Strauss

Strauss < / > Strauss

Apples and oranges again. (All right, I know we always compare, as a sort of conjecture.)

It´s just good to see the guy playing freely and with some confidence again. If that sounds partisan, maybe it is. I have to say though that to see any batsman play pretty well is heartening to see (unless it´s your arch enemy, perhaps, or you are bowling). Similarly, to see ANYONE on any side crabbing and snicking and shitting it is depressing to the spirit - and must be banned by the ICC forthwith.

Who knows if this will lead anywhere - even to some sort of contest for the Ashes .... it´s just "good on old Johann" for the time being.

Taking direct comparisons of talent aside, so much of a batting lineup is all about having the right blend at the right time.

This is where I think Bangers would have come into his own over the last 3 years, with MPV in an injury / form hell hole and Strauss having lost form, been dropped and then returned having pared down his game so much.

We've been bogged down by a rash of crabs with only KP playing in a positive manner. Tres would as often as not having given the innings (in both forms of the game) some much needed momentum, and thus may have dragged, to a lesser extent, some of the others along with him.

Big_Bad_Bob wrote: Tres would as often as not having given the innings (in both forms of the game) some much needed momentum, and thus may have dragged, to a lesser extent, some of the others along with him.

much overlooked part of 2005 by some

Big_Bad_Bob wrote:Since the 1st Test against the Kiwis in March last year when Strauss was recalled.

Strauss : 1163 runs @ 50.57
KP : 1121 runs @ 50.95

KP needs a half century in this innings to keep his nose in front during that period both in terms of aggregate and average.

It's like he's been reading the forum...

Rob I wrote:Purely as openers:

Gooch > Vaughan > Stewart > Strauss > Tres > Atherton

Strauss has a better average than Tres abroad.

Almost heresy there. Agree with Gooch at the top the pile, the rest though-

Vaughan- world class for a year and a half, just decent-ish for the rest of his career and often not even opening a lot of the time.

Stewart- not a huge sample size of matches as an opener, although very good against quality quicks but poor against spin.

Strauss- bit of a work in progress but a fine temperament and was world class for a year or two (people forget his tour to SA)

Tres- Stonking on his day but inconsistent.

Athers- Jesus facing the devil's lapdogs.

So s/b Gooch > Athers > Stewart > Strauss > Tres > Vaughan

Eric Air Emu wrote:

So s/b Gooch > Athers > Stewart > Strauss > Tres > Vaughan

You'd put a man averaging 38 over a man averaging 46 as opener over a significant number of tests? Madness.

You're just a stats nazi- my parents didn't go without bananas and oranges during the 1960s just to let your type take over.

Athers played more than twice as many tests as opener. If Stewie, bless him, had opened as much that average would surely have come down. Athers never had any break from the gig of facing Ambrose, Walsh, Mcgrath, Gillespie, Donald, Pollock, Wasim, Waqar, Srinath, Streak, Doull and Pramodya Wickramesinghe with the new ball. And all the time with a METAL BACK!

Michael Atherton is God.

Eric Air Emu wrote:If Stewie, bless him, had opened as much that average would surely have come down.

You don't know that. It might have gone up. He was significantly better against W&W, Walsh & Ambrose, and McGrath than Athers. We missed out on something really good by making him into the keeper.

Rob I wrote:

Eric Air Emu wrote:If Stewie, bless him, had opened as much that average would surely have come down.

You don't know that. It might have gone up. He was significantly better against W&W, Walsh & Ambrose, and McGrath than Athers. We missed out on something really good by making him into the keeper.

Athers is a quasi-religious figure- you couldn't say that about Alec Stewart.

Athers is also more machine than man. If that man is Alec Stewart. Although he did used to have a big plastic finger when he batted.

Dello wrote:Athers is also more machine than man.

Twisted and evil.

Eric Air Emu wrote:

..... Gooch > Athers > Stewart > Strauss > Tres > Vaughan

Yep, definitely agree with that grading.
Won't ever forget Athers's 2 day stone wall effort against the Jaarps at Joburg when all seemed lost.
Doubt Stewie would've managed that.

Dello wrote:Athers is also more machine than man. If that man is Alec Stewart. Although he did used to have a big plastic finger when he batted.

It was probably Nasser's, but Stewart stole it, on account of being a legend. So Nasser kept getting broken, and Stewart didn't. Nifty bit of anatomy, mind.

He's cricket's Steve Austin, you can hear that weird noise when his bionic eye focuses in on things.

I wonder who is the bionic superhero world's Ian Austin?

Merlin wrote:

Eric Air Emu wrote:

..... Gooch > Athers > Stewart > Strauss > Tres > Vaughan

Yep, definitely agree with that grading.
Won't ever forget Athers's 2 day stone wall effort against the Jaarps at Joburg when all seemed lost.
Doubt Stewie would've managed that.

Stewie got that 164 to draw another Jaapie match, with a bit of help fom the Welsh Hamster.

Athers wouldn't have managed two centuries in a match to get us level in that series in WI.

I've never understood the respect for Athers - IMO a poor man's Boikz if there ever was one. He was a moderate-to-good opener, nothing more.

You know it's amusing how Robi has changed his tune. Wasn't that long ago he was telling us all that Thicko was better than Gooch...

Amazing how someone so obsessed with the past doesn't seem to remember it.

Tom = Sage

No doubt that Athers is better than Stewart and Vawn.

Sure Paul, 38 is more than 46 and 44.

Atherton had to face tougher more lethal attacks with a bad back. With an Average of 37.69, I would be proud getting that. Plus, he's an allround decent bloke and he speaks much better than Vawn and Stewart.

DJ_Smerk wrote: he's an allround decent bloke and he speaks much better than Vawn and Stewart.

That settles it.

DJ_Smerk wrote:Atherton had to face tougher more lethal attacks with a bad back.

He faced the same attacks Stewart did, for an average of 8 less. Come on people, do the maths.

You don't get many "decent blokes" in World Cricket Taips. So that sets Atherton apart from the rest.

Rob I wrote:

DJ_Smerk wrote:Atherton had to face tougher more lethal attacks with a bad back.

He faced the same attacks Stewart did, for an average of 8 less. Come on people, do the maths.