monumental stupidity - a cricket quote

[Ken Gargett]

this re the 50 over match between sri lanka and australia yesterday -

i missed the game yesterday but it seems to have been another farce (i’m still waiting for authorities to look at the last one for match fixing by australia) but i read this in ‘the age’ newspaper this morning (was actually at the tennis - what a grea match with djokovic in five sets).

the game being called off for what was apparently not really torrential rain.

in explaining why a little light rain stuffed the game, “curator tom parker said the water didn’t sink far enough into the ground due to the rain being too light”. (seriously, i am not making this up).

in other words, had the rain been a lot heavier, the ground would have been drier. i honestly can’t imagine a more stupid statement.

we have morons in charge of the game, playing the game and stuffing the fields.

[mazolaman]

Remeniscent of our own train companies cancelling trains due to the "wrong kind of snow".

So, this one day series is a bit of a farce is it?

How did the match fixing manifest itself? Off topic I know.

[bobbutcher]

lol Prob cause Aus were bowled out for 70 odd

[Pilgrims]

Remeniscent of our own train companies cancelling trains due to the "wrong kind of snow".

So, this one day series is a bit of a farce is it?

How did the match fixing manifest itself? Off topic I know.

too right on the wrong kind of snow...

[Ken Gargett]

How did the match fixing manifest itself? Off topic I know.

whilst obviously i have no concrete evidence, given the way certain nations, most definitely including us, throw around accusations of match fixing, i would have thought the topic could have at least been raised re that game. may be nothing in it (one good mate says if it had been any other country, he'd have been convinced but he can't believe we'd do it. and he has been closely watching crcket for 70 years. needs to talk to more south africans.)

not so much because we went for 70 odd, though that was appalling enough, and not even the way clarke (arguably the world's top batsman at the moment) gave away his wicket but things like - all of a sudden we are dropping simple catches; clarke ducks under a catch that he would normally swallow; there is a big nick behind given not out and we decline to have it reviewed but the thing that sent alarm bells screaming for me was that clarke brought mitchell johnson on, he blasts out three for 11 in three overs (so no more expensive than anyone) giving us a shot and clarke immediately removes him from the attack and never brings him back. now that is either the worst captaincy in history or it stinks. he stays on the field so presumably no injury issues.

just one of those games that did not seem right.

and the gossip is that clarke is not so much hated by his team but feared. he is on the selection panel (huge mistake having a captain on it) and apparently uses it as he wishes. players scared to offend in case they get 'rotated'. again, no evidence so merely gossip but i gather he and hussey did not part well. supposedly the only bloke who likes him is his 'sidekick' is warner. of course, this could be being stirred up by someone who has an axe to grind and clarke may be all sweetness and light. though the katich crap left huge questions marks and as for personal judgement, well he was engaged to lara bingle for years. soup has a higher IQ. public spats with engagement rings thrown down toilets and so on. says much. can you imagine border or chappell ever involved in that crap?

we are in so much trouble for the ashes.

[Reevzy]

Another orchestrated contribution by channel 9 to the organised death of one day cricket as their promotion of 20/20

gears up. A conspiracy? Maybe if it were more subtle!

I've got my tin foil hat on so I know they can't hear me think........ but I'm on to em!!!

[Ken Gargett]

Another orchestrated contribution by channel 9 to the organised death of one day cricket as their promotion of 20/20

gears up. A conspiracy? Maybe if it were more subtle!

I've got my tin foil hat on so I know they can't hear me think........ but I'm on to em!!!

not really sure of where 9 fits in, in all this. i can't really see how, if there was any match fixing and i can't say definitely that there is, they could be involved in that at all.

one day has been huge ratings for them so it seems odd that they would denegrate it but there would be some agenda somewhere. i see 20/20 and tests as just dividing more and more and you'd think that soon there would be completely dffferent commentators (actually, i have never watched a game of 20/20 ever, so there may already be). i was under the impression that hey were very annoyed at both games - the first because it was over so quick and so dismal and the 2nd being a washout - because it really hurt their ratings.

but the whole thing is a mess.

