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Loading ...This Australian side is very solid at the moment – certainly they are worlds better than England. There isn’t really too much separating Australia, South Africa, and India these days, although I think I am finally starting to believe after all these years that India really are the best team, even away from home. I just don’t see where the holes are in this team, other than maybe their third seamer and Rahul Dravid…and neither of those are very big holes if they are holes at all. But I’m sure I’ll be disappointed the next time they play a big team away from home.
Mitchell Johnson is a monster and Australia should be a huge favorite in the Ashes. Looking from top to bottom, only Flintoff and Petersen would play for Australia.
South Africa and Australia yet to be separated
By Mark Tilley last year, at the end of March Add your comment below
If Australia’s series win in South Africa has taught us anything, its that they are not, repeat not, to be underestimated, especially by the English, ahead of this summers Ashes clash. Their mini resurgence has seen new players step manfully into the breach and come out victorious. Phillip Hughes, Ben Hilfenhaus, Peter Siddle, Marcus North, etc; men who have been drafted in when the team was in a period of crisis and who have partially lifted their side out of the doldrums.
South Africa’s innings victory over the Aussies in Cape Town has levelled their six match rivalry spread across two tours at 3-3. If we were looking for any indication as to who is the best Test nation in the world, then it looks like we’re going to be kept guessing, at least for a little while longer. The manner of South Africa’s victory today suggests that the momentum is with the Proteas and it was the first defeat by an innings suffered by Australia since India crushed them in way back in 1998.
One could also argue that Australia’s defeat in India last year is further proof that they are in no shape to brand themselves the number one side. They are a team in more in transition than Martin Johnson‘s perennially developing England rugby side. Siddle and Hilfenhaus have done the jobs asked of them by Ricky Ponting and they have done them well but the imposing figures and reputations of Brett Lee and Stuart Clark must be looming large over them and predicting Australia’s line-up for the first Ashes Test in Cardiff in July is nigh on impossible.
South Africa, for their part, are also not 100% certain on a definitive starting team. Opener Neil McKenzie was dropped for the last Test, making way for debutant Imraan Khan. Khan didn’t have too memorable a debut but makeshift opener Ashwell Prince certainly did, ruthlessly blasting the small matter of 150 runs. Paceman Morne Morkel was also not called upon; brother Albie Morkel was drafted in instead, taking one wicket and scoring a helpful fifty in support of AB de Villiers. South Africa are not in crisis, not by a long stretch, but the series loss was unexpected in the wake of their heroics down under and they certainly have some improving to do before they can once more lay claim to being the top of the pile.
Three Test match victories each is a perfectly fair reflection of the two sides’ efforts against each other in both series. Australia looked dead and buried after defeats in Perth and Melbourne but have fought back in the manner of a wounded champion. The pretenders of South Africa were shocked by the resurrection from the Australians in the first two tests but their victory today has at least reminded doubting observers of their quality and potential.
By the by, how well is Mitchell Johnson playing at the moment? More wickets than he can possibly count and now a maiden Test hundred. The boy gets better and better with every passing game and he looks set to play an impossibly crucial role in the Ashes.
Tags: ashes 2009, ashwell-prince, australia, australia-in-south-africa, ben-hilfenhaus, marcus-north, mitchell-johnson, peter siddle, phillips-hughes, south-africa, the-ashes |
72 Responses to “South Africa and Australia yet to be separated”
March 23rd, 2009 at 5.25 am
March 23rd, 2009 at 7.20 am
I think India under Dhoni has the best chance of becoming the # 1 Test team. It would take another year or so. Once the old guard has retired and new lads settled, India wud be tough to beat.
March 23rd, 2009 at 10.44 am
I don’t kno which of the two is superior
but i know india at this point of time s no.1
south african coach has admitted it himself
and by the way has ny1 heard where ipl is finally going to land
March 23rd, 2009 at 2.15 pm
The South African coach is a polite man. India have to win in SA (or beat SA in India) if they want to be No 1.
March 24th, 2009 at 5.57 am
Raz, India are an excellent cricket team but you cannot class them as the No1 side.
Indian fans think because they beat Aus in a series recently they are No.1, they seem to forget that they lost to Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka and could only draw with SA at home preceding that series win.
