Cricket: The 2006/2007 Ashes Thread

[JohnnybravoHKR]

Ashes are only on loan :ok:

Wonder if the celebrations will be as big as Freddie and KP's in 2005 :beer:

[jenny]

Ashes are only on loan :ok:

Wonder if the celebrations will be as big as Freddie and KP's in 2005 :beer:

Have been all the other years and will be this one too

[Titanium_BD1103]

Ashes are only on loan :ok:

Wonder if the celebrations will be as big as Freddie and KP's in 2005 :beer:

Nope JohnnybravoHKR... we know they have done a good job... and so do the boys... but I can assure you there will be no OAM or AMs handed out for the job the boys did on the cricket field....here in Australia, those awards only go to those who have truly done something great to benefit society...

Whilst the boys have done a great job, accolades like that are more for people who have done great charity work... and I reckon in a few years Warnie could get one of those for his services to sport and to the Charity, and then it would be throughly deserved.

Until then, we will all celebrate with loads of cheers, lots of friendly bagging out of the Poms as always and lots of congratulations to our boys, and perhaps a parade....

[jenny]

England wants Warne as a spin doctor
sydney morning herald


January 6, 2007 - 2:19PM

England would like Shane Warne to lend his considerable powers and work as a spin doctor for the old enemy.

Warne has said he would be happy to work with Australia's emerging spinners in retirement, but England coach Duncan Fletcher was enthusiastic about the idea of Test cricket's leading wicket-taker lending his skill, knowledge and experience to England tweakers.

"I'd be happy with him to speak to anyone, there's no doubt about it," Fletcher said.

"Someone of that calibre would be very useful for England to use his experience, at any stage during the (northern) summer or at any stage of a player's career.

"Not only of a young spinner. Imagine the help he could give to a very, very experienced spinner in the side."

Australia took an if-can't-beat-them-poach-them attitude after the 2005 Ashes series by signing bowling coach Troy Cooley for this summer, and Warne's base in Hampshire - where he will continue playing for the next two years - gives England potential access to a fountain of knowledge.

Fletcher said it would not only be spinners who would benefit from Warne's insight.

"Not only a spinner. He's got the capabilities of helping anyone in international cricket on how to play the game," he said.

In a sign England had already begun tapping into Warne's thinking, he and opposing spinner Monty Panesar were seen chatting at length after the fifth Ashes Test at the SCG.

Of Warne's 708 Test wickets, 195 were against England.

[jenny]

Flintoff has to fall on his sword

By Jon Pierik

January 06, 2007 12:00
Article from: The Daily Telegraph


ANDREW Flintoff's Ashes nightmare will continue when he is stripped of the English captaincy and replaced by Michael Vaughan tomorrow.

Vaughan, the 2005 Ashes winning skipper, has made a strong recovery from knee surgery and proved his fitness in a practice match yesterday in Bowral where he made 27 and claimed 1-14 with his part-time off-spin while representing a MCC side.

The Poms will hold a press conference with chairman of selectors David Graveney and Vaughan tomorrow morning in Sydney when he will be named as skipper for the Twenty20 clash against Australia at the SCG on Tuesday and the ensuing Commonwealth Bank one-day tri-series, beginning next Friday at the MCG.

The stylish batsman has been out of international cricket since a recurrence of a long-term knee injury required more surgery through the northern summer. His comeback plans intensified when he joined the English academy side in Perth last month, although he has struggled for runs.

Vaughan's form in one-day cricket has been a major concern since he replaced Nasser Hussain as skipper but the tourists are desperate to embrace his leadership and street smarts.

"I feel ready, mentally I am very fresh," Vaughan said earlier this week.

Vaughan's return completes a disastrous seven weeks for Flintoff, who will be remembered as only the second captain ever to preside over a 0-5 Ashes wreckage, and the first in 86 years.

It will be the first major move of a comprehensive review into a disastrous campaign where the tourists went from Ashes heroes to whitewashed flops within 16 months.

As the Australians celebrated their stunning series romp, Flintoff fronted the media at the SCG yesterday and was unsure whether he would retain the top job.

"I enjoyed doing it and I couldn't ask any more of the lads. If I had the chance again of doing it, I'd jump at it," Flintoff said yesterday.

"As captain, I think I've learned a lot throughout this trip.

"When you're making decisions out in the middle, you go with your gut feelings and do what you feel is right at the time and I stick by that."

His own performances were sub-par, but he denied the added burden of captaincy had weighed him down.

A sore ankle prevented him from being the bowling force he was in 2005, while his footwork when batting was terrible until his 89 in the first innings at the SCG.

