World's fastest pitch awaits Australia

[Gambit]

Is it still the demon it used to be? I remember reading some reports regarding relaying of the pitch and how it had become a featherbed. That seemed to be inaccurate after witnessing the ball flying all over the place in the Aus-NZ Twenty20 game.

[Donny]

Good to see you, Gambo. Been away ? For 2 or 3 seasons it did become something of a draw wicket but it seems to be back to it's paciest best, this season.

[Chandan]

During the T20 with NZ, the wicket seemed to be at its best, bouncy and pacy. So yeah, I think it'll be the old demon.

[Gambit]

Good to see you' date=' Gambo. Been away ?[/quote'] Yeah. Was busy with a few things. HNY to you and everyone else.

For 2 or 3 seasons it did become something of a draw wicket but it seems to be back to it's paciest best, this season.

That's what I thought. Tait is bound to come in for the 3rd test then. Laxy and Yuvi should enjoy the bounce.

[Dinx - the Jinx]

"During the T20 with NZ, the wicket seemed to be at its best, bouncy and pacy. So yeah, I think it'll be the old demon." yo call it a old demon and at its best in the same breath... wat exactly do you mean... best for what? for aussies or for good test match cricket? If we indians prepare a dust bowl of a pitch in mumbai and say, the mumbai wicket is at its best, dry and dusty.. wud u accept it... 93 all out the last test innings tat u played here...

[Chandan]

Tait has perfect pitch to terrorise Malcolm Conn | January 11, 2008 SHAUN TAIT leaves Adelaide for Perth tomorrow salivating at the prospect of bowling again on a pitch where he unleashed the fastest spell seen in Australia this summer. The South Australian fast bowler is yet to be officially promoted from 12th man into the final XI for the third Test against India, beginning on Wednesday, after being named in an unchanged squad yesterday. However, it would be staggering if the selectors ignored him after the frightening demolition job he did on New Zealand's top order in a Twenty20 match there last month. Tait claimed wickets with his first and third balls and said it was as fast as he has bowled. Given that Tait, 24, has been clocked at the magical 160km/h (100mph) mark before, India should be very afraid. "The Twenty20 and the one-dayers as well, I bowled decent pace," Tait said. "It was a good start." He also claimed five wickets at 17.8 in the two completed Chappell-Hadlee Trophy one-day matches. Tait's chances of playing in Perth have been enhanced by the prospect of a WACA pitch with more of its old pace and bounce, as well as the failure of spinner Brad Hogg to take a wicket on the final day of the second Test in Sydney. Instead, part-time spinners Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke claimed three wickets each to bowl Australia to a most unlikely victory. "Most of the wickets around the place have been pretty flat. They've been batsman-friendly over the last few years in Australia," Tait said. "Even around the world they have looked pretty batsman-friendly so every now and then it's good to have a wicket that does nip around and jump around a fair bit. "Whether I play or not, it will suit our attack. It's Hoggy's home ground as well so I'm not sure if I will play but it would be fantastic to run in with the other quicks and bowl fast on a pitch like that." Tait will be encouraged by the observations of curator Cameron Sutherland, who has suggested the fast bowlers will get the most out of the pitch. "I don't think there will be a lot in it for the spinners," Sutherland said. "It is a much more heavily grassed surface than last year, and I think it will be quick and bouncy, although carry is more the word than bounce. "We are tending not to get so much vertical bounce, or tennis-ball bounce. We are getting the good carry and skid through off the hard surface that is traditional in Perth. "And I don't see it being a lot different this time. "The four decks we have played on so far for the Pura (Cup) have produced pretty good pace. And this one should also have it." On a much flatter Perth pitch last season, Tait made a strong impact in a Pura Cup match by claiming 5-43 from 22.4 overs. "I have a reasonable record in Perth," said Tait, who has 19 wickets at 24.58 from four Pura Cup games. "The last time I played there I did OK and the pitch wasn't all that bouncy or fiery." Fully recovered from a slow healing elbow operation, he is desperate to add to the two Tests he played on Australia's ill-fated 2005 tour of England. "I've matured as a cricketer," he said. "I think about things a bit more rather than running in and trying to bowl fast all the time, although I do try to do that most of the time. "In the two Tests I played in England, I overpitched a lot. When I was trying to get it right I ended up bowling too short and (Andrew) Flintoff and (Kevin) Pietersen got a hold of me. "If I do get back in the Test team, I'll be making sure I won't make that mistake again." Australia squad: Ricky Ponting (capt), Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden, Phil Jaques, Mike Hussey, Michael Clarke, Andrew Symonds, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Stuart Clark, Shaun Tait