ICC rankings may not recognise form but it does fairly reflect results, which is why SA have come so close to knocking Aus of their perch. Previous to this series defeat they were unbeaten home and away since 06/07 (unbeaten in terms of series wins)
March 24th, 2009 at 7.11 am
richo
i did mean india is the no. 1 side when u consider all 3 forms of the game i don’t know they r better than africans but they certanily r better than australians
i would like to see south africa tackle murali and mendis
on lankan wickets though
March 24th, 2009 at 7.24 am
lets compare them head to head
hughes khan * sehwag
*kaitich prince * gambhir
*ponting *amla dravid
m hussey kallis * tendulkar
*clarke * dvillers laxman
mcdonald *duminy yuvraj
haddin boucher *dhoni
*johnson morkel ishant
siddle *steyn *zaheer
mcgain harris *harbhajan
hilfenhaus *ntini mishra
australia 4
s africa 5
india 6
thats that
March 24th, 2009 at 11.49 am
Ok in test match level no.1 we lost to Sri Lanka because we are the first team to face Murali+Mendis in SL on wickets which turn more than Indian ones. Also Dhoni was not captain back then and a bunch of ours players injured. Against South Africa at home we didn’t have Tendulkar, Ghambir, or Ishant Sharma. So that is another factor. Now regardless by all means this is no excuse.
In ODI’s we are certainly no.1 , ever since since Dhoni took over in the T20 World Cup we have beaten every team home and away we have played. South Africa lost 5-0 to England, we beat them 5-0 for example. We beat the Aussies4-2 , Lankans twice – 3-2, 4-1 , and NZ 4-1. Those are the ones we have played.
In tests the story lies in a different mode. It will take time for us to claim that dominance. We have started well ever since Dhoni took over and our team is the one that should be the starting 11 we have beaten Aussies and English at home, and now NZ will be beaten away. Over the near year leading up till South Africa we will have various teams to play against and finally Saffas in 2010 if we beat them at home that will go a long way in securing we are the best.
For now we are certainly in top 3 parity type of state. Its just Saffa and Aussies had back to back series so comparison is easier.
Now let’s see what happens
March 24th, 2009 at 2.04 pm
Being an Indian, I agree with Ian.
March 24th, 2009 at 2.06 pm
In spite of being Indian, I mean:-)
March 24th, 2009 at 3.28 pm
Thanks JII! I mean no disrespect to the Indian team, which is indeed a fine one. It just does not have a particularly impressive record against SA, and, given that SA is certainly a contender for the No 1 spot, India needs to improve that record substantially before the boasting begins. That individual Indian players may be better than their South African counterparts is no argument (and I note that Raz shrewdly chose to pick Imraan Khan as the incumbent SA opener…) as cricket is a team game. And even if it was an argument, you’d need to check those Indian player’s records against SA (Tendulkar, for example, has a less than stellar record against SA) before claiming victory.
March 24th, 2009 at 3.46 pm
India is the best cricket side in the world… end of
March 24th, 2009 at 4.15 pm
Thanks, Nick. You’ve certainly convinced me!
March 24th, 2009 at 4.39 pm
ian i said
india is no.1 not invincible
March 24th, 2009 at 4.44 pm
Raz, a discussion is always more fun if you respond to the points your interlocutor makes, as opposed to merely repeating your conclusion. But I suppose one can’t have everything…;)
March 24th, 2009 at 5.28 pm
ian
u cant win
if india has a bad record in sa
than sa has a bad record in asia
PS sehwag in this form better than ny player in the world
March 24th, 2009 at 5.45 pm
I certainly can’t win against you, can I? Of course SA’s record in India (and Pakistan for that matter) is far, far better than India’s in SA, but I suspect you don’t know that. At any rate, I’m out of here. Have fun, Raz, and don’t let reality intrude on your thoughts too much.
March 24th, 2009 at 10.39 pm
South Africa in Asia- 10 series, 4 series wins, 2 draws and 4 losses.
India in South Africa- 4 series, 4 losses.
Yep, I can certainly see the point you’re making Raz. 
