Pete Cash
Post Whore
- Messages
- 61,903
Thought I would start a thread about this instead of filling up the SCG test thread with whinging. (incoming rant)
The pitches have been too flat this summer. Cricket Australia and other home boards want tests to go 5 days and put a lot of pressure on the ground staff to make sure that it does but its gone way too far in the batsmans favour. Last year we had that great Ashes series because the wickets were quick and bouncy. Test cricket for mine is fast bowlers charging in looking to take wickets. This inversely opens the game up for the batsman because the bowlers and fielding captain are looking to take wickets. If a batsman is good enough to beat the field then runs are on offer.
What we are seeing is almost a return to 1950s cricket but for different reasons. Josh Hazelwood bowled an excellent spell today where he put the ball in the right areas because the pitch is so placid the ball was basically just hitting the length and carrying on. So while he was hard to score runs off the batsman could see him off by defending. Do we really want test cricket to return to the days of grinding and 2.5 runs an over. Already ODI cricket favours the medium paced plodder. When I think of test cricket I think of Glen McGrath hitting his length and the ball springing up at Atherton to be caught in slips. On this SCG wicket even a genius like McGrath would struggle to get much life from it.
It will be a sad day indeed when bowlers are forced into defensive mindsets because they are getting absolutely nothing from the pitch. Test cricket should reward erratic geniuses (on his day) like Mitchell Johnson because when he gets it right its exciting and when he gets it wrong he is exciting (but for different reasons). Why take a risk on a strike bowler like Johnson at all if the pitch will take all the pace from the ball and there will be no venom. We might as well just bring back Siddle.
I am hoping that its just been a poor summer and a difficult one to prepare for because of the tragedy earlier in the year mixing it all up but all four pitches have been docile with only the Gabba pitch being a decent one for the quicks. The Adelaide Oval did enough to at least be fair.
Is it really that hard to have a sporting pitch on day 1 that quicks up a bit on day 2 but becomes easier to bat on and then flattens out for day 3. With it then breaking up on day four and five. That way the toss doesn't become so important. It is literally deciding test matches at the moment.
When I think of my favourite test matches I think of Lords in 2005. Ponting scarred by a beauty of a bouncer from Harmison and England rattling the invincible aussies with great aggressive bowling. Then enter Glen McGrath the master to rip through the English top order after tea. That is good cricket. Had that lords test been played on this SCG Ponting would have scored 200 and Australia would have declared 3/700 and that great Ashes series never would have happened.
Test cricket needs fast bowlers. Lets not take them out the game.
The pitches have been too flat this summer. Cricket Australia and other home boards want tests to go 5 days and put a lot of pressure on the ground staff to make sure that it does but its gone way too far in the batsmans favour. Last year we had that great Ashes series because the wickets were quick and bouncy. Test cricket for mine is fast bowlers charging in looking to take wickets. This inversely opens the game up for the batsman because the bowlers and fielding captain are looking to take wickets. If a batsman is good enough to beat the field then runs are on offer.
What we are seeing is almost a return to 1950s cricket but for different reasons. Josh Hazelwood bowled an excellent spell today where he put the ball in the right areas because the pitch is so placid the ball was basically just hitting the length and carrying on. So while he was hard to score runs off the batsman could see him off by defending. Do we really want test cricket to return to the days of grinding and 2.5 runs an over. Already ODI cricket favours the medium paced plodder. When I think of test cricket I think of Glen McGrath hitting his length and the ball springing up at Atherton to be caught in slips. On this SCG wicket even a genius like McGrath would struggle to get much life from it.
It will be a sad day indeed when bowlers are forced into defensive mindsets because they are getting absolutely nothing from the pitch. Test cricket should reward erratic geniuses (on his day) like Mitchell Johnson because when he gets it right its exciting and when he gets it wrong he is exciting (but for different reasons). Why take a risk on a strike bowler like Johnson at all if the pitch will take all the pace from the ball and there will be no venom. We might as well just bring back Siddle.
I am hoping that its just been a poor summer and a difficult one to prepare for because of the tragedy earlier in the year mixing it all up but all four pitches have been docile with only the Gabba pitch being a decent one for the quicks. The Adelaide Oval did enough to at least be fair.
Is it really that hard to have a sporting pitch on day 1 that quicks up a bit on day 2 but becomes easier to bat on and then flattens out for day 3. With it then breaking up on day four and five. That way the toss doesn't become so important. It is literally deciding test matches at the moment.
When I think of my favourite test matches I think of Lords in 2005. Ponting scarred by a beauty of a bouncer from Harmison and England rattling the invincible aussies with great aggressive bowling. Then enter Glen McGrath the master to rip through the English top order after tea. That is good cricket. Had that lords test been played on this SCG Ponting would have scored 200 and Australia would have declared 3/700 and that great Ashes series never would have happened.
Test cricket needs fast bowlers. Lets not take them out the game.
