• Welcome to the Cricket Web forums, one of the biggest forums in the world dedicated to cricket.

    You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join the Cricket Web community today!

    If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us.

*Official* First Test at the Gabba

Prince EWS

Global Moderator
Well half of them play with stiff front legs and don't get nearly a big enough stride. Siddle was bowling some useful deliveries, but their strides were totally non-existent. Only Pietersen in that team can sometimes negotiate these deliveries, because of his height and reach, the rest of the top order can't deal with full balls.
Trott's usually pretty good with full balls, especially after he gets in. Can be vulnerable to playing around his front pad a little early on and he did get bowled today but as a whole I'd say he was as good at negotiating the type of bowling you're talking about as most in world cricket at the moment.
 

Prince EWS

Global Moderator
Good deliveries are good, in other words.

That's in no way specific to England.
I do see what he means though. Strauss, Collingwood, Prior and Cook are particularly vulnerable to that sort of bowling when you consider their overall quality. It's the sort of thing that's everyone's weakness, but it is exaggerated a bit in England's batting lineup IMO.
 

91Jmay

International Coach
Trotty is pretty good normally but i was really dissapointed with his dismisal. Was a decent ball from Watson but at that pace (and having already scored 5 from the over) i felt he was being rather lose and didn't get near enough the pitch. I'd put it down to good ball that was reasonably easily defended if the proper technique was used. It wasnt.
 

Son Of Coco

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Only Pietersen in that team can sometimes negotiate these deliveries, because of his height and reach, the rest of the top order can't deal with full balls.
I'll admit, it is surprising when you look at the melons on Pietersen, Collingwood, Bell, and Prior. They should still be nursing their first seeds, and be used to the dull ache by now.
 
Last edited:

LongHopCassidy

International Captain
I'll admit, it is surprising when you look at the melons on Pietersen, Collingwood, Bell, and Prior. They should still be nursing their first seeds, and be used to the dull ache by now.
Thought you were talking about their WAGS for a second. Apologies.
 
Last edited:

Son Of Coco

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Trotty is pretty good normally but i was really dissapointed with his dismisal. Was a decent ball from Watson but at that pace (and having already scored 5 from the over) i felt he was being rather lose and didn't get near enough the pitch. I'd put it down to good ball that was reasonably easily defended if the proper technique was used. It wasnt.
Looked like the exact areas you'd get Trott in trouble to me. He hadn't looked great around off all innings, and then got one that threatened to shape away before nipping back. The line was perfect.

Can understand people being disappointed in his dismissal though, he had looked good on the on-side.
 

91Jmay

International Coach
Looked like the exact areas you'd get Trott in trouble to me. He hadn't looked great around off all innings, and then got one that threatened to shape away before nipping back. The line was perfect.

Can understand people being disappointed in his dismissal though, he had looked good on the on-side.
Yeah it is the kind of ball he struggles with. He flicks across the line alot. Was it just me or did Trott try and play a LOT of deliveries that he could have left alone? I remeber a couple he sort of edgely drove along the ground that could easily have been left.
 

Spark

Global Moderator
No idea what Englands bowlers where doing whilst Siddle decimated the batsmen. It can't have been watching because they all reverted to that back of a length ****e that they love to bowl. Jimmy looked really poor.

Can't see us even being close in this one. Very dissapointing so far.
To be honest it reminded me of Headingley. Obviously much much less severe but the similarity is there - bowled out (relatively) cheaply on a pitch demanding a full length (same bowler on both occasions doing the most damage) then they come out and bang it in. I'm sure Ponting was a little surprised but enjoyed himself immensely on the pull (that was an extraordinary innings, you'll find many hundreds not as good as that) and then when they did finally start to pitch it up, it was a diet of half-volleys which Clarke and then North feasted on.
 

GotSpin

Hall of Fame Member
I really do think Hilf is on borrowed time. Given Johnson is the selector's proverbial jizz tissue and Siddle's newfound safety in the side, the England second innings seems like The Hilf's last chance to ward off the hypothetical brilliance of Dougeh.

It doesn't help that he's overly swing-dependent (which we've seen is pad fodder when not swinging), which may not be much use beyond Brisbane. Would love to be proven wrong, mind - and in a perfect world I'd drop Midge for Dougeh in a heartbeat regardless.

Dougeh.
Yeah I love the hilf but I feel his time is running out. The selectors would never drop Johnson and I think dougeh has to come back into the set up asap
 

andyc

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Re: the hattrick conversation earlier. Looking at a list of all of them, a number of the more recent ones do seem to have been proper batsmen:

Siddle getting Cook, Prior and Broad.
Sidebottom getting Fleming, Sinclair and Oram.
Pathan getting Butt, Younis and Yousuf.
Hoggard getting Sarwan, Chanderpaul and Ryan Hinds.
Harbhajan getting Ponting, Gilchrist and Warne.
McGrath getting Campbell, Lara and Adams.
 

GotSpin

Hall of Fame Member
Was pretty cool before. Don't have an account myself or use it in anyway, but I looked up twitter before and saw that Peter Siddle was a global trending topic
 

Faisal1985

International Vice-Captain
Only if i wouldn't have fallen asleep.... :( missed on the Hatrick....will check the highlights...

Sid the kid has set the tone for the Aussies for the entire Ashes.....I can't believe the amount of nervousness English batsmen had...
 

91Jmay

International Coach
Re: the hattrick conversation earlier. Looking at a list of all of them, a number of the more recent ones do seem to have been proper batsmen:

Siddle getting Cook, Prior and Broad.
Sidebottom getting Fleming, Sinclair and Oram.
Pathan getting Butt, Younis and Yousuf.
Hoggard getting Sarwan, Chanderpaul and Ryan Hinds.
Harbhajan getting Ponting, Gilchrist and Warne.
McGrath getting Campbell, Lara and Adams.
Two best IMO.
 

Prince EWS

Global Moderator
I really do think Hilf is on borrowed time. Given Johnson is the selector's proverbial jizz tissue and Siddle's newfound safety in the side, the England second innings seems like The Hilf's last chance to ward off the hypothetical brilliance of Dougeh.

It doesn't help that he's overly swing-dependent (which we've seen is pad fodder when not swinging), which may not be much use beyond Brisbane. Would love to be proven wrong, mind - and in a perfect world I'd drop Midge for Dougeh in a heartbeat regardless.

Dougeh.
Yeah, there were only two things that really split Hilfenhaus and Siddle for me going into into this Test (I would have played Dougeh regardless so it was down to those two for me) - incumbency, and the fact that I don't really like Siddle as a new ball bowler. The former is obviously no longer a factor and the latter is definitely a lesser factor than Siddle's superb form now.

Anyway, second innings still to come, so Hilfenhaus could take six and keep Dougeh out yet. As I've said numerous times now though, it's a good situation for Australia to be in with so many good bowling options. If only we had backup middle order batsmen the quality of Siddle, Hilfenhaus, Harris, Cameron etc. Admittedly, Khawaja's probably the equivalent of Copeland.
 

Top