Get off Ricky's back!

[Ruckus]

Originally Posted by Spark

Why is it so impossible that we could win the WC? Not saying we will, but if we're going by rankings...

Yeah haha, the problem is with the test team not the ODI team. Betfair has us at equal 2nd with SA, England and Sri, with India the favourite. That's about right I reckon. Think we have a good chance to win it.

[Spark]

Ponting's been very good in ODIs in recent years and White-Hussey is about as good a 5-6 pairing as you could ask for, really. Haddin and Watson should do pretty well opening as well. The main problem is in the middle there, but even there, there have been glimmers of a revival in ODIs in the past year...

I see our main challenge as being able to bowl yorkers, really. We seem incapable of doing it.

[Ruckus]

Originally Posted by Spark

Ponting's been very good in ODIs in recent years and White-Hussey is about as good a 5-6 pairing as you could ask for, really. Haddin and Watson should do pretty well opening as well. The main problem is in the middle there, but even there, there have been glimmers of a revival in ODIs in the past year...

I see our main challenge as being able to bowl yorkers, really. We seem incapable of doing it.

I actually thought Ponting's recent ODI form was better, but it's not actually that great. Last year (2010!) he only averaged 36. That's alright but it's definately not outstanding. I guess it's a whole heap better relative to his test form anyway.

[Juanjo99]

Originally Posted by DeusEx

I actually thought Ponting's recent ODI form was better, but it's not actually that great. Last year (2010!) he only averaged 36. That's alright but it's definately not outstanding. I guess it's a whole heap better relative to his test form anyway.

That's his batting form- undeniable that he is going through a bad patch as all good bats do from time to time. The problem comes when all your recognised bats hit bad patches at the same time- as has happened with the Aussie team (and the England team in the past!).

But take a look at Ponting's overall captaincy record:
* Most victories as ODI captain: 122
* Most victories as Test captain: 47
* Highest victory rate as ODI captain in more than 20 matches: 75.74%
* Most Cricket World Cups won as captain: 2, shared with Clive Lloyd
* Most consecutive Test victories won as captain: 16, shared with Steve Waugh
* Undefeated as Captain in World Cups (23 matches)
* Most consecutive Ashes defeats in England: 2, shared with Billy Murdoch

People might say "Yeah- but that's all in the past!" But they didn't say that when Mitch Johnson was brought back into the side, after being dropped for bad form, and then was the main reason Australia won the 3rd Ashes Test.


With captaincy, it is experience that matters. Whether Ponting is in batting form or not, his record as a captain demonstrates his true value to the side.

[Marcuss]

People have actually defended Ponting?
lol.

[SteveNZ]

Originally Posted by vcs

Pretty stupid to write off a team that hasn't lost a World Cup match in over a decade (God, I desperately hope that streak comes to an end here ).

I don't know if it's stupid when you consider they're about the 5-6th side form-wise at the moment, and subcontient conditions will definitely suit other teams with better slow bowling options.

Juanjo, live in the now. The past is exactly that. Only relevant now in a sentence such as 'Ricky is past it'.

[Spark]

5th-6th? In ODIs? Absolute rubbish.

[GingerFurball]

Originally Posted by Spark

5th-6th? In ODIs? Absolute rubbish.

Well, they lost 2-1 at home to Sri Lanka, lost in India (albeit only 1 out of the 3 games got played) and lost 3-2 to England in England. Going back a bit further, they got beaten badly twice by South Africa and have a 5-4 record in the last 2 Chappell-Hadlee series they've played.

Have won a Champions Trophy, 6-1 in England and 4-2 in India, as well as destroying West Indies and Pakistan. They're not as bad as 5th/6th as is being claimed but their most recent form certainly hasn't been outstanding.

[SteveNZ]

Originally Posted by Spark

5th-6th? In ODIs? Absolute rubbish.

Three teams won a higher percentage of their ODIs in 2010 - South Africa, Sri Lanka and England. So that's fourth. And India were a mere win behind, and I'd consider them to be a stronger side than Australia.

So that's 5th. Feel free to mount your own case - it's an opinion.

[Athlai]

How many times did Australia play **** teams compared to the others?

Oh look
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/eng...ults;type=team

[GingerFurball]

Originally Posted by Athlai

How many times did Australia play **** teams compared to the others?

Oh look
http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/eng...ults;type=team

Why have you included New Zealand but omitted Bangladesh from your analysis?

[SteveNZ]

Originally Posted by GingerFurball

Why have you included New Zealand but omitted Bangladesh from your analysis?

Or the West Indies, who didn't win a single match in 2010 against major opposition.

If you make it SA, SL, England, India, Australia, Pakistan and NZ, Australia are 11-win, 8-loss and fourth on the list.

I stick by 5th. Spin it how you want

[Ruckus]

Originally Posted by SteveNZ

Or the West Indies, who didn't win a single match in 2010 against major opposition.

If you make it SA, SL, England, India, Australia, Pakistan and NZ, Australia are 11-win, 8-loss and fourth on the list.

I stick by 5th. Spin it how you want

Stats like the one you raised before (percentage of wins in 2010 etc.) and the one above are just such bull**** in ranking teams. If you look at the players in the Australian squad, it is obvious they should not be perceived as 5th in the world. They are almost certainly a top 3 side.

[Spark]

That's why they aren't 5th.

[GingerFurball]

Originally Posted by SteveNZ

Or the West Indies, who didn't win a single match in 2010 against major opposition.

If you make it SA, SL, England, India, Australia, Pakistan and NZ, Australia are 11-win, 8-loss and fourth on the list.

I stick by 5th. Spin it how you want

If you exclude all the matches that Australia won, then they are clearly the worst side in the world.