Enye yezinto ezangimangaza phakathi nochungechunge yindlela ama-pundits aqhathanisa ngayo abagcini bama-wicker abafanele - noBrad Haddin ethola umshini omuhle wokushicilela, ngenkathi uMat Ngaphambi kokuthola isilinganiso esibi esijwayelekile. Ngokwalokho engikubonile angicabangi ukuthi kunokuningi okumele ngikhethe phakathi kwabo, ngakho-ke ngicabange ukuthi ngibona ukuthi izinombolo zihlangana kanjani. Ngicabange ukuthi nami ngingenza okufanayo kuwo wonke izinhlangothi futhi ngibone ukuthi ngabe kuvela iqembu lochungechunge elikhombisa indlela abadlale kahle ngayo.
Ngakho, lets ziphathelene nalabo 2 men behind the wicket first
izinhlanzi | Stumpings / nasemigwaqweni run | innings | iphelela | Average | 50s | 100s | Score High | Not nasemigwaqweni | |
Matt Prior | 18 | 2 | 8 | 133 | 19.00 | 0 | 0 | 47 | 1 |
Brad Haddin | 28 | 0 | 10 | 206 | 22.89 | 2 | 0 | 71 | 1 |
Overall Haddin has the fractionally better batting average, and undeniably took a lot more catches behind the wicket. However, ungakwazi kuphela abambe hlangana kho dlela, so a more telling number would be the number of missed opportunities. Missed opportunities are hard to quantify of course. The batting numbers aren’t different enough to justify picking 1 player over the other, and had Prior played 1 noma 2 innings more, futhi wenza 50, the averages would be near enough equal.
Regardless of the views of the pundits, on balance I’d pick Prior. Firstly I have a sense that Haddin made more mistakes behind the wicket with a few missed chances. Secondly, I have a greater faith that Prior would be the man in a pressure situation — despite a good effort Haddin failed to see Australia through to victory in the first test.
The bowlers
I’ve only included players who bowled at least 50 overs
overs | iphelela | Wickets | Average | Economy | |
Graeme Swann | 249 | 755 | 26 | 29.04 | 3.03 |
URyan Harris | 162.1 | 470 | 24 | 19.58 | 2.90 |
UStuart Broad | 185.5 | 604 | 22 | 27.45 | 3.25 |
UJames Anderson | 205.4 | 651 | 22 | 29.59 | 3.17 |
Peter Siddle | 189.5 | 537 | 17 | 31.59 | 2.83 |
Mitchell Starc | 120 | 357 | 11 | 32.45 | 2.98 |
Tim Bresnan | 91 | 296 | 10 | 29.60 | 3.25 |
UNathan Lyon | 118.1 | 303 | 9 | 33.67 | 2.56 |
UJames Pattinson | 91.1 | 307 | 7 | 43.86 | 3.37 |
Shane Watson | 85.3 | 179 | 2 | 89.50 | 2.09 |
Ashton Agar | 84 | 248 | 2 | 124.00 | 2.95 |
The numbers match up fairly well with who I’d pick for my team. Anyone who watched any of the series would be able to pick Graeme Swann, URyan Harris & James Anderson without a hesitation, leaving the only question who the 4th bowler would be. As the 3rd highest wicket taker, kanye nokuba pretty Ukugunda ne bat, Stuart Broad is the easy choice. He was also more economical than either Siddle or Starc. The final confirmation of these 4 siwukuthi bangamalungu 4 we 5 who had an average under 30 — Tim Bresnan being the only other bowler to achieve this.
side ngalinye linama 1 very good bowler who is unlucky to miss out — Tim Bresnan for England and Peter Siddle for Australia. Both players are hard working, ehloniphekile ne bat, and contribute well in the field. Bresnan took his wickets slightly cheaper, whilst Siddle was a bit more economical per over bowled and both picked up key wickets at key times. The choice between them would probably come down to the flip of a coin if a 5th bowler was going to be picked.
The balance of the bowlers for varying conditions also works out very well. Swann is the best spinner in the world at the moment and Anderson is one of the top 2 bowlers outright with wonderful control and an ability to find swing in any conditions. Broad has the ability to both move the ball and bowl genuinely fast to pressure any batsman who struggles with short pitched deliveries. Harris is consistently accurate and has a skiddy speed which will unsettle even quality batsmen on good surfaces. Neither side has a really top class genuinely fast bowler which is the only chink in the quality of the attack.
