Ashes series - How http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 can still make a comeback!
Once upon a time there was a cricket team from down under. It not only won Test matches but was also successful in the one day arena in the latter part of the 90’s and the early years of the millennium. They had a batting side with solid Test batsmen like Mark
Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyn etc, who could be used as hard hitters in one day internationals.
Their bowlers like Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Brett Lee not only contained the opposition but also took wickets whenever it was required. They had cricketers like Steve Waugh and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Adam-Gilchrist-c918 who performed as all-rounders whereas they had a leg-spinner
in Shane Warne, who is termed as the best spinner ever to bowl in the game. In fact they were so full with talent that whenever players like Andy Bichel, Michael Kasprowicz or Matthew Elliot were given the chance, they would seize it and perform to the best
of their abilities.
That was the past; the present of that team is nowhere near its predecessors. The current Australian side may have the talent to become the best in the world but sadly, they are not using it. For the second time in the current Ashes series, they are trailing
by 2-1 against Andrew Strauss’s English side. If they don’t win the next match at Sydney, their captain Ricky Ponting will earn the distinction of becoming the only Australian captain to lose the Ashes on three separate occasions.
The question most of the Australians would be asking themselves is whether Ricky Ponting is bigger than their pride. The answer is no, as nobody is bigger than the game. His predecessors Mark http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Taylor-c92915 and Steve Waugh were performing well as members of the
side, unlike Ponting who has had a terrible year. Luck has played more part in the victories he has attained during 2010. He should either take a rest or retire completely from the game so that his countrymen would remember him as someone who won them matches,
not surrendered the Ashes three times.
If Ricky Ponting is axed, the big question would be; who would replace Ricky Ponting as skipper? Michael http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Clarke-c51120 is an obvious choice but ever since his split with his fiancée model Lara Bingle earlier this year, he has become a different person. Like Ponting,
his place in the side is also in jeopardy and the selectors should get someone who can command respect and lead by example as well. In the current side, only three players can be bracketed in that category - Shane http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Watson-c96326, Brad Haddin and Michael Hussey. Michael
Hussey is the only player in the current side who is consistent, so making him captain would put extra pressure on him. Shane Watson is a quality all-rounder but he is not that senior to lead the side. That leaves wicket-keeper Brad Haddin, someone with a
sensible head on his shoulders and who will bring fresh ideas with himself, if given the job.
Australia need to revamp their side ahead of the fifth Test so that with new players, they can at least fight and either win the match or go down fighting. Simon Katich should be recalled if he is fit as he is better than a fully-fit Phil Hughes. If he isn’t
fit, Michael Clarke should be asked to open the batting instead. Ricky Ponting should make way for someone who can bat and field, something Ponting hasn’t been able to do during the series.
They need to change their bowlers as well and bringing Nathan Hauritz back, should be their priority. Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle should partner Doug Bollinger, who in current form is better than Ben Hilfenhaus. The Australian side, if revamped, can
put a fight against England because the current side has fared miserably during the four Tests. The revamped side is the only solution for a problem that the Aussies never saw coming in the first place.
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