Dylan Thomas wrote Under Milk Wood in 1953 about characters in a fictional village called Llareggub. Spelt backwards this says “buggerall” and the current ODI’s between Australia and England are just that.
The games are meaningless as a contest and have become glorified practice matches for both teams. Cricket Australia should have scripted the one day series to conclude prior to the announcement of the World Cup squad.
The 15 man squads were announced on the 18th of January for next month’s World Cup on the sub-continent and none of the selected players will want to cruel their chances. Expect, at best, only 50% of the normal intensity when these traditional foes battle it out.
Spectators, who have already bought their tickets, will not get a refund if they choose not to go. Can you imagine going to a concert featuring your favourite band and find they are only going to jam. Or Pavarotti deciding he would only warble because he wanted to preserve his larynx for the Command Performance.
You cannot blame the players for coasting. It would be silly for someone like Lee or Tait to go full throttle. They are already on the plane and will save their intensity for a week before the actual World Cup starts. Professional sport is about peaking at the right time.
Federer does not mind losing an exhibition match two weeks before a grand slam. The All Blacks are a different kettle of salmon. They want to win every game they play. Perhaps that is a reason why they so often fail to take the major prize at the Rugby World Cup.
But, coming back to the cricket, we saw more of the Clarke waltz in the quicksand and cat-calling to the fieldsman at thirdman to move finer, in the game at Hobart.
This is the game that Tony Greig proclaimed on TV last night to “have rated the pants off the competition”. I question the objectivity of the Channel 9 commentary team on anything to do with the health of the game.
Of course they would spruik the enthralling contest unravelling before our naive eyes. As the moronic underclass of viewers, how could we possibly doubt the veracity of all these ex-captains?
The commentary team also extolled the virtues of Australia’s spinners comparing Hussey and Doherty, maybe fatuously, to Laker and Bedi!
However, I suspect eminences like Benaud and Taylor would secretly have grave misgivings.
And this is not just in Australia. All the matches being played after the 18th of January are nothing but revenue raisers.
In fact players have everything to lose by going full pelt. Pietersen seems disinterested. He missed last night’s game. Tendulkar has gone home from South Africa. The Kiwis and Pakistanis are going through the motions. Soon the West Indies and Sri Lanka will try to refine the box-step before they embark on the waltz of the World Cup.
The only players going for broke in Hobart were the two not selected in either of the World Cup squads. Chris Tremlett was the best of the England bowlers and Shaun Marsh, with his two tempo hundred, showed why he should have been included in the original squad. That he is there as cover for Michael Hussey is scant consolation
Yesterday’s game at the SCG, in front of a sell-out, had the intensity of a pillow fight. It had the canned suspense of cold baked beans. The players showed the enthusiasm of an impending visit to the dentist. Collingwood on being bowled by a Doherty no-name ball was the epitome of resigned indifference.
The fact that Australia won a low-quality game with overs to spare only underlines the vacuosness of this series.
If this series had been played just after the Sydney Test as a five match series it would have made the competition for World Cup spots more intense. All Cricket Australia had to do was sacrifice the two Twenty20 matches.
If Cricket Australia was really concerned about the fans and desperately wanted to give them a full-fledged contest they would have picked a squad of players NOT going to the World Cup. These players like Maddinson, Christian, Hodge, MacDonald and O’Keefe would then have had a chance to show everyone what they are made of. It may also have galvanised those selected for the World Cup to perform or perish. This would also have woken England up and the winners would have been the fans.
Personally, I have no interest in watching players going through the motions. This is about as interesting as hanging the clothes out to dry.
The World Cup schedule was known two years ago and in spite of this administrators have scheduled matches that only benefit broadcasters and sponsors.
Meanwhile cricket languishes as a joke.
Reviews have been promised and there are calls for Charlesworth to take over as coach. (I championed this in August last year.) Steve Waugh is being spoken of as a mentor and Shane Warne has been suggested as a Chaplain.
All this misses the point. It should be taken out of the hands of the current administration. They should have no say in the direction of our cricket. They have failed so why give them a second chance?
I suggest a review panel of Ric Charlesworth, Ron Barrassi, Tim Sheens, Frank Farina and Allan Border.
They should come up with a plan that should firstly restore the eminence of the Shield, and secondly pick a core group of 50 players that can play proper Test cricket. The shorter forms flow from this core group. The best short form players are those that play proper cricket shots.
Think Tendulkar, Sanggakara, Pietersen, Ponting, Kallis, De Villiers, Bell and others of their ilk. Yes, some of these players will unfurl an exotic shot like the switch-hit or the ramp but essentially they hit straight and play with technique. Not the Warners that McKenna (CA’s marketing guru) calls great players.
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, features a country called Llamedos and was obviously inspired by Dylan Thomas. This spelt backwards says “sod ’em all”.
And that my dear reader is what Cricket Australia is saying to you.
