Roar Rookie
Joined December 2018
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So what goes into a Pure Sport? Does sport have some sort of ideal Platonic form? Not sure. What I will call ‘Pure Sports’…
In Indian Wells, with wins over two young players vying to be the future of tennis, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have set up…
Michael Neser won’t be picked in the upcoming Ashes squad, however he deserves consideration. Aside from already being 28 years old, the main reason…
Tim Paine should be made a Companion of the Order of Australia. Bradman has one. Laver has one. It may seem strange that Paine…
It’s just a plain fact that Australia can’t win the World Cup and the Ashes. Our ODI and Test teams are inexperienced at best.…
One of the quandaries that has become most apparent this summer is the overabundance of fast bowlers at Australia’s disposal. It is a problem…
The first few weeks of January are always built up with hope and anticipation and usually followed by a swift culling of the locals…
Grand slams have it all. The biggest names all playing in the same tournament. The drama of great match-ups. The endurance of fronting up…
The Perth Scorchers are undoubtedly the most consistently successful team in the BBL’s short history. They have never finished worse than third in the…
There used to be true cricket role models. Most of them were good or great men off the field, but what they were actually…
Haha there is always someone who can game the system, even all the way to a century!
Pure Sports: Sorting the beautiful from the frustrating
Good questions Paul.
1) We need a way of judging how well you hit the ball. Runs, offer that. You get rewarded for not just the one type of shot but also sorts. Shots can be 360 degrees, over a distance on the full, along the ground. Ones, twos are minor rewards for shots as well. It’s not an all or nothing system.
2) Wickets are needed so you don’t watch someone fail time after time. How boring! When the ball is heading towards the stumps, you really should be able to stop it. If you don’t, you’re out!
3) Most sports are based around a simple restriction that highlights another skill. Soccer says “no hands!”, so we see the foot skill highlighted. AFL says no throwing so you see the kicking and catching skill highlighted. The beauty comes from excelling by finding a way.
Pure Sports: Sorting the beautiful from the frustrating
Also a shame he couldn’t go all the way! Having said that, great to see a new face win a Masters 1000 as well.
Federer vs Nadal: The rivalry that gets better with age
Great article! So many finals against Rafa and Novak alone!
Roger Federer's losses in tournament finals
Yeah he doesn’t replace any of those bowlers at the moment. I’d put in Richardson ahead of him too. After Jhye though… I feel like that’s where he could enter the conversation. A strong finish to this year’s Shield and perhaps a county stint as you say, could make him the 5th best fast bowling selection, given his ability with the bat. I was surprised by how many wickets he does actually get though – he can be considered more than just a steady bowler.
The forgotten man who could solve Australia’s all-rounder woes
Yeah absolutely. There isn’t really an all-rounder spot at the moment. Unless it’s someone who could make the team as a batsman alone. I agree with what you suggest and I think ideally I’d like to see him at 7 with a WK batsman at 6 averaging 37+ (bit more lenient).
The forgotten man who could solve Australia’s all-rounder woes
I still think he would get edged out by a specialist batsmen or bowler at this stage. That would probably be the better option. If you want a stronger bowling all-rounder though… he’s your guy!
The forgotten man who could solve Australia’s all-rounder woes
Totally agree. Djokovic was formidable at the Australian Open and it will take a seriously bad day from Novak for him to lose. Even someone else having an amazing day won’t be enough.
The Djokovic Slam and why he can go all the way
I take that point about Test strike rates in most cases but I think Paine was subject to the runs suffocation that much of the team was against India. I don’t think it suggests the grit and willingness to hang around that most people are attributing to him. If you hang around for a while and then struggle to make it past 15, it’s not a great outcome.
Put Tim Paine in the Order of Australia, but not the Ashes squad
Well he did play 22 Tests for Australia as a keeper so it was definitely considered pretty good then? Need to give him some respect. He may not have improved but I doubt he’s gotten any worse. Of course he isn’t Paine level but it really depends what balance you prefer?
Put Tim Paine in the Order of Australia, but not the Ashes squad
If they aren’t 100% fit definitely don’t take them. They’ll find it hard enough as it is to be back without having to worry about niggles. I don’t think they’ll feel any difference in the hospitality of the English supporters if Smith/Warner are there or not though!
