Australia vs South Africa

[G-Man]

Australia vs South Africa

Brett Lee has never come across as a bully character

Oh, I didn't mean to say he is a bully in its pure definition. What I meant is that he looked much more dangerous when surrounded by McGrath and Warne (and batsmen who'd post big totals). Without all that, he looks a bit lost and, well, ineffective.

He has indeed been one of the more gracious players in the rampaging Australian team. Though he had that habit of throwing the ball at batsmen as if trying to effect a run-out when they were chilling in the crease.

Graeme Smith is exactly what SA needed. A man with an Australian cricketer's mindset. His predecessors were just too nice; Smith is ruthless.

[Rory Bunk]

Australia vs South Africa

G.Man wants a hyphen wrote:

Graeme Smith is exactly what SA needed. A man with an Australian cricketer's mindset. His predecessors were just too nice; Smith is ruthless.

Definitely. It was similar with Allan Border and Steve Waugh. Memories of losing a lot made them absolutely ruthless in keeping Australia at the top. Ricky Ponting never had the bitter taste of defeat much in his career and on top of this isn't a particularly shrewd captain either.

Only rain can save us today. Might be better to lose some now and get some changes bedded in for the ashes. Hayden, Lee (even if he hadn't ben injured) and Symonds should not play in Sydney and we need to find a new spinner, preferrably one as good as Warne. When you've been on the champers and caviar for a decade and a half it's hard to get used to frozen pies and Passion Pop again, but I suspect we'll have a good few years to get used to it.

[Tony C]

Australia vs South Africa

"and we need to find a new spinner, preferrably one as good as Warne".

And a new opening batsman, preferrably one as good as Bradman.

[E10 Rifle]

Australia vs South Africa

South Africa win by nine wickets. This feels like a big moment. A marvellous irony that the year the Twenty20 world domination went mental is ending with two of the most significant Test series of our times.

[G-Man]

Australia vs South Africa

It is a big moment. Australia can't even say that it was close. They had SA on the ropes twice, but instead of finishing them off, they tickled them on the belly. Or, of course, one might say that South Africa were just mentally too strong for Ponting's side. A bit of both, I think.

Having said that, there is no shame in losing against what surely is the best side in the world this year. SA has been on an impressive streak. Leaving aside series wins over the likes of Bangladesh and the West Indies, since late 2007, SA has won series in Pakistan, England and Australia, and didn't win in India only because of an underprepared joke pitch in Kanpur.

SA's won/drawn/lost ratio this year is 11-2-2. The next best is India at 6-5-4. Australia's is 5-4-5.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

Well done SA. Three nil would be great.

I can't resist posting another gallant 4th innings chase, from an unlikely source:

http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/bdeshvsl/engine/current/match/378750.html

[Rory Bunk]

Australia vs South Africa

As Roy and HG said about Matthew Hayden around 2 months ago, "It'd be nice to see the synapses firing again one last time for a big innnings". Well the selectors have decided to give him another chance in Sydney. This is mystefying given that the combination of form and age suggests that it is a terminal decline he's in. The selection panel doesn't have the cold-hearted guts of previous incarnations which were for example able to give Ian Healy the flick a test before allowing him a farewell in front of his home state fans and to give Steve Waugh the nudge when he was playing far better than pretty much anyone in the side is now.

So the upshot is that 3-0 it should finish. South Africa are a terrific team and Australia are not. If we're still #1 in a week's time it will be a joke.

[G-Man]

Australia vs South Africa

But in the years of pushing legends off the cliff, the Aussie selectors had ready replacements for the likes of Healy and Waugh. They cold afford to be cheerfully ruthless. Is there anybody in the wings who has the potential to do much better than Hayden?

I'm really hoping for a whitewash, not only because I obviously support South Africa. But it would make the fall from grace so absolutely complete. I mean, Ponting has lost his permasmirk already, so it's all good even if Australia win in Sydney. But it would be nice to see their humiliation complete.

Do Australians know how much the cricketing world despises their team?

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

I'm rarely finding myself sympathetic to Hayden these days. There was an Ashes talk show on Sky last night where Nasser Hussain talked about how good it was Simon Jones chucked a ball at the stumps and hit Hayden in a one day international and then half the England team steamed in to back him up.

Fuck's sake.

[Guest]

Australia vs South Africa

Nasser wasn't saying it was good it hit Hayden, he was saying it was good that the rest of the team backed Jones up when Hayden confronted Jones about it.

