Cricket......

[Shebeen]

there, i corrected it for you my old mate

touche...was loaded with sarcasm!

 

Didn't think you'd join us for this India test series, how do you rate our chances going forward?

 

edit: quite impressed kohli declared, would have been quite easy to keep on going with ashwin and jadeja

Edited October 3, 2019 by Shebeen

[gemmerbal]

Haha, ja i know you were being a bit silly, I couldn't help returning the favor

 

I'm a reluctant spectator, as i have lost my #Proteafire, sadly. There is hardly anything in this side to get excited about except of course for KG, and we saw how the Indians have neutralized our strength by preparing dust bowls - which I suppose they are entitled to do, but then they must not complain when the shoe is on the other foot, and we know by now how unwilling CSA is to take a stand against the BCCI by preparing OUR wickets to suit OUR strengths when India tour here.

 

Ho do I rate our chances? Zero. Not slim, zero. Sadly i don't think we have the personnel to compete against India in India. We didn't have it 4 years ago, and we don't have it now. Yes we have talented youngsters but they are not battle hardened  as a result of a tough domestic competition. We are making the same mistake we did a couple of seasons ago by trying to bat QDK at 6 and VDP at 7 - trying to compensate for lack of quality by selecting quantity in our bowling department, which then means QDK has to bat at 6. A move I don't agree with. He must bat 7. VDP is not a good enough allrounder to bat at 7. He chips in now and then with 30/40, but we need an allrounder that can chip in with 80/90/100. It will change the entire dynamic of our team. I also dont know why we select him to go to India. Select horses for courses.

 

My Bru, I am really saddened by the state of our national side. Our cricket in general actually. Its a long wait to the next Ashes...

 

On a sidenote, looking forward to hosting my mates from the UK during Jan/Feb when the Poms will be touring here. Hopefully we can be competitive.

 

 

touche...was loaded with sarcasm!

 

Didn't think you'd join us for this India test series, how do you rate our chances going forward?

 

edit: quite impressed kohli declared, would have been quite easy to keep on going with ashwin and jadeja

[Shebeen]

Faf is with you there, bathing qdk at 7 and Vern at 8

[Dusty]

Bit of a recovery happening. Two gritty players out there.

[gemmerbal]

Im sure Qdk is old enough to bath himself

Faf is with you there, bathing qdk at 7 and Vern at 8

[Shebeen]

Im sure Qdk is old enough to bath himself

ha ha ha, nice freudian there.

always remember this one of him being a kid in the team

 

 

so the two most experienced batsmen are showing how its done..and comfortably at 3 rpo too.

still need some big daddy hundreds to save the game.

 

 

edit...****..faf gone to short leg

Edited October 4, 2019 by Shebeen

[gemmerbal]

haha, ja i rememeber that one. Steyn Remover, veins pumping and those bloodshot eyes, I would also be scared haha.

 

But nothing beats that clip of Donald/Boucher at Trent Bridge, where Bouchie dropped Athers and AD let go of some excess energy. That was one of THE most hostile bowling spells I've ever seen. That spell from AD at the Wanderers against Steve Waugh was also pretty intense.

 

ha ha ha, nice freudian there.

always remember this one of him being a kid in the team

 

 

so the two most experienced batsmen are showing how its done..and comfortably at 3 rpo too.

still need some big daddy hundreds to save the game.

 

 

edit...****..faf gone to short leg

[Baldrick]

Faf is with you there, bathing qdk at 7 and Vern at 8

I assume de Kok enjoyed his bath time more than Vern

[Shebeen]

great fightback today.

 

two days left. 

time is an issue now. if we can stretch it to lunch then india will need to bat through to the fifth day to get more than 280/300.

 

all three results still possible.

just one requires Virat getting a declaration wrong (twice)

 

that's only happened twice before, so is VERY unlikely

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/17297/scorecard/63017/west-indies-vs-england-4th-test-england-tour-of-west-indies-1967-68

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/14718/scorecard/226373/australia-vs-south-africa-3rd-test-south-africa-tour-of-australia-2005-06

[Baldrick]

I don't think Virat got the declaration wrong. They lost time on the first day and still a chance of rain over the next few days.