And if that’s not enough, in their last 10 series South Africa have won 8, drawn 1 and lost 1.
India in their last 10 series have won 6, drawn 1 and lost 3.
Shall we call that checkmate?
March 25th, 2009 at 1.42 am
congrats ian, you just did the impossible – with a little help from marcus. yes, thats right you have won against an irrational indian cricket fan who obviously does live in la la land.
The real truth is that there are 3 sides with very little between them. On their day i think any one of them could beat the other. The recent 6 tests between Oz and SA has shown that. Twists and turns almost every day of play. The shame is that India are not about to play either side now. I am an aussie but my gut feel is that right now, today, india possibly have their nose in front. It is a shame it will not be put to the test. India have only a brief time left before they lose the likes of Tendulkar, Laxman and Dravid. So to claim the number one spot on the test rankings they have to win everything they play over the next two years before their side is into a rebuilding period. But if aussies and SA keep winning they will not change the status quo. A final comment to Raz. An old aussie saying . Raz, it is better to be thought aool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
March 25th, 2009 at 2.59 am
At the risk of saying the obvious, what’s changed for India is the rise of decent seam bowling. It’d be interesting to see Khan and Sharma on SA tracks. Be a good series. But I wouldn’t bet on India winning it, or on them winning in Oz. Too close to call.
March 25th, 2009 at 6.33 am
Well, that comment started some debate didn’t it…Good to see.
Reflecting on another awesome series i’d say us Aussies have more questions than answers on the cusp of the Ashes…sure we’ve found a solid and exciting replacement for Haydo in Hughes…and Haddin will be the unchallenged gloveman, but the middle order still looks fragile and there’s the obvious question of who will be the spinner? Then we have the headache of what to do with the seam attack if Lee and Clarke come back and stake their claims befor the tour.
March 25th, 2009 at 12.27 pm
Richo, i am not convinced that Haddin is the unchallenged gloveman, he just makes too many clangers. But unless he gets injured i think they will persevere with him. I think they have to take Hodge, he just keeps making runs and what a handy bat to have if there are still issues leading into say the third test. His knowledge of english conditions (thanks ECB and county clubs) and his form when he has been given a go at test level makes him a very good backup in case the middle order cant handle Harmison,Sidebottom and Panesar. Sorry—-whats that— oh, they probably wont play? So with all their problems of the last three months the poms are going to be rebuilding their attack as well? Bet they wish they had a system called the Sheffield Shield!
If we have more questions than answers leading into this ashes i think the poms are probably wishing they were so lucky!
March 25th, 2009 at 6.10 pm
Your right on Haddin Ken, I think his ability to make big runs saves him though (something the purists wouldn’t be happy with) I do think if he doesn’t tidy his keeping up it will become a concern however…Couldn’t agree more on Hodge mate, he’s a great batsmen and always makes good runs on the state scene and has performed for Aus in the past, I’d like to see him selected to tour. I actually read recently in a Sydney paper that he’s considered to old by some, laughable aint it.
March 26th, 2009 at 6.40 am
Hang on India haters.Sa is just 1.11 points ahead of India at the moment.In the last 15 tests India’ve played, they’ve lost just 3.
Lets not go into past records.
India have a horrendous record in many countries but those records don’t belong to this Indian team.To borrow an excellent line from a hindi movie”You’ve got 1 leg stuck in the past & 1 leg stuck in the future,which is why you’re pissing on the present.”
Under Dhoni these are India’s stats-
Tests:
Played-6 Won-5 Lost-0 Drawn-1
ODI’s:
Played-51 Won-31 Lost-16 N/R-4
Impressive??
In any case I’d like to see which team can pull off a test match victory in Sri Lanka with Murali & Mendis together.
Though,I can understand Australians acting like mutts.Its in their DNA.
March 26th, 2009 at 7.26 am
Would you care to be more specific regarding our mutt-like behavior Sunny?
And which posters here are India-haters, and why?
Although I have to say that Dhoni’s done an outstanding job of leading the Indian team. But, so has Graeme Smith. And with Prince opening, apart from the third seamer position the Protea lineup looks very solid indeed.
March 26th, 2009 at 8.03 am
India need to go to Australia and South Africa and win before they can convince anyone they are best in the world.
