test to see how he aims up outside of South Africa, but he plays extremely well on their decks.
5. Summer of Tennis. What a great week of tennis in Sydney for the Australians. Rather than be bored by stories about Bernard Tomic's ills, the presence of Ashley Barty in the final, 'Dasher' and Alex de Minaur in the men's was a far more inspirational story. It is hard to get past the relative absence of busy local tennis courts and numerous tennis players in junior sport. The world has shifted in Australian sport and these are rare folk.
6. Liverpool. This Jurgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, is an animated, honest and talented bloke. His team's win v Man City to break their unbeaten run was outstanding. His colourful language in the post game interview was also quite strange but inoffensive. Arsenal losing to Bournemouth continues their extremely disappointing season. Wengner seems to outlast all of this however. His selection of total youth in the team did not seem to work.
7. The New England Patriots are into the AFC final v the winner of the Pittsburgh Steelers/ Jacksonville Jaguars game today. Their QB Tom Brady is exceptional. He has now played his 11th career postseason game, beating the great Joe Montana. This is the seventh successive AFC championship game for the Patriots. What an era and what a coach in Bill Belichick. Belichick has led the Patriots to 14 AFC East division titles and 11 appearances in the AFC Championship Game. He has coached the Patriots to seven Super Bowl appearances. His teams have won five Super Bowls. Legend.
2. ODI Cricket v England. Our ODI form is a concern. We seem to have fallen behind the world badly in recent times. The absence of a class spinner is one key reason. Adam Zampa seems a great young kid, but he simply does not take wickets at this level. Nor did many others, but beyond this game, it is a big problem. A bloke by the name of Nathan Lyon apparently goes alright. Some of the BBL leg spinners should feature. Another bloke who seems to have been wiped who takes wickets is Fahad Ahmed. He spins the ball more than most others. Pace on a good drop in MCG wicket (any complaints that there were too many runs scored?) seems unlikely to do the job.
What an innings by Jason Roy? High class against a strong attack. The Sydney Sixes will be wondering where this was for them.
3. India v South Africa. How good are Indian cricket fans to their players worldwide? It does not matter where, those Indian flags and their patience/ enthusiasm is a big reason why they lift and perform. The great Virat Kohli is amongst the runs in South Africa (85no) again. A super talent. Remember he averages over 50 in all three forms of the game.
4. Keep an eye on this South African cricket opening batsman - Aiden Markram. He has been a revelation in recent series. It will be a test to see how he aims up outside of South Africa, but he plays extremely well on their decks.
5. Summer of Tennis. What a great week of tennis in Sydney for the Australians. Rather than be bored by stories about Bernard Tomic's ills, the presence of Ashley Barty in the final, 'Dasher' and Alex de Minaur in the men's was a far more inspirational story. It is hard to get past the relative absence of busy local tennis courts and numerous tennis players in junior sport. The world has shifted in Australian sport and these are rare folk.
6. Liverpool. This Jurgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, is an animated, honest and talented bloke. His team's win v Man City to break their unbeaten run was outstanding. His colourful language in the post game interview was also quite strange but inoffensive. Arsenal losing to Bournemouth continues their extremely disappointing season. Wengner seems to outlast all of this however. His selection of total youth in the team did not seem to work.
7. The New England Patriots are into the AFC final v the winner of the Pittsburgh Steelers/ Jacksonville Jaguars game today. Their QB Tom Brady is exceptional. He has now played his 11th career postseason game, beating the great Joe Montana. This is the seventh successive AFC championship game for the Patriots. What an era and what a coach in Bill Belichick. Belichick has led the Patriots to 14 AFC East division titles and 11 appearances in the AFC Championship Game. He has coached the Patriots to seven Super Bowl appearances. His teams have won five Super Bowls. Legend.
Sunday, January 7, 2018
Wrap - Wickets and Pickets
1. The Australian cricket team have really dominated this summer, outside of a few sessions and a day or two at Melbourne. The batting of Smith has been awesome. Unconventional, but highly effective. Many think Steyn or someone quicker may unpick the style and approach, but he changes it for all bowlers...tough to conquer, with an eye like a dead fish. The spin of Lyon and the pace of the other bowlers - Starc, Cummins and Hazelwood - has also been too consistent and has brought critical results at critical times. 20 plus wickets each is exceptional. Comprehensive. The next series is always the challenge, especially on the road.
2. Best? This rubbish out of control talk about the "best since Bradman" is simultaneously unfair on Smith who would be the first to knock it on the head - and highly disrespectful to Bradman who was 35 runs an innings - an innings - better than the next best. Adam Voges in 20 tests (31 innings) averaged 61.87. Headley (22 tests, 60.83) and Paynter (20 tests, 59.23) also batted about the same number of times as Voges.