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
Timmuh, I have read your earlier comment re the Examiner and this only emphasises the disparity in thinking between players and administrators. Ricky Ponting,for all his perceived shortcomings as captain, has always been a staunch supporter of the Shield. His views are at odds with CA,who want to dilute the Shield even further. CA actually has its' emerging players spend four to six weeks in India playing against India's Academy players. But this does not "toughen" as much as actually playing,as you suggest, in the local competition. I have been advocating for a long time that both india and australia would benefit by playing in each other's competitions. There is as big a need to strengthen the First Class scene in india as there is in australia. If only administrators could look further than their self-interested noses!
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
JohnB,better late than never. There is no question in my mind that the Shield has to be restored to its eminence. The Test incumbents must be "forced" to play at the start of the season. Scheduling is not that difficult if administrators are strong enough to say no to "revenue raisers". Unfortunately,from the Chairman down to the Public affairs manager,CA is caught up in "how do we milk the game". In effect they are harvesting the fruit before it is ripe,in their rush to get it to the market. In the end they alieniate the very constituents they are trying to please.
JohnB
Guest
Arriving late at this discussion. Exposing the up and comers to the best possible competition is the main reason to want the best (that is, national team) players playing in Shield cricket as much as possible (and similarly Shield pitches must be as near as possible to what would be considered a good Test pitch). The other reason you want the national team players playing is to assess whether they are in fact the best, by seeing how they perform compared to the players who are the alternatives to them. If the contenders play against each other (or at least against the same opponents and in similar conditions) in the same competition, you can meaningfully compare them. If they don't it can become too easy to discount performances at the lower level, and let the higher level form an exclusive and impermeable club.
Timmuh
Roar Guru
Vinay, on a slight tangent, I would love to see CA encourage some of our Shield players to play a season or two of first class cricket in India (or Pakistan whenever it becomes safe enough) rather than always playing County cricket. I don't see why some players don't do it on their own. Having the selectors know you've got experience in the conditions Australians fear most should be a valuable asset to any fringe player whenever a sub-continental tour comes up. IPL experience is one thing, playing the real form of the game week in week out under those conditions would be quite another. Sure, financially it would not be as rewarding (although that might change, as it would mean having a profile in India come the next IPL auction), but to play a mix of overseas competitions, and being able to lay claim to all that experience would surely help a player's development and their chance of selection. Then again, with the current selectors, its best to play across the line to straight ones (Hughes, Smith) and spray every second delivery down leg side (Johnson) if you want a Test call up.
Timmuh
Roar Guru
There was an interesting interview with Ponting in the Launceston Examiner (I think it was the Examiner anyway), where he mentioned the lack of basics that some players are going into the Test team with. He was quite right in saying that by the time players reach a Test team they should not need to be taught the game's skills. By that stage it needs to be about mental development, and of course some fine tuning. But not being properly tested; and taught; by those with experience at Test level does seem to be hurting. It is hard for CA, as there are more Test nations and therefore more tours now. This does make scheduling more difficult, but there really is no reason (apart from series in NZ or South Africa, which between them occur every second year on average) why Test players can not be available for the Shield in February and March, and quite often for October and early November.
Timmuh
Roar Guru
Vinay, I'm not disagreeing. I would also note that the main even in South Africa was the Test series between numbers one and two in the world. The limited overs series after that were also always going to be a let down after the big issue had been decided (or not as it turns out). Limited overs series this close to the WC are all about positioning and fine tuning, the best players don't get risked, sides don't care too much. I think it might be a little worse this year because the WC is coming after two of the biggest Test series - arguably involving all bar one of the potential WC winners, the other being Sri Lanka - of recent times. The limited overs games are WC warm ups, and with the squads now decided, nobody has anything to play for (perhaps Australia is looking to regain something after the Ashes humiliation, but even they must know its no real consolation to win the current series).
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
Lolly,it would not have been so bad if at least 5 of these games had been before the squad for the WC was announced. As it was there was only one. It is good to see Australia win but lets not get carried away. This was not England's best team.
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
AM, Kersi and I often disagree. He sees good in everything and while I try to make him more cynical he refuses to budge. and that is a good thing. I love the SCG and get goosebumps everytime I get the privilege of walking on the turf. So many friendly ghosts here.! But I am serious when I say the spectators are being short-changed when the headline acts do not appear...ie Pietersen ,Swann, Johnson for the enigma that he is and Tait for the runaway crash waiting to happen. Having said that I know Kersi absolutely loves it when australia wins. Except when they play India! On the umpires one of them Riefel, got it right. the other was confused.
Another Martin!
Guest
Vinay, this has been a very interesting forum and I feel that you have bantered with the great Kersi many times over the years. I go to the cricket because I love and support the game. Unfortunately, I felt that there was not an edge to the match because the teams lack the players with the 'x' factor, such as Gilchrist, Botham, Lara, Ambrose etc. Nevertheless, it was still an enjoyable experience. Going to the SCG is so much more than just watching cricket. Catching up with old friends who are also cricket afficianados is part of the charm. On another point, I don't think the umpires got the free hit wrong. It appeared that Michael Clarke wanted to change the field setting when the same batsman was on strike. Paul Reiffel quickly sorted it out.