Home advantage is one thing – winning on the road is what makes teams serious contenders for greatness.
SA and Australia joint top.
India a very narrow third.
March 26th, 2009 at 12.52 pm
Reverse Swing,
By your same logic, it has to be SA at the top. How can Aus be better than India when they haven’t beaten India in India? At the moment, I would definitely say India is marginally ahead of Aus. Home and away the record is 3-2 in favour of India in the last 5 tests which have produced results. SA is a different matter.
March 26th, 2009 at 1.38 pm
ian
i never said sa were bad i just said india are better
you wait for the end of the year lets see who wins
marcus
stats say a lot not everything
in stats dhoni has never lost a test
March 26th, 2009 at 6.12 pm
Oh my god the irrational Indian fans are back…Where did anyopne say they hate Indians Sunny? I actually said they’re a great team and may may I add some of my favourite cricketers are Indian.
You in fact are the person slandering Aussies, stop your racism and make your points with intelligent debate also get a life!!!
March 26th, 2009 at 8.13 pm
You don’t understand, Richo, anything other than fawning adulation of the current Indian team (which has just leaked 350 runs in one day to the mighty New Zealanders) counts as “hating India.”
March 26th, 2009 at 10.43 pm
Raz, if you say India are better than South Africa or Australia, then fine- that’s your opinion and you’re entitled to it. But I just wish you’d do more to back uo your claim other than saying “India=No. 1, full stop.”
And for the record, I think Dhoni’s an outstanding captain and one of my favourite cricketers. But I personally think that the South Africans, on the back of their form over the last 18 or so months, are better, because they’ve been more consistent. And that’s my opinion, and I’m entitled to it without being accused of racism by certain other posters.
March 26th, 2009 at 11.46 pm
Thank god for intelligent conversation from people like richo, ian and marcus. I stopped reading this site until recently because of the nonsense coming out of indian and pakistan fans. The three comments above i think sum up what intelligent debate should be. No racism and balanced opinion have been the hallmark of all of their comments on this subject. They have all praised the Indian side but it so happens that after years of Australia being so dominant they have come back to the field and we now have three sides that will battle it out for the title of best test nation. Raz and Sunny have some interesting ways of concluding their team is the best. The reality is there is an ICC system in place that determines the ranking of all test sides. It may not be a perfect system but it is what we currently have. So a team that has a spike in its form does not go racing straight to the top of the list, which is why India are still third. The system takes into account form over a period of time. For India to go top they have to continue to win and must beat SA next year, but even then if Aust. keeps winning (highly likely) they will probably only be 2nd. By the time they get to Aust. again they will be dealing with what Aust. has just gone thru. The loss of highly skilled and experienced players will test any side. You may argue that Dravid and Laxman can be replaced easily but when you add Tendulkar to the list you cannot possibly be as good a side. The three leading batsmen of the last decade for India replaced by new chums and coming to an already rebuilt Aust. -that will be a challenge.
March 27th, 2009 at 1.03 am
oh here comes ken deploring subcontinental people. listen dude, some people writing in this forum might not be to ur taste..that does not mean u shud deplore people from the subcontinent. u guys know a few…maybe 100 or maybe 100 subcontinental people..remember the population is huge.. just dont blindly criticize us.
at the moment SA are on top notch above indians and oz..thats about it..its a fight between oz and ind for the second place.
March 27th, 2009 at 2.38 am
Well currently the Indian team is not doing a whole lot to back up the claims of it’s cheer squad here. So far plundered to the tune of 550+ by NZ.
March 27th, 2009 at 2.53 am
vidya, i have no problem with sub continental people. I have a problem with those who make stupid comments. For example Oz and SA have just played 3 games in each others countries and the score is 3 all with both sides winning series outside of their home country. So how you can come up with the theory that SA are top is beyond belief. Once again i will repeat that Oz is ranked no.1 on the ICC test rankings so the recent two series have left status quo. So its OZ on top with the series between India and SA to determine who is 2nd (if all other games go according to form) If you can get your head out of your posterior long enough to go back over my previous comments you will see that i have a tremendous respect for the Indian cricket side. But not for indian fans who talk rubbish.
