Australia Selection Errors

[crktluva]

by the way, i know an ex australian cricketer who was stiffed, and if ya think that egos and personality clashes dont go on in 1st class cricket your wrong. it happens and better players have missed out in the past because of it.

[The430king]

Just watching the six o clock news and there was just a report that Hilditch has sent an email too all Australian Contracted players about the commitees some what puzzling selection decisions. Hopefully he has to answer a please explain to Cricket Australia about these selections.

On the matter the T20/one day selections. I've got no problem with Warner being picked. His T20 record might no look great, but he did smash an SA attack with the fastest bowler in Aus and very talented Pakastani and Rajasthan Royal bowler in Tanveer. In two digs against Tassie this year, he smashed 165 off 115 balls, and a week later he samshed 97 off 55 balls against an attack that contains Hilfenhaus and Geeves. Can't believe Hodge couldn't get selected. His form this season in the shorter forms of the game are outstanding. Smashed them last night, compared to Marsh who didn't look like hitting them through the gaps. Hopes's season hasn't been as bad as it looks on paper.

The Australian selectors have been very ordinary since India, from picking White as the number 1 spinner, considering he probably only bowled 20 overs in Shield cricket last year. When it looks like they find a half descent spinner, they drop him for being too attacking and pick a bloke from NSW who didn't play in a tour game against New Zealand because the NSW selectors believe he is not up too 4 day cricket. Dropping Watson (our most improved player in India) for the drunken Symonds is just plain stupid.

Hilditch and co must answer a please explain for bringing the game of Australian cricket into disrepute.

[Keep Wandering]

Originally Posted by Ljp86

Hodge is so overrated it isn't funny. He had his chance and blew it, end of story.

But many other players have blew it too.
Hopes and White
Hodge could be better than half the players in that squad if he had as many opportunities as them.

[Ljp86]

Originally Posted by crktluva

Lip86, with all respect coz u r an admin and can kill me off, but mate you are so bloody wrong its not funny, i never used to agree with this vics never get a look in crap, but what the bloody hell does a good player have to do get a look in. keep wandering has the stats to back his argument and he is 100% right. they play this, " oh were planning for future crap when it suits them, well were was the future when vics were kickin butt in all games for the last how many years, make one mistake and sacked, come from NSW and ya get nine lives, its a bloody joke and a disgrace and i too have lost faith in the selectors. The vics clearly have the best batting line up in the country, and harwoods on fire with the ball. But then again no selectors other than the current guys have had to deal with the retiremnt of so many big stars either.

Hodge had a look in and didn't perform up to expectation, simple as that. Apart from one innings, his test record is ordinary and his one-day record is bad if not worse. Hodge had a whole one-day series against India in 2007 to make runs and couldn't. His one-day form up until then wasn't great but they still gave him another crack, six in fact before he was rightly given the chop.

This rubbish about Hodge not being given a go is crap, he was given a go and couldn't perform and was dropped. Pretty simple theory.

Sooking to the media is a surefire way to not get yourself picked. Michael Hussey was in a similar situation to Hodge about five years ago. Dominating at domestic level but couldn't crack a game in the Aussie side. I didn't see him whinging to the media about his non-selection. Hussey put his head down and kept making runs and got in there, he hasn't looked back since.

Originally Posted by bundybullz08

There are many unlucky vics that could make the national squad.
but i think the two unluckiest are Brad Hodge n Shane Harwood.
I don't have any stats at the moment but Brad Hodge has been consistently dominating State Cricket in all foms of the game.
and Shane Harwood is the 2nd best death bowler in the country. behind nathan bracken.
He's got good pace and bowls yorkers and bouncers to perfection.

One-dayers he has done well but has struggled in the Sheffield Shield this season.

Originally Posted by Keep Wandering

But many other players have blew it too.
Hopes and White
Hodge could be better than half the players in that squad if he had as many opportunities as them.

White has, Hopes has done alright in my opinion.

[BabyBlues]

Originally Posted by Keep Wandering

Mate,
Warner has only made 100 runs in the Twenty20 Big Bash @ around 30
Hodge has kicked his arse making 200 runs @ around 50, Hodge has been consistant with two 65's, Warner has only got a 70 in his 100 runs

The shorter the format of the game, the less important averages become in comparison to strike rates. Warner has more damage factor because of his strike rate (approx 133).

