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[Nickauger]

Enjoy the ride as it will be fun, but have patience because Rome was not built in a day and the all conquering Aussie side of the 90/200's was about five years in the making too.

I am looking forward to this team evolving, it looks as though there is a decent nucleus of a side in there somewhere. I am a huge fan of both Warner and Marsh as I have mentioned. Not too sure about the bowlers although your Pattinson looks a lot better than ours did lol.

[Vic Nicholas]

If Haddin retired at the end of last summers Ashes (at the age of 33), he would have bowed out with dignity and an excellent test batting average of around 40 odd.

Now one year on, he is a shadow of himself and his average has fallen to about 36.

Looks clunky behind the stumps in the last few series as well.

Times up.

We have younger and better options.

[Nickauger]

If Haddin retired at the end of last summers Ashes (at the age of 33), he would have bowed out with dignity and an excellent test batting average of around 40 odd.

Now one year on, he is a shadow of himself and his average has fallen to about 36.

Looks clunky behind the stumps in the last few series as well.

Times up.

We have younger and better options.

Who's the Wade character then?

[Vic Nicholas]

I am looking forward to this team evolving, it looks as though there is a decent nucleus of a side in there somewhere. I am a huge fan of both Warner and Marsh as I have mentioned. Not too sure about the bowlers although your Pattinson looks a lot better than ours did lol.

To be fair Pattinson senior didn't play FC cricket until he was 29...and a few months later he was playing for England somehow.

I didn't think he was THAT bad in that test...but he was not in the same league as the guys coming through, so there was no point in playing him in the first place.

[Nickauger]

I think they picked him as a seamer on a Headingley pitch that had no sideways movement in it, and you're right he was solid if unspectacular and shouldn't have had his spot in the first place. If a more established name had had that game he wouldn't have been dropped lol.

[bigboy]

Lyon is going great guns, biggest problem is every spinner gets compared to warne, no one is ever going to fill his boots. The thing I find most frustrating is our media and a lot of fans, they complained when we smashed everyone, now nearly all of the tests are very close, our record against everyone bar England over the last 3 years is pretty good and we are now not worth feeding, it's bizzare. Aussies are not what we were but we are a good competitive test team that is just struggling for some consistency, selections of the last few years have not helped.

[Vic Nicholas]

Who's the Wade character then?

Matty Wade

http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/230193.html

Excellent gloveman and a hard hitting left handed batsman.

Timmy Paine is more of a top order style batsman rather than an attacking wicket keeper batsman type. Paine had his finger broken in an meaningless exhibition T20 game by Dirk Nannes last summer just before the Ashes and his finger has never fully recovered giving Haddin a reprieve.

With Wade coming through, Paine may have to reinvent himself as a top order batsman only - which is not silly because he played for Tassie as just a batsman when he started and made a 215 in his third FC match as an opener. His finger may never be up to keeping again...so all options will have to be considered.

[tim2000s]

Vic, you've done this before.  Looking at lifetime averages just indicates how good someone is over their career and doesn't show that in the "easy" games versus Bangladesh in Australia or West Indies in Australia someone gets a bunch of wickets for not a lot of runs. In the real tests, under pressure, they go to pieces and get battered.  Or, in the early part of their career, they didn't do so well, but in the last two years have been great. Lifetime averages just don't show this, so as a way of making a comparison are a bit of an empty exercise.

[alba caerulea]

Bollinger wouldn't be in the top 8 english seamers. I'm talking about Test cricket not IPL. When I watched him he showed fight and swing early on but got far too inconsistent as he tired. Maybe the selectors should have persisted with him though and he might've improved like Siddle has.

Johnson for me is a loose cannon and I honestly don't know if i'd pick him or not, he could almost be treated like a leg-spinner when weighing up the pros and cons of selection - will win matches almost singlehandedly on his day but in between will be expensive. Maybe being a decent bat at 8 has kept him in the side?

I feel for Hauritz as he certainly wasn't the worst spinner Aus have tried since Warne.