A golden opportunity: Don't pick Smith and Warner
I agree with everything you say about the difficulty he has ahead when he goes to England and the good job he has done so far. Only furthers his cause for an AC.
Not being close to the team dynamics myself, I just couldn’t say who has the clout and respect of the team to take over for Paine, but I admit that it would certainly be a gap if he was gone. There are young leaders in the group like Head, however, Smith was a young leader too and that didn’t go so well. It is a problem. Having said that, there is a part of me that believes maybe we treat them a little too sensitively. They’ll cope.
I wonder if maybe we just pick the best XI and then a captain. Not the other way around. If we do that, and Paine is picked because we are looking for our best gloveman – then I’m happy with that! If we need more batting depth and happy to sacrifice top tier glovework for pretty good glovework – we should take Wade!
Put Tim Paine in the Order of Australia, but not the Ashes squad
I have no particular love for Wade at all. His chatter was annoying at best behind the stumps.
But, in terms of his batting, what more could be expected of him in order to be seriously considered for a recall? It’s not just half a Sheffield season of form either. He averaged 43 the previous season and has a total of four centuries in the past one and a half seasons. And, as has been relentlessly pointed out here, he has managed that much from the middle order.
Put Tim Paine in the Order of Australia, but not the Ashes squad
I struggle with the lack of stats around the quality of wicket keeping. There really isn’t much to go off other than the vibe of the thing. The vibe has always been in Paine’s favour. He’s certainly a better keeper than Pant but it didn’t hurt India very much.
Put Tim Paine in the Order of Australia, but not the Ashes squad
My point is that he shouldn’t get an automatic pass because of captaincy. It shouldn’t be treated as a life position. He should feel under pressure because his batting is simply not up to scratch, in a side that is struggling for depth. I also made the point that if his other qualities are enough to supplement his batting and bring everything he offers to a high enough standard, then great – keep him!
Put Tim Paine in the Order of Australia, but not the Ashes squad
No I do not. I want Burns to have a solid performance against both balls. You’ve just pointed out Marsh has previous good performances against the Duke. He has only averaged like 19 in the last 12 months against any red ball though so he definitely ain’t coming back. Burns has had a good time against the Kookaburra, if he can do it against the Duke coming up: lock status.
The Dukes ball has made Ashes selections a whole lot easier
So interesting! Didn’t realise they had all had that much exposure to the Duke. One big score between now and the Ashes for Burns against the Duke should be enough to see him open the batting with Warner.
The Dukes ball has made Ashes selections a whole lot easier
I could sleep very easily if that XI was selected. I think Patterson / Maxwell for the number 6 spot. Burns, Khawaja, Smith are steady consistent accumulators who are stable enough. Maxwell could offer a Gilchrist type role which takes the game away bringing a little crazy. Also, if he improved his bowling a tiny bit that wouldn’t hurt either.
Four frantic rounds to book your ticket to England
So interesting! The squad makes sense. I totally agree that it would be great to see Smith spend some energy improving his bowling. That would offer a tremendous option to the captain. Same goes for Head. If Stoinis and Maxwell could lift as well I would accelerate them into the team. A tricky, dangerous, different option in the team keeps the pressure on big time. I’d rather see that than four quicks plus Lyon. I don’t see a need for both Hazlewood and Richardson if those four main guys are all fit. Too much of the same might lose its potency.
The ultimate Australian Test 13
So on board with this. Great article. The variety of shots in each rally blows tennis away. No slogging it out from the baseline. Every rally is wall to wall to wall to wall.
You should be watching squash instead of tennis
If Paine could do what Ponting, Clarke, Smith couldn’t do, that would be remarkable.
Do we care more about the World Cup or the Ashes?
Just trying to do what I can to help us break the English curse! I realise it’s too radical.
Do we care more about the World Cup or the Ashes?
Would much rather retain the Ashes. I love all cricket, but everything we do should come second to keeping the urn.
Do we care more about the World Cup or the Ashes?
Bautista Agut caused havoc with Djokovic’s forehand. Exploiting that, and Federer’s court movement could be good enough to get around even Novak.
How Novak Djokovic will stop the stars aligning for Roger Federer