Ashes 2010/2011: England in Australia
- Thread starter Ljp86
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Sober Symonds
Member
... And sunk to a new low by installing a pretender as our national cricket captain. May the rest of the cricket world have the laugh they have waited so long to have at our expense.
You have a choice of Clarke, Haddin or Hussey. I think Hussey is a decent captain but his captaincy record both in a couple of tour games (when Ponting, Clarke and Haddin have rested) and in ODIs is pretty much nil. Haddin's mentality is too much towards gamesmanship and I would fear his answer to losing a Test match would be to beat them up in the bar afterward. Clarke is the only guy that can do it, he still deserves to be in the Test side and has been a pretty reasonable captain in the the other forms of the game. Therefore the right choice was made.
Sober Symonds
Member
You don't like White because he's Victorian. Perhaps we need to cast our minds beyond issues such as partisanship and think of just who would be the most suitable person in charge. Really, it has to be someone who is a capable captain ahead of which state they are from, or their perceived credentials as the next best candidate for a spot in the line-up.
I'd rather have someone you can have faith in as a leader, be it White, North or Katich than settle for whoever might be able to do the job out of a beaten & humbled line-up the selectors keep putting on the field.
Boris, Clarke is NOT the only guy who can do it: a) Too many don't think he can, b) There are others who could. His recored in ODI's might be "reasonable". In T20's he's been crap.
I don't know where you get that idea about Haddin. He wouldn't be my pick either, but you paint a pretty unfair picture of him in what you say. A brawler?!?
I don't like Victorians either, but there is more to it than that. The point is White does not by any stretch of the imagination deserve to be in the First XI. He is not one of the best six batsmen (in ODIs, yes, Tests, no) and you could argue against his captaincy as well. I don't get to watch him play much but would it be possible that his captaincy is so good because he gets to play in the best domestic team in the country? Much the same as Ponting is statistically the best captain ever because he played in such a good team. I've never really seen White as a brilliant captain, but as I said, I haven't seen much of him on the field, only highlights of the games (which strangely enough don't show captain's tactics).
There is obviously something good about Clarke, and he has been groomed for the spot since the first day of his career. I think his ODI tactics are as good, if not better, than Ponting's and in T20s, contrary to your thoughts, I think he has been quite brilliant. He may be nowhere near one of the 11 best T20 players but his captaincy of them has been pretty darned good.
I don't like Clarke as a person, but I think he will do just fine. He might not be a Monty Noble or a Mark Taylor, but he's as good as any captain going around these days. I can't name a great international captain of the last 5 years, mostly because it has become so easy to pull them apart.
Australian's pick their captain out of he best 11 players, not pick the best captain for the other 10 players. North no longer gets selected (probably never will again), Katich is injured, White's not in the best form, nor has been in the Test team for over 18 months and for only one series, which leaves only Clarke, Haddin and Hussey (unless you think somebody like Watson could captain).
I was exaggerating with Haddin, but he is too gamesmanlike to be a captain. He doesn't mind breaking the rules and he's a wicket keeper that thinks everything is out and likes giving the batsmen an earful behind the stumps. This is fine as a player, but as a captain in this day and age you have to be more professional than that. As an example when he broke up the 'fight' Styris and Johnson had in New Zealand he walked away giving Styris a mouthful and ended heating things up more. He hasn't displayed the skills at international level to lead a team in my opinion. However, as Vice Captain he only needs to help out the captain, and I think he's a perfect choice.
This seems a rare thing to say of late, but I think the selectors have made the right move.
On a side note, I've been watching NSW play quite a lot this season, and I've been quite impressed by Stuart Clark's captaincy
Might actually be the best thing for Australia at the moment.
someblokecalleddave
Well-Known Member
Well he's talking the talk and looking pretty up-beat on winning the toss just now, lets see how he goes.
someblokecalleddave
Well-Known Member
Yeah it's looking like a far better approach, Hughes has shown some intention and potential and Andersons skidding about a bit. The weathers on our side a bit - more like England than Sydney.
Mrwce
New Member
Yeah Khawaja is looking really comfortable. He will be a very very good player in the near future. Watson is also looking really good! A good partnership will be made between Khawaja and Watson!
Sober Symonds
Member
With respect, just looking good doesn't cut it. This is our problem, all style & no substance.
Again, Clarke is given a massive opportunity to stand up for once ... and surrenders.
Again, Clarke is given a massive opportunity to stand up for once ... and surrenders.