[Dusty]

Aother toss loss. This doesn't help our cause

[Frosty]

I think it would be a better option if the toss was done once, and then it alternates between the two teams for the remaining matches. That way, the luck of the draw is (partially) eliminated and each team has a fair chance of deciding what to do first.

 

The team winning the first toss can decide to use the toss win on the first game or save it for the second game. It might be more advantageous to win the toss at game 2 rather than game 1.

 

Hope my explanation makes sense. It just adds more unknown to the game than relying on luck of the draw.

[gemmerbal]

I like your idea.

 

Some are saying the toss should be done away with altogether and the option should go to the visiting side. I dont agree with that. Your suggestion of alternating the "advantage of choice" prior to the commencement of each game makes it still relevant in that you can still choose wrong. But at least you had a chance to choose.

 

I like that idea.

 

 

I think it would be a better option if the toss was done once, and then it alternates between the two teams for the remaining matches. That way, the luck of the draw is (partially) eliminated and each team has a fair chance of deciding what to do first.

The team winning the first toss can decide to use the toss win on the first game or save it for the second game. It might be more advantageous to win the toss at game 2 rather than game 1.

Hope my explanation makes sense. It just adds more unknown to the game than relying on luck of the draw.

Edited October 10, 2019 by gemmerbal

[bertusras]

Some are saying the toss should be done away with altogether and the option should go to the visiting side. I dont agree with that. 

 

I'm interested to hear why you don't agree with that? I'm firmly in the "visiting side gets to choose" camp, so I'd love to hear your side.

[gemmerbal]

Cool, I’ll try and explain my reasoning, some might say I need medication or that I need to crawl out from underneath my rock, but that’s ok, I don’t mind being unpopular

 

 

From the dawn of time, the toss has been part of almost every single sporting code. I believe it is an integral part of any contest as it adds to the drama and challenge and makes the victory so much sweeter. (Who remembers and easy victory? You attach a lot more merit to the hard-fought battle, against the odds…)

 

 

The major reason stated by the law makers on why the visiting team should have the option to bat or bowl first doesn't make sense in my view, as tailoring a pitch to suit YOUR team is as much a gamble as winning the toss itself? Take the current series in India for instance: you really think the BCCI is going to alter the pitch preparation because SA will have first dibs on whether to bat or bowl first? I don’t think so. And why should they? Such is the challenge of playing India in India, and winning a series there SHOULD be hard. India will always have turning wickets, such is the nature of their country's climate, you cannot change or manipulate that, and that is why they generate great spin bowlers and force their pace men to learn skills like reverse swing etc.

 

 

Thus, imagine if wickets all over the world were the same? Would Pakistan have produced the likes of Khan, Wasim, Waqar, Akhtar and so on, or Australia the likes of Lillee and Thompson. Let me not even start about the Windies: Roberts, Holding, Big Bird, Ambrose, Walsh. Look at what happened to Windies Cricket when their wickets started going to the dogs (yes I know there’s a lot more things contributing to their demise, but the poor wickets in my view doesn’t help in promoting the art of fast bowling in this instance)

 

 

The toss also has an influence on team selection and by that token team selection also becomes more intriguing in that you have to select your best side to cater for any eventuality. Having a well-balanced side like we did during Graeme Smith's reign was the reason WHY we were the no1 test team at that time. And to India's credit (and I NEVER give them any credit), they have the best balanced side when touring abroad, that’s why they are nr1 at the moment.

 

 

These are the things affected by the toss. Or at least that’s the way I see it. And to add some facts to my fairy-tale, as per Wikipedia, if you win the toss, your chance of winning the match is only 3% improved. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toss_(cricket))

 

 

I hope I made some sense. Your thoughts? 

 

 

I'm interested to hear why you don't agree with that? I'm firmly in the "visiting side gets to choose" camp, so I'd love to hear your side.

[gemmerbal]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQGTXhqVmCQ

 

Aussies won the toss, batted first and scored big, India followed on and WON the game. What happened there then? haha... what a game of cricket that was!