Australia Fails Again!!

[devdas]

Yet another failure! They are supposed to be the number one team in the world, are the Fav for the WC , however they have been losing onedayer tournaments since quite some time.I believe they have lost the last 3-4 tour they played.
So perhaps they aren't as good as we think, they might still be tipped as the Fav for the WC but i think this team won't go all the way in WC'03!

 

[jaspalsinghrana]

They got a thrashing today, their batting was anything but good.

I think we are going to see lots of surprises in WC'03, i would say that an Asian team will lift the cup, India or Sl, gottabe favs

 

[Anil]

The conditions are very different in SA. Instead of the slow turners in SL, it will be hard and bouncy tracks which help the pacers. It is far too soon to write a team like Australia off and elevate teams like India and SL to favourite status based on the conditions there.

 

[devdas]

Originally posted by anilramavarma
The conditions are very different in SA. Instead of the slow turners in SL, it will be hard and bouncy tracks which help the pacers. It is far too soon to write a team like Australia off and elevate teams like India and SL to favourite status based on the conditions there.

I am not writing off Aus completely, nor am i of the Opinion that Ind/Sl would become the champs.The fact is that Aus have been losing onedayer tour since some time suggests that they have a side that's not clicking.B/f this tour, they were playing on their own back yard on hard turf yet they faired poorly.
I do think Aus will reach atleast the semis of WC, but will they retain the title?

 

[Anil]

I do think Aus will reach atleast the semis of WC, but will they retain the title?

The million dollar question, but the fact remains that they are still unquestionably the top favourites for the title. SA, India and SL will probably fall into the next rung based on this performance. So will Pak if the team resolves their internal problems and get their act together.

 

[luckyeddie]

one thing's certain - the wickets will be harder, faster and bouncier.

This could still favour Sri Lanka to a certain extent - Murali can be devastating if he finds a bit of bounce - but then again so can Kumble.

 

[aussie_beater]

Kumble is toothless if the wicket offers consistent bounce.He can be reduced to a slow medium pacer by the batsman who know his bowling. Only if he gets a pitch with uneven bounce then Kumble can prove effective, which I don't think he will get in SA.

 

[devdas]

I think u guys will agree with my opinion that the WC'03 will be wide open.I don't think any single team will be the firm fav.Aus, as pointed out by Anil, can't be ruled out.SA is perhaps the best onedayer team, but are chokers, so they aren't a sure shot.India,SL & Pak have the potential to go all the way.So i think the above 5 teams can win the cup.

England is a decent team, but i don't expect them to win the cup.NZ?? can be a giant killer.

 

[Legglancer]

I tend to agree with Anil on this One. Aussis
have been thouroughly outplayed by the Srilankens,
But one has to agree that the Sri Lankens had the
home advantage where their slow bowlers could
exploit the turning pitchers.

However the Indian and Sl bowlers are not
nearly as effective on hard bouncy wickets in
SA and australia. Also the Indian and Sri
Lanken batsman lack the technique to counter
the Aussie pacies on bouncy wickets. (Bar
Tendukar, Dravid, Aravinda)

Therefore It is imperative the Lankans and
Indian batsman Focus and practice the art of
playing on hard wickets from now onwards they
can definitely overcome this problem. Its not
an easy task as each batsman has to Unlearn
many aspects that they take for granted
on flat surfaces and create new methods of
scoring while limiting risks.

 

[Hoggard]

It will be BARMY ARMY,BARMY ARMY, BARMY ARMY !!

 

[luckyeddie]

Last time I spent any time with the Barmy Army was at Trent Bridge this year. Most of them were so drunk by lunch that the match was an unnecessary interruption between pints.

Mind you, it was fun for a while then I went and sat with a few Indian buddies. That was better (and louder).

 

[marc71178]

Originally posted by anilramavarma
The conditions are very different in SA. Instead of the slow turners in SL, it will be hard and bouncy tracks which help the pacers. It is far too soon to write a team like Australia off and elevate teams like India and SL to favourite status based on the conditions there.

You took the words right out of my mouth!

 

[marc71178]

Never sat with the Barmy army, but if the price is anything like it was when I was at the OT Test this year, how could they afford to get drunk by Lunch?

In fact how did they even get drunk - my mate and had about 10 each and still remained sober to the end of the day!

 

[devdas]

Some ppl find it hard to believe that Aus aren't unbeatenable side.

A lot have been said about the conditions in Lanka, but what about Aus performance at home, on hard surfaces? They failed to make it to the final in the tri nation series and had to sack the seniors after that.Then they lost the indoor series to Pak, then it was said that it was played in offseason.This time around it is the condition of the wkts!.
Fact is that this side is no longer the force it was a couple of yrs back, its still a pretty strong side but not invincible

 

[sean]

Just because we're the number one side doesn't mean we will win every game we play! Does Tiger Woods win every tournament he plays in?

We comfortably won the tri-series with Kenya and Pakistan, comfortably won our group matches in the ICC trophy, and we had one poor performance in the semi-final.

Big deal, we failed to make the VB Series final for the first time in about 6 or 7 years from memory, and our team has just gone through some immense changes (Both Waugh's out), so don't write us off just yet!

 

[Eclipse]

And why did you say Asutralia have been losing lots of one day series latly they have lost 3 in last 2 years thats no much.

Australia are shoking players of spin on slow turning wkts but wait untill we play on the faster wkts of Australia or South Africa.

Australian Players R.Ponting, D. Martyn, S. Watson, A. Gilchrist are all not very good against slow spin.

 

[devdas]

Originally posted by sean
Just because we're the number one side doesn't mean we will win every game we play! Does Tiger Woods win every tournament he plays in?

We comfortably won the tri-series with Kenya and Pakistan, comfortably won our group matches in the ICC trophy, and we had one poor performance in the semi-final.

Big deal, we failed to make the VB Series final for the first time in about 6 or 7 years from memory, and our team has just gone through some immense changes (Both Waugh's out), so don't write us off just yet!

Well technically the triseries final wasn't completed and Aus had to share the trophy, though by the way Pak was playing Aus would have won it!
I am not completely writing them off, but as u have said that Aus have made changes(dropping Waugh), i think those changes might prove them costly in the WC.

 

[sean]

Originally posted by devdas
i think those changes might prove them costly in the WC.

Me too! Mark Waugh I honestly believe should have been dropped, but to drop the captain I think was a bit extreme. Hopefully Steve can do something amazing in the ING Cup this year, albeit in his limited opportunities if he is selected for the test side. His experience and leadership is vital to Australias World Cup '03 campaign, and without him, Australia are shooting themselves in the foot.

 

[luckyeddie]

I honestly couldn't believe it when Australia went into the current competition Waughless.

I know that it opens up opportunities for younger players to cement a place for the future, but I can't help thinking that the benefit of the Waugh brothers' extraordinary experience is something which is easier for them to pass on whilst they are in the squad.

I think that it is an experiment which will be abandoned for a year or two.

 

[Paid The Umpire]

Australia failed once. I guess we have to write them off!

Wait a second, anything can happen in a day of cricket. Bangladesh could beat Australia if they each had a good/bad day.

Does that mean that Bangladesh are the better side? No WAY!

Australia will remain on top for at least another World Cup!