March 27th, 2009 at 3.32 am
Well done Sunny for attempting to knock some sense into these typically delusional,emotional australian fans.
What is with these emotional Aussie fans crying racism all the time.
Ken,is your real name Piles?Coz you are 1 pain in the ass.Anyone who told you to be yourself couldn’t have given you worse advice.
krusty,lets wait and see what is the final result of the ind-nzl series.
What happened to australia in their latest test?
Loss by an innings and how many runs?
2-2 in an ODI series against nzl at home.A series that the kiwis would have won had it not been for the rain.
The same kiwis got slaughtered 3-1 by India on their unique rectangular shaped home-grounds.
If you look at what Sunny Singh has stated in his post he doesn’t say that India are the no.1 team.
It’s this nonsense from the kangaroos about India lose everything outside & their records are terrible.
Yes,their overall records in some places are terrible.Not in 1,but in quite a few countries.We know that.
Do those records answer the question-Which IS the best cricket team in the world?I don’t think so.
Yes there’s a reason why Australia is ranked number 1 in the test format.But I don’t think they’re undisputedly number 1.
Not just India,the proteas are a very good team as well.
We Indian fans have the same ‘tremendous respect’ for Australian teams of the past and the present.
Just no time to spare for the continous unintelligent,emotional rants of frustrated kangaroos.
March 27th, 2009 at 3.43 am
Ken,aussies might be No 1 in the rankings on paper but the way they are playing, they might be toppled over soon. In spite of the 2 wins over SA, the last test match where they were comprehensively beaten,shows that they can be beaten if the other teams are not complacent.
March 27th, 2009 at 3.59 am
Oh my goodness , the head wobblers are now out in full force. Thats the end of sensible debate for a while.
March 27th, 2009 at 4.27 am
I see, the convict army’s attendance is very high.
Just a slight suggestion that the almighty australian team is not what it used to be is met with the most uncivilised & unintelligent responses one will ever see.
Australians are crying about alleged racism.
Wonders never cease.
At least now everyone knows who to avoid.
Ken,for someone claiming to be sensible,you make the least sense here.Do everybody a favour & shut down your computer.
Never using the internet for the next 100 years will be of great help.To us & you too.
The sense will return to the debate as soon as you leave.
See you.
In a 100 years perhaps.
March 27th, 2009 at 5.05 am
I am well aware of what happened to us in our last match Ranbir. However I am of the school of thought that there is no clear cut number 1 test nation in the world at the moment. (You can find my comment on that in an earlier topic, can’t remember exactly which one). I think that the next year or so will see an intriguing tussle between all three nations. My dig about India going for a few was just a cheeky quip to get the slightly touchier ones going. I’ve heard the pitch is a bit of a road.
March 27th, 2009 at 5.33 am
Agree to disagree on some points I say
‘emotional rants’ Ranbir….throwin stones in glass houses mate.
New post anyone?
March 27th, 2009 at 7.03 am
I agree krusty, there is no clear-cut no. 1 at the moment, and I personally couldn’t be happier with the situation.
March 27th, 2009 at 7.25 am
Vidya,Raz,Hooda,criclover,unless you start worshipping the great St.Clarke Michael & Minister Ponting,the australian fans will continue with these pointless howls.
Hooda,
I am also of the opinion that there isn’t any one best cricket team & there isn’t any undisputed champion.
Just that some oz fans like to hyperventilate & come up with their conclusions of what you think.
Whoah Kenneth,I must have touched a nerve somewhere.Head-wobblers??Don’t try too hard.
Look I don’t care what happens to you in your personal life.This recession is affecting everyone.But if you’ve got fired recently,don’t take it out on me.
Note that I never put down the australian team & only pointed out the current ranking points & Dhoni’s very impressive captaincy record.Neither have I “concluded in a very interesting way” that my team is best.Read that
post again.It’s in english,your first language.It’s also the only language you speak.So for your sake I’m hoping it’s not a language issue.
Did I miss something ??
What is this nonsense about india must do this & do that?
How about either aus or sa winning a test in lanka against the 2 M’s?
It’s a bit rich for an aus fan to suggest that india need to win in aus.I could turn that around & point out the 2-0 thrashing you got recently in india.