He was as bereft of answers in his post-match press conference as he has been for on-field inspiration and tactical nous all summer.

"From our point of view, it's not from a lack of trying or character, we have given everything we have got," he said. "We have been beaten by the better team. There will be areas which will get reviewed and there will be areas we can improve."

[Ryan]

Poor old Freddy, Hero to Zero

[Hoppy2007Dragons]

ANDREW Flintoff's Ashes nightmare will continue when he is stripped of the English captaincy and replaced by Michael Vaughan tomorrow

lol, i love the media, Flintoff will fall on his own sword, Flintoff was only captaining the side will vaughan was out, this was made quite clear all summer. Vaughan is the english captain.

However i must say that flintoff was the pick of the english crop, he bowled well all series keeping it tight, taking wickets and getting pumped up. His batting bar two innings was not his best, but he is a captain of the future and this series should make him a smarter player and prepare him for when he takes over the captaincy full-time in the future.

[jenny]

Hayden wants to partner Gilly

THE AGE
January 6, 2007 - 6:56PM


Matthew Hayden has bid farewell to his Test opening partner and now wants to partner Adam Gilchrist all the way to this year's one-day World Cup final.

A day after Hayden and Justin Langer opened for the final time in a Test match, the Queenslander said he wanted to reignite his opening stand with Gilchrist in the green and gold, starting with the upcoming one-day series against England and New Zealand.

Hayden's limited overs career appeared gone when he lost his spot after the 2005 tour of England, but is now intent on staying put throughout 2007, a year dominated by one-day cricket for Australia.

Shane Watson opened with Gilchrist during last year's Champions Trophy win in India, but his hamstring injury has given Hayden a lifeline for Tuesday's Twenty20 clash against England at the SCG and Friday's opening tri-series clash against England at the MCG.

Hayden wants to take that chance all the way to the World Cup in the Caribbean, having opened with Gilchrist through the 2003 triumph in South Africa.

"Safe to say I'm pretty happy," he said.

"It's a great opportunity for me and I just feel really lucky to be a part of the next six months of cricket.

"When I was dropped I wasn't playing for Australia in one-day cricket, so I wasn't playing for Australia.

"At this stage, given we've got 10 months off before the next Test series, it's an opportunity to play for Australia, which is terrific."

Hayden and Gilchrist averaged stands of 52 throughout the 2003 World Cup, and put on 105 in the win over India in the final.

The pair is the third-most prolific opening stand in the shortened game, having put on over 3,800 runs in 80 matches together.

"Our partnership has got an opportunity to blossom over the next few months," Hayden said.

"Adam is a big player in tournaments and our partnership was very strong right through the last World Cup.

"It's great to get that opportunity again and deep down we've got a lot of hunger to play for Australia and play well, and if that takes us to the World Cup - hopefully it will do - it will be a tremendous honour and achievement."

Hayden lost his spot to Simon Katich after the 2005 tour of England, who in turn lost it to Watson in India.

Hayden's last one-day internationals were the two matches he played in the warm-up tri-series in Malaysia last September.

[Ryan]

lol, i love the media, Flintoff will fall on his own sword, Flintoff was only captaining the side will vaughan was out, this was made quite clear all summer. Vaughan is the english captain.

However i must say that flintoff was the pick of the english crop, he bowled well all series keeping it tight, taking wickets and getting pumped up. His batting bar two innings was not his best, but he is a captain of the future and this series should make him a smarter player and prepare him for when he takes over the captaincy full-time in the future.

I think his ashes series this year was crap. He didn't place the field to accomodate his bowlers. Hoggard probably contributed more than Flintoff.
But I do think he will learn alot from the series and become a better captain in the future.

[Hoppy2007Dragons]

I agree Hoggard was the best english bowler, but he should be he is a bowler, flintoff is a allrounder and bowled pretty well for one.

[jenny]

Warne's new job: being Shane Warne

SUNHERALD
January 7, 2007 - 6:14PM


Shane Warne, former Test cricketer, has wasted no time adapting to his new profession: Being Shane Warne.

Warne's feet have barely touched the ground in the first weekend in which the baggy green no longer sits atop his refurbished locks.

Breakfast with his ex-wife Simone on James Packer's luxury yacht one day, charity appearance and a celebrity TV interview the next.

Warne and his former Test team mate Glenn McGrath turned up at a Twenty20 benefit cricket match organised by the South Sydney Rugby League club in Sydney.

Warne is a St Kilda man right to his dyed roots, but he was happy to offer his support to a rival code.