Hayden is a twat but Nasser wasn't saying he should have balls thrown at him.

[G-Man]

Australia vs South Africa

Hayden did OK today, but Ponting went for another duck.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

Hussain said Hayden "stuck his chest out" after being hit by Jones, then everyone else weighed in. Hayden was reasonably restrained. The right thing was for the captain to apologise to him, and everyone else to keep quiet. I'd have liked to see the reaction if it had been eg Pakistan in 1992 under Javed who'd chucked the ball at Botham.

Ponting was a bit unlucky to be caught behind first ball off an inside edge. Again, I thought Katich looked the best player, until a great ball from Kallis got him.

[The Purple Cow]

Australia vs South Africa

I think you've completely missed the point Tubby.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

Here it is now:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=2fw8RViGMYE

Jones apologises properly, but it is an awful throw that hits Hayden on the head from about 15 yards. He was entitled to be annoyed at that. The reaction of the fielders isn't really shown, and looks fairly conciliatry. In which case, I'm not sure what Hussain was saying.

[The Purple Cow]

Australia vs South Africa

I mean, I think that's an entirely different incident.

[Duncan Gardner]

Australia vs South Africa

Watched the morning session earlier. The Aussies looked very comfortable. Johnson developing into a capable all rounder? They eventually got 445. When South Africa replied Smith broke his hand, but was going to sit out the ODIs anyway.

[The Purple Cow]

Australia vs South Africa

I thought Amla and Kallis did well, considereing how much the pitch was miss-behaving. It already looks a pretty shoddy track.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

I enjoyed the morning session, some awesome strokeplay from Johnson and Clarke (possibly in that order, on the day).

When Duminny came on I got a funny feeling he was the man with the golden arm, and indeed he was. A dismissal modelled on Atherton to Vensarkar, 1990.

So Bill, you've got access to Sky?

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

The pitch behaved OK for the first day and a bit. The only way someone was going to break their arm was if they hit the dressing room door in anger at getting out to a bad shot. Very strange.

[Duncan Gardner]

Australia vs South Africa

Tubby Isaacs wrote:

So Bill, you've got access to Sky?

Aye (though not for much longer for cost reasons). I don't really mind as I prefer listening to football and cricket on the BBC. As they (TMS) only really cover England games, the current game is an occasional treat. I could listen to Aussie radio via web I suppose.

[G-Man]

Australia vs South Africa

If SA has shown one major weakness this series, it is their inability to wrap up the tail cheaply.

Smith's injury is obviously a bit of a fucker. He was going sweetly at almost a run a ball, and obviously it's not ideal that Australia need to take just 18 wickets to win this. I'm holding out for a raw now.

[Rory Bunk]

Australia vs South Africa

G.Man wants a hyphen wrote:

But in the years of pushing legends off the cliff, the Aussie selectors had ready replacements for the likes of Healy and Waugh. They cold afford to be cheerfully ruthless. Is there anybody in the wings who has the potential to do much better than Hayden?

I think in terms of batting there are decent alternatives out there such as Klinger, Noffke and if you want to try something different in a dead rubber, Hughes. I read today that we have a single member of this team under 27 - and that's a 23 year old. I know this is not football, but you do need to give opportunities to young players and this is a good time to do so. Hayden will never be able to get to where he was.

Do Australians know how much the cricketing world despises their team?

I don't think there is as much sleep lost over that as over the fact that the word "despises" is now replaced by "defeats".

Anyhow, more wagging tails than at Crufts in this series, to wheel out a cliche. SA's turn again with over 100 so far between Morkel and Boucher.

[Rory Bunk]

Australia vs South Africa

... and if that wasn't going to trigger a Proteas collapse, then nothing was. Siddle skittles 4 at the end to make it 5 ofr the innings with SA 118 behind.

Australia's innings opens with a shaky Hayden surviving an apparently plum appeal for lbw and making it through to stumps safely. 0-33.

[G-Man]

Australia vs South Africa

The lbw decisions in this test have been puzzling, to say the least.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Australia vs South Africa

That was a good fightback from SA, after Kallis and De Villiers being softly dismissed. There's a crack down this pitch which makes me think the groundsman was previously employed at Tate Modern. McDonald, who otherwise looks as lethal as Botham after his bad back, was trying to land the ball on it and causing alarm.