If we’re going on current form, Lyon should be facing the new cherry.
There are a lot of rearguard actions or ‘dead cat bounces’ from tailenders these days, particularly with Australia in recent times. In a lot of cases this is due to the bowling side losing concentration, but this was simply disciplined batting- a lot more than our top order have shown.
For Cricket fans from around the world we love seeing Australia get beaten.
We have never respected the way you play:
Despite this however, full credit to the Australians today. Really well played. I can’t remember the last time I saw a total Australian collapse in tests. Great to see the tail wagging once again (as it almost always does) and all credit to you.
Well played. Better to lose with grace than win with boorishness, crassness and cheating.
I worry the tail wagging will take attention away from the rubbish batting effort in the top order.
There have to be major changes for the second test - you can’t keep relying on our bowlers to perform miracles to be competitive.
The question is… who do you drop?
And who to replace with?
Finch is probably the one who will come under the most scrutiny.
Handscombe wasn’t good. He should have done better. Khawaja wasn’t good either. There is the question who comes in. Considering they are going to Perth Mitch Marsh will have to come into the side.
No, but Handscombe has only just come back into the team, and Khawaja is a senior member of the team these days.
You can’t just keep someone in because they reach seniority. With that said Australia dropped Marsh who is suddenly vice captain.
Australia does need to make changes. Finch is not an opener. I think he would be better fitted at number 3 or 4.
If you keep Khawaja in make him open. Or drop him and get Marsh to open.
Finch is barely a first class player, embarrassing he ever got to play Test cricket for Australia. Funny how the selectors get hard ons for T20 players and are desperate to convert that into the Test arena.
The imbroglio with his brother recently, plus the fact that he is very much the antithesis of the typical Aussie test cricketer, means he is often the first to go. Mark Waugh isn’t a fan and the same is true with selecting Maxwell.
They wanted him to be their Warner. I don’t think he ever would have played Test cricket if Warner hadn’t been banned.
On the back of making less than 22 in either innings and bowling pies against Victoria? More chance of George Bailey getting recalled. Unless Paine’s finger is so injured he can’t play there probably won’t be any changes to the team for Perth given the game starts Friday, unless they don’t play a spinner and play 4 quick bowlers.
India may be stronger too with Shaw back running after his ankle injury and he’ll probably replace Rahul (out of sorts) should he be ruled fit.
Marcus Stoinis? Could he be an option? He is a great cricketer.
Just pick the best 6 bats in the country. Finch isn’t in the top 40 of them.
“Lost” by The Badloves never made the Top 40 but it’s one of the best songs of the 90s imho (but I digress).
On Finch, a golden opportunity to use ‘Atticus’ for a nickname has been lost. Most of the Aussie team probably wouldn’t get the reference anyway.
Reportedly injured an ankle, and averages about as much as M.Marsh does with the bat.
It was announced yesterday that from the start of this season, all BBL matches will have a bat toss instead of a coin toss. Why??? Isn’t a coin easier to handle than a bat?
It’s probably like the old backyard cricket tradition that they are trying to recreate.
I agree, given the size of bats these days, they nearly have three or even four sides, I don’t think it’s as even as a coin toss.
I actually think they should do away with the toss altogether and just having the visiting side choose whether to bat or bowl. That would even things up, particularly in Internationals where the home side usually tends to dominate.
But that would lead to the same team batting first in every test match which would become boring.
I guess the bat flip might help with that if it’s more likely to land on a certain side.
Not necessarily, and I think it might make the home pitch curators prepare the wicket more evenly to make it harder to work out whether to bat or bowl.