Haydos flies home
Australia suffers a top order blow with the news that Matt Hayden is flying home due to an achilles injury, ruling him out of the remainder of the Test series. The D-word hasn't been invoked yet but it's only a matter of time before Haydos lets slip.
We've already seen glimpses of the post-Langer-Hayden era and I'm not liking what I see. Who will replace Hayden as opener? Brad Hodge seems to be the man but has he ever opened the batting? Katich is the other alternative but again, questionable opening credentials. With lesser openers, Ricky Ponting gets exposed too early and Australia's top order is suddenly looking frail. That puts extra pressure on the strokeplaying middle order of Clarke and Symonds.
Most of the attention re Australia's future has been on bowling, particularly spin bowling. But the openers lay the foundation for the entire innings. Here's hoping Jaques and his new partner can put their hand up this series - the Ashes are just around the corner.
| Posted by JC on Thu 29 May |  9 comments |
I don't see Katich as an effective opener. While he is probably not aggressive enough Hussey could provide some stability at the top.
Posted by Andrew on 2008-05-29 17:36:16
Posted by JC on 2008-05-29 19:33:22
Scoring quick fire IPL style can definitely damage rythm of opposing bowlers, but test match is different beast altogether, patience is virtue and playing the game session by session, Unlike IPL where game is reduced to a session :)
Posted by Unsuidojo on 2008-05-30 05:51:25
Posted by JC on 2008-05-30 09:13:08
Cheers, Mahesh
Posted by Unsuidojo on 2008-05-30 09:58:46
It's about time for another family to dominate Australian cricket!
Posted by cricketgirl on 2008-05-30 21:15:24
They will probably be using Beau Casson as he is the backup spinner for this series. Or they could use a fast bowler and Clarke/Symonds.
Posted by Andrew on 2008-06-02 11:02:06
It is odd to say that Ricky Ponting, a man with 21,000 international runs, including 61 centuries, can be "exposed" to anything, as this implies that he is a weakness. Ponting can look after himself against a brand new ball; if this were not the case, he would not be batting at three! The Aussies don't need to worry about their top order, especially with Marsh looking more than a bit handy, and Watson set to open in ODIs whilst in the form of his life.
The Kiwis, Pakistan, Windies, and - to be honest - England would give anything to be forced into "exposing" a player of Ponting's class at the top of their order! The talk has been of Australia's spin bowling future because the batting is completely secure.
Posted by paperhouse on 2008-06-05 03:24:03
Posted by JC on 2008-06-05 07:52:18
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