Test cricket at the moment

England thrashed Australia, the way number 4 ranked Australia are thrashing number 2 ranked India now. Then number 1 ranked India were also thrashed by current ranked number 1 England, number 8 ranked New Zealand managed to provide more sterner opposition to Australia than number 2 ranked India are, and England's series against number 5 ranked Pakistan is likely to be their toughest test for some time.

What is going on? Will a firmly established order begin to develop?

maybe. depends on the next year when england tours asia and south africa tour england. england has a chance to go clear number 1. i think the rest of the table will still be a muddle, with no clear pattern

we may well come to a point where teams are mostly good at home, sh!t away. though at least some good bowlers are coming through

Rankings are always a trailing indicator. You are better than your ranking as you improve and worse as you decline.

I think a test win away from home should mean double the ranking points.

Henry wrote:England thrashed Australia, the way number 4 ranked Australia are thrashing number 2 ranked India now. Then number 1 ranked India were also thrashed by current ranked number 1 England, number 8 ranked New Zealand managed to provide more sterner opposition to Australia than number 2 ranked India are, and England's series against number 5 ranked Pakistan is likely to be their toughest test for some time.

What is going on? Will a firmly established order begin to develop?

Australia is certainly a much better bowling unit than it was at this time last year. NZ ironically was more challenging than India is proving to be but Steve Waugh who was just on radio said that England is a clear number one with Australia just as likely as any other team to be #2.

The real mystery is why Saf isn't No 1 given they have the strongest all round side on paper.

A potential golden period for South African cricket slipped through their hands along with the catch that Herschelle dropped off Steve Waugh in 1999.

If he'd held that catch, I honestly believe things could have turned out so differently for them over the following 10 years. A 'Sliding Doors' moment........

Henry wrote:A potential golden period for South African cricket slipped through their hands along with the catch that Herschelle dropped off Steve Waugh in 1999.

If he'd held that catch, I honestly believe things could have turned out so differently for them over the following 10 years. A 'Sliding Doors' moment........

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
F*ck'em.

JGK wrote:The real mystery is why Saf isn't No 1 given they have the strongest all round side on paper.

What's stopping them:

a long tail
Boucher
Petersen may nail down the opening spot but Rudolph problematic
Durban Without this venue they would have won most of their recent home series

England clearly #1 and you argue their team is the best all-round on paper anyway.

They have good quicks AND a decent spinner. Prior is a better keeper-batsman than Boucher, for that matter Haddin and they have consistent batsmen in all spots.

Hersh was always bound to be crap at 'Sliding Doors' moments. He wouldn't work out that you can't push or pull them open till it's too late..

She shoots, she scores.

That's not to mention that SL beat SA, NZ didn't do too badly in India and in essence SL provided England with a sterner test than India. Shame about WI, though. Although even they fought a little harder in India. It's exciting is what it is... just think of the monotony five years ago... one could almost unequivocally say that a certain team was going to win a series... not anymore.

The more I think about it, the more I can't believe India are still ranked number 2. Limped to victory over New Zealand at home, drew with South Africa away, limped to victory over the Windies away, thrashed by England away....... Have the BCCI tampered with the ICC rankings?

Inevitably, and not paid their high-priced UK Accountancy firm for the work.

Against expectations, the word grouse has not yet been uttered on this thread.

Henry wrote:The more I think about it, the more I can't believe India are still ranked number 2. Limped to victory over New Zealand at home, drew with South Africa away, limped to victory over the Windies away, thrashed by England away....... Have the BCCI tampered with the ICC rankings?

TBF 1-1 in SA isn't the worst result I've heard of.

And they were too greedy and arrogant to send a full team to WI, so can hardly be included as a serious consideration.

Saying all of this, they were hardly dominant when at the top so it's not the most surprising that the fallacy continues.

The key to India's rise to the top was being dominant at home and competitive away. the backbone seems to have been completely ripped out of them with Ganguly and Kumble's retirements, though.

And Laxman's and Harbhajack's demise, together with Tendy's and Dravid's increasing fallibilities (though the later are relative).

They've only drawn twice with SA during their last two home series and they weren't too convincing against an ordinary Australia at home either. A team so ordinary on foreign soil was always going to find it tough to justify a high ranking.

up until the tour of england their only series losses home or away were away to aus and pak. so not totally unjustified, especially considering there was no dominant team like aus early 2000s or windies 80s

now they seem in freefall

Indias position at no.1 was justified on results, I don't think (like England) they ever claimed some kind of WI or AUS dominance was taking place.

I don't think that not winning in SA or AUS mattered a jot to the fact they had strung enough results together to be ranked 1. Likewise, those seeking to deny England a no.1 ranking simply because they haven't won in India are equally moronic.

It's just as I said at the time, they weren't unequivocally #1... mugging teams with no preparation in short series at home is a fallacy, as is tweaking away results. I have no illusions as to our #1 position either, but at least we've stormed teams.

So we haven't conquered the Sub Continent yet. But neither did Australia until 2004, yet that didn't stop them from boasting to all and sundry about their dominance from 1995 onwards.

The series against South Africa this Summer will settle things, imo.

And Red, stop photoshopping and get some clothes on those women. This is a family forum, as Dello never ceases to remind us.