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  • #31
    Congratulations Bigfella on the superb away series win and rightfully displacing us from the No. 2 slot. You guys are definitely on the up.

    I just hope you aren't peaking too soon before the World Cup though. Would be a shame if we don't get to beat you in the Finals. :whome:

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    • #32
      Originally posted by sated buddha View Post
      Congratulations Bigfella on the superb away series win and rightfully displacing us from the No. 2 slot. You guys are definitely on the up.
      Thanks SB. The team performance well exceeded my expectations. I didn't think we would win a test. Especially pleased with the improvement in Warner & Smith and the ongoing fine performance of the pace bowlers. Will be sad to lose Harris, but the replacements are great. Expecting a good performance against Pakistan & India later this year to push us to No.1.

      I just hope you aren't peaking too soon before the World Cup though. Would be a shame if we don't get to beat you in the Finals. :whome:
      As I said before, I really don't care that much about limited overs cricket. If we are No.1 in tests by the time the World Cup rolls around I honestly won't mind if we go out in the first round. I'm actually more disappointed that I won't have the chance to see Holland play than about any likely Australian results.

      A win would be nice, but a loss won't worry me. There are teams that I definitely don't want to see win, but I may be disappointed there. :)
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      • #33
        Originally posted by Bigfella View Post
        As I said before, I really don't care that much about limited overs cricket. If we are No.1 in tests by the time the World Cup rolls around I honestly won't mind if we go out in the first round. I'm actually more disappointed that I won't have the chance to see Holland play than about any likely Australian results.

        A win would be nice, but a loss won't worry me. There are teams that I definitely don't want to see win, but I may be disappointed there. :)
        I do not understand this. Cricket is a clash between old cricket playing nations. Regardless of the format (ok, I agree a T20 is pushing it - and I like them about as much as you do one days) an international game, especially an ICC trophy event, and most especially the World Cup (with its history which pretty much would equate to our individual life spans to date), would and should definitely get the competitive juices flowing.

        I mean, we (two of our countries) over the past 20 odd years have played some of the hardest cricket against each other.

        Doesn't Desert Storm still give you goosebumps?

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        • #34
          Originally posted by sated buddha View Post
          I do not understand this. Cricket is a clash between old cricket playing nations. Regardless of the format (ok, I agree a T20 is pushing it - and I like them about as much as you do one days) an international game, especially an ICC trophy event, and most especially the World Cup (with its history which pretty much would equate to our individual life spans to date), would and should definitely get the competitive juices flowing.

          I mean, we (two of our countries) over the past 20 odd years have played some of the hardest cricket against each other.

          Doesn't Desert Storm still give you goosebumps?
          I enjoyed all our World Cup wins, but I don't really care if we lose. That is the difference between this & tests for me. I do care if we lose tests. A lot. To me that is the measure of what really matters in sport. I am pleased to hear about any Australian sporting win. Some matter more than others, but if we don't win a particular Olympic medal or a Rugby World Cup I really don't care. if we lose tests I do.

          There is nothing logical about sporting attachments. I get emotional about my local Aussie Rules team - Hawthorn. There is no logic to it. I chose Hawthorn to follow as a child. I was living in a different state. I had been to maybe one or two games of footy, none of them Hawthorn. I chose them because I had lived in Hawthorn for a few years when I was very young (before I can remember) and they were a good team at the time. As a result of that I have become emotionally (and financially) invested in the team. I could just as easily have become invested in Geelong (Dad), Richmond (Grandad), Carlton (Brother) or an half dozen other teams. My mum has zero interest in sport & only ever brings it up in conversation because she has 3 sons & wants to seem interested. Sport is about emotion, so what does it for one doesn't do it for another.

          Another example. When I first became interested in Football (soccer) Australia didn't play in major international tournaments. The first team I fell in love with was Holland, who won Euro 88 playing the most beautiful football imaginable. To this day I care as much about Dutch Football as I do about the Socceroos. We are in the same group at this year's world cup. I will be wearing both scarves when we play. I have other friends who live or die on English Premier League results, despite never having set foot in England.

          Sport makes no sense. That is why it is so wonderful. Australia writer Keith Dunstan used to say that women could never really appreciate test cricket because they were far to practical & logical. I am inclined to agree.

