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[smokem]

There are 5 openers in that squad so the batting order will take some figuring out.

The interesting thing is the A squad has Pattinson, Siddle and Harris. Maybe a bit of a bowl off there?

[vividgreen]

Can't play Harris and Siddle, they're basically the same bowler. Starc as a left arm would bring variety and is a more than useful bat as well. Phil Hughes isn't a number 6 either - Watson will have to revert back here if he plans to play as a change bowler as well.

your spot on.

Warner
Cowan
Rogers
Hughes
Clarke
Watson
Haddin
Starc
Siddle
Pattinson
Lyon

On paper, it looks a solid lineup compared to what they have recently been experimenting with.

Rogers gives some backbone to the important No3 position, Hughes can then play his natural aggressive game at 4, Clarke slots back into his favoured 5, Watson can play the old ball bully role at 6 or new ball role he was accustom to when opening, Haddin can slot in nicely at 7 where he can cause some damage as an aggressive batsmen, Starc, Siddle & Pattinson are bowlers who are all very capable with the bat and Lyon is very differcult to remove as the bookend No 11.

Harris will be used as a pinch hitting bowler when required if one of the 3 quicks are not firing, then there is Faulkner (bowling allrounder) who will be putting the wind up Watson's rear end if he doesn't perform and Bird as a McGrath clone if the bowlers leak runs on the short english outfields.

Looks like good balance with excellent coverage should it be required.

[PedalsMcgrew]

As an England fan I think it's a great shame Mitchell Johnson and Steve Smith haven't been picked! They lighten the mood considerably!

Good to see Chris Rogers get into the squad, he's a top player and will add some solidity to the top of the order. Henriques absence is a little odd as he hasn't done badly in the few games he's played? Maybe he's just not one of Clarke's mates? Harris is the best of the Aussie quicks so he's a good pick but I doubt he'll stay fit for the entire series. I appreciate that recently he has been injury free but the Aussies only play about 8 games a season domestically! An Ashes tour might prove too much for him.

The rest of the quicks look very good and will cause problems. Lyon will be ineffective, he's ok but nothing special. He'd be 4th choice if he was English and that's pushing it! The rest of the batting looks shaky. I don't rate Warner. Against the new ball in England he'll get found out, Watson is no better than average, Hughes is a walking wicket and Ed Cowan hasn't done enough to convince me he is international class yet but he does seem like a good guy! Haddin will do alright and Clarke is the obvious star of the side.

I can't see any other result than an England win but it won't be a walkover and the series in Australia will be closer but I think it will still come a couple of years too early for Australia.

[vividgreen]

Faulkner is a far superior cricketer to Henriques - proven performer in all forms of the game. He is an aggressive and confident cricketer who gets the job done, bowls very economically with his lefties and his batting has come on leaps and bounds with consistent runs.
I think the selectors wanted confident personel in the team who will not be overalled by the occassion and Faulkner definitely fits the bill here..... he wasn't shy at giving Gayle a send off during the recent series

[PedalsMcgrew]

Faulkner is a far superior cricketer to Henriques - proven performer in all forms of the game. He is an aggressive and confident cricketer who gets the job done, bowls very economically with his lefties and his batting has come on leaps and bounds with consistent runs.

And he's a good mate of Clarke's??

Was he injured for the tour of India then or was the selection of Henriques just another example of shambolic Australian selection?

[Manormanic]

Reflecting on this, it smacks to me of a relatively low scoring series, with two good seam attacks (at leas until injuries bite) attacking two batting line ups that have their weaknesses.  England are still the favourites - their batting being far the more reliable of the two sides - but at least Australia are bringing something close to the right party.

[vividgreen]

And he's a good mate of Clarke's??

Was he injured for the tour of India then or was the selection of Henriques just another example of shambolic Australian selection?

you said it .......

Australian cricket has too many cooks trying to find the perfect recipe for a tasty dish and i think they get lost in the interpretation.
They had consistent proven performers over the last couple of seasons (like Faulkner) and didn't select them. He was called into the one dayers and 20:20 during the australian season and was probably our best performed player, not to mention he had a huge sheffield shield final and still go overlooked.
He is a good old fashion scrapper who has the skills to execute, in the mould of the previous era of successful aussie cricketers.

For Australia cricket to get some clarity, they need to simplify their setup.... piss off all these high performance managers who have rugby backgrounds, piss off Inverarity who has lost touch with modern day cricket and bring in the big boys who understand what success is. Mark Taylor needs to be the head of cricket, Warney needs a role as he is a visionary, maybe a selector, McGrath needs to be the bowling coach, Hayden the batting coach and also find some role for Steve Waugh as he was the ultimate never say die competitor who performed and punched above his weight when it came to talent (an over achiever).

Might be earlier doors, but Ponting would be a awesome coach with his work ethic and fitness

[Gerry SA]

Rather strange that they replace one average keeper with another.

They should either have stuck with Wade or chose Hartley, as he's the best gloveman in Australia.

Faulkner is a very good young all rounder.

Good riddens that's Johnson's been caned.

[vividgreen]

Reflecting on this, it smacks to me of a relatively low scoring series, with two good seam attacks (at leas until injuries bite) attacking two batting line ups that have their weaknesses.  England are still the favourites - their batting being far the more reliable of the two sides - but at least Australia are bringing something close to the right party.

you said it. The team that will conjure up the most runs will win the series.
Bowling will dominate and patient batting will prevail...... this points to an English series win, because the aussie's don't know how to grind out an innings. Its breed into our nature to be competitive and aggressive and this will be their down fall if the seaming/swinging conditions expose their technical flaws.
Thats what happened in India - no one wanted to grind out an innings like Cook did during the english tour

[Alvaro]

Reflecting on this, it smacks to me of a relatively low scoring series, with two good seam attacks (at leas until injuries bite) attacking two batting line ups that have their weaknesses.  England are still the favourites - their batting being far the more reliable of the two sides - but at least Australia are bringing something close to the right party.

Isn't this what Vic said?

[smokem]

I think spin will be the biggest difference. I can't believe O'Keefe, the leading spinner in the country, didn't even get into the A squad for a look. It's quite bizarre. Guess he's no mate of Clarke's hey Pedals?

[PedalsMcgrew]

It's the only thing I can think of! Some of the decisions have been downright bizarre......Mind you, I have always stood up for Micky Arthur as he worked wonders for the Saffers but he seems to have gone a bit mental whilst in charge of Australia.....maybe the pressure of dealing with the likes of Clarke, Watson etc has proved too much?

[Number4]

I think Jackson Bird is going to be the surprise package of this series

[smokem]

I think Jackson Bird is going to be the surprise package of this series

I totally agree. Fitness is the only issue. Otherwise I thought they would've given him a run on the A squad.

[Number4]

He is the only Aussie bowler I have seen in recent times who can really move the ball off the seam