[DesiChap]

World's fastest pitch awaits India Perth: India are likely to be up against a four-pronged Australian pace attack in the third Test at Perth's WACA ground, which has returned to being the fastest pitch in the world. "From what we have seen so far and the reports from curator) Cam Sutherland, it is certainly getting back towards what it used to be like," fast bowling legend Dennis Lillee, also the Western Australia Cricket Association president, said. Left-arm chinaman bowler Brad Hogg, who played in the irst two Tests, faces charges of verbally abusing Indian captain Anil Kumble and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The charge carries a ban of two to four Tests which could make the spinner ineligible for the third Test, to be played on his home ground. The selectors are expected to consider unleashing Shaun ait as part of a four-man pace attack in Perth as the conditions suit pace over spin, Age' reported on Thursday. "I wouldn't tell (the selectors) what to do. All I know is it should be fast and bouncy, and certainly a whole lot better than what we have had for a long time there now," WACA chief executive Graeme Wood said. Perth was the scene of Australia's most recent draw, in December 2005, on a low, slow pitch that moved former swing bowler Terry Alderman to call for authorities to "dig the thing up". Though the Test pitch is not one of the four that have been re-laid, it has been revitalised with some of the original soil more conducive to the pace and bounce of the 1970s and '80s. "I think they will certainly have to look at the composition of the side because if you look at the history of this year, it has certainly been the quicks who have been getting most of the wickets rather than the spinners," said Wood. "The board has made a concerted effort to try and get back to where it was." Meanwhile, Lillee said he would be happy to give some tips to current Aussie speedster Mitchell Johnson, the left-armer he famously identified as a once-in-a-generation bowler, after the squad gathers in Perth. But Johnson, a devoted pupil of bowling coach Troy Cooley, will have to come forward. "The Australian cricket board had me and they don't use me any more so it is not my job, but if Mitch wants to come to me privately and have a chat I'd be very happy," Lillee said. http://www.cricketnext.com/news/worlds-fastest-pitch-awaits-india/28824-13-single.html

[msb1991]

One suspects that with the exception of RP Singh (who should play regardless) and Kumble (the captain) the bowling attack will depend entirely on the tour match today.

[guju24]

tait wont be making in to final 11 since AUS wont change their winning 11...for india pathan should be given chance so he can try to get his form bak on pacy track and continue his goos form for one days and 2020 plus his 30 odds helps india in batting rather then yuvis' 0 series...

[mister]

Austrailia wud b crazy not to take shaun tait in the Perth wicket, his probly there quickest bowler and in great form...Sharma shud be good on this wicket!

[coffee_rules]

The last 2 tests have been similar. SA test was a draw. I think India can draw the test, if they play like SA. Eng, it went to D5 till lunch.

