MC Gregor- I'm a fan of Krezjy Eyes. He's young, he's developed nicely, and he won't be a liability with the bat.
Mix Master D - But you're forgetting the one important thing - he's not a Test standard spin bowler. hell, I'd even suggest he's not a Shield standard spin bowler
MC - He's been a good performer at the SCG, and has done well on barren Bellerive. But most importantly, he is aggressive. I like that. Oh, and his old man was a mad good goalkeeper
D - You want a good performer? look no further than old man McGain. Bryce has been clearly the most successful slow bowler in Australian domestic cricket in recent times
MC - He's 36, his time is limited. I agree he's dependable (with excellent control), but he's not a turner. So why pick him for India, they love having the ball turn start on their legs. It plays into their strengths. Even mediocre bowlers like Robertson and Miller has done well because they wer e largely able to avoid the legs. Oh, and Krezjy Eyes can bat!
D - Let's not turn this into an argument about 'all rounders' shall we. Otherwise let's just play Andrew "Gone fishin" Symonds and Michael Bingle as the spininng all rounders. They've got better records than your man JK with the ball.
McGain's control is unbelievable. And if we go back the last 12 months, Bryce has taken 70 wickets in first class cricket compared to your boys 23. The sheer number of deliveries bowled by McGain means that you know that you can trust him in a long hot Indian summer's day - JK just doesn't have the stamina nor the experience to keep on top
MC - I'll summarise. Krezjy turns it. India is kind to offies (Miller, Mallet, Robertson). He is young (and energetic). He won't be a liability with the bat. Plus he could be the future of Australian spinning. McGain is consistent (but so was Warne...didn't help him in India). He's old and not going to hold up Australia's attack. He isn't attacking and spins it the wrong way for India. Look I like him and I'd pick him if we were going to Seth Efrika, but the 07-08 Shield final (this blog shall never call it the Milk Cup) showed that he struggles to take wickets against a commited batting outfit.
D - But you're forgetting one thing. What sort of cricketer gets picked to play in the toughest conditions for a spin bowler coming off a season of 18 wickets at 47.11? We may as well let Simon Katich open the batting and be our spinner.
Sure, an average of 34 isn't earth shattering, but McGain's 38 wickets in the 2007/08 Shield season speaks volumes for his ability to play in all conditions. Australia is crying out for an experienced head that can spin the ball and consistently put the ball in good areas. This is Bryce McGain. It's not some bloke that wasn't good enough to get a game ahead of MacGill, Casson and Hauritz so had a cry and moved down to Tassie.
And if you're going to trumpet about going for the future, then Mike Hussey should never have debuted - too old.
MC - Don't you dare bring Huss into this (plus he was only around 30 when he debuted)! I like McGain. He's the fairytale. And his figures are better in Australia. So what? Laxman doesn't bat three for NSW and Tendulkar isn't propping up South Australia. He is old and unfortunatley disadvantaged by being a leggie. Hell, even Greg Matthew's turned matches there! This does not bode well for him in India.
D - As you say - Laxman doesn't bat three for NSW and Tendulkar isn't propping up South Australia. So how can you expect a young bloke with bugger all wickets behind him to outperform an experienced head that was the leading spinner in the Shield last season and the equal leading wicket taker in the Ford Ranger Cup? It just doesn't add up
MC - we'll have to agree to disagree.
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6 comments:
It should be noted - Krezjy Eye won't play because of the Tassie quota.
Something that was never reported was that McGain carried an injury into the state final.
True story.
Bryce McGain - a genuine trooper
didn't know that. and to be fair, he was hardly an orphan in not taking many wickets. first innings was for the quicks and the second innings was for the batsmen.
I do like him though, and have him in my hearts for the Australian summer against the Sethers.
A shoulder injury later we know that Bryce is out of the first test. Big blow imo.
I think Macgain would have been the better options since IMO I dont think big spin is what will undo India.
Look at mendis all he did was consistently put it on one spot over and over and tweak it a lil either way and India were slaughtered. I think consistency is very important.
Ive not see too much of Krezja but will watch the tour game today and decide!
Thanks for dropping by the way!
I must admit - Mendis was the undermining argument which I (MC G) didn't want to mention.
Quick question - how good is Mendis?
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