MERGED - The 2010/2011 ASHES tour thread...all Ashes related chat here please!

Who does Australia play next in a series? If they have India or South Africa on the horizon they'll be absolutely petrified, saying didn't they lose a series to South Africa relatively recently?
 
Team Brian GB said:
Who does Australia play next in a series? If they have India or South Africa on the horizon they'll be absolutely petrified, saying didn't they lose a series to South Africa relatively recently?
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They lost to India most recently and drew with a mediocre Pakistan team in England (just before the whole match-fixing saga erupted). I don't think they play another Test for a few months now.

England have a tough summer with Sri Lanka and India visiting.
 
ha_rooney said:
England have a tough summer with Sri Lanka and India visiting.
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I suppose we had that coming with tests against Pakistan and Bangladesh this past summer, I recall how completely awful at fielding Bangladesh were, so much so it made it boring.
 
I'm confident that England could beat both of those in England though, especially Sri Lanka with no Murali. It would be very tough, but I think the English wickets are a big advantage. The subcontinent is another matter entirely.
 
I think Watson's a much better player when attacking, pretty good player anyway.
 
We will have lost this series 3-1, and all 3 defeats will be by an innings.

When was the last time that happened? Michael Vaughn was taking the piss earlier today, saying a few of the Bangladeshi lads could be in this aussie team. But seriously speaking, Tamim Iqbal and Shakib al Hasan would be in this Test XI without a shadow of a doubt.
 
Apparently they have given England an additional thirty minutes to win the series today.
 
I'm sure Australia prefer it as well, get it over and done with.
 
From what I understand, this would be the 100th England win in an Ashes series.
 
Im glad it isnt over so I can watch all tonight plus I just read Colly will get to lead the team out tomorrow good send off.
 
BTV_is_neutral said:
We will have lost this series 3-1, and all 3 defeats will be by an innings.

When was the last time that happened? Michael Vaughn was taking the piss earlier today, saying a few of the Bangladeshi lads could be in this aussie team. But seriously speaking, Tamim Iqbal and Shakib al Hasan would be in this Test XI without a shadow of a doubt.
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Its quite ridiculous how some our players are anywhere near the squad.
 
marchi-91 said:
Its quite ridiculous how some our players are anywhere near the squad.
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I remember the selectors making a big deal out of how, Australia would have to consolidate, but there wouldn't be a complete overhaul, because the pipeline was looking good, and players would be slowly introduced into the team.

Instead we have a complete collapse. I know Ponting hasn't had a very good time of it lately, but imagine this lineup without Ponting and Hussey(not nearly at the end).

As for the bowling, people are laughing at Beer and the like, but our pace bowling stock isn't that much better.

I foresee the next 3-4 years being a very painful period.
 
I think Beer needs to be given a chance, but you just look at what the English have done on this pitch compared to our shower of shite and you wonder what the feck our bowling coaches are doing right! Why is it that the English bowlers can have the ball swinging around like crazy after 15 overs yet our bowlers can't do it with 3 new balls and 180 overs? The signs were there in 2004 against India at the SCG but CA were to ignorant to see the issues.

Something also needs to be done about the selectors. Not one bowler and none of them have looked competent enough to direct the future of Australian cricket. If it were I, the entire squad would get the chop except Haddin, Hussey, Beer and Khawaja. Ponting should retire as he's more a detriment then an asset, Michael Clarke needs to go and get his back fixed. Siddle, Hilfenhaus and Johnson shouldn't be near the squad again until they can absolute dominate state and county cricket with their bowling.
Its like having an attack of Kasprowicz, Bichel and a post injury Gillespie. Good on occasion but be fecked if you ever see them working well together.
 
Australia still have some quality players incl. bowlers. They pounding they have taken maybe shocking, but I also think that England have played some world class cricket the past months.
 
I'm a bit pissed that I stayed up to watch virtually every session of the whitewash series 4 years ago, whereas due to work I've been limited to the early part of morning sessions. That aside, what a fecking series for us! I never thought I'd see the day. These are more deserving of the mbe's than the 2005 lot. Not that anyone should get them til their career is done
 
Not sure anyone missed these...but for the penultimate time

3rd test scorecard:
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fBqZD.jpg
 
THE worst Australian team ever fielded for an Ashes series will today watch England celebrate a 3-1 victory at the SCG in the knowledge they are the first side wearing baggy greens to have lost three Tests by more than an innings in a single series.

Few could have imagined that such a gulf in class between the sides would be exposed at the conclusion of the 2010-11 Ashes, or that Australian cricket would be in its deepest crisis since the Packer revolution.

Never have Australia lost three Tests in a series by an innings, a result that will be confirmed today when England claim the final three wickets in the fifth Test. Not since Bangladesh in 2007, against Sri Lanka, has any Test-playing nation suffered such a thumping in one series.

And only once before has a home side lost three Tests by an innings - the first being South Africa to Australia over five Tests in 1935-36.

In a brutally frank assessment of the slide - Australia's last Ashes series at home was won 5-0 four years ago - opener Shane Watson conceded the careers of many players were on notice.

''It's not great to actually be a part of something that has been as disappointing as it has, over the last little while in Test cricket to be honest,'' Watson said last night.

''It would be nice to be in the golden era as a player, unfortunately we're just not playing well enough to be a part of that at the moment.

''Going into this Ashes series, I thought there were going to be defining moments in our careers. There has been, maybe on the wrong side unfortunately. You'd have to ask the selectors whether they think it's the right team. In the end, we are doing our absolute best, it just hasn't been good enough.

''Losing so far by two innings is not good at all. It means we've been convincingly outplayed in the two Test matches so far, and it's not looking great for tomorrow.''

Asked what state Australian cricket is in, Watson replied: ''Nowhere near the heights it was four years ago. With our performances we've showed over the last little while, we've got to turn it around.

''There's no doubt it does come down to the players alone to be able to turn that around. No doubt there will be an inquest into what's happened and we do have to turn it around. We don't want to be losing the support we've had for such a long time with the Australian fans, we've got to play so much better to be able to keep the faith.''

With England surging ahead in rankings points, Watson believes the tourists are on par with world No.1 India.

''They've been very good,'' he said. ''There's no doubt that India, on their conditions, have got an unbelievably well-balanced team but the way the English have played here in all facets has been very impressive. With the history of the Ashes, and how it's panned out playing here in our home conditions, and us knowing our conditions so well, it has surprised me.

''But the way they've played, how complete a team they are, and the way they've continually stood up - all of their players throughout this series - has been very impressive.

''It is unfortunate because the Australian team haven't done that. There's no doubt we've let ourselves down in the way we've played, but there's no doubt as well that the English have played extremely well.

''Unfortunately for us we haven't played up to our standard that we know we can, at all. The way the results have panned out are exactly what they should have been in the end unfortunately.''

Australia's top-order batsmen - set 364 simply to make England bat again - were yet again dismissed to an array of poor shots and brilliant bowling. It has been a repetitive tale this summer, and exposes Australia in every department.

''A lot of that comes down to concentration and execution, concentrating on your shots, hopefully eliminate the chances of getting out, also concentrating for long periods of time as well,'' Watson said.

''In all, it's not just the batting side of things. It's finding ways to get wickets on flatter wickets, that's something we haven't been able to do either. It's both aspects of our game which is letting us down, which is a problem.''

Some time today, Andrew Strauss will collect the replica Ashes trophy, England's players will jump around, streamers will fly and the Barmy Army will be in full voice.

And all this at a venue where Australia has won 14 of its previous 16 Tests. ''It will hurt in a big way, but the English have totally outplayed us,'' Watson said.
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An embarrassment of historic proportions
 
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