Lolly
Guest
What's really scary is having an interminable World Cup then a 6 week IPL one after the other. Eek.
Lolly
Guest
Low scoring games can be fantastic and I thought that one had some tension in it, but at the same time, it did feel a bit like everyone was going through the motions. The first two have been good matches, this one felt a bit bleh. When will the schedulers learn about putting ODI's before the test series? It's not fair on the English guys that they haven't been able to truly celebrate having won the Ashes back in England. As it is such a big deal for them.. Another thing, I don't understand is why all the English team, journos and fans seemed to think that Bellerive should have been a walkover. Don't they look at the history of a ground?
TT
Guest
CA have been using the CUB and VB and CB matches as trial matches for the WC ever since Australia lost the 1996 WC final to SL. Then, somewhere in the last 10 years they started using all non-WC matches as trials. Don't expect CA to change its MO while the F50 WC exists in its present format (ie: 50 overs instead of, potentially, 20 overs, which may happen after Australia & NZ host the WC in 2015). 10 to 15 years of practice matches is enough to try any cricket fan's patience.
Brett McKay
Guest
Vinay, as much as it pains me to say it, I think the circumstances would have to be 'exceptional' rather than just 'right'. The almighty dollar rules everything these days...
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
Brett,given the right circumstances someone like Tendulkar or Ponting could be persuaded for reasons other than financial. Even someone like dravid or Pietersen.
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
Curtis,I wanted someone from football who had coached at national level and played for australia and thought Frank Farina fitted the bill. there may well be someone else more suitable. Who would you suggest?
sheek
Guest
JB, Sheffield Shield doesn't have to have huge crowds to be relevant, providing test cricket & one of the truncated forms are doing their bit (raising revenue). Indeed, if the Shield was based on attendances alone, they would have done away with it in about the mid-1950s! It's a dangerous attitude, to assume that everything, absolutely everything, must make money. If that were true, most of would be out of work!!! I do have the answer, & that is to make both Shield & test cricket relevant to today's lifestyles by turning them into day-night affairs. It's not a question of getting more people to every day of a shield or test match. But if we can encourage them to come to one or two sessions on one or two days or evenings, then that's a win. This is not a new argument from me, as I pushed it previously & met resistance, but I still believe it's relevant, & will probably pen another article on same. But more of that later.
Curtis
Guest
Why Frank Farina? -- Comment left via The Roar's iPhone app. Download The Roar's iPhone App in the App Store here.
sheek
Guest
JB, I think both CA & yourself make the mistake in thinking that because CA can offer 3 forms of cricket, they do. But that doesn't mean they can do justice to all 3 forms. At present they can't, & they aren't. If you had say 30 close friends, can you honestly say you can facilitate those 30 friendships as effectively as say 20, or even just 10 true friendships? This is my argument. At present CA is offering 3 forms of cricket, but none of them are functioning effectively, & fans are becoming increasingly detached by all the miss-mass. it makes so much sense to me to cut one of the shortened forms adrift, & concentrate on the other shortened form plus test cricket. And as argued previously, for test cricket to be strong, Sheffield Shield must be strong.
Jaredsbro
Roar Guru
Maybe this is part of the problem with the 'high profile player' model...something like if only we get enough money or do such and such in order to improve our attractiveness to the big stars, we'll be able to make that adage work: build it and they'll come. If 1st class re-shifts its focus to being about the intrinsics of the game...you may not get big crowds, but you don't have to resort to going mercenary-fishing And Sheek after all aren't the intrinsics of cricket connected to what is often termed an 'agricultural tempo', now in some parts of NZ being agricultural is actually helping the economy ;)
sheek
Guest
Viny/Brett, One of the constant battles each of us have to ask ourselves regularly in our daily lives, is which is more important - "making a squillion dollars & losing the opportunity to sit back & smell the roses, or accept a less money driven job in order to achieve life balance'? We probably all know people making a fortune, but either can't/won't slow down to enjoy the fruits of their endeavour. Meanwhile, their own health & family life suffers. Their kids become dysfunctional despite having every conceivable material possession. For me, my personal choice is to put lifestyle ahead of everything else. I won't be a millionaire, & I don't care. But I get to enjoy my family & friends better, & share quality time with them. I am reminded of the Turkish proverb - "no journey is difficult with good company". For me, life IS about family & friends. Yes Brett, I'm a great believer that "less in better", in life, business & sport. I guess this is a convoluted way of saying, if you provide well thought out structures & career paths, players may not find it necessary to go somewhere else chasing more bucks & bigger rainbows. Of course, you'll always have those who will do that, just the same as in business & life, but the majority might actually be happy with a well-structured domestic setup that allows them a balance between earning a reasonable package & a lifestyle.....