Marcus,I agree about Smith & South Africa.As for mutt-like behaviour,please refer to Ken.
Ohh & yeahh,Ian Jennings……….Have a look at Minister pontings average in India.Not too flash?I thought so.
The egos these guys have.Giant-size.Sadly their intelligence is inversely proportional.
March 27th, 2009 at 7.48 am
Australia have won a series in India, I believe the media hyped it as “conquering the final frontier”, more recently than India have won one in Australia. It is a pity some can’t seem to appreciate the competitive rivalry these three teams have created in recent times in a more sporting manner.
March 27th, 2009 at 11.32 am
India might lose the test they are playing curently(though due to poor capaincy) but south africa also lost to inexperienced aussies
they are still at par though in odi and t20 india are better
March 27th, 2009 at 1.38 pm
if south africa are that good how come they lost4-0 to a side which india hammered 5-0
March 27th, 2009 at 3.19 pm
Actually Raz,
Aus beat India 4-2 in the 2007/08 ODI series in India, not the other way around.
March 27th, 2009 at 4.12 pm
rick i meant england
and india did beat australia in australia in odi
March 27th, 2009 at 6.01 pm
well i know india are getting hammered in nz now but every team has a bad game
they have flattened nz 4-1 after getting beaten 2-5 in heir last tour
@all
isn’t the world cup right standard to judge a team
i think we will know who wins the battle after t20 world cup
March 27th, 2009 at 6.03 pm
i think we are aproaching 50 ppl
March 28th, 2009 at 2.25 am
The childish comments from indian fans continue to flow! The inability to debate rationally is a shame. There are so many holes in your arguments that it would take too long to respond to them. And there is no point because responding to points raised does not come too high on your list of things to do. To those who have attempted to have a sensible discussion on this subject i say thank you.
March 28th, 2009 at 4.23 am
Sunny, not being Australian, I couldn’t give a toss what Ponting’s average in India is. I come from the one country (other than New Zealand) whose team is manifestly better than India’s;)
March 28th, 2009 at 4.34 am
Raz,
Um…OK.
India beat AUS in the CB Series, if that’s what you meant.
Not the home series in 2007/08 (where they lost 4-2).
March 28th, 2009 at 4.50 am
ian
again you show your mind in as sharp as a blunt axe
new zealand better than india
well for your information india plundered new zealand
through out the odi sereis so much so that south african coach mickey aurthur had to wonder why macth refree didn’t call the match off being so ridiculously one sided
NEW ZEALAND HAD TO COME BACK IN ONE GAME WHICH THEY DID
March 28th, 2009 at 12.53 pm
Ian, you must stop upsetting poor little Raz!?! And, no, i have no idea why he is having a go at you—- but you still have to stop upsetting the poor fellow!
Now if this discussion can just keep going for another day or so we may have the indian fans worst nightmare about to happen. A test match loss against the mighty New Zealanders on their funny shaped grounds. The last score i saw NZ were doing their share of plundering against the 3rd best side in the world.
March 28th, 2009 at 3.51 pm
ken
india still wins the series(every team has a bad game)
March 28th, 2009 at 4.46 pm
Raz, Sunny, Ranbir, my friends, your team is following on against New @#$%ing Zealand. Do you understand what that means? There are more cricket players on any given street of any given Indian town than there are in the whole of New Zealand. Any given Indian player earns more than the whole of the New Zealand team put together. And if you don’t do better in your second innings than you did in your first, you’ll go down to an innings defeat for the third time in twelve months. And you lost the 20-20s too, a form of the game which, as I understand it, is taken to be the real thing in India. Is that the performance of a “world no 1 side in all forms of the game”? Does that make you proud? Would you like to thump your chests a little more for the rest of us, perhaps “knock some sense” into the rest of us poor non-Indians?
March 28th, 2009 at 5.26 pm
oh we should bang our heads on the wall india is going to lose against newzealand after winning last 6 tests
mighty england hasn’t won a match all summer
australia needed rain to survive new zealand
south africa the greatest chokers of all time
March 28th, 2009 at 10.45 pm
Raz, you just do not get it.Mighty England? who has made that claim? They have been hopeless in all forms of the game for many years with their 2005 ashes victory being their last major highlight.
