Team @12OunceEpilogue
1- Bill Lawry L 5k @ 47.1
2- Andrew Strauss L 7k @ 40.9
3- David Boon R 7k @ 43.7
4- Jacques Kallis R 13k @ 55.4
5- Martin Crowe R 5k @ 45.4
6- Ian Botham R 5k @ 33.5
7- MS Dhoni (c) (w) R 4k+ @ 38.1
8- Chaminda Vaas L 3k @ 24.3
9- Trent Boult R 654 @ 15.2
10- Nathan Lyon R 1k @ 12.1
11- Joel Garner R 672 @ 12.4
Joel Garner R - 259 @ 21, 50.8
Trent Boult L - 267 @ 27.7, 55.7
Chaminda Vaas L - 355 @ 29.6, 66
Ian Botham R - 383 @ 28.4, 57
Jacques Kallis R - 292 @ 32.7, 69.3
Nathan Lyon RO - 390 @ 31.6, 63
Batting
Lawry- The ‘corpse with pads on’ will be hard to shift on this flat pitch, and while occupying the crease the left hander will score runs with aplomb and dull the new ball
Innings-123 Runs-5234 Avg-47.15 HS-210 100s-13 50s-27
Strauss- A solid batsman with superb judgement, he has the guile and the patience to work the ball off a dead pitch and is perfectly happy cutting off the back foot should the ball reach him at pace
Innings-178 Runs-7037 Avg-40.91 HS-177 100s-21 50s-27
Boon- Another batsman famed for occupying the crease. On a flat track, such as at Adelaide where he made his first century in ’85 versus Dev’s India, Boony will relish the chance to stick around and score big runs
Innings-190 Runs-7422 Avg-43.65 HS-200 100s-21 50s-32
Kallis- An ATG batsman with the ideal technique and temperament to take advantage of a flat deck after our top three have taken the shine from the new ball. Kallis’s two tons in Karachi in 07, which got him back on his feet after a rare lull in form, will be the benchmark he’ll hit on this flat wicket
Innings-280 Runs-13289 Avg-55.37 HS-224 100s-45 50s-58
Crowe- With Williamson, Martin Crowe is one of his country’s greatest ever batsmen. He makes batting look easy, almost as if he has an extra half second to read deliveries, which allows him to stay on the front foot even against devilish pace and in the early 90s he showed a competency against reverse swing few could match
Innings-131 Runs-5444 Avg-45.36 HS-299 100s-17 50s-18
Botham- The fastest player to 1000 runs and 100 wickets, Beefy is a mercurial talent you cannot bet against. Coming in at six gives him ample opportunity to both pile on if we are dominant and to wrest the game back if we’re struggling
Innings-161 Runs-5200 Avg-33.54 HS-208 100s-14 50s-22
Dhoni- Known neither for elegant shot play nor mammoth totals, MS’s versatility in the white ball game is something we’re asking him to bring here. Whether we need a repair job, somebody to rotate strike with Kallis or Crowe or a quick blast to get the runs flowing alongside Botham we’re confident MS has the tools to deliver
Innings-144 Runs-4876 Avg-38.09 HS-224 100s-6 50s-33
Vaas- No one’s fool with willow in hand, Vaas will ably partner whoever he joins at the crease and his numbers show he can add useful runs down the order
Innings-162 Runs-3089 Avg-24.32 HS-100* 100s-1 50s-13
Boult, Lyon, Garner- Can all bat, whether we need to eek out a few more runs or hold on until stumps
Bowling
Garner- Whether he’s bouncing them out, making the ball talk just back of a length or breaking their toes with his famous yorker Big Bird will find a way to cause mayhem for our opposition even on a flat wicket. And as his superb average shows, he’ll do it cheaply
Innings-111 Wkts-259 Avg-20.97 SR-50.8 BBI-6/56 BBM-9/108
Boult- This left armer is made to use the new cherry, so he’ll partner Garner first up. His fantastic ability to swing the ball both ways in almost any conditions will be of huge benefit on this lifeless track
Innings-127 Wkts-267 Avg-27.65 SR-55.7 BBI-6/30 BBM-10/80
Vaas- Used to opening the bowling, Vaas will this time follow Boult’s lead in providing searing left arm seam and swing. He also has a nasty offcutter in his armoury that will keep the likes of Cook and Lara honest
Innings-127 Wkts-267 Avg-27.65 SR-55.7 BBI-6/30 BBM-10/80
Botham- Though Beefy’s skill with ball in hand is not in question it is the unexpected moments of magic that set him apart. In his first five years of test cricket Botham was a match for any batsman on any surface, and it is that form we’re hoping he will bring to bear over the five days
Innings-168 W-383 Avg-28.40 SR-56.9 BBI-8/34 BBM-13/106
Kallis- He arguably has the skills to be a frontline bowler in his own right, but tucked away here as fifth-choice paceman Kallis can play a support role, surprising quality batsmen with beguilingly skilful, pacy or bouncy deliveries. If needed he is also equipped to bowl longer, possibly fruitless spells on an unforgiving pitch to give our frontline attack a break
Innings-272 W-292 Avg-32.65 SR-69.2 BBI-6/54 BBM-9/92
Lyon- A late bloomer in first class cricket, in less than a decade Lyon has cemented himself as a great modern spinner. Known for giving the ball plenty of flight and bounce, he tends to perform better on pitches that are not thought to be conducive to spin bowling, such as the ostensibly quick-friendly track at the Gabba. As he closes in on his 400th test scalp, Lyon has proven himself a superb wicket-taking offie, but he is also unafraid of bowling long hard stints for the team
Innings-184 W-390 Avg-31.58 SR-62.9 BBI-8/50 BBM-13/154
Team @2mufc0
Lineup
- Alastair Cook
- Marvan Atapattu
- Virat Kohli
- Muhammad Yousuf
- Adam Gilchrist (wk)
- Shakib Al Hasan
- Mitchell Starc
- Peter Pollock
- Makhaya Ntini
- Neil Wagner
- Abdul Qadir
Stats & Write up
| Matches | Runs | Bat Avg | Wickets | Bowl Avg |
| Alastair Cook | 161 | 12472 | 45.4 | | |
| Marvan Atapattu | 90 | 5502 | 39.02 | | |
| Virat Kohli | 86 | 7240 | 53.6 | | |
| Muhammad Yousuf | 90 | 7530 | 52.3 | | |
| Adam Gilchrist+ | 96 | 5570 | 47.6 | | |
| Shakib Al Hasan | 56 | 3862 | 39.40 | 210 | 31.12 |
| Mitchell Starc | 57 | 1515 | 22.27 | 244 | 26.97 |
| Peter Pollock | 28 | 607 | 21.67 | 116 | 24.18 |
| Makhaya Ntini | 101 | | | 390 | 28.82 |
| Neil Wagner | 48 | | | 206 | 26.60 |
| Abdul Qadir | 67 | | | 236 | 32.80 |
As we are playing on a flat wicket i have gone with the extra bowler, as variation and keeping the pacers fresh will be key to taking wickets and keeping the score as low as possible, 2 top class spinners are in the side to take advantage of the later days as pitch deteriorates. The fast bowlers offer different variation in terms of style and speed not allowing the opposition batsmen to settle.
Batting is tailor made for flat wickets, with the top 6 all having double hundreds to their names. The likes of Cook, Atapattu, Kohli and Yousuf are known for their concentration abilities and able to rack up mammoth hundreds which will be key on these pitches. Shakib and Gilly provide more assurances lower down the order in case some of the top order fall early, both able to score big runs. On a flat wicket Starc and Pollock are both decent with the bat and will be able to pitch in if needed.