Smith in 61 Tests (111 innings) averages 63.75. The media love a story or a fairytale. Bradman was and is invincible in every respect. Get over it and move on. Graham Pollock 23 Tests (41 innings, 60.97) might have also had something to say about this without government endorsed discrimination and segregation apartheid policies between 1948 - 1991.
3. Shaun Marsh's innings at the Sydney Test was simply outstanding. Watching him use his feet on such a difficult turning deck was to witness all his promise and talent in one innings. An incredible effort of style, grace and cunning. Mitchell Marsh as also dominant in a different way. His cut shot close to his body is an exceptional strength. Power. Credit where it is due....or even overdue.
4. The MCG pitch and its criticism is out of line. Atrociously boring, but not the worst deck we have seen worldwide. Plenty are happy to put the boot into the Australian administrators, but clearly there is a lot of unhappiness and change in the curator ranks there. The WACA has been worse...the 1980s MCG pitch was horrible...the SCG has been a joke at times, including a massively boring test or two v India in the early 2000s. The recent poor decks in Pune, Sri Lanka and greentops in NZ have been worse.
5. The NRL Integrity Unit are apparently on holidays and not back for a while. Holidaying at a traditionally extremely busy time. Come to think of it, the NRL boys are being very well behaved in early 2018. Long may it continue as professionalism becomes more engrained.
6. The Cleveland Browns lost their NFL season 0-16 which is a staggeringly bad year, especially after a brighter pre-season. Worst season for some time. The amazing fact is that their coach looks like retaining his gig. Rare loyalty.
7. BBL. How dominant has the leg spinner been in the BBL this year? Boyce, Zampa, Shah, Rashid, Swepson, Hogg, Nair, Ahmed. Awesome talent. The upcoming IPL auction will be interesting. Some of these lads may become overnight millionaires. Zampa in the ODI team, but may need to watch he is on the ball with plenty of other options lurking.
8. Nick Kyrgios on track for a big start to the ATP season with a stunning winning week in Brisbane. Dominant. With the right head space, he could be a world force. Consistency will be his test.
Equally, Federer powers on, even in jest, at the Hopman Cup giggleathon. I noticed Rafa has also rolled into town after his knee injury. He is well positioned to excel again. The world's two best athletes.
2. Best? This rubbish out of control talk about the "best since Bradman" is simultaneously unfair on Smith who would be the first to knock it on the head - and highly disrespectful to Bradman who was 35 runs an innings - an innings - better than the next best. Adam Voges in 20 tests (31 innings) averaged 61.87. Headley (22 tests, 60.83) and Paynter (20 tests, 59.23) also batted about the same number of times as Voges.
Smith in 61 Tests (111 innings) averages 63.75. The media love a story or a fairytale. Bradman was and is invincible in every respect. Get over it and move on. Graham Pollock 23 Tests (41 innings, 60.97) might have also had something to say about this without government endorsed discrimination and segregation apartheid policies between 1948 - 1991.
3. Shaun Marsh's innings at the Sydney Test was simply outstanding. Watching him use his feet on such a difficult turning deck was to witness all his promise and talent in one innings. An incredible effort of style, grace and cunning. Mitchell Marsh as also dominant in a different way. His cut shot close to his body is an exceptional strength. Power. Credit where it is due....or even overdue.
4. The MCG pitch and its criticism is out of line. Atrociously boring, but not the worst deck we have seen worldwide. Plenty are happy to put the boot into the Australian administrators, but clearly there is a lot of unhappiness and change in the curator ranks there. The WACA has been worse...the 1980s MCG pitch was horrible...the SCG has been a joke at times, including a massively boring test or two v India in the early 2000s. The recent poor decks in Pune, Sri Lanka and greentops in NZ have been worse.
5. The NRL Integrity Unit are apparently on holidays and not back for a while. Holidaying at a traditionally extremely busy time. Come to think of it, the NRL boys are being very well behaved in early 2018. Long may it continue as professionalism becomes more engrained.
6. The Cleveland Browns lost their NFL season 0-16 which is a staggeringly bad year, especially after a brighter pre-season. Worst season for some time. The amazing fact is that their coach looks like retaining his gig. Rare loyalty.
7. BBL. How dominant has the leg spinner been in the BBL this year? Boyce, Zampa, Shah, Rashid, Swepson, Hogg, Nair, Ahmed. Awesome talent. The upcoming IPL auction will be interesting. Some of these lads may become overnight millionaires. Zampa in the ODI team, but may need to watch he is on the ball with plenty of other options lurking.
8. Nick Kyrgios on track for a big start to the ATP season with a stunning winning week in Brisbane. Dominant. With the right head space, he could be a world force. Consistency will be his test.
Equally, Federer powers on, even in jest, at the Hopman Cup giggleathon. I noticed Rafa has also rolled into town after his knee injury. He is well positioned to excel again. The world's two best athletes.
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