Australia needed rain -it was a one day series that hardly compares to your situation in a test match (read Ians comment above)
South Africa the chokers. You are going back to one day world cup history on this one. You might as well say West Indies are the best cricket side in the world- which they were in the early 90’s. South africas recordover the last two years in all forms of the game gives them the right to claim they are one of the most consistent sides in the comp.
Yes, everyone has a bad game. OZ just got smashed by SA. But good sides do not do it against lowly placed sides when they are trying to make the claim they are the best in test match cricket. It also puts their irrational fans in the position of having to eat crow!! Better get your effigies out and build a fire in readiness for what may be happening.
March 29th, 2009 at 6.35 am
by the end of day 4 it looks like india just had one bad day in the test and so in the series
world cup history?
by chokers i meant they r a very good side but hey just blow away chances of getting to no.1 after doing so well
March 29th, 2009 at 6.38 am
end of day 4 in napier india lost 1 wicket in the whole day that also a wong decesion
March 29th, 2009 at 6.25 pm
India showed the requisite guts today – Gambhir is a good opening batsman, Dravid and Tendulkar are all time greats. But my point about the disparities in what these two countries have at their disposal still stands. India is so unbelievably rich in comparison to New Zealand that it is able to dictate what kinds of pitches get played on, which New Zealanders are allowed to play and which are not, and even – I kid you not – which New Zealanders are allowed to commentate or not! Add to this the disparity in player numbers, and one can only conclude that every single Indian state ought to be able to smash New Zealand at cricket. In this context the displays of arrogance and boastfulness which some Indian fans – and I stress the word “some”, as there are many Indian fans who are immensely knowledgeable and honourable – display about their team and its (less than amazing) record are repulsive to many non-Indians. And will continue to be so. OK, I’ve had my say, and I won’t be back on this forum. Knock yourselves out, Raz, Sunny, and your ilk.
March 29th, 2009 at 10.14 pm
Raz, your comments lead me to believe you do not know a lot about cricket. You jump all over the place with comments about how to confirm your beloved india is no1. Whoever wins the t20 world cup will not decide who has won the battle. As badly as india did in the last world cup, they would not have lost to the lowly sides in a test match situation. There are 3 forms of cricket and they are all totally different. The shorter the form the more likely that a weaker side will get lucky and have a win against good sides.Test cricket will always be just that, a test of a teams physical and mental ability over 5 days. Any knowlegable cricket fan knows that. Test cricket is what the players rate as the pinnacle. Not a game of hit and giggle that is entertaining but is all over in 3 hours.
At the end of day 3 NZ had scored 600 plus, bowled out india for 305 and had them 1 for in the second innings, so which one of those 3 days was indias one bad day? India had one good day so far in this test.
To call SA chokers in this situation further shows your lack of knowledge of cricket. The two best sides in the game played 6 games in a row in each others countries where every game bar the last went 5 days. The closeness of the sides was evident thru the 2 series. Anyone with half a cricket brain would not make the comment you made.
March 30th, 2009 at 8.31 am
What is this childish nonsense going on here.
Raz,
we might presently, on form be the best team in the world.However that title has to be earned over time.
Ken,
go away.You must be representing the lunatic fringe of australian supporters.You do it well.Don’t do it here.
Childish,defines you.
Ian,“India,world no 1 side in all forms of the game”?
Who’s saying that.All the indians here are think its a 3 way tussle for the top slot.You need to get your eyes checked.
That makes your response deluded.
You positively gloat over india’s non-performance in the 2nd test against the kiwis & jump the gun with your foolish comments.
That must have been quite embarassing,and please don’t pull out the 3 million against 1.2 billion card.
Half the states in India don’t play any cricket.Unfortunately for you,that might be too difficult to understand.The northern areas,north-east & much of the eastern part of India don’t play cricket.
How many of those 1.2 billion people are below the poverty line??
More concerned about getting food on the plate,those people are.
Moreover,even in these times of the IPL,except a particular area around Delhi & Punjab,most Indian states aren’t inclined towards sports.There is negligible cricekt in my state of Himachal.There’ve been Indian cricketers who’ve had to slip out stealthily outside their house to play cricket without telling their families.
