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[Jord030994]

How can people be calling for Ponting to be dropped?! The guy's class, world class.

[pacman75cricket]

Plays the game the right way too.  Should have been backed when he's talked about players being honest re catches rather than relying on tv replays which always go the batysman way.

[Alvaro]

What about being honest having nicked off? Can't have it both ways.

[Number4]

How can people be calling for Ponting to be dropped?! The guy's class, world class.

 Probably because he has averaged only 28 since Mar '10 which isn't good enough for a top order batsman to stay in the side

And only 37 since Dec '07..

Question is how long can the Aussies continue to be loyal to a batsman that clearly isn't scoring enough runs which is what he is here for???

[Mr Cricket]

potentially:

watson
warner
marsh
ponting
clarke
hussey
haddin
siddle
pattinson
cummins
lyon

not a bad side

[Village Trundler]

Plays the game the right way too.  Should have been backed when he's talked about players being honest re catches rather than relying on tv replays which always go the batysman way.

Problem is, when a captain made the agreement with him, he appealed for the old worm burner....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqFw-GzGeNM

The younger Katich averaged 45 in 2011 and was replaced by a jittery hack while Ponting averaged 27. Even Hughes averaged more than Ponting. Stuart Broad averaged more than Ponting in the same period. He and I have scored the exact same amount of test centuries since June 2009.

Anything he used to be, he is not now and hasn't been for 2 years. His refusal to adjust his game to suit his declining years as Tendulkar has done, or gracefully retire means he is sliding further down the order (and still failing) which is pushing untested players into the top order while the captain and the ex captain hang around the middle order.

His 2 year golfing tour is costing the team a chance to rebuild. If he is not going to walk (and he never has done that), he needs to be sent.

[Alvaro]

He did walk for lbw in the first innings at Hobart...
http://www.cricket.com.au/media-gallery/video/2ndTestDay2Lunch

Hilarious.

[keysersolze]

lay of Ricky he is a good guy, plenty of other test playing nations would like to have a player like him scoring 50's and centuries like he is back doing now. And you better watch out as if he plays in England this summer coming they will try and sign him up like they have done with every South African bloke who can hit a ball lol!!!!!! Kidding aside good player, seems to be on the up again nice to see!!!! PS Taswegians rule!!!!!!!

[SixOfTheBest]

Worth re-visiting this thread? Haha, Aussies on the way back up again

Defeated India 4-0 in the Test series, and just the other day won the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series against Sri Lanka and India (good to see that back btw!)
India were really just disappointing, lacklustre performance in the Tests and ODI's, really just looked like they didn't want to be here. Very quick to drop their heads and when they start losing there is a lot of finger pointing going on...

[awp]

Greatly improved from the Ashes debarcle of 2010/11.

I guess I would summarize where we are at using a SWOT type analysis;


Fast bowling - probably the most improved aspect of the Australian test team under McDermotts guidance. Not only is the depth suddenly there with the emergence of Pattinson, Starc & Cummins but a slight change to Siddles action and Hilfies fitness has seen the group not only bowl fast but swing the ball well. Harris is the most skillful but has a bad injury history.

On the flip side, spin bowling. Lyon is the best we have and has produced pretty well to be fair. I just can't see him terrorizing a high quality line up. I think we Aussies are still obsessed with judging everyone against Warne.

Clarkes Captaincy - he's shown to be a strategically excellent skipper with a great ability to read the game. Everything worked this summer and the captain always looks clever when the team wins of course. His field placings and handling of the bowlers was
Astute.  None of that suprises me. What is remarkable is Clarkes own batting performance since assuming leadership.

Batting - this is still our greatest area of vulnerability. We've a new opening combo of Warner/Cowan. The emergence of Warner as a test player is exciting and he has match changing ability ala Gilchrist. Needs to find his feet still which will come with experience and minimize the nothing scores. Cowan is solidish and playes to his plan but yet to cement himself.

#3 - our biggest hole and pivotal to future success. We thought this was sorted 6 months ago when Marsh entered with a ton and backed it up prior to injury and then a complete melt down of form since. Khawaja hasn't done much this year to warrant another go at 3 and not sure that he's suited anyway. At the moment, Forrest looks a complete package and needs exposure at test level to see if he's the future in that position. All depends of course what they do with Watson.

Middle order - Clarkes the best bat in the world currently I just wish he would move up the order from 5. The major concern is Ponting/Hussey who both had wonderful summers, Ponting had his second best summer at tests of all time which says so much about his guts and sheer will power. However, he ain't the 2003 version Ponting will call it a day soonish and my concern, as with all batters over 35, is that when the bowling gets
Seriously quick or swings he'll be exposed.  Ditto for Hussey but at #6 can hold that spot for a while yet. I'd like to see some young guys sticking their hand up but
There doesn't seem to be a lot of pressure coming from shield ranks.

Fielding was much better, slips caught well & ground fielding
Excellent. Haddin came back to form with the gloves despite a
Rotten summer with the bat. Still the best gloveman for tests. Wade looks a ready back up.

In summary, greatly improved this summer, but the bowling masked
Some vulnerability of the batting. It's crucial as to where Watson is used.

[Alvaro]

To be fair, AWP, the Aussie middle order did get a fair lot of 70mph bowling machine half volleys for 7 innings in the India series...

[awp]

To be fair, AWP, the Aussie middle order did get a fair lot of 70mph bowling machine half volleys for 7 innings in the India series...

No kidding. That's why I wrote I fear when the bowling gets quick and or moves, the middle order may be exposed.

[arc1983]

On the bowling front, while Siddle & Hilfenhaus have been impressive against a weak India, I am more than happy (assuming Strauss & Cook are as well) that we'll probably be facing them in the 2013 summer.

[awp]

I wouldn't be so sure about that. We'll see

[charlie15]

I'll be more than happy if Australia continue to pick Beer as their back up spinner as they have for the WI tour!  In all honesty from an an Englishman I think the last Ashes series was a the nadir for Aussie cricket, they had been on top of the world for so long that they fell into a complacency and expected everything to carry on as usual, it didn't.  The overhaul at the top level should go a long way to making sure this doesn't happen again.

In Clarke I think they have found the ideal Captain and have moved away from the stereotypical Aussie Captain ie Taylor, Waugh, Punter (you wouldn't see any of those guys putting their arms around someone like Johnson when he has a bad day at the office)!  Punter looks to be getting back to his best without the added pressure of being Captain, which can only be good for a team in transition.

It's also good to see that they are taking a chance on some younger quicks, Cummins, Starc et al.  The emergence of Warner as a Test batsman is great to see, and something that maybe the Indians can learn from, you don't need to score at a rate of 10 an over in Tests and you need to change your game from the shorter formats to adjust to this.  I can't believe that there isn't a better keeper in Australia than Haddin, frankly his chat in the India series would of been fine if he'd been able to back it up with a couple of performances, he couldn't, and to be honest had it been Prior I'd of been embarrassed!

There is improvement there, and as we all know you can't keep the Aussies down in any sport for long, but rebuilding takes time and they need to make sure they don't make any rash decisions.  The whitewash of an ageing (and in my humble opinion overrated) Indian team that don't like playing on anything but the flatest decks aside a 1-1 draw at home to NZ and some pretty poor moments against South Africa shows there is still some way to go.