A pessimistic look at Australia's WC chances

[howardj]

When we took the field, we took the T20 WC seriously, however in our selections and preparation, I would contend that we did not. We treated it more like a warm up for the long tour ahead.

[Burgey]

After last night our two losses don't look that bad.

[pasag]

Originally Posted by Burgey

After last night our two losses don't look that bad.

In a way we were lucky I think, if the loses lead to a complete review of the setup. If we would have had a minnow in the group and had an easy ride to the Super 8s and maybe fluked our way to the Semis all the problems would have continued to be ignored.

[morgieb]

Originally Posted by pasag

In a way we were lucky I think, if the loses lead to a complete review of the setup. If we would have had a minnow in the group and had an easy ride to the Super 8s and maybe fluked our way to the Semis all the problems would have continued to be ignored.

Actually agree with this. I know it means that the whole world will believe that we are crap, but that's what you get for not picking T20 specialists.

Oh, and Hayden & Gilchrist to come out of retirement.

[pup11]

Look...like most Aussie fans I too was disappointed with the team' performance in the T20 WC, but I wasn't really surprised, its easy to say that Clarke, Ponting, Mike Hussey are poor T20 players, but these guys hardly play any T20 cricket, because whenever Australia are playing a T20 international game, these blokes look at those games as perfect opportunities to cool their heels.

So when you don't have any experience of playing a particular format of the game, then no matter how good a player you are, you are bound to struggle, another thing that Australia has failed to realize is the importance of spin bowling in this format of the game.

Agreed that Australia don't have match-winning spin bowlers, but still they have decent enough limited overs spin bowlers in Haurtiz, Doherty and even Krezja, (based on his performance in the last year's Big bash).

So more then making wholesale changes, what Australia needs to do is, bring about a change in their attitude and tactics towards T20 cricket.

[pasag]

Originally Posted by pup11

Look...like most Aussie fans I too was disappointed with the team' performance in the T20 WC, but I wasn't really surprised, its easy to say that Clarke, Ponting, Mike Hussey are poor T20 players, but these guys hardly play any T20 cricket, because whenever Australia are playing a T20 international game, these blokes look at those games as perfect opportunities to cool their heels.

So when you don't have any experience of playing a particular format of the game, then no matter how good a player you are, you are bound to struggle, another thing that Australia has failed to realize is the importance of spin bowling in this format of the game.

Agreed that Australia don't have match-winning spin bowlers, but still they have decent enough limited overs spin bowlers in Haurtiz, Doherty and even Krezja, (based on his performance in the last year's Big bash).

So more then making wholesale changes, what Australia needs to do is, bring about a change in their attitude and tactics towards T20 cricket.

Changing their attitude and tactics towards Twenty20 should initiate wholesale changes right down the line, tbh. And yes, it's easy to say Clarke is a poor Twenty20 player because, well, he is.

[pup11]

Originally Posted by pasag

Changing their attitude and tactics towards Twenty20 should initiate wholesale changes right down the line, tbh. And yes, it's easy to say Clarke is a poor Twenty20 player because, well, he is.

Wholesale changes to the squad would mean giving vital positions to guys like White, David Hussey, Shaun Marsh, Brad Hodge etc....

Its true that these guys have more experience of playing T20 cricket and hence might seem better equipped at handling this format then the players who are the part of the of the current Australian squad, but I believe that more they (the players in the current squad) in this format the better they would get.

As for Michael Clarke, of course the way he plays in limited overs cricket nowadays makes him look a rubbish batsman, but that doesn't mean he can't adapt, because good players always do that, a few months ago people were saying the very same thing about Kallis, and look how well he is doing now, a few years ago Watto use to struggle to play the big shots, but today he is one cleanest hitters of the cricket ball and one of the finest T20 players around.

Clarke was a renowned dasher during the initial part of his career, and he only mellowed his game down to tighten his technique more to suit test match cricket, and I am pretty sure if he works on his game, he and for that matter all the other contemporary batsmen in the Australian side would adapt successfully to the T20 format.

