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Australia tour of South Africa |OT| Battle of the Batsmen

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A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
"OMG morkel is so lethal such a hostile spell!" has 0/94

"I think johnson has gone off the boil." Has 2/29

... what.
 
D

DamageControl

Member
Off topic I know, but did anyone catch that incredible Pakistan VS India match yesterday? Afridi played a beauty! Two sixes off the last over to give Pakistan the win by 1 wicket. Incredible.
 
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Jables Swan

Member
Haven't seen any of the match, yet again, but wowzers. Australia seems a lot more lethal without Siddle in the side, ho would have thought.

Great knocks by Warner, Clarke and Smith in the first innings and then the quicks destroying them with the ball, love it. Well done boys. Now go in for the kill.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
This is a really weird period to announce it, but sad to see another great of the game go, though he has been absolutely terrible this series.
 
C

chicko1983

Member
Omi said:
and Graeme Smith just announced his retirement...
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Good luck with life after cricket Graeme.

legend166 said:
Johnson claims another retirement.
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It's the Aussie team in general. I think Graeme knows that even if they hold on for a draw or miraculously win, they way the Aussies are playing, the no 1 ranking will be passed on after April. They probably do not play anymore tests then so he can bow out with South Africa no 1.

Antiwhippy said:
This is a really weird period to announce it, but sad to see another great of the game go, though he has been absolutely terrible this series.
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Even if they lose this match, I believe, sa will remain no 1 to April but then the rankings will change on that date. I reckon they might not play tests or Odis until sept/October, which seems a long way away to Graeme at the moment. It is a weird time to announce it, during a test, but I don't think it is a bad time in the schedule.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
I also wonder if he's using this retirement as a way togo "rar rar boys let's give the captain a proper retirement eh".

That would be such a... sportsman thing.to do.
 
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reptilescorpio

Member
A bit disappointed we couldn't close out the SAfrican tail yesterday, 300 makes it much harder to plan out a victory than the 200 they were falling towards. The Faf/Philander partnership was a huge period for SA, they were able to keep their heads on a swivel despite Faf gifting Australia a few chances off some sometimes great bowling.

Hopefully Warner can keep on and get a quickfire 100, Clarke would be looking at declaring around 400 ahead I guess. Bat until half an hour before tea, give yourselves 4 and a bit sessions to tear them apart while the pitch starts to deteriorate. Lyon looked good at times.

DamageControl said:
Off topic I know, but did anyone catch that incredible Pakistan VS India match yesterday? Afridi played a beauty! Two sixes off the last over to give Pakistan the win by 1 wicket. Incredible.
Click to expand...
Saw some replays of the last over. Would have been awesome to watch live!

Omi said:
and Graeme Smith just announced his retirement...
Click to expand...

Jeez didn't expect that! :(

He's had a really shit series with the bat and hasn't been proactive enough as a captain but that was a shock to read. Hope he enjoys the last 2 days and I'm sure we will hear him on commentary soon enough, very knowledgeable guy who would be interesting to hear call the game.
 
C

chicko1983

Member
Antiwhippy said:
I also wonder if he's using this retirement as a way togo "rar rar boys let's give the captain a proper retirement eh".

That would be such a... sportsman thing.to do.
Click to expand...

possibly done for motivation but I also recall that his daughter was sick last test match and he was up all night with her, so not sure if there is something more serious and he wants to look after his family.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
chicko1983 said:
possibly done for motivation but I also recall that his daughter was sick last test match and he was up all night with her, so not sure if there is something more serious and he wants to look after his family.
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If it is good.for him, though he could try pulling a haddin and come back stronger once his daughter is better.
 
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reptilescorpio

Member
chicko1983 said:
possibly done for motivation but I also recall that his daughter was sick last test match and he was up all night with her, so not sure if there is something more serious and he wants to look after his family.
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Antiwhippy said:
If it is good.for him, though he could try pulling a haddin and come back stronger once his daughter is better.
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Seems like it was in his mind for the last year or two

Almost a month before the day Smith announced his decision to walk away, he gave his first hint that he would do so. He posted a picture on Instagram of his wife and and two young children with the caption. "Always miss these guys when away!..... last one I promise."

Two weeks before that, Smith traveled to Ireland to collect the certificate confirming his citizenship to that country. When it was reported, he assured fans he was not turning his back on South Africa. He tweeted: "I love my country and remain always a loyal South African. Half my family is Irish now and visiting them is easier with dual nationality."
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In November 2012, Smith signed a three-year deal with Surrey which he could not fulfill in its first because of an ankle injury. He had to cut short his stay in London, where he had relocated with his young family, and expressed disappointment.
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Smith's family is ultimately the reason he has reached this point and we would have known that as early as after the 2011 World Cup. That was his last assignment as ODI captain and he earned the wrath of the public when he did not return home from the tournament with the rest of the team but instead went to Ireland to propose to Morgan Deane. An over-sensitive public loathed her then but soon grew to love her
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Also a lot of the guys he played for years with are gone now. 12 years at the top is a long time, he grew up in that team. Seems like he's moving onto the next step of his life.




Also off topic Herschelle Gibbs is looking good!
pitbull-o.gif
 
R

Rezbit

Member
Gallivanted to a 300 run lead already. Really going for it in quick time.

Shame Smith is retiring, but I guess he is 33 and has accomplished everything he needs to. Never really a flashy player, but I definitely have not-so-fond memories of our bowlers bowling on his pads and him gobbling them up all day long. Real grinding, tough player.
 
B

bobnowhere

Member
Lols at Rogers! Bet that was his first attempt at that.

Newlands is an amazing looking ground, it's a bit sad that all the Aussie grounds have become football-ified.

Edit: Second attempt was much worse. Go back to what you normally do rogers!
 
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bobnowhere

Member
For someone who is noted for his concentration, scoring a bazillion runs in county cricket, his mind really does wander at times resulting in dumb stuff happening.
 
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reptilescorpio

Member
Looks like the Aussies up in the box are watching the new episode of Archer

kmag said:
Bit silly not to promote Watson instead of the batting glacier which is Doolan.
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Yep.

Was hoping Doolan had been told by Clarke to be proactive but doesn't look like it.

Hopefully he gets a move on.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Then again, honestly, we're probably way ahead of what we want at this point in time. Everyone was hoping for 450 at 30 minutes before tea and at some point we look to be getting it before lunch.

At least he's rotating the strike now.
 
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reptilescorpio

Member
Antiwhippy said:
Then again, honestly, we're probably way ahead of what we want at this point in time. Everyone was hoping for 450 at 30 minutes before tea and at some point we look to be getting it before lunch.
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Scoring quicker would be better than slowly though. While we are putting pressure on SA the bowlers were really struggling.

Now the pressure is back on the batsmen. If they get Doolan out they will end up even more confident.

In any case as long as he doesn't eat up 50 balls for 10 runs it's okay. Even Rogers took a while to get going initially.

Just an odd choice.
 
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