2 minute read Just what do they think they’re doing? There was a sign that the wheels had come off when Ricky Ponting said: “We’ve really got to pick horses for courses with our selections,” when the Australians were in India. Selection is one of the Aussies’ greatest strengths. Historically, they’ve actually planned
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Mitchell Johnson – Australia fast bowler
< 1 minute read Perhaps the most striking thing about Mitchell Johnson is his ridiculous cartoon character tufty hair. After that it’s his bowling. We watched quite a bit of Johnson when Australia toured India. He was their best bowler. For all the talk about Brett Lee being the fast strike bowler, Johnson’s not
Continue readingTest average maintenance
< 1 minute read Matthew Hayden 12, Ricky Ponting 0, Mike Hussey 0. Bring ’em down. Bring ’em down to a sensible level. Those three think they’re so good. They think they can bat in any conditions against any bowler. They think they’re ‘all that’, but they’re not ‘all that’. They are, at most,
Continue readingDisturbingly smooth men of cricket
< 1 minute read Just when you think you can’t possibly vomit any more, you remember that the year doesn’t end with January. Witness the Men Of Cricket 2009 calendar, made to raise funds for the McGrath Foundation, an organisation set up by Glenn and his late wife to provide funding for breast cancer
Continue readingBrad Haddin’s first Test hundred
< 1 minute read Early in Brad Haddin’s innings, they showed his average on screen. It was 26. Someone, possibly Ian Healy, said that figure would be closer to 40 before too long. After 169 against New Zealand, Haddin now averages 36 in Tests, which seems a fairer figure. If you’ve never seen Brad
Continue readingMatthew Hayden plays his 100th Test match
2 minute read It’d be just like Hayden to hit a hundred as well – just to spite us. In honour of this momentous achievement, Hayden’s been answering the questions that you’ve all been asking these last 14 years. These are the questions on everyone’s lips. What is the fabric of playing for
Continue readingAustralia still struggling with their over rate
< 1 minute read Ricky Ponting’s been fined again because Australia have been dithering about not bowling their overs. Why it’s happening is such a mystery that Cricket Australia even began a study at the Gabba to monitor every minute of time lost during New Zealands’ innings. During the match, Australia made some efforts
Continue readingAndrew Symonds hits new low
< 1 minute read He was in ‘an altercation’ with some guy in a pub. Apparently the other guy, an official in the Aussie armed forces, asked for a picture with Symonds and when the hulking all-rounder said no, threw a couple of punches at him. That’s not the shocking part though. If truth
Continue readingSimon Katich plays a nice innings
< 1 minute read People who decide man of the match awards are stupid. If there are loads of runs in the match, man of the match adjudicators think the batsmen have all batted really well and pick the guy who scored the most. If it’s a really low-scoring game, they think the bowlers
Continue readingMoving ball! Moving ball!
< 1 minute read Just close your eyes, stick your arse out, wobble your bat at a funny angle and hope. It’ll be fine. This is the technique for dealing with the moving ball. There is absolutely no way that this is the wrong approach. Three people out? Just stick with it. It’ll reap
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