The batsmen
I’ve only included genuine batsmen, and have excluded a couple of the Aussie batsmen who only played in the first or second test (and didn’t do well)
innings | iphelela | Average | 50s | 100s | Score High | hhayi out | |
Ian Bell | 10 | 562 | 62.44 | 2 | 3 | 113 | 1 |
Michael Clarke | 10 | 381 | 47.63 | 1 | 1 | 187 | 2 |
Shane Watson | 10 | 418 | 41.80 | 1 | 1 | 176 | |
Chris Rogers | 9 | 367 | 40.78 | 2 | 1 | 110 | |
uKevin Pietersen | 10 | 388 | 38.80 | 3 | 1 | 113 | |
Steve Smith | 10 | 345 | 38.33 | 2 | 1 | 138 | 1 |
Joe Umsuka | 10 | 339 | 37.67 | 1 | 1 | 180 | 1 |
Jonathan Trott | 10 | 293 | 29.30 | 2 | 0 | 59 | |
Jonny Bairstow | 7 | 203 | 29.00 | 1 | 1 | 67 | |
Alastair Cook | 10 | 277 | 27.70 | 3 | 0 | 62 | |
David Warner | 6 | 138 | 23.00 | 1 | 0 | 71 | |
Usman Khawaja | 6 | 114 | 19.00 | 1 | 0 | 54 |
Picking a batting line up is far less straight-forward then a bowling attack. Ian Bell is the only batsman who can be picked without having to think. Michael Clarke also has a good average but is helped by 2 hhayi nasemigwaqweni (as a result of declarations). That said, Clarke is a world-class batsman and it would be pretty hard to justify leaving him out of the side.
The remaining 4 are trickier to select. Shane Watson is useful with the ball and made the 3rd highest average, but he has a tendency to make runs when they don’t matter, and get out when a score is needed. I also haven’t yet picked any openers, and Watson didn’t play well as an opener (and isn’t consistent enough) futhi empeleni kuphela wathatha 2 wickets means he’s not going to make the team. Chris Rogers surprised me and had a much better series than I expected him to. He improved as the series went on and he was a very calm and consistent player — ideal as an opener. As a result he makes the team.
Pieterson kwadingeka kancane ngezansi uchungechunge par, however he had to find form early on having just returned from an injury he was clearly still carrying throughout the last test. His ability to make game changing runs, futhi lokushaya lapho iphelela zidingeka kakhulu (and his sheer entertainment value) definitely gets him a place.
I still need another opener and the remaining choice is between the “bar fight 2”. The numbers make this easy, and Root’s reasonable average is particularly impressive given the pressure he was under making his opening debut in such a key series. He is also a much more careful player than Warner which is better suited to test cricket, and he showed he is a quick learner by improving his technique as the series went on.
This leaves just a final batsman to pick. The numbers say Steve Smith but I wasn’t at all convinced that he was a test batsman. Without his 1 high score and his “not out” innings enhancing it, his average would be under 21 which is a more accurate reflection of the series he had. Khawaja had a very poor series and is out of the picture so that leaves the choice of Trott, Bairstow and Cook. Despite his disappointing series with the bat it’s easy to pick the Ashes winning captain as the captain for the whole team, especially if he were a touch down the order to relieve the pressure that opening and being captain brings.
The numbers and my line up aren’t quite a match, kodwa ngiye abelethwe 5 phezulu 7 by numbers and added in Alastair Cook, who despite his disappointing series would be hard to leave out. The 2 who miss out — Shane Watson and Steve Smith have both managed to produce numbers that very much flatter the reality of how well they played. This is doubly so when you consider that the 2 players I have picked instead (Cook & Umsuka) both had to face tougher conditions as opening batsmen.
Final line-up
- Chris Rogers
- Joe Umsuka
- Alastair Cook (c)
- Kevin Pieterson
- Michael Clarke
- Ian Bell
- Matt Prior (w)
- Graeme Swann
- UStuart Broad
- URyan Harris
- UJames Anderson
This is a very strong but somewhat unbalanced side, kuphela 3 Australians compared to 8 Englishmen. However, England have just won 3–0 and were good money for that scoreline. No-one would have blinked if a similar “best of” team from the 90’s was largely Australian, ngakho ake ujabulele it manje ukuthi amatafula baye baphendukela.
Cook’s career record isn’t in doubt but his performance in this series doesn’t merit selection in a combined eleven in my view. I’d want Watto in my eleven for his all round options, batting at 3 or 6.
I know what you mean, J A Scaife, re Cook’s record. It has been poor by his lofty standards. But Watson would be the last man on any team sheet for me. I know it’s hard to evaluate all the gossip coming out of dressing rooms but it would appear he isn’t a ‘team’ player. The ‘homework’ scandal and a devotion to trying to save his own skin by referring almost every decision against him all point to this. And his series was dominated by one big innings — scored when it didn’t matter when two debutants were bowling against him. He does bring a useful back up seam option to the side — but for me it’s not enough for him to get in.
I picked Cook primarily as he got a lot right as Captain. I’m not sold on Michael Clarke as a captain — he can’t keep his players under control , whereas the England players apparently love Cook and did the business under his stewardship.
If Captaincy weren’t an issue then I’d probably go with Steve Smith rather than Watson. If we exclude Watson’s 176 on a sunny flat track against 2 debutants Smith would have scored 100 more runs, and he took more wickets as well.
When it came down to it though I just couldn’t pick Smith — he just isn’t test match class for me. I was picking the players I’d want for the next match, not just the top 11 from the stats.
If it came down to Cook or Smith for the next match it wouldn’t take a split second to choose Cook, regardless of his form in the series.