Looking remarkably fresh so soon after the Ashes celebrations, Warne donned his cricket kit and turned out for a team led by former New Zealand test captain Martin Crowe, a cousin of Rabbitohs backer Russell Crowe.

Warne has plenty in common with the cricketing Crowe. Both have undergone hair restoration therapy and been paid to advertise the technique.

So it was natural that when they first bumbled into each other in the dressing room the conversation turned to matters follicle.

"G'day mate, your hair looks great," Warne said to the New Zealander.

Rather like US presidents who send down the first pitch in World Series baseball games, Warne agreed to bowl the first over of the match, whose beneficiaries included his own Shane Warne Foundation for children in need.

But first he had to deal with his adoring public. Before the game, Warne sat for more than half-an-hour behind a desk in front of the pavilion at Alan Davidson Oval in inner Sydney, signing autographs until his right hand ached.

Then it was time for him to open the bowling, the toss having been rigged so Warne could meet his tight schedule.

His first ball to Souths Executive Chairman Peter Holmes a Court was a looping full toss which was hit for a single.

Perhaps writer's cramp was taking its toll, but Warne looked to have lost a bit of form in the 48 hours since he bowled his last ball in Test cricket.

Holmes a Court and his former Oxford University cricketing chum Adam Chadwick, currently in Australia as the MCC's Keeper of the Ashes Urn, took 13 runs from Warne's over, which included one that bounced twice before reaching the batsman.

At the end of it, Warne waved cheerily to the crowd, shook a few fieldsmen's hands and ran through a gate at deep third man.

The last that was seen of him was through the tinted window of a chauffeured Audi being driven at speed from the car park.

Next stop was the Fox television studios where Warne was recording an interview with chat show host and cricket tragic Michael Parkinson.

The program will air on Foxtel's UKTV channel on Monday night.

[jenny]

English press slam their cricket team

HERALD

January 24, 2007 - 1:49PM


In what is becoming a routine occurrence, the English press once again slammed their side for a poor performance Down Under.

"Shameful", "pitiful" and "pathetic" were all words used to describe England's 90-run tri series defeat at the hands of New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval on Tuesday night.

New Zealand did not look to have enough on the board when dismissed for 210 but bowled and fielded exceptionally well to restrict England to an embarrassing 120 in reply.

Importantly, the Kiwis claimed a bonus point for their first win of the series and moved ahead of England on the tri-series table, behind still undefeated Australia.

"Another day in Adelaide and another pathetic collapse as Freddie and Co get thrashed by the Kiwis" read the headline in the Daily Mirror, which continued to say that the "only entertainment value in this England display was the morbid fascination of another horror show Down Under".

"This was a batting display straight out of the dark ages ... the result was another groundhog day for stand-in skipper (Andrew) Flintoff, who must once again try to lift a side running empty on confidence and form," the paper's match report read.

Several newspapers echoed the Mirror's allusion to a previous England collapse in Adelaide - in early December, Australia seized a stunning six-wicket, last-day second Test victory that essentially handed the Ashes back to the home side after England's batting collapsed on the final day.

England eventually suffered their first ever Ashes 5-0 whitewash in 85 years.

"Yesterday, a similarly grisly fate befell the one-day team," the Daily Telegraph said.

"England's inability to capitalise on a dominant position was reminiscent of their second Test debacle on this ground ... This time, they cannot even point to the paralysing effects of facing Shane Warne."

The Independent was also downcast in its match report, which began: "It is debatable which of England's pitiful batting displays at this ground was worse ... The debacle witnessed here yesterday (Tuesday), which resulted in New Zealand romping to an emphatic 90-run victory, was totally unacceptable."

"All they had to do was score 211 runs in 50 overs against a competent and disciplined attack. It was a task that ought to have been achieved, but they failed miserably."

The Sun tabloid, Britain's best-read daily, dubbed the performance "Shameful", and noted that Flintoff was still without a win as captain on this tour of Australia - England's lone victory, a one-day win over New Zealand, was achieved under the stewardship of Michael Vaughan, now injured.

"Andrew Flintoff and his England side produced a batting collapse here yesterday that should have them squirming with embarrassment," the tabloid's match report read.

"It is a big call - because there have been plenty to choose from - but this was England's most excruciating display with the willow all tour."

"They lacked guts, technique, purpose, patience and any sort of gameplan."

[Steelers]

jenny that article should have been posted in the Commonwealth series thread. And I think a mod should un-sticky this thread now.

[jenny]

jenny that article should have been posted in the Commonwealth series thread. And I think a mod should un-sticky this thread now.

Sorry

[Steelers]

Sorry

It's all good