The "Channel 9 Commentary Is Hurting Brain" Thread

[GingerFurball]

Originally Posted by Got_Spin

Well yeah clearly. But there's so much wrong with sugar coating Hussey's current situation as under a little bit of pressure that's been relieved by a very scratchy innings.

Taylor (I think) hilariously sugar-coated Clarke's T20 failings the other night as well.

When the question of Clarke's SR came up, Taylor said "well, in 50 over cricket, a SR of 103 would be exceptional, in this form of the game, I think it's fair to say Clarke's underperforming."

It's baffling that, in the more professional T20 era, you not only pick, but pick as captain a player whose only domestic T20 experience is 6 games with Hampshire in 2004.

[Redbacks]

Originally Posted by Jono

Tbf, Nasser and Atherton have had no problems laying into England when necessary.

The audience in England being quite different to the audience in Australia is a factor in the type of commentary. Football is the working class game in England with cricket being traditionally played by the upper class. Cricket in Australia is across a greater cross section of society and the product produced therefore reflects this. Being over critical would turn a lot of viewers away.

Afl commentary is similar. It would be epic to have G. Healy and others disecting the game on a much more technical level. Breaking down technical issues of players, tactics, looking past the current game for struggling clubs etc. but not enough people would want to listen to it.

[GotSpin]

All I'm asking is for a realistic picture though. Not an out and out negative nelly

[vcs]

Originally Posted by Teja.

Nasser and Atherton are both awesome analysts.

Dravid, Punter and most particularly Sanga should become commentators after they retire. Sanga's articles on his favourite cricketers are fantastic.

Ganguly should do ball-by-ball for Neo, IMO.

Dravid mostly spouts cliched ****e though he's fluent, Ganguly always sounds more insightful. Agree with the Sanga shout. The man's a god all around.

[Jono]

Sanga has much more potential to achieve grander things in his life than to become a cricket commentator tbh.

[vcs]

I first heard Mark Nicholas in Ashes 2005 and thought he was awesome, but his act does turn old very quickly. Just sounds like a smug bastard now.

You have to give props to Harsha, he has commentated for quite a while, but kept his enthusiasm intact and hasn't started to really grate yet.

[vcs]

Originally Posted by Jono

Sanga has much more potential to achieve grander things in his life than to become a cricket commentator tbh.

He can save it for when he's about 50 and long retired.

[Teja.]

Originally Posted by Jono

Sanga has much more potential to achieve grander things in his life than to become a cricket commentator tbh.

Yeah, Same with Ganguly. Everyone knows he is good when talking about cricket but does he really want to spend the next 20 years doing ball-by-ball commentary?

[vcs]

What other career options do these guys really have?

[Jono]

Sanga has a law degree mate

Edit: Just read he never completed it. Could easily go back and finish it though post-cricket, or go into politics or business.

[Teja.]

Originally Posted by vcs

What other career options do these guys really have?

Mike Holding, for one, could become a R&B singer if he wanted to, with that voice.

[Themer]

Originally Posted by vcs

You have to give props to Harsha, he has commentated for quite a while, but kept his enthusiasm intact and hasn't started to really grate yet.

Are you talking about Harsha Bhogle?

Easily the most annoying commentator I have ever had the displeasure to listened to. He's worse than all of the Channel 9 team put together. And that's saying something.

[Daemon]

Originally Posted by Themer

Are you talking about Harsha Bhogle?

Easily the most annoying commentator I have ever had the displeasure to listened to. He's worse than all of the Channel 9 team put together. And that's saying something.

He's smart, he's insightful, he's enthusiastic. But he is so ****ing annoying.

[Themer]

Yeah there's nothing wrong with his facts and the like. He does actually have an idea of whats happening outside of the matches he's commentating on but he gets too excited starts shouting.

[sifter132]

Originally Posted by benchmark00

Ian Chappell is ****ing hopeless. He's my least favourite out of the lot. Such a negative ****.

Outside of Healy and Chappell there's nothing wrong with the channel 9 commentary.

Can't agree. Ian Chappell is probably the only guy in the team who watches non-Australian matches and he's not scared to voice his opinions and disapproval. I think he's the best commentator Nine has. Boring voice, and harps on a few favourite issues: front foot no-balls, new backing up rules, but generally he's the best IMHO.


My new pet peeve is the way they go ON and ON about spinner's speeds. Mark Taylor is the worst offender. Anyone that bowls over 80kph is apparently way too fast for the Nine boys, because Shane Warne bowled around 80 - and anything he did must be spinners gospel. But Warne himself will tell you that every spinner has to find their optimum speed, it's just he ended up in the low 80s.

so Xavier Doherty bowls high 80s or low 90s last night and he 'really needs to slow it up' according to the Nine boys, even though he'd just ripped one past Sanga at 88. And anyway, how many spinners can stand at the top of their mark and say 'this one's going to be 83.5'?? One conversation like that doesn't bug me, but it's been a theme for a LONG time for Tubby in particular. I remember him bagging Harbhajan Singh for bowling at 85kph and that was 2-3 years ago now. So mark it down and have a drink for whenever Tubby (or one of his colleagues) starts harping on about the speed of the spinners.