[mazolaman]

whilst obviously i have no concrete evidence, given the way certain nations, most definitely including us, throw around accusations of match fixing, i would have thought the topic could have at least been raised re that game. may be nothing in it (one good mate says if it had been any other country, he'd have been convinced but he can't believe we'd do it. and he has been closely watching crcket for 70 years. needs to talk to more south africans.)

not so much because we went for 70 odd, though that was appalling enough, and not even the way clarke (arguably the world's top batsman at the moment) gave away his wicket but things like - all of a sudden we are dropping simple catches; clarke ducks under a catch that he would normally swallow; there is a big nick behind given not out and we decline to have it reviewed but the thing that sent alarm bells screaming for me was that clarke brought mitchell johnson on, he blasts out three for 11 in three overs (so no more expensive than anyone) giving us a shot and clarke immediately removes him from the attack and never brings him back. now that is either the worst captaincy in history or it stinks. he stays on the field so presumably no injury issues.

just one of those games that did not seem right.

and the gossip is that clarke is not so much hated by his team but feared. he is on the selection panel (huge mistake having a captain on it) and apparently uses it as he wishes. players scared to offend in case they get 'rotated'. again, no evidence so merely gossip but i gather he and hussey did not part well. supposedly the only bloke who likes him is his 'sidekick' is warner. of course, this could be being stirred up by someone who has an axe to grind and clarke may be all sweetness and light. though the katich crap left huge questions marks and as for personal judgement, well he was engaged to lara bingle for years. soup has a higher IQ. public spats with engagement rings thrown down toilets and so on. says much. can you imagine border or chappell ever involved in that crap?

we are in so much trouble for the ashes.

Interesting reading Ken.

The one day is certainly the big loser to the rise of pretend crickets' T20.

I'd hate to think of Australia chucking a match. Could it be more to do with weary apathy? So much cricket now, including Ashes series on top of each other (still not sure how they worked that out), I sometimes think the 50 over game is the biggest loser, and I've been to England games (again v Sri Lanka) where England couldn't be arsed to play....insulting to people who pay to watch.

Surprised to see Mr Cricket go so soon, and interested to hear the stuff about Clarke being a bit of a dictator.

The glamour puss stuff is annoying, one of the many reasons I dislike KP so much...such a tart.

Could it be that cricket as a whole gains by Sri Lanka doing ok in Australia? If they are whitewashed, would the one day game go down the toilet there, as it has in India?

[Ken Gargett]

i suspect that if there was anything untoward then the last people behind it are cricket administrators - too hard to orchestrate and what is in it for the players. for me, if there was not another game of the shortened form ever played, would notnbother me much. i enjoy the 50 over world cup but that is about it.

what is unfathomable is how we are destroying cricket's appeal by playing so much of it (i suspect even i'd struggle to watch springsteen all 365 days of the year - about 360 enough). they seem to think that doing this brings in money but when people get sick of it, and australia loses games because of it and the absurd rotation policy we have to support it, what then?

histoy has shown that the tv stations get the best ratings here when we are winning.

[mazolaman]

yep, everybody in England loved cricket after that famous Ashes win...where were they when we were getting thumped?

Now everyone loves cycling.

The England selectors now pick 3 different teams, for each form of the game, with some players only used in one form, and never getting the chance of the other..Jade Dernbach for example.

Flintoff wore himself out playing all forms, and Anderson sometimes comes close to doing the same.

International cricket is in a mess, with the Indians ruling in an absurd manner...governed by transmission rights and advertising. I guess sky created that monster, but the WCB helped by choosing Sky over channel 4, who had by far the best coverage in recent years, and whos bid was not much less than the Sky bid...someone must have get a nice Christmas present.

Too much cricket now though, and I suspect 50 over game will go.

Just hope tests remain.

[mazolaman]

Blimey.....

How did this happen?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/21666135

Am I right to be very confident about the Ashes?

