*Official* Fifth Test at the SCG

[GotSpin]

It'll be overcast for most of the test i think

 

[TumTum]

For me Khawaja didn't look like he had any technical issues, even on the front foot. I think he is basically using the strategy Cook used where he doesn't play any extravagant drives. Even those half attempted drives outside off-stump were played really convincingly imo, nothing wrong there. Certainly looked the most composed of all the batsman today, very impressive for a debutant.

 

[GIMH]

Clarke fitting into Chimpy's role superbly so far

 

[Jono]

lol

 

[Spark]

Clarke fitting into Chimpy's role superbly so far

Mildly disturbing photo that

 

[Neil Pickup]

For me Khawaja didn't look like he had any technical issues, even on the front foot. I think he is basically using the strategy Cook used where he doesn't play any extravagant drives. Even those half attempted drives outside off-stump were played really convincingly imo, nothing wrong there. Certainly looked the most composed of all the batsman today, very impressive for a debutant.

I'm not sure I've ever classed a shot that goes at catchable height between gully and backward point as "convincing"...

 

[Jono]

It's convincing if he meant it to go there. Of course it is.

 

[Neil Pickup]

It's convincing if he meant it to go there. Of course it is.

If he's doing that on purpose then he's been going to the Shane Watson school of shot selection.

 

[Jono]

Tbf I didn't suggest Khawaja meant his cut to go there (I'm assuming we're referring to that cut shot that went for 4). But Sehwag and Gilchrist made a career of putting plenty of balls to the boundary through point and gully.

 

[Spark]

Think he means the edged drive in the air through point

 

[GIMH]

Anyone got a decent youtube vid with Watson's "aw no" on? All the clips I've found have had the dismissal but crap sound. Need to share it with the world via facebook, was so funny.

 

[GotSpin]

It was pretty funny when the comms replayed it. Poor guy

 

[Jacknife]

Just watching the post-rain stuff as I was asleep. Looks like Jimmeh was bowling a lot better. Will surely grab a few wickets tomorrow.

Yes he was and bowling a bit quicker at around 87-90 all the way through his spell, he bowled some jaffas to both Hussey and Khawaja.

 

[Furball]

Would be interested to see how many decent hauls Jimmy's taken in the last 3 years when he's started wicketless like today.

 

[Jono]

Anyone got a decent youtube vid with Watson's "aw no" on? All the clips I've found have had the dismissal but crap sound. Need to share it with the world via facebook, was so funny.

Been searching on and off all night. No luck.

 

[Jarquis]

Marcuss to respond

By laughing


lots.

 

[vicleggie]

It's pretty obvious he's losing concentration about that time, he'd been leaving much tighter balls than that all day. Did something almost identical in Adelaide.

Didn't take him long to realise his mistake though. And how.

he's had issues like that for a while now- remember last summer v windies. spend the best part of2 sessions basing around their attack , looking a million dollars, was on 95 at stumps.
next day looked SO shaky and nervous, completely lost concentration- and stopped playing the ball on its merits- got out trying to invent something.

his problem is as he gets higher, he stops playing each ball on merit and gets nervous- puts pressure on himself that he HAS to get to this or that score.

just like the best players- tendulkar, sehwag, kallis - basically play one ball at a time, and completely concentrate no matter what score theyre on, watto does the opposite- thats why he's getting mediocre results .

 

[vicleggie]

So what do you guys reckon is a par score? If we get Hussey or Haddin in the first 4 or 5 overs tonight then I'd expect us to bowl you out for 250 or so, but we all know that those two are capable of building an innings for the aussies.

with australia's bowling, to be any chance in this match they probably need 350 +

if they get 300 that won't be a complete disaster though.
socalled 'bowling great without luck' swing-bowler hilfenhaus will have to nip some early... and i dont expect johnson to do too much on this pitch, but siddle had a good game here against safrica.

 

[BoyBrumby]

The Typhoon... "Fast bowling is a glad animal feeling..." "If anyone asked me how was I was, I used to say 'Ask the batsman'".

That was fantastic stuff. Really enjoyed that.

I mean, it's no Test Match Sofa, but still...

I just love that Typhoon was a studious, bespectacled school teacher.

Quite a few of our Aussie-destroying quicks have been interesting characters, actually, defying the stout Yeoman stereotype. Snowy was the son of a vicar and a published poet, Larwood was short, wiry and diffident & Willis was a hippy who changed his name as a tribute to Bob Dylan.

Some were suggesting that the reason Clarke hasn't been wholly accepted by the Australian public is because he is the representative of Gen Y in Australian cricket. The Beckham of Australian cricket (with Lara Bingle being the Victoria). The tatts, the modelling, earring etc. He is just such a different looking man to previous Australian test cricketers, and especially captains.

They put Mitch Johnson in a similar boat.

Basically said that much of the Australian test watching public are of an older generation who aren't fans of the "pretty boy/metrosexual" aura that many Australian cricketers have.

Not a new suggestion by any means (Greg Baum discussed it in the SMH recently) but it was a good discussion. Especially since Clarke is from Bankstown anyway, and he's hardly from a privileged background.

Liverpool, I thought? But yeah, working class kid made good; you'd have thought he ticks a lot of Ocker boxes.

Think he's a prick myself, like...

Khawaja looked fantastic, been a while since we've had a batsman that didn't look like they were about to break down and cry in between each delivery. Hopefully we won't have to see constant pictures of his parents for the next 15 years though. Do not think England's batsmen will have too many issues on this pitch.

Was a little on the patronising side, I thought. "Look, his folks are properly Asian and everything!"

Feel for the boy a little, actually. Hard enough to make a go of tests without being looked on as the standard bearer for Australian Asians/Muslims as well.

Thought he looked quite bottom handed, actually, which I'd never noticed before. Not quite in the Fat Gray league, but can see problems with the ball coming back into him down the line.

 

[Furball]

Did like his pull shot though.