Its 2007 and it the start of the ashes in Australia, what would be your best xi

[GotSpin]

Whats the current age of the Aussies guys - I'm too lazy

I think it'll look something like:

opening batsmen:
possibly Matt Hayden, if not Hussey
-problem spot- (keep your eyes peeled out for a possible metoiric fast rise from Greg Hunt)

Hopefully Hayden is still around, giving some more time for our young openers to develop.

Middle Order:
Ricky Ponting (captain)
Michael Clarke
Martin Love
Marcus North

(bear in mind, Shane Watson may be in here, batting number 7 and as a fifth bowler, depending on how he comes along in the years)

Shaun Marsh will be therabouts as well, whilst possibly young Mark Cosgrove.

Keeper:
probably Gilchrist (keeper), if not Haddin or Clingeleffer

bowlers:
Beau Casson could very well be a gun left arm chinaman, otherwise Hauritz and White will be thereabouts

Brett Lee (hopefully a matured)
50/50 Jason Gillespie
possibly Glen McGrath

next in line quicky would be Ashley Noffke than I reckon Paul Rofe.

Nathan Bracken, Damien MacKenzie and Scott Brant could also be in the mix, and don't write off Aaron Bird.


A few others around as well -

Shane warne dead?

 

[benchmark00]

Name me one team that has ever picked six front line bowlers.

Tumut Bulldogs U/12 B's in the summer of '96.

 

[Bowl-A-Beamer]

Name me one team that has ever picked six front line bowlers.

why would i want to???

this is what i would pick and i don't care if nobody has picked 6 front line bowlers!!!

thats what i would put out and that is my opinion only!!

i don't mind you having different opinions but you can't just say it's crap beacuse no other team has done it that way!!

 

[Jamee999]

The reason no one else has done it is because it's crap.

 

[Nate]

Tumut Bulldogs U/12 B's in the summer of '96.

No coming back from that Pickup.


Langer
Hayden
Ponting
Clarke
Hussey
Symonds
Gilchrist
Lee
Warne
Bracken
Kasper

For the opener, that`s my guess.

 

[Neil Pickup]

why would i want to???

this is what i would pick and i don't care if nobody has picked 6 front line bowlers!!!

thats what i would put out and that is my opinion only!!

i don't mind you having different opinions but you can't just say it's crap beacuse no other team has done it that way!!

Generally, if something is a reasonable idea, someone will have done it at some point.

India have five bowlers in the current side at Mohali, and Piyush and Harbhajan have had five overs each so far. A sixth bowler is a completely wasted selection - especially as it leaves Flintoff 5, Jones 6 and Giles 7 - all a place too high. You run the risk of very, very low all-out totals, and bowlers sitting around doing nothing.

Even with five bowlers, England often have one bowler not doing too much - and picking an inadequate sixth man (ie Plunkett) in a side will just result in his not getting any bowling time at all, as Vaughan will always have a better option in reasonable fitness to go to!

 

[GIMH]

My squad of 16 would be...

Vaughan
Trescothick
Strauss
Bell
Pietersen
Collingwood
Cook
Flintoff
Jones
Prior
Giles
Panesar
S Jones
harmison
Hoggard
Anderson

From that my first XI would be

Trescothick
Cook
Strauss
Vaughan (if fit, long-term doubts are obviously now a major concern) / Bell / Collingwood (all possible part-time bowler options also)
Pietersen
Flintoff
G.Jones
Giles/Panesar (at 11)
Hoggard
Harmison
S.Jones

 

[LongHopCassidy]

Langer
Hayden
Ponting
Katich
Hussey
Gilchrist+
Watson
Warne*
Gillespie (magically reborn) but realistically Lee
MacGill (Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney) Bracken (Brisbane, Perth)
McGrath

Strauss
Trescothick
Vaughan*
Pietersen
Bell
Flintoff
G. Jones+
Hoggard
S. Jones
Harmison
Panesar

 

[mefly]

mine wood be

cosgrove
hayden
ponting
thornely
mhussey
gilchrist/haddin
watson
warne
lee
bracken
cullen/tait

maybes north, harwood, jaques, m clarke.

 

[marc71178]

mine wood be

cosgrove
hayden
ponting
thornely
mhussey
gilchrist/haddin
watson
warne
lee
bracken
cullen/tait

maybes north, harwood, jaques, m clarke.

Yes please!

 

[chris.hinton]

M.Trescothick- Still in England Side
M.Vaughan (Captain)- still the skipper
J.Troughton- cannot get in to warwickshire side
G.Muchall- do nowt for two seasons
R.Key (Please come good)- still is good in CC but always on Fringes
B.Shafayat- Never going to make the highest level
J.Foster- still a good keeper but behind ( Jones, Read, Prior, Davies)
A.Flintoff- 2003 was a decent play now Awesome
Leg spinner (Hey one has to come though in 2007) not going to happen sadly
S.Harminson- not as good as 2004 but still in side
J.Anderson- Quality bolwer but 6th choice now


thats what i said in 2003 here what i say in 2006

M.Trescothick
A.Cook
A.Struass
M.Vaughan
K.Pietersen
A.Flintoff
G.Jones
S.Jones
M.Hoggard
S.Harminson
M.Panesar

.... erm same as now really

plus in squad

I.Bell, S.Davies, A.Giles, L.Plunkett, E.Joyce, J.Anderson,P.Collingwood

 

[GIMH]

Anyone think there is a good chance of England fielding the same Xi we did in the first 4 tests of last year's Ashes, when down under?

ie Trescothick, Strauss, vaughan, Bell, Pietersen, Flintoff, G Jones, Giles, Hoggard, Harmison, S Jones

 

[marc71178]

If they're all fit, it wouldn't be a surprise at all.

 

[Jamee999]

I fancy Cook's chances.

 

[GIMH]

At this moment in time, if everyone was available, I believe only Cook, Collingwood and Panesar would come close to the side, obviously a lot would depend on form. It's incredible really to think that we could even consider it possible to field the same side in 2 different Ashes series, since it wasn't so long ago we were using about two teams of players in a series

 

[aussie]

If they're all fit, it wouldn't be a surprise at all.

yep pretty much, only place under serious treat is Cook for Bell or Strauss..

 

[steds]

I fancy Cook

 

[luckyeddie]

yep pretty much, only place under serious treat is Cook for Bell or Strauss..

Bell's under no threat at all - how on earth do you come to such a conclusion?

I appreciate he's had some low scores on the subcontinent, but he's also had 71, 115, 92 and 57, plus a couple of 30-odds. He's been one of the few successes on the winter tours.

Oh, I forgot. You just don't like him.

 

[GIMH]

Bell tops the runs list this winter, with 861 @ 41.8

Colly has the best average at 66.33, Tresco second with 49.33, then Bell third

Strauss, on the other hand, has the lowest average of all specialist batsmen this winter, with 18.63, less than Vaughan at 20.5. The much maligned geraint averages 8 runs higher. Even Shaun Udal has a higher batting average.

Alas, I do think this is just a slump in form. But to say Bell's place is under threat, rather than Strauss's, just seems wrong to me when Bell has had a half-decent winter, especially in Pakistan.

 

[DanielFullard]

At this Point

M.Trescothick
A.Strauss
P. Collingwood
M.Vaughan
K.Pietersen
A.Flintoff
G.Jones
S.Jones
A.Giles
M.Hoggard
S.Harminson