          You mentioned that you don't much care about T20 internationals. You grew up on tests & 50 over a side games. They are what really matters to you. You probably got to watch World Cups on TV as a kid. I grew up loving test cricket. We didn't watch much 1 day cricket on TV or listen to it on the radio then, just tests. The first international games I got to attend were tests. I enjoyed 50 a side games & attended a few when I was younger, but I didn't care as much. The World Cup really didn't mean anything to me growing up. It wasn't telecast. It wasn't on radio that I recall. I saw a few seconds of our 1987 win on TV & didn't see a full game until the World Cup came here in the early 90s. I was in my 20s by then. Now that pay TV rules I rarely see more than the games involving Australia. It just hasn't imprinted itself on my sporting consciousness as Test cricket has. I enjoy it. I especially enjoy seeing minnow nations win games, but I'm not emotionally attached like I am with Tests.
          Last edited by Bigfella; 06 Mar 14,, 09:19.
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          • #35
            Ya I guess your growing up influences mould your sporting likes and favorites. One day cricket is huge in India. Has been from the time of our 83 win. That's where all the money and TV revenue is. I remember I did not get to see our 83 win. My dad did. We did not have a TV then. He was in Calcutta at the time and saw it on the TV of the friends he was staying over at. No one expected us to win. Including us. Beating West Indies in the league games was seen as a fluke. Kapil's 173 at Tunbridge Wells had captured the imagination of the nation. Till today nobody has seen a recording of that innings (except a few press photos)!!!

            I went to sleep the night before and woke up to read the newspapers with 5 inch headlines telling me that we were World Champions!!! After that, we got to see reruns of the match every time the World Cup rolled around every 4 years LOL. Till we finally won it again in 2011. Now we get to see Dhoni's agricultural six that sealed it against Sri Lanka (but I still treasure Yuvraj's primal scream on his haunches after beating you guys above that - the moment of the World Cup for me). Quite honestly, I love test cricket too. But as someone working a full time day job, I only have the luxury of seeing the highlights in the evening, and a full day's play on Sundays (if the Test has not finished under 4 days - which most Tests in the modern era tend to).

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            • #36
              A superb win by the Aussies. Proper top drawer test cricket.
              Compared to the dull snoozefest of the Asia Cup it was delectable cricket.
              I hate the easy way batsmen can score in T20 and ODIs.
              Runs only matter when you earn them the hard way without crutches like field restrictions, smaller boundaries, bouncer restrictions and so on.
              For Gallifrey! For Victory! For the end of time itself!!

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              • #37
                Congratulations to NZ and Brendan Mc. 300 runs in a test match is no ordinary feat.

                I agree with BF and Bolo121 about test cricket. Test matches bring about the character in players. 5 days, 2700 balls and much patience. Even now, when time permits I prefer watching tests other than ODIs or T20 (sic). Not when India is playing one though, they are the paper tigers of the sub-continent. I love the Ashes though. Fierce intensity.
                Politicians are elected to serve...far too many don't see it that way - Albany Rifles! || Loyalty to country always. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it - Mark Twain! || I am a far left millennial!

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                • #38
                  Originally posted by Oracle View Post
                  Congratulations to NZ and Brendan Mc. 300 runs in a test match is no ordinary feat.

                  I agree with BF and Bolo121 about test cricket. Test matches bring about the character in players. 5 days, 2700 balls and much patience. Even now, when time permits I prefer watching tests other than ODIs or T20 (sic). Not when India is playing one though, they are the paper tigers of the sub-continent. I love the Ashes though. Fierce intensity.
                  You know this is when i really miss ganguly. He was an arse at times but he knew how to fight.
                  About the ashes i usually dont get the time to watch more than an hour or so but yes its usually very intense except for this year's massacre.
                  From an Indian standpoint either England loses or Australia does so its fun always.
                  For Gallifrey! For Victory! For the end of time itself!!

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                  • #39
                    Originally posted by bolo121 View Post
                    A superb win by the Aussies. Proper top drawer test cricket.
                    Compared to the dull snoozefest of the Asia Cup it was delectable cricket.
                    I hate the easy way batsmen can score in T20 and ODIs.
                    Runs only matter when you earn them the hard way without crutches like field restrictions, smaller boundaries, bouncer restrictions and so on.
                    It was a great series. Precisely the reason why test cricket is the finest of all sports. The need to concentrate & endure physically for 5 days is unique in field sports. The need to combine tactical skill with sporting ability & tactical thinking gives Test cricket a dimension that nothing else has. Tests are sporting contests for the ages.

                    There are so many limited overs tournaments and so many limited overs matches that they rapidly become meaningless. Afghanistan's win over Bangladesh in the Asia Cup is a rare exception. I have always thought that the money-driven explosion in one day cricket made it much easier for players to contemplate the sort of match fixing that has blighted the game. If you play enough games that just don't matter then it is much easier to cross that mental line that allows you to take money to change events on the field. Disposable cricket.
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                    • #40
                      duplicate post
                      Last edited by sated buddha; 07 Mar 14,, 08:10.

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                      • #41
                        Modern cricket and the evolution of skills to a totally different level (especially fielding and batting) is predominantly thanks to the advent and influence of one day cricket. Before one day cricket, most test matches would ened in draws. Sure the purists would call it riveting stuff, but playing for 5 days with no vistor or loser, at the end of the day defies the basic ethos of sport, of war and conflict, of life itself - where someone loses and someone wins. Today tests are much more conclusive thanks to the impact of one day cricket. One day cricket gave cricket its edge. Before that, it was a genteel pastime for gentlemen. One day cricket came and roughed it up. Slapped it into reality.

