Around the Wicket - 1st Test Thoughts

Well, if it wasn’t clear to you before, it should be now. The Australian team is no longer the unbeatable machine that it has been over the last 10 years. We gave the boys some leeway for the loss in India, after all – only 1 Australian side has won there in 40 years. We thought things had turned around after we destroyed New Zealand, despite the fact that the Black Caps probably would lose to South Australia, and now we’re seeing a reasonable indicator of where we’re at with the loss to South Africa.

That said – Australia played poorly for probably 4 days of the test match, and it still took damn near a world record effort by the South Africans to win – so there are positives to come from Perth, make no mistake about it. Australia has a lot of room for improvement, where I think South Africa played the collective game of their life.

Anyhow – I keep promising that I will write an entire blog about Ricky Ponting’s captaincy. It’s coming, I assure you – but just for now let me say this. Ricky Ponting is not the best choice for captain in the current Australian team. I won’t say who I think it is just yet, but I will down the track. Ponting doesn’t know how to break partnerships, and often seems one-directional and helpless as a fielding captain. His field setting was terrible in the last innings at Perth, and it was his field setting that was indirectly responsible for Siddle and Krezja (both of whom are too green and wet behind the ears to tell the captain his field is no good) being smashed around. Too often, the South African batsmen (who only had to score at 2 an over) were able to pick up 3 or 4 singles off an over, because Ponting was trying to stop the boundaries. Let me give you a tip Ricky – when you set fields, your first responsibility is having a field that allows a bowler to take wickets. The second should be keeping the batsman on strike by saving the singles. Don’t worry about boundaries when a batsman is 5 not out.

Also – don’t blame the wicket, and call it lifeless if your team was 7/162. Mind you – it wasn’t really the pitch that did that – it was the disgraceful, arrogant, non-caring batting by some of the senior players who were directly responsible for that scorecard. Clarke, Symonds, Hussey – I’m referring to you.

Here’s a tip Punter, it wasn’t the pitch that was lifeless – it was your bowlers. Why didn’t Symonds bowl either? On a flat wicket the paceman just hit the bat beautifully – why didn’t Ponting take the pace off the ball, and have Roy bowl some gentle outswingers? And if Roy isn’t going to bowl – bring Watson in at 6. At least he can bowl.

Didn’t we miss Stuey Clark? Lee bowled reasonably well for the match, but 1 wicket in 48 overs of bowling isn’t the type of return he would want, or a captain would want out of his spearhead. By the same token, Mitch Johnson finally showed the world just how damn good he is, and will continue to be. Don’t worry about swinging it in Mitch, keep pushing it across and batsmen will nick it.

It would be rude of me not to congratulate the South African side. Smith and De Villiers were brilliant. DeVilliers may be the best, and most complete fieldsman in the world right now, and Smith is surely one of the mentally toughest men playing the game right now. There’s no shame in losing to this South African side.

It seems we’re destined to go into the MCG with our 14th consecutive different side. Seriously. It seems Krezja has been made the scapegoat for the WACA loss, and Hauritz will come back into the side, as a more defensive option.

Anyhow – I think we will win in Melbourne – it’s just going to take Australia playing at the level they can play at, some responsible batting, and some decent captaincy. If I was Ricky Ponting, I’d swallow my pride and make peace with Ian Chappell, and also have a chat to Tubby Taylor about the art of captaincy.

And finally - have a happy and safe Christmas, be safe on the roads, and here's to a brilliant 2009.

Cheers!