[pasag]

Originally Posted by pup11

Wholesale changes to the squad would mean giving vital positions to guys like White, David Hussey, Shaun Marsh, Brad Hodge etc....

Its true that these guys have more experience of playing T20 cricket and hence might seem better equipped at handling this format then the players who are the part of the of the current Australian squad, but I believe that more they (the players in the current squad) in this format the better they would get.

As for Michael Clarke, of course the way he plays in limited overs cricket nowadays makes him look a rubbish batsman, but that doesn't mean he can't adapt, because good players always do that, a few months ago people were saying the very same thing about Kallis, and look how well he is doing now, a few years ago Watto use to struggle to play the big shots, but today he is one cleanest hitters of the cricket ball and one of the finest T20 players around.

Clarke was a renowned dasher during the initial part of his career, and he only mellowed his game down to tighten his technique more to suit test match cricket, and I am pretty sure if he works on his game, he and for that matter all the other contemporary batsmen in the Australian side would adapt successfully to the T20 format.

And how many games do we have to lose, how many world cups do we have to be uncompetitive in before he figures things out? You can't just pick people in the hope that they come good. You pick the best people for the job, it's that simple.

[pasag]

Originally Posted by pup11

Look...like most Aussie fans I too was disappointed with the team' performance in the T20 WC, but I wasn't really surprised, its easy to say that Clarke, Ponting, Mike Hussey are poor T20 players, but these guys hardly play any T20 cricket, because whenever Australia are playing a T20 international game, these blokes look at those games as perfect opportunities to cool their heels.

So, um, then pick the guys who DO play a lot of T20 cricket to represent us in the world championships. I don't think it's rocket science.

I don't mind players resting from T20s, just don't pick them when it comes to the world championships.

[inbox24]

If you wanna look at it that way then, Clarke should be dropped and allowed to hone his T20 craft (and OD) at domestic level. Internationals are not some sort of joke practice arena, even T20s.

[pup11]

Originally Posted by pasag

So, um, then pick the guys who DO play a lot of T20 cricket to represent us in the world championships. I don't think it's rocket science.

I don't mind players resting from T20s, just don't pick them when it comes to the world championships.

That's what I am talking about, if Australia say they are serious about T20 cricket, then they should start acting accordingly, if guys like Clarke, Ponting, Hussey, Lee, etc wish to play in the T20 WC in the future, then they and other players should stop looking at the T20 international games as an opportunity to take breaks.

As for your point about picking guys who play more T20, then isn't Hodge the only deserving player missing from the current T20 squads, otherwise all the other good T20 players are already there in the squad.

[nightprowler10]

Originally Posted by pasag

In a way we were lucky I think, if the loses lead to a complete review of the setup. If we would have had a minnow in the group and had an easy ride to the Super 8s and maybe fluked our way to the Semis all the problems would have continued to be ignored.

Hey wait, this sounds familiar.

[four_or_six]

Originally Posted by inbox24

If you wanna look at it that way then, Clarke should be dropped and allowed to hone his T20 craft (and OD) at domestic level. Internationals are not some sort of joke practice arena, even T20s.

The problem is that things don't align properly. If he's dropped for a T20, he might end up playing a FC game for NSW, for example. This was a problem Clarke had before with tests, he was missing loads of FC games for NSW because he was playing ODIs.

[pasag]

Originally Posted by pup11

That's what I am talking about, if Australia say they are serious about T20 cricket, then they should start acting accordingly, if guys like Clarke, Ponting, Hussey, Lee, etc wish to play in the T20 WC in the future, then they and other players should stop looking at the T20 international games as an opportunity to take breaks.

As for your point about picking guys who play more T20, then isn't Hodge the only deserving player missing from the current T20 squads, otherwise all the other good T20 players are already there in the squad.

Nannes, for one.

[Smith]

Originally Posted by four_or_six

The problem is that things don't align properly. If he's dropped for a T20, he might end up playing a FC game for NSW, for example. This was a problem Clarke had before with tests, he was missing loads of FC games for NSW because he was playing ODIs.

Clarke is simply not cut out for the shorter versions. So forget him and try and build a squad without him. That's the best way for Australia now.