                        P.S. I'm simply playing Devil's advocate here. I love Test cricket as much as you guys. But I do not share the purist's down the nose look down on one day cricket as some of you either.

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                        • #42
                          Originally posted by sated buddha View Post
                          Modern cricket and the evolution of skills to a totally different level (especially fielding and batting) is predominantly thanks to the advent and influence of one day cricket. Before one day cricket, most test matches would ened in draws. Sure the purists would call it riveting stuff, but playing for 5 days with no vistor or loser, at the end of the day defies the basic ethos of sport, of war and conflict, of life itself - where someone loses and someone wins. Today tests are much more conclusive thanks to the impact of one day cricket. One day cricket gave cricket its edge. Before that, it was a genteel pastime for gentlemen. One day cricket came and roughed it up. Slapped it into reality.

                          P.S. I'm simply playing Devil's advocate here. I love Test cricket as much as you guys. But I do not share the purist's down the nose look down on one day cricket as some of you either.
                          Indeed you are, and showing the same grasp of cricket's history you showed when you named Tendulkar, Ponting, Lara & Dravid as the top batsmen in cricket history. It is interesting that some of the most boring test cricket ever played has been in subcontinental nations obsessed with 1 day cricket. Cricket didn't start when India won the World Cup in 1983 and the influences have travelled both ways. :)
                          Last edited by Bigfella; 07 Mar 14,, 11:40.
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                          • #43
                            Originally posted by Bigfella View Post
                            It was a great series. Precisely the reason why test cricket is the finest of all sports. The need to concentrate & endure physically for 5 days is unique in field sports. The need to combine tactical skill with sporting ability & tactical thinking gives Test cricket a dimension that nothing else has. Tests are sporting contests for the ages.

                            There are so many limited overs tournaments and so many limited overs matches that they rapidly become meaningless. Afghanistan's win over Bangladesh in the Asia Cup is a rare exception. I have always thought that the money-driven explosion in one day cricket made it much easier for players to contemplate the sort of match fixing that has blighted the game. If you play enough games that just don't matter then it is much easier to cross that mental line that allows you to take money to change events on the field. Disposable cricket.
                            You said it right. Reason why I give away the 2 IPL tickets I get for free every season. It's meaningless fun, more like a junkie's fix. There are many names, however some at the top of my list IIRC would be Graeme Pollock (SA), Sir Jack Hobbs (ENG), Sir Gary Sobers (WI), Steve Waugh (AUS), Martin Crowe (NZ), George Headey (WI), H. Sutcliffe (ENG) etcetera apart from Sir D. Bradman. Some of these were giants who played at extreme physical risk without protective gears and helmet during their time.
                            Politicians are elected to serve...far too many don't see it that way - Albany Rifles! || Loyalty to country always. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it - Mark Twain! || I am a far left millennial!

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                            • #44
                              Originally posted by bolo121 View Post
                              You know this is when i really miss ganguly. He was an arse at times but he knew how to fight.
                              About the ashes i usually dont get the time to watch more than an hour or so but yes its usually very intense except for this year's massacre.
                              From an Indian standpoint either England loses or Australia does so its fun always.
                              Under Ganguly, the Indian Team learnt how to win matches overseas. He too doesn't have that great a record when it comes to playing away from home, but he did instil the rage in the younger crop to excel. And yes, he's arrogant.
                              Politicians are elected to serve...far too many don't see it that way - Albany Rifles! || Loyalty to country always. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it - Mark Twain! || I am a far left millennial!

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                              • #45
                                Originally posted by Oracle View Post
                                You said it right. Reason why I give away the 2 IPL tickets I get for free every season. It's meaningless fun, more like a junkie's fix. There are many names, however some at the top of my list IIRC would be Graeme Pollock (SA), Sir Jack Hobbs (ENG), Sir Gary Sobers (WI), Steve Waugh (AUS), Martin Crowe (NZ), George Headey (WI), H. Sutcliffe (ENG) etcetera apart from Sir D. Bradman. Some of these were giants who played at extreme physical risk without protective gears and helmet during their time.
                                A good list. Especially nice to see some pre-WW2 players there. Don't forget India's greatest batsman, Sunil Gavaskar - the original 'little master'. It is hard enough for any batsman to make 10,000 runs at 51. You can generally add a few runs to that if they are openers. While Gavaskar had the advantage of batting a lot on pitches that didn't help fast bowlers, he was also able to take it up to the some of the greatest fast bowling attacks of all time on their home turf. His tours of the West Indies in 1971 & 1976 were among the finest performances by a foreign batsman in the Carribean.

                                They even wrote a song about him. :Dancing-Banana:

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