Praveen Kumar is 1 famous example.
All 3million of NewZealands population have access to their cricket infrastructure.In india that number is very very low.
Unlike you I gave credit where its due & pointed out that there isn’t any clear number 1.Now if you want to disagree with that,you’re welcome to continue to shout your mouth off.
So you’re South African.I like Smith,Steyn,Boucher & the Morkels.I’d always want you to beat the australians.Where’s the problem here??Why the hate??
The fact that you need to give excuses like India dictates the pitches they play on tells me you can’t accept losing to India.India win because other teams deliberately lose to them.All hogwash.
This superiority complex is unnecessary you pompous old sow.Learn how to behave.
March 30th, 2009 at 8.54 am
I find it interesting you can ask “why the hate?”, and follow it up with “you pompous old sow”. Very contradictory.
March 30th, 2009 at 9.36 am
LOL.What a bunch of pretenders.You pretend that this raz guy isn’t affecting you & he’s too dumb to warrant a response.Then you go & respond about 500 times.
Drown your sorrows in beer,as is your wont & do your kangaroo dance.
Sadly it might not help you in south africa.Another loss.Aus-number 1 team in the world in all forms of the game?
Yeah,right.
If you ‘are’ the best,you wouldn’t bring up your past achievements like winning 2-1 in india.In that case I would ask you to refer to India’s or Australia’s overall record in the Border-Gavaskar trophy.
Again,in the present scenario,its irrelevant.Keep pissing on your present.
Reading their responses its clear these clowns were celebrating india’s ‘impending loss’ in New Zealand.
Most of those responses look quite stupid now with India coming back strongly and the series at 1-0 to india with a test to go.
Also,the new kiwi team isn’t that bad.Definitely not 8th best in the world.
Specifically,there are some talented batsman there who’ll smash a few bowling attacks when they come up against them.
Expected though,coz in Australia ‘intelligent’ is an abusive term.
I’m happy Kenneth can spell effigies.
March 30th, 2009 at 9.47 am
Well I’m definitely expecting South Africa to beat us in the one-dayers- Johan Botha just keeps it too tight in the middle overs, and boy am I missing Brad Hogg!
In fact, I hope Australia gets whitewashed because at least it might finally occur to Hilditch and Co. that picking bits-n-pieces players like White is a failed policy.
So no, we’re definitely not number 1 in limited-overs cricket. But I’m very happy with the way we bounced back in the Tests, and I’d fancy our chances against India in a Test- and South Africa’s too.
April 1st, 2009 at 11.01 am
I am done convicing u that india is no.1 team in form end of
April 1st, 2009 at 11.19 pm
India flirted with the number 1 spot for awhile, a couple of years back, but it’s left them behind now. South Africa and Australia have raised the bar yet again.
India (like Australia) will lose the rest of their big names and need to rebuild again, in coming months and years.
Once again, they’ll struggle away from home. They won’t drop below about 4th ro 5th, but will struggle to get above 3rd also.
Time will tell I guess…
April 2nd, 2009 at 1.49 am
No raz, I’ve just been busy drinking beer and doing my kangaroo dance. You know, it gets easier (the dance that is) the more beer I drink.
April 2nd, 2009 at 6.36 am
Krusty
May i suggest a better brand than
April 2nd, 2009 at 12.52 pm
stu, they currently still have their best side playing test cricket and i still think either of the three could beat each other on their day. Oz and SA have had the chance to go toe to toe. Unfortunately India wont get the chance test their current skill.The BCCI have their team playing so many one dayers at the expense of test matches. With india at its peak they are not scheduled to play enough test matches so they will not catch the other two before their stars start retiring,as you so rightly point out. their only chance to get to no.1 is if oz and SA lose series against lower sides. Over the next 2 years Oz play 26 tests, SA 19 and India 16. Oz does not play against SA or India in that time. India does not play SA until this time next year and then again in december 2010. By then it is highly likely that star players like VVS and Dravid and Tendulkar will be heading into retirement. Then your prediction will be put to the test as Indias new chums are blooded at test level.
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