Why keep talking about stats and averages Vic? - its pointless unless the players you are comparing have played the exact same number of matches against the exact same opposition in the exact same conditions or have played long and varied careers. Its also extremely boring.

[alba caerulea]

Sorry Tim I seem to have mirrored your post there to a certain extent at the end

[Vic Nicholas]

Vic, you've done this before.  Looking at lifetime averages just indicates how good someone is over their career and doesn't show that in the "easy" games versus Bangladesh in Australia or West Indies in Australia someone gets a bunch of wickets for not a lot of runs. In the real tests, under pressure, they go to pieces and get battered.  Or, in the early part of their career, they didn't do so well, but in the last two years have been great. Lifetime averages just don't show this, so as a way of making a comparison are a bit of an empty exercise.

We haven't played Bangladesh since 2006 (two tests there).

Before that it was early 2000's as Steve Waugh was still captain (two tests here).

Only Ponting and Clarke of this team have played them before.

So our boys haven't had the opportunities like some to fill their boots with meaningless runs and wickets.

Everybody else has played them many more times.

[japanoj]

hello

I think you are seeing the demise of Indian cricket before your eyes. Certainty at Test match level.

I think the Indian IPL has alot to do with it.

I just cannot see anyone in the Indian set up at the moment who will replace Dravid and Tendulkar.

Those two still have alot to give however you have to ask yourself why Laxman is still playing.

Maybe the Indians do not have much in their state cricket to replace these guys. Sureley they must be a talent pool to choose from?

[Vic Nicholas]

Bollinger wouldn't be in the top 8 english seamers. I'm talking about Test cricket not IPL. When I watched him he showed fight and swing early on but got far too inconsistent as he tired. Maybe the selectors should have persisted with him though and he might've improved like Siddle has.

Johnson for me is a loose cannon and I honestly don't know if i'd pick him or not, he could almost be treated like a leg-spinner when weighing up the pros and cons of selection - will win matches almost singlehandedly on his day but in between will be expensive. Maybe being a decent bat at 8 has kept him in the side?

I feel for Hauritz as he certainly wasn't the worst spinner Aus have tried since Warne.

Why keep talking about stats and averages Vic? - its pointless unless the players you are comparing have played the exact same number of matches against the exact same opposition in the exact same conditions or have played long and varied careers. Its also extremely boring.

I repeat, Bollinger has a test average of 25 and bowled beautifully against India IN India only last year. He has clearly upset somebody and his papers have been stamped "never to play test cricket again". He would walk into most international line ups with the exception of South Africa's probably.

No point talking him up now - his cards have been marked.

Johnson is a killer. Will bowl brilliantly in two tests a year, then bowl like a leper for the rest of the time. His good is unbelievably good...his bad is useless. Forget it.

[Vic Nicholas]

hello

I think you are seeing the demise of Indian cricket before your eyes. Certainty at Test match level.

I think the Indian IPL has alot to do with it.

I just cannot see anyone in the Indian set up at the moment who will replace Dravid and Tendulkar.

Those two still have alot to give however you have to ask yourself why Laxman is still playing.

Maybe the Indians do not have much in their state cricket to replace these guys. Sureley they must be a talent pool to choose from?

They have hundreds...sorry, thousands of Tendulkars and Dravids to choose from, but in the corrupt world of Indian cricket, most of these talented youngsters parents cannot afford the bribes to get their kids out of the village and into a Ranji team.

If India ever got its act together, they would be #1 for all eternity as they have a never ending talent pool just waiting to get a chance.

[cricketbadger]

Vic, you've done this before.  Looking at lifetime averages just indicates how good someone is over their career and doesn't show that in the "easy" games versus Bangladesh in Australia or West Indies in Australia someone gets a bunch of wickets for not a lot of runs. In the real tests, under pressure, they go to pieces and get battered.  Or, in the early part of their career, they didn't do so well, but in the last two years have been great. Lifetime averages just don't show this, so as a way of making a comparison are a bit of an empty exercise.

very much agree