PhoenixFire
International Coach
Fix'd.
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Dwayne Smith jumps ship for England
- Thread starter Mr Mxyzptlk
- Start date
Mr Mxyzptlk
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Nah, Darren Sammy is a poor man's Dwayne Bravo. Dwayne Smith is a blind man's Darren Sammy.
Prince EWS
Global Moderator
In general I'd agree, but in this case it's actually very good news for the West Indies.
From what I saw, Smith could have been (and could still be, I suppose) a pretty decent First Class/List A bowler, especially if he focused on it. His batting was at Agarkar level though.
TT Boy
Hall of Fame Member
How do you work that one out? West Indies cricket has invested a considerable amount of time and money in Dwayne Smith, presumably ‘sanctioned’ his IPL deal and county contract yet, Smith isn’t just content on going Kolpak but now wants to change his nationality. Regardless of his actually ability the West Indian board should be furious for Smith is taking the piss.
Prince EWS
Global Moderator
Whether or not that should feel cheated is not my point - my point is that they'll be better off with this player unavailable. They can no longer give in to the temptation of selecting him.
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TT Boy
Hall of Fame Member
They are, their bowling attack without Mushtaq is minor (illustrated by the fact that Smith has become their opening bowler).
TT Boy
Hall of Fame Member
Why? His a better one day cricketer than Darren Sammy.
Mr Mxyzptlk
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In fairness, if they actually wanted Dwayne Smith in the team in the foreseeable future, they would have recalled him for this series. Especially given that half the Caribbean is injured.
Prince EWS
Global Moderator
Obviously I strongly disagree.
Mr Mxyzptlk
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Sammy is a much more thoughtful batsman and there's not too much between them as bowlers.
Somerset
Cricketer Of The Year
Except Sammy's taken seven-for in an innings in a test match.
TT Boy
Hall of Fame Member
He maybe but that hasn't helped him score many runs at international level thus far.
In regard to bowling as you say there isn't much between them other than the fact that Smith occasionally takes wickets in ODI cricket, Sammy hasn't done that yet.
Mr Mxyzptlk
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You seem to forget just how poor a batsman Dwayne Smith is. He's played 56 innings and averages 14.92 in ODI cricket. Sammy has only played 9 innings. But already suggests that he's a better ODI batsman.
Sammy's only bowled in 13 innings and when Dw. Smith was at a similar stage in his career, he had similarly poor figures. What Sammy has shown recently is an ability to be economical, which suggests that his bowling record will improve in due time.
Dw. Smith was a reasonable ODI bowler, who had potential to be good, a terrible batsman, and an excellent fielder. To say that he's a better ODI cricketer than Sammy, at this stage, is poor form.
Mr Mxyzptlk
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And 6 wickets in 8 other innings.Except Sammy's taken seven-for in an innings in a test match.
Somerset
Cricketer Of The Year
Meh, Smith's seven wickets in ten tests are hardly any better then.And 6 wickets in 8 other innings.
TT Boy
Hall of Fame Member
Conversely, it would be poor form to suggest Sammy is better ODI cricketer given that his played a relatively small amount of games and has done nothing of note in any of them. At least Smith had a handful of good to decent games for the West Indies over the years.
Mr Mxyzptlk
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Only got one shot at England.
Having watched both of them extensively in and out of international cricket, I think I am safe in saying that Sammy is a better cricketer. And given what he's shown at ODI level so far, he already looks a better ODI cricketer. With the bat he's certainly more capable, if less talented than Smith.
As has been mentioned previously in this thread, the biggest problem with Smith is that he fancied himself/he was fancied as a batsman who bowled. While he had the talent to be a good batsman, he is undoubtedly an idiot at the crease. Sammy doesn't have the same natural batting talent, but certainly has a good head on his shoulders. Of course it is no certainty, but given the chance I expect Sammy to build a modest ODI career record, which is more than can be said about Smith.
I've rated Smith's bowling for a while now. The problem is that Sammy is filling the role of a bowling allrounder in the West Indies lineup, and whoever fills that role has to be able to bat to an extent. Smith is really just useless in that regard. 16 of his last 21 ODI innings were single digit scores. 30 of 56 innings in his ODI career were single digit scores. He is a better bowler, but as I said, I don't think there's enough between them in that regard to justify him as a better ODI option right now.
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BoyBrumby
Englishman
Thought that was piss-funny, myself. Skull nom?
Anyway, it's a non-story for mine. All Kolpaks are de facto would-be England players because they're registered as "locals". If he was asked the question outright Smith could hardly turn around & say "Nah, just here for the money. I'll be back for the Windies like a shot as soon as I'm picked" lest it queered his Sussex gig.