South Africa v WI, 1st Test, Port Elizabeth, 26-30 Dec

So it is.

WI haven't had a happy time of it in SA recently. Even when they toured there with Lara, Ambrose and Walsh they got hammered 5-0. Back then they had a young batsman called Daren Ganga who turned out to be largely useless on that tour. 9 years on and he's still proving to be largely useless - is there another international cricketer (with the honourable exception of Mohammad Sami) who is so consistently useless yet still manages to get picked?

Apart from that they have other problems, Sarwan is injured, Gayle is struggling to be fit as well and only Chanderpaul and maybe Bravo go into the series with any batting pedigree. The SA pace attack of Ntini, Steyn, Pollock & Nel must be looking forward to this one and you would expect WI to struggle to make 300 at any stage.

I think a lot cricket fans want to see the Windies become resurgent, but its hard to see them challenging a South African team that is strong at home and has a solid batting line-up with the mighty Kallis paired with the dour Amla and Prince in the middle-order.

If there is any hope for the Windies it lies in the unlikely form of Fidel Edwards (Test bowling average = 43.01) & Daren Powell (43.62), although perhaps not with Rawl Lewis (388.00!). Despite their awful averages Edwards and Powell have genuine pace, and the potential to be much better than that. They need their fieldsmen to hold their catches and to start fulfilling that potential if the Windies are to have any hope. If not the only entertainment might be seeing if the worst bowler in Test history Rawl Lewis can add to his tally of one wicket in ten years, or will he become the first bowler to break the magical 500 average? The omens are good for him! His only previous test wicket (- his bunny?) Mark Boucher is likely to be playing in this series.

Gary 111 wrote:WI haven't had a happy time of it in SA recently.

The west indies haven't had a happy time anywhere away lately.

In the last 10 years they have won just the 1 non minnow test match away(in england in 2000)

You have to back even further to 1994 to find their last non minnow away series win.

Truly awful stuff from the once proud team.

Well obviously we are going to lose, I'd just like to see some fight from the batsman and some fire from the bowlers. The fielding can be both brilliant and amateurish in the space of one day so I would settle for some consistently solid fielding.

I expect the standout Windies player to be Jerome Taylor who is bowling exceptionally well at the moment, as wel as being back to 90 mph plus.

My team (assuming Gayle is declared unfit)

Parchment
Morton
Chanderpaul
Samuels
Bravo
Ramdin (WK)
Sammy
Lewis
Taylor
Powell
Edwards

Really low on batting but I have had enough of Ganga and Smith. At least that would give us a decent bowling attack IMO and Lewis and Sammy are excellent lower order batsmen who will make more runs than most of the others anyway.

Edwards and Taylor will have to have a blinder of a series, and Chanderpaul will have to be at his best.

Would love to see a 'crowd' figure for the first day.

are they getting people to come dressed up as chairs again?

I think so. Still better than the drag some country's supporters use.

the 28th is Dopey Hairy-Backed Sheila Day over there isn't it?

I think so. I must say, I appreciated the effort you went to to dress up like one on the 28th last year at the MCG.

No, that was Zimmy with his West Coke jumper.

A simple mistake to make after a few drinks...

If Morton is opening, things are even worse than I feared.

Sarwan is the only WI batsman I've seen with the technique to prosper in the opening position, although Chanderpaul might survive through grit and experience. Waht's Parchment like? .... another dasher?

West Indies up against it

Eight losses in nine Tests in South Africa; 17 defeats in the last 20 overseas Tests; not a single Test win against a meaningful opposition outside home in more than seven years; and a humiliating ten-wicket defeat to a South Africa A team in less than three days. Going into the Boxing Day Test in Port Elizabeth, there is little to suggest that West Indies can somehow shrug off another appalling year and give their fans a year-end gift to take into 2008, especially against a buoyant South African side that is coming off a series win in Pakistan and a fearful mauling of New Zealand.

Cric info: http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wivzimsa/content/story/327352.html

And Lloyd says:

Batsmen lack patience -

Clive Lloyd, the West Indies team manager, has said the reason for low scores is the lack of patience in the side's batsmen. "They get pinned down by bowlers who don't give them a drive for 15 or 20 minutes and frustration leads them into a big shot that cost their wicket," Lloyd told Trinidad Express

http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wivzimsa/content/story/327153.html

SA batsmen, Kallis aside haven't decent techniques either and SA has a poor record in Port Elizabeth. Will be a battle of the bowlers with good pacemen on both sides but largely poor batting teams. WI will have a rookie skipper regardless of whether Gayle's fit (Bravo to step up) but they'll be opposed by the biggest muppet in the business - Smith.

Steyn vs Taylor will be an exciting battle of 2 young pacemen.

I agree Henry, good to see decent pacemen on either side, even if both teams have terrible batsmen.

Currently it's galling watching the Indians trying to bowl at us.

Yes Gibbs hasn't scored a test ton for a couple of years. He's probably past it but SA basically have no back up batsmen. They and the kiwis don't produce world class batsmen anymore. At least in Steyn they have produced a bowler who looks like he'll make it.

Herschelle Gibbs needs test runs. I don't think he's hit a test hundred for about 2 1/2 years.

lardbucket wrote:If Morton is opening, things are even worse than I feared.

Sarwan is the only WI batsman I've seen with the technique to prosper in the opening position, although Chanderpaul might survive through grit and experience. Waht's Parchment like? .... another dasher?

Parchment is a Marlon Samuels clone, classy as can be but hardly what you would describe as solid defensively.

They are all just occupying little Adrian Barath's spot until he is ready. It is going to be a really painful few years that is for sure.

There has been about 4 or 5 Windies bats over the last 5-10 years who if you had flown down from mars and were watching them for the first time, you'd swear they all average 50. Unfortunately, they just don't seem to have the concentration or the work ethic.

It would appear that the good people of Port Elizabeth have better things to do on Boxing Day than go to watch the cricket!

And the Saffie's whinge that they lose money by playing in Australia on Boxing Day.

tac wrote:And the Saffie's whinge that they lose money by playing in Australia on Boxing Day.

Out of interest, what was the attendance at the MCG today?

70,000ish