2008/09 SA tour to AUS - ODIs and Twenty20s

[JK8]

I wonder if Captain Smith is feeling uneasy at the moment, I think he should be, beating Aus in a test was good, but in the ODI I think it would have been more difficult...

 

[WonderBob]

I wonder if Captain Smith is feeling uneasy at the moment, I think he should be, beating Aus in a test was good, but in the ODI I think it would have been more difficult...

I dont really follow your thoughts there...

Why should he feel uneasy? because we beat them? do you think Botha a better captain? Amla a better opening bat? The team a better team without Smith?

In my opinion its never easier to win a test match (or series) than a ODI series. There is just so much more to a test match.

 

[killadoob]

Wonder i think he should be uneasy, botha has done an amazing job if you ask me. Amla opening today finally showed me he can make runs and plenty of them, he just needed a few innings and who would leave gibbs out of the team with the form he is in, even if he only gets 38 he gets them so fast and leaves the rest of the batsmen to do the job without a huge run rate problem, well until kallis comes in and destroys his fast innings

Smith has a poorish odi record but we will never know if smith could have won 3 out of 4 odi's against the aus . I also hope they don't drop botha because he is about our best spin bowler and everytime he bowls he looks like he is getting better and better.

 

[2CentsWorth]

That depends. Their nelson is 87, since it's 13 from a 100 and 13 according to them is an unlucky number.

Universally Nelson is 111 (in cricket multiples thereof).

87 is just a bad luck Aussie number. Like a New Zealand sheep.

 

[WonderBob]

Wonder i think he should be uneasy, botha has done an amazing job if you ask me. Amla opening today finally showed me he can make runs and plenty of them, he just needed a few innings and who would leave gibbs out of the team in the form he in, even if he only gets 38 he gets them so fast and leaves the rest of the batsmen to do the job without a huge run rate problem, well until kallis comes in and destroys his fast innings

Smith has a poorish odi record but we will never know if smith could have won 3 out of 4 odi's against the aus .

Well, I disagree. Smith has a great ODI record. He has more than 5000 runs at an average of 40+ and a strike rate of 82. Thats bloody good in my book.

Smith has proved himself over years, so why would you drop him for someone that 'just needs a few innings'?

And Smith have won an ODI series against AUS.

We can if and but till next week, but I'll bet you my left nut that he wont feel uneasy or be dropped anytime soon (and by soon I mean the next 8 years)

 

[chiskop]

Chis your telling me prince is a key player for us? pulllllllllzzzzzzzzz, smith has not really been missed as botha is a mor than capable captain and we have alot of good batting talent to replace smith. Boucher was only out this game.

When you're winning everything looks easy. Smith played 11 ODIs last year, with an average of >54.

Yeah our batting looks good atm, but I'd still pick Smith before most of the others.

The point I was really trying to make, sure the Aussies have been hit by retirements last year and injuries this year. That's not unique. Our best ever bowler retired last year. A number of our players have been injured more recently, and yet we seem to have managed that better. (Okay, we've been very lucky with Duminy and his form).

We have beaten the team the Australians put in front of us. Anything else is just excuses.

 

[WonderBob]

I also hope they don't drop botha because he is about our best spin bowler and everytime he bowls he looks like he is getting better and better.

Botha wont be dropped. He's the Vice Captain.

Bigger chance of Botha replacing Harris in the Test squad.

 

[chiskop]

That depends. Their nelson is 87, since it's 13 from a 100 and 13 according to them is an unlucky number.

It's not a nelson though. The name nelson AFAIK refers to Admiral Nelson, who had one eye, one arm and one leg. To the best of my knowledge he had 87 nothings.

 

[Globetrotter]

Great win by South Africa!
All the Aussie newspapers are full of praise for SA cricket in general. It's been a great tour Down Under and a wonderful performance by the team. Dominant in cricket, world champs in rugby; now we just have to figure out how to avoid being knocked out in the first round of the 2010 Soccer World Cup...

 

[Fiekus]

I'm with WonderBob on this one. Smith is the captain and he will walk back into the side... no argument. Mckenzie / Amla will prob lose the spot.
Just his presence alone will lift the side and consider some of the Aussies will come back from injury for the SA leg.
On Botha, I am very impressed with him. For the first time in how long is a SA side capable of playing a spinner with confidence and get 10 quality overs out of him. The wickets he is taking is just bloody marvelous. I hope the days of Robin Peterson is forever gone.
But let's just throw something in here... Tahir is being tipped as the next big thing as far as spinning is concerned and their is even talk that he will make the ODI side on the 1st of April to face the Aussies.
So where does that leave Botha.... nah I think Smith is ok, Botha should be worried

 

[chiskop]

Yep Fiekus. Suddenly a glut of quality spinners for SA, who'd have thought it!

Mackenzie will lose his spot (in the ODI side at least ) when Smith returns.