 Aus 258     75.2   - D 1st Test  Aus v SA  2005/06 [[URL="http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/226371.html"][U][COLOR=#0000ff]1777[/COLOR][/U][/URL]]
2 SA  296     81.2   - D
3 Aus 528/8d 146.4   - D
4 SA  287/5  126   491 D

1 Aus 244     71     - W 3rd Test  Aus v Eng 2006/07 [[URL="http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/249224.html"][U][COLOR=#800080]1821[/COLOR][/U][/URL]]
2 Eng 215     64.1   - L
3 Aus 527/5d 112     - W
4 Eng 350    122.2 557 L

[Guest BossBhai]

-- Removed on request of the user --

[guju24]

hope to see india perform like SA...may be much better then SA and win this game and slap AUS

[DesiChap]

Deadly pitch right up Tait's alley By Ben Dorries and Amy Dale January 10, 2008 SHAUN Tait is set to be unleashed on a deadly Perth pitch in the third Test. Tait is almost certain to replace spinner Brad Hogg on a Perth pitch that has its 1980s bang back. It would be in the first time in 16 years Australia have gone into a home Test without a specialist spinner. Both men will on Thursday be named in Australia's squad but Tait's explosive pace makes him close to an inevitable selection for the Test, which starts on Wednesday. WACA curator Cam Sutherland will tell Australia it will get extra value out of deploying Tait as a fourth quick, in a major break from tradition. "Spinners haven't really been used here all season. They have only been bowling five to 10 overs in the second innings of Pura Cup matches," Sutherland said. "The pace and bounce for the quicks is a real factor here at the moment. I think you would get more value out of playing an extra quick rather than playing a spinner." Australia has not gone into a home Test without a specialist spinner since 1992 when Craig McDermott, Merv Hughes, Paul Reiffel and Mike Whitney locked horns with India in Perth. Hogg's chances of playing have been further jeopardised by a finger injury, albeit to his non-bowling hand. Australia coach Tim Nielsen said Tait was a huge chance to play in Perth, returning to the pitch where he destroyed New Zealand with a fearsome spell of 2-22 in a Twenty20 international last month. Nielsen was at Adelaide Oval on Tuesday night when Tait took 2-21 in a state Twenty20 game and loved what he saw. "Taity would certainly be a big possibility to play in Perth if the pitch bounces like it did in that Twenty20 game," Nielsen said. "We have said all the way through the summer that we will have a look at the conditions and play the team to suit the conditions. That is why we have four quicks and a spinner in the squad." Tait's fellow paceman Stuart Clark is in the mood to match the South Australian's venom. Clark said he was shocked by the barrage of criticism since Australia's 122-run second Test win on Sunday at the SCG. Asked if the attacks on Australia had been blown out of proportion, Clark said: "My personal opinion is yes. "It was a great game of cricket and people seem to forget that. I think we need to focus more on the cricket that has been played. Sachin (Tendulkar) got 100 and batted beautifully; Brett (Lee) got five wickets; VVS Laxman got 100. "People have just seemed to have forgotten about all that. Our behaviour has not been reported by the ICC." http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,23031404-23212,00.html

[Rajiv]

World's fastest pitch awaits India then...awaits Australia

[Guest Hiten.]

If Aus decides to unleash Tait, India should counteract their tactic by unleashing Sehwag. Ask sehwag to play his natural game of attacking. What worse can happen, he'll fail? But having sehwag in your line up will add an extra worrying factor in the mind of bowlers and captain. Jaffer is bound to fail, so persist with sehwag

[Rajiv]

If Aus decides to unleash Tait' date=' India should counteract their tactic by unleashing Sehwag. Ask sehwag to play his natural game of attacking. What worse can happen,[b'] he'll fail? But having sehwag in your line up will add an extra worrying factor in the mind of bowlers and captain. Jaffer is bound to fail, so persist with sehwag

..thats the only thing which will happen, I'd rather play kartik

[Guest Hiten.]

..thats the only thing which will happen' date=' I'd rather play kartik[/quote'] Karthik failed against Shoaib's deflated pace, I doubt he'll flair vs Lee and Tait

[DesiChap]

Sehwag has to open @ Perth

[msb1991]

Karthik failed against Shoaib's deflated pace' date= I doubt he'll flair vs Lee and Tait

Shoaib had 90mph pace with the new ball, only later did the pace fall.