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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Greg:
Root of England’s problem goes much deeper than their hapless captain
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket/root-of-england-s-problem-goes-much-deeper-than-their-hapless-captain-20211230-p59kzo.html
"In the corporate world, when things go wrong, the buck stops with a company’s leadership. However, in cricket, it is solely the players wearing the blame!
Experience has taught me that poor performance on the field has a direct link to what is happening off it. Successful clubs, states, counties and countries have strong administrations.
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The production or floor manager of a company does not take the fall for repeated bad annual performances of a company. The chairman, managing director and the board of directors do, or should. They are the ones who are always held to account by investors and financial institutions.
So, why is Root – the beleaguered production manager - facing the sack? The governance, strategy and execution of the company itself is deeply flawed. The production manager has had nothing to do with it. He is merely manufacturing products with the raw materials, machinery, resources and tools given to him. If all these factors of production are not optimal, the end manufactured product will be suboptimal." |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Ian disagrees:
England are presentable at home but poor abroad, and their home strength is under threat
https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/ashes-2021-22-ian-chappell-england-are-presentable-at-home-but-poor-abroad-and-their-home-strength-is-under-threat-1295036
"There is no doubt England are a presentable home side, but given their travelling record under Joe Root's captaincy, they struggle to be considered a top-level nation. This was obvious in India, where England badly lost the series 3-1, and in Australia they are in danger of losing nine of the ten Tests Root will have led in by the end of this series.
Even in England, Root's lack of inspiration as a leader is starting to show. Albeit in some trying times, because of the pandemic, England are starting to lose their reputation as a team that is difficult to beat at home. It's incorrect to make Root culpable, as he is easily England's best batter, but he has to accept some of the blame. He has never been a leader of substance and virtually gained the job because there was no other candidate and it was hoped he would grow into the job.
It has become patently clear Root is not the man for the task if England want to be recognised as a tough team to beat in all circumstances." |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Post subject: | |
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Greg:
Out of touch: Bigger bats have created spectacle, but it has come at a price
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/out-of-touch-bigger-bats-have-created-spectacle-but-it-has-come-at-a-price-20220114-p59oar.html
"... modern bats have transformed batting, compared with bygone eras.
Cricket was a “touch” game – until the bats got bigger.
I started with bats very similar to those available for the preceding 70 years. Gilbert Jessop’s bat weighed 2 pounds, 3 ounces ... As did Don Bradman’s and Neil Harvey’s. My early bats were marginally heavier, until I witnessed Graeme Pollock using a blunderbuss of a bat that weighed over 3 pounds ...
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I discovered that there was a point at which the extra weight went from being an advantage to a liability. For me, the cut-off point was around 2 pounds, 3 ounces. Anything heavier was too unwieldy, as I could not move the bat fast enough to get into an optimal position to be effective; especially, for the cross-bat shots like the hook, pull and cut.
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The first time I became aware of how different modern bats were, was in 2006, whilst in India. Their top players used bats similar in weight to ours, but they were twice as thick. Virender Sehwag used to give me his new bats, to break in. I could not believe how the ball exploded off those bats, whilst at catching practice. I was worried about inadvertently injuring fielders. I don’t know whether it is possible in physics, but those bats had a rebound factor similar to golf drivers of that vintage.
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Bat makers removed the moisture from bats to add wood for their monsters. In doing that, they have created a much bigger sweet spot." |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Greg praises Warner but does talk about ball tampering and Broad:
'David will never live down the “Sandpaper Gate” incident. That scar on Australian cricket needs to be owned by a lot more people than Warner and Bancroft.
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Stuart Broad has been one of the few bowlers to make Warner his bunny, dismissing him 17 times in 29 meetings. It is remarkable he has reduced a player of David’s damaging abilities to an impotent return of an 8.33 average.
Broad bowling around the wicket was Warner’s kryptonite. The angle, allied with the length that Broad was disciplined enough to maintain for long spells (sometimes, not so long!) was what did Davey in.
The angle from around the wicket always threatened Davey’s stumps, and the length was akin to putting handcuffs on him as it took away his ability to make room for himself to punish Broad square of the wicket. The length was not full enough for Davey to hit him down the ground without considerable risk. I got the impression that Warner knew what was in store for him and argued with himself as to whether he try to out-wait Broad or try to knock him off his length. He regularly lost those arguments and meekly succumbed to a catch behind the wicket or from dragging one on to his stumps.
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... I hope that David’s harshest critics acknowledge his talent and contribution and forgive his human frailties. Martin Luther King said: “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude.”'
https://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket/divisive-to-the-end-warner-the-destroyer-deserves-a-fond-farewell-in-sydney-20231230-p5eua4.html
But Greg ignores Warner's atrocious Test batting record overseas his whole career!
And MLK?!?! (Is this what Greg quotes when kiwis heckle him about underarm bowling? ) |
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K
Joined: 09 Sep 2011
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Post subject: | |
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Ian Chappell:
"... Stokes' aggressive leadership faltered at a crucial time...
On the third evening Stokes desperately needed to start India's chase with his best two bowlers and try to claim at least one wicket. Incredibly, he gave the ball to a part-timer, Joe Root, and ignored the experienced, probing bowling of Jimmy Anderson. India took full advantage and scored an invaluable 40 runs off just eight overs.
Stokes missed a trick in Ranchi. He then compounded his error by allowing too many easy singles on the final day by resorting to some cautious field placings. At a time when Stokes needed to be extremely brave as captain and hope he got lucky, he was abnormally conservative.
India probably would still have won but at least by going on the attack, Stokes would have given England their best chance of an upset victory. Stokes could improve his captaincy in demanding chases if he took the example of the leadership master in those situations - Pakistan's Javed Miandad.
Rohit proceeded to take full advantage of the tentative field placings with a thoughtful innings and India's solid opening partnership helped seal victory.
The second innings should have been a time to force the Indian batters into taking a risk, but by allowing easy singles, Stokes gave his opponents the upper hand. He also needed to use the experience and guile of Anderson to try and force the issue on the third evening but instead relied on the part-time spin of Root.
The use of Root could probably be put down to an over-reliance on the right-left combination to get the wicket of India's accomplished opener Yashasvi Jaiswal. There are times when good captaincy hinges on gut feel rather than statistics or theories; this was such an occasion."
(cricinfo) |
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