 

[killadoob]

I am not talking about smith's batting, i am talking about his captaincy.

Chis my point is also the reason why we are doing so well is because we have bundles of talent coming through the ranks, aussies have very little talent coming through and i suspect the aussies are going to be in big trouble over the next few years because they just do not have the talent to maintain their dominance and at the rate we are going i forsee SA dominating world cricket just like the aussies have done.

 

[JK8]

I dont really follow your thoughts there...

Why should he feel uneasy? because we beat them? do you think Botha a better captain? Amla a better opening bat? The team a better team without Smith?

In my opinion its never easier to win a test match (or series) than a ODI series. There is just so much more to a test match.

Botha did something that no Captain has done in 16 years!!
Thats quite an achievement, maybe his lack of experience against a first class side like Aus helped him. Would Smith have done a better job? We cant say, but from past records he has a very bad rep against Aus opposition.
Ya so Smith should be worried. Botha will be all smiles and rightly so!

I wouldnt say Botha is a better captain, maybe its to early to judge, but so far, he started very well!!

Yes Amla is a better opener.

Aus are ODI World champions not Test champions, so again yes beating Aus in an ODI series is better than beating them in a test series.

 

[killadoob]

Well jk how can the aussies beat 5 day champions? i have not seen a 5 day world cup. So in terms of performance the aussies are the best 5 day team in the world. So beating them in the test series is just as big as beating them in the one dayers. Could smith have done it with the ODI team i don't know and we never will know but we have a good balance in our ODI team thats for sure.

 

[WonderBob]

Botha did something that no Captain has done in 16 years!!
Thats quite an achievement, maybe his lack of experience against a first class side like Aus helped him. Would Smith have done a better job? We cant say, but from past records he has a very bad rep against Aus opposition.
Ya so Smith should be worried. Botha will be all smiles and rightly so!

I wouldnt say Botha is a better captain, maybe its to early to judge, but so far, he started very well!!

Yes Amla is a better opener.

Aus are ODI World champions not Test champions, so again yes beating Aus in an ODI series is better than beating them in a test series.

Good argument I guess, but I still disagree.

If you want to judge purely on stats, then Smith has captained SA in one 5 game ODI series against AUS and won - yes it was on SA, but he still did it

Judging Amla as a better opener would just be your opinion, no stats to back that up. Although Smith has done it all his life, so I would back him there.

Aus is the Test Champions (thats what they call you when you have that no 1 ranking)

And again, Smith is not worried. Its just Pajama cricket anyways

 

[mercurial]

killa, why do you seem to anti-SA and anti-Smith? A test match is schit hard and whole lot harder than a once off one-day match. In a test match, you have to do it for 5 days. That's why it's called a Test. The only reason the World Cup is ODI based is because we simply don't have time for a Test Match World Cup. Smith has an excellent average and has proved what a great captain he is.

 

[killadoob]

Why do i seem anti SA and anti smith, are you joking merc?

Who was the one during the test matches saying how we suck and have no hope, while i was saying lets wait and see? I remember how you put SA down as i am sure you will remember as well, are you anti SA?

I am not but i will not agree with someone's comment about ponting having excuses for losing by saying he is short of players, then saying they are not. I am happy we won but i do not for one second think we beat the best aussie team. Problem with South africa that has plagued them is they get cocky when they do these sorts of things. They need to be real and understand we have beaten a depleted aussie team and while its amazing we have done so well it does not mean we are amazing yet. All this hard work can be easily undone when aus come out here and nail our asses and this is my point, instead of thinking we are all that we need to sit back and think brett lee will back, simmonds will be fit, clarke will be fit, bracken should be fit. So maybe my realism seems anti - SA to you but it most certainly is not.

I am not anti smith but again i can see botha has lead us to 3 victories out of 4 against the aussies, again this is more than likely because the aussies are not at their strongest, but people will take note of what botha has done regardless of the aus situation so a few bad series and smith could be replaced by botha. Again this is what i call being realistic, you call it anti smith

 

[milomak]

even if he is not captain, smith gets in on batting ahead of both amla and gibbs. it's ridiculous to even consider he should eb uneasy.

 

[mercurial]

killa, I criticised them for good reason and thankfully we prevailed. Since when does criticism mean we don't support them? AUS lost lots of good players due to retirement and some to injury. That's life, deal with it. Even if they get some of their players back, we would still beat them, like we did against them when we played against them in the test matches. They were ineffective - M. Clarke, Symonds and Lee. So who exactly are these players you are referring to?

EDIT: Only M. Clarke made some decent performances.

 

[JK8]

even if he is not captain, smith gets in on batting ahead of both amla and gibbs. it's ridiculous to even consider he should eb uneasy.

Im only commenting on his captaincy, he's a good batsmen well good enough to be in the side!
Im biased towards Amla...

It feels better to criticise after youve won compared to when youve lost!