Gilchrist had one of the lowest averages of any genuine Australian batsman in the ODI side when last he played, and yet was almost universally acknowledged as our most damaging due to his ability to score runs at incredible rates. That is accentuated even more in T20 cricket, which is why Warner was picked.

I can quite confidently say that unless Warner makes some incredible changes to his approach to the game and technique, he will never, EVER play a Test for Australia, and that is how it should be. He will, however, be a very good batsman in the shorter forms of the game, provided he can maintain the sort of form he is showing long term.

[grapedo]

Originally Posted by Neville Bartos

Bring back David Hookes. He knew the score and he'd fix this bloody disaster of a selection panel.

When was the last time someone from South Australia other than Tait got selected? Was it Fatty Cosgrove?

Considering the Vics have been the outright DOMINANT state team in all forms of the game since Hookes took over, we've been suspiciously lacking national representatives until now. Hodge probably got the biggest shafting in Australian Test history when he was dropped and they've bloody stiffed him again. Ponting must hate him or something

Pardom my ignorance but are you aware of what happened to David Hookes?

[grapedo]

Originally Posted by Ljp86

Glenn McGrath could have made 200 on that pitch. Take out that score and you're left with an average of 33.67 which doesn't cut it at test level.

The thing is, Hodge wasn't dropped after that game, he had two more matches to back up his performances and failed scoring 7, 24, 6 and 27*. He was then given another opportunity in the West Indies and returned a modest 94 runs for the test, not a bad return but not really enough to secure a spot.

He was also given numerous chances in the one-day arena, including a whole series against India which totalled 59 runs from six innings. Not good enough again. The first game saw him score a duck on a pitch where Michael Clarke hit 130.

Hodge's domestic form in the long version of the game hasn't set the world on fire either. He is 25th in terms of runs scored in the Sheffield Shield season averaging exactly 35. Chris Rogers, Andrew McDonald, Rob Quiney, David Hussey and Nick Jewell hve all scored more runs that Hodge and all of those players are Hodge's teammates.

Granted, Brad has scored 264 runs in the Ford Ranger Cup averaging almost 53 which is a very good effort but he is now back in the queue.

Hodge has been given the chances to prove himself to the selectors but has failed to do so in the majority of the chances he has been given. Sooking to the media about not getting picked isn't going to force your way back into the side either.

Good points risen and a very convincing arguement LJP86.

[grapedo]

Just for the record on Hodge.
First class this year:
235 runs @ 35.00
compared to :
Klinger 906 runs @ 90.60
Rogers 661 runs @ 82.62
Hughes 658 runs @ 59.81
North 485 runs @ 44.89
and another 21 players in front of him.

In Ford Ranger:
264 runs @ 52.80
this is the best behind Klinger so he should probably be given an oppurtunity in the odi or 20 20 side but definitley not the test side ATM.

[BabyBlues]

Originally Posted by grapedo

Just for the record on Hodge.
First class this year:
235 runs @ 35.00
compared to :
Klinger 906 runs @ 90.60
Rogers 661 runs @ 82.62
Hughes 658 runs @ 59.81
North 485 runs @ 44.89
and another 21 players in front of him.

In Ford Ranger:
264 runs @ 52.80
this is the best behind Klinger so he should probably be given an oppurtunity in the odi or 20 20 side but definitley not the test side ATM.

One major thing going against Hodge is his age. ODIs and T20s are now seen as somewhat of a pathway for younger talent to be exposed to international quality cricket without the high pressure and stakes of a Test match. As such, the selectors aren't likely to select a 34 year old like Hodge in the one day side unless he was making an EXTREMELY strong case. Hodge has been good, but he hasn't been remarkable.

[eddiesmith]

BTW just on the point about anyone being able to make 200 on that pitch and the constant crap he cops over that knock

Can you explain if batting was so easy then why no other Australian batsman in 2 innings made a century? Why the highest score by the other allegedly superior batsmen in that innings was just 58 and that by a batsman who failed in the 1st innings.

I'm shocked you didnt come out with the biggest myth of all about how slow it was and he crawled through the latter part of his innings to 200 and cost the side the game, thats my favourite myth. Apparently Australia was better off him not making runs and giving South Africa 2 days to make 300