2007 Cricket World Cup (West Indies) thread

[krycor]

HUH?

ntini didn't perform

langeveldt did a good job in alot of games arguably not when SA really needed him to tho

Telemachus wasn't selected, not a player fault but a selection, injury problem

Bosman never had the opportunity to play other than field in the one or two games he did get


What happen in the 2nd semi vs Aus?(1st as well after opener removed)
Was it not smith & kallis advancing down the wicket? taking huge risks? was it the first time smith had did this in the tournament and failed?no Did the lower order not fail AGAIN?

Who are the senior batsmen in the team?

People can complain all they want about the bowling lack of variation etc but thats not what happen in both attempts vs the Aussies, telling ye self it is, is convincing yourself of a 1/2 truth. perhaps 1/3.

Australia throughout the tournament scored at a rate of 6 or more excluding 1 game, vs England and that they won with plenty wickets to spare. You could argue that they are able to put more pressure on the SA team due to their bowling performance which would not be completely wrong.. BUT the fact is that no other team came close to having a as consistent performance with the bat. And the aussie bowling really was not as perfect as it has been in the past, if brett lee was in the team the disparity would have been HUGE.

Also looking back you'll see that the SA team struggled with other teams too. Thats why i laugh when people want to pin it on the bowling variation alone or players of color weakening the team.. how did they weaken the main players? The 1st game vs aussies i think the bowling line up possible made the aussies get maybe 25-40 runs too much, but it was not unattainable.

 

[krycor]

What should be asked is why SA batsmen took such huge gambles so early, and why no plan B came when an early wicket fell if the plan was shock and cry

Ultimately it was a bad plan.. that could have only come from senior players + advisor's and the coach.

Again variation was not in the bowling, true, but SA lost due to craptacular and inconsistent batting display.

The reason why the statements out of the SA camp prior to world cup was 'We'll chase anything down' is simple, SA has arguably the longest batting line up compared to any team, and prior to the world cup the top order was very consistent, heck thats why SA got to number 1. Altho worrying signs were about that the lower order was struggling slightly e.g. that 300+ game vs pakistan, sometimes things to go wrong, so maybe they figured it was just one of those days..
But yah, consistent batting display, long batting order you should get any total except when the wicket does something crummy.

ps. consistency and batting avg's are not necessarily the same thing. ab devilliers proved that

 

[Omac]

Eish, guess it's gonna take a while for this to wear off...

Q. What's the difference between Graeme Smith and Elton Johns chin?
A. Elton Johns chin hits more balls

Q. What is the height of optimism?
A. A South African batsman putting on sunscreen.

Q. What is the main function of the South African coach?
A. To transport the team from the hotel to the ground.

Q. What's the South african version of a hat-trick?
A. Three runs in three balls.

Q. Why don't South African fielders need pre-tour travel injections?
A. Because they never catch anything.

Q. What's the South african version of LBW?
A. Lost, Beaten, Walloped.

Q. What do you call an South African with 100 runs to his name?
A. A bowler.

Q. What's the most proficient form of footwork displayed by Graeme Smith?
A. His walk back to the pavilion.

Q. Who has the easiest job in the South African touring party?
A. The guy who removes the ball marks from the bats.

Q. What does Graeme Smith and a drug addict have in common??
A. Both spend most of their time wondering where their next score will come from.

Q. Who spent the most time on the crease of anyone in the South African touring party?
A. The lady who ironed the cricket uniforms.

Q. Why is Graeme Smith cleverer than Houdini?
A. Because he can get out without even trying.

 

[Lastag]

Transformation, guh!

I hate that word.
Everytime things goes wrong it gets blamed on the white players.
What about the so called quota players like Roger Telemachus and Loots Bosman just to name a few. What they are doing in the team no one knows.
And then you get Ntini and Langeveldt, without who the team will be lost.

So what did the rest of the team do that was so special that the quota players did not do?

 

[Boodles]

What should be asked is why SA batsmen took such huge gambles so early, and why no plan B came when an early wicket fell if the plan was shock and cry

I see it as a lack of BMT immaturity.

Ultimately it was a bad plan.. that could have only come from senior players + advisor's and the coach.

They all made a bad decision to attack. lol, and couldnt change to plan B when it started going balls up.... but wait, their was no plan B, or an adjustment in strategy.

SA has arguably the longest batting line up compared to any team, and prior to the world cup the top order was very consistent, heck thats why SA got to number 1.

I disagree with you here, OZ lost a few games which lost them the number 1 spot. Whilst SA might have good batters, it wasnt this that got them the NO.1 ranking.

But yah, consistent batting display, long batting order you should get any total except when the wicket does something crummy.

Also batters do need to adjust game plan if necessary (semi oz and sa) and not just go according to game plan prior to match if all is not working.

 

[Angelo]

What happen in the 2nd semi vs Aus?(1st as well after opener removed)
Was it not smith & kallis advancing down the wicket? taking huge risks? was it the first time smith had did this in the tournament and failed?no Did the lower order not fail AGAIN?

Who are the senior batsmen in the team?

Hi krycor, I agree with you 100%! When it mattered most our batting failed dismally.

But of course mense always resort to the fashionable "we don't have a spinner" comment!

 

[krycor]

I disagree with you here, OZ lost a few games which lost them the number 1 spot. Whilst SA might have good batters, it wasnt this that got them the NO.1 ranking.

true, plus i lied when i said they were consistent too they weren't really just succeeded more often than not while bowlers had some fun on SA pitch and they still did fail in a game when the pressure was on

Aussies lost the 3 games, 1 for batting collapse (complete), 2x impressive batting but had a bowler or 2 taken to the cleaners with a weakend line up.

Aus team was not always consistent tho, they were like sa team in 1999, with a few batsmen that were deadly if they came off. Which might be a good thing as SA batting squad matures.. but then again nxt world cup is like 5yrs away.

 

[Boodles]

For those interested, Neil Manthorp will be in the Cape Talk (567am for those that dont know) studio tomorrow (fri) to talk about the happenings of the WC.

Thats from 3.30pm.

www.capetalk.co.za

 

[krycor]

hrm ok.. dang my pc only picks up fm :/