[ARRV]

Where to start. How about this. 6 best batsman. Best keeper - don't care if he can't bat - missed stumpings / catches are worth more than occasional score. 4 best bowlers. If anyone of each of those groups is also good at the other then wacko you have an all-rounder but for the love of god don't pick all rounders who are crap. Or spin bowlers who are crap. Or batsmen who are crap because they might bowl ok occasionally. Right now it's the jack of all trades team and we are being found out. Might - and that's a big might - fare better in uk because our mediocre bowlers and batsmen are better at seam than spin but still wi be a whitewash

[mazolaman]

Aha, the great modern all rounder conundrum!

We have tried it in recent years, with Bopara, who never really got any runs, and fewer wickets, and now with Patel, who is faring slightly better but not setting the world alight.

Prior is ding pretty well as a keeping batsmen, but I agree with you, "Total Cricket" is a failed experiment here.

[mazolaman]

So I may have to revise my confidence regarding the Ashes....We're currently getting spanked by NZ!

[ARRV]

we lost to NZ in hobart

[mazolaman]

So, just as we dig ourselves out of the dirt in NZ..thanks to our no 11 showing the top order how to dig in and bat, Australia take another shot in their own foot...http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/21740045

How long till Mr Arthur is unemployed?

[El Presidente]

How long till Mr Arthur is unemployed?

I haven't seen an administration destroy an iconic sport in this country so quickly....and I thought Australian Rugby administration had a mortgage in that area!

Draw a line through the cricket administration, coach and coaching staff and start again. Pick the best 11 ans stick with them.

Without doubt 90% of sporting kids in this country could not name more than 6 Aussie players who played in the last Indian test.

[mazolaman]

I haven't seen an administration destroy an iconic sport in this country so quickly....and I thought Australian Rugby administration had a mortgage in that area!

Draw a line through the cricket administration, coach and coaching staff and start again. Pick the best 11 ans stick with them.

Without doubt 90% of sporting kids in this country could not name more than 6 Aussie players who played in the last Indian test.

Sad to see any great sporting team run so badly...I guess we've seen plenty of ours in that category.

I guess it's because the Ashes is THE contest for me.

It may be worth just binning the current admin, if they are sending round questionaires to fix problems!

In fairness, I can't say I could name too mamy of the Aussie team...

[ARRV]

Pick best 11 Australian players

Of those 11 pick the best captain - not necessarily the best player as captain

Employ best Australian coach as coach

[marty922]

Pick best 11 Australian players

Of those 11 pick the best captain - not necessarily the best player as captain

Employ best Australian coach as coach

Here's another idea.

Pick 6 batsman, 1 wicketkeeper, 4 bowlers..

The problem with both suggestions? They sound incredibly sensible, not to mention, very obvious! Something that I don't believe the current administration have much stock in.

[mazolaman]

Agreed.

I wish England would do the same.

Pick English (or Welsh) men, rather than giving Safas English passports.

This is not intended as racism, just a desire that each country produces it's own stock of sportspeople.

As said earlier, we have also experimented with the multi purpose players, but that didn't work.

[Freefallguy]

Ken- Lovely to see you back after your self-imposed six month sabbatical from November in CR.

[Ken Gargett]

I haven't seen an administration destroy an iconic sport in this country so quickly....and I thought Australian Rugby administration had a mortgage in that area!

Draw a line through the cricket administration, coach and coaching staff and start again. Pick the best 11 ans stick with them.

Without doubt 90% of sporting kids in this country could not name more than 6 Aussie players who played in the last Indian test.

common thread between cricket and rugby and the appointment of deans and arthur?

pat howard.

apparently was also instrumental in the appointment of deans when with the aru.

just gets more and more stupid every day.

[Ken Gargett]

it gets worse. i have just read that we have flown in a shrink to help with the team. not fit or competent players (given we are down to the absolute bare minimum) but a shrink.

i know who should be on the couch.

[mazolaman]

I used to think that a bout Steve Harmisson.

People would bleat on about him being "homesick".

I would think;

Tour the world, playing cricket, and be well payed for it. Why be homesick?

No need for a chuffin shrink I think!