Its Summer! - the Fever Cricket Thread. (Part 2)

I am a massive fan of this. 

At least that bullshark phantom no ball call didn't cost us too much. Voges only went on to get a double ton

:/

Bit of a reality check of where we're at with our red ball cricket.

You won't beat Australia over five days playing white ball cricket - and that's what we're trying to do, particularly with our batting.

The umpiring fudge up will (sadly) take a lot of focus off the ineptitude of our batting as the red necks, numb nuts and pencil dicks will focus on that as the reason we got a right todgering when the reason we got todgered is because our batsmen haven't (can't?) adapt from white to red ball cricket quickly enough.

For the second test I hope we get Rosco back in for Nichols (who clearly has potential and a good future). I'd also like to see Rutherford come in for Guppy, and Sodhi (well, anybody) come in for Mark Craig.

I agree it's a reality check. We can't look past our batting performance, even though I think Aussie bowled well, some of the dismissals have been our mistake more than their excellence. I also think we've finally had the green home pitch tactic backfire by losing the toss against a team who it perhaps suits better than it does us. Against India and West Indies we may have lost tosses on green tracks but their teams weren't balanced in a way that they could make the most of it. I've said all along it's a risky way to go with the toss suddenly meaning so much on a pitch like that. We've performed poorly but there are a few factors outside of that as well, some within our control and some not (umpires) which are a waste of time even talking about when we can focus that energy on what we can control. The earthquakes in ChCh are going to cause some headaches for NZC. I can see Aus not wanting a bar of it which you can sympathise with particularly if they keep happening. We may find ourselves losing the series prematurely today.

Nobody will be able to justify that one call as killing the game for us.  The black caps (as much as I love them) killed the game for us.

I listened to the radio commentary of this when I could so didn't see it much more than a few overs. A few of them made similar comments to yours TopLeft07. The value of winning the toss has been immense and was/is a game changer to whomever got it.

A question I ask if the fans option of 'travelling team decides', would the wicket have been as green?

I did see Latham get out and I asked myself 'what was actually going through your head when you played that shot? What were you trying to achieve in the bigger picture of things' I don;t think they ask themselves that enough sometimes.

I've missed a fair bit of the test but heard Guptill played woeful shots for both his dismissals which is inexcusable for him. He should know better, so should Latham but he's younger and still learning his game at test level. The same can be said for Nichols who will likely lose his spot to Taylor for the second test. The answer to your question re the pitch if the toss was scrapped is almost certainly no. You'd have to think the pitch would be prepared as close to the line between bat/bowl first. Pitches will still be prepared to suit the home team but not to the extent they are currently are. When you have a 50/50 chance of choosing it can be worth the risk having a "doctored" (for want of a better term) but obviously that's out the window when the other team have the choice. You'd still want the pitch to assist the bowlers on the first day to an extent IMO. On a different note - there is talk floating around that the Duke ball may be more suitable to NZ conditions.

I wonder if we will make them pad up again.  Even if its just to score 3 runs I want us to mildly inconvenience them.

I don't know why you would prepare a pitch expecting Baz to win a toss

I agree to an extent but pretty sure he calls heads every time on the basis it should end up 50/50 so it's just incredibly unlucky

My XI to WIN a test match in Chch (and yes, I know it won't happen), but:

Rutherford

Latham

Williamson (c)

Taylor (Nicholls if injured)

Nicholls (McCullum if Taylor's unavailable)

Anderson

Santner (Sodhi if injured)

Watling

Henry (only because Milne isn't yet strong enough)

Southee

Boult.

So looks like the McCullum haters will make the most of his last week in the game...

I'd like to see Guptil taking McCullum's #5 spot. Reckon he'd be great in there. 

Not sure who opens though - Rutherford not up to it unfortunately and of the rest, Guptill is the best of an average bunch. George Worker maybe?

Just open with Kane. He'll usually be in within a couple of overs anyway :P

Looks like Taylor won't be fit for the second test so Henry will get another chance to show what he's got, in his home town this time.

Santner out too

Craig still in. Rewarding mediocrity.

Sodhi took seven fa in PS shield

Poor bugger comes in each year to bowl on the flattest roads in test cricket. But agree, he's no Nathan Lyon.

The Aussies celebrated their win by indulging in over $700 worth of............kfc ?

Cricket Australia: keeping sponsors happy since... Warney.

Any truth that it's raining in Wellington today? If only they had applied themselves...

light drizzle from 8am till 9:30am.

I'm sure I'm going to jinx it but we have played every Saturday this summer losing a grand total of just 2 hours of play for wet outfield and delaying starts. That's quite incredible and in my 16 years of playing in Wellington, we've never had a 100% season...could this be it? and even if not, we've still done bloody well!

Bracewell out of the next test.

Henry or Wagner?

Good question. I imagine that won't be an easy decision for them. If it's a green track and Boult/southee aren't doing the biz it's probably Henry. If it's gonna be flat for three days out of five Wagner is your man

Henry... I'd have Wagner in for Craig (given it's likely to be another mean greenie).

The groundsman says it won't be as green as Wellington despite requests from NZ camp. Also said its not their job to produce a pitch to suit NZ.....ummm

Good on him.

NZ will lose the toss, Australia will bowl 1st. Rinse and repeat last test.

I kinda think in this case, an even wicket is best and then beat them man for man.

Great theory JV though I do see a minor flaw...

I don't disagree tbh, my point of view on this is that we probably can't produce a pitch that suits and but doesn't suit them. Saying that groundsmen shouldn't be working together with the home team is not a very smart thing to say, however.

And lo, Vader's prophecy came to pass...

Hopefully Kane has more luck at the toss than Baz has had!

This is engrossing stuff. Exactly what a first session of a test match should be like

Another 3 day test? or will they settle? Wish Mac would stop playing it like a T20, he should be out there for 6 hours not 6 minutes.

Hahahahahahahaaa!!!...

Bmac. Fudgeen legend!

Went on a mission to the dump and the Warehouse, missed the whole 2nd session. 

Bollox

Anti jinx worked well.

I will miss B-Mac. What he brings to the team is irreplaceable.

oh I was not trying to make a prophecy. It was more Murphys Law if we asked the groundsman to produce a green top as to what would happen.

Yeah I know, I was just taking the piss. I said a couple of pages back that I don't get why we would produce a pitch expecting to win the toss. If we were playing India or Bangladesh or something it might make sense because if we lost the toss they don't have the quicks to capitalise on it.

I actually think this has been a good pitch though - yes it seamed a lot early but the bounce was quick and consistent.

I feel sorry for Kane. He had a great knock seeing off the new ball and the green pitch but his score didn't reflect it.