SA: Gutsy or gambling?

[arkay]

Gutsy or gambling? by Neil Manthorp 26/12/2010, 20:58 Gary Kirsten said he’d never seen a pitch at Kingsmead with as much grass on it as the one which greeted the teams on Sunday. He said he was surprised that South Africa were prepared to gamble on the toss and conditions quite as much as the playing strip suggested. “Anyone could be bowled out for 100 on a strip like that,†Kirsten said. He wasn’t unhappy, however. “We didn’t get to number one in the world by playing and winning just at home. We have bowlers who can take 20 wickets in a variety of conditions and if the game moves forward quickly and the bowlers enjoy themselves more than the batsmen, then I’m happy with that and I’ll back our team to level the series.†As it turned out, Graeme Smith was lucky enough to win the toss and bowl first but he had the courage of his convictions the day before the match started when he was given the option of having some of the luscious, green grass removed to make it less hostile for the batsmen. In fact, Smith, Kallis and Boucher, the senior triumvirate, were asked by senior ground staff whether they would prefer the pitch to be ‘tamed’ a little before the start of the match and they replied, virtually in unison, ‘no way.’ Interestingly, Hashim Amla, who knows the pitch better than any of them, did suggest that a modest shave might not be the worst idea. But he was outvoted! Would Smith really ‘gamble’? Unlikely. Instead, it was a case of the captain and his most experienced cohorts having the courage and confidence to back themselves and their technique above that of their rivals and, as importantly, back their pace attack above that of India’s. On both of South Africa’s previous tours to India the hosts prepared ‘result’ pitches for the final tests of the series – in Kanpur and Kolkatta – and won both of them to square the series. This time, the home side had the opportunity to repay the compliment with a pitch to suit their strengths and give them the chance to win the series with a match to spare. And they took it. “As they should,†admitted Kirsten with enthusiasm. “They would have been foolish not to. Home ground advantage is one of the beauties of test cricket. But it can backfire…â€

[ravishingravi]

Neither just playing to their strengths.

[Laaloo]

In fact, Smith, Kallis and Boucher, the senior triumvirate, were asked by senior ground staff whether they would prefer the pitch to be ‘tamed’ a little before the start of the match and they replied, virtually in unison, ‘no way.’ Interestingly, Hashim Amla, who knows the pitch better than any of them, did suggest that a modest shave might not be the worst idea. But he was outvoted! :cantstop:

[Manny_Pacquiao]

amla is the only saffie with a few brains. maybe its because of his indian descent. sometimes i wonder how smart these opposing teams are when it comes to thinking aboiut strategy. its almost like they are completely oblivious to what is going on in cricket over the last 10 years. they are going by the usual stereotypes and age old impressions instead of facing up to reality. if they were realistic, they would know that the best way to beat india is to make pitches favourable for batting. that way, you take india's bowling out of the equation completely. indian bowlers are 10x better when there is bounce or swing, but they havent got the guile or the express pace to take wickets on batsman-friendly surfaces. win the toss, bat 1st, pile the runs and then use scorecard pressure and attrition based tactics in the field to get a lead when their batsmen are out there. if u have dale steyn and morkel in your side, u dont need to worry about conditions because those 2 can get any batsman out on any surface. sure, sometimes it wont work, but this is a hell of a lot smarter than just making a green top without realizing that you are merely strengthening a team's weak point...

[arkay]

Interesting comments about Smith vs Sreesanth http://www.sport24.co.za/Cricket/Proteas/Smith-clashes-with-Sreesanth-20101228

[rkt.india]

amla is the only saffie with a few brains. maybe its because of his indian descent. sometimes i wonder how smart these opposing teams are when it comes to thinking aboiut strategy. its almost like they are completely oblivious to what is going on in cricket over the last 10 years. they are going by the usual stereotypes and age old impressions instead of facing up to reality. if they were realistic, they would know that the best way to beat india is to make pitches favourable for batting. that way, you take india's bowling out of the equation completely. indian bowlers are 10x better when there is bounce or swing, but they havent got the guile or the express pace to take wickets on batsman-friendly surfaces. win the toss, bat 1st, pile the runs and then use scorecard pressure and attrition based tactics in the field to get a lead when their batsmen are out there. if u have dale steyn and morkel in your side, u dont need to worry about conditions because those 2 can get any batsman out on any surface. sure, sometimes it wont work, but this is a hell of a lot smarter than just making a green top without realizing that you are merely strengthening a team's weak point...

because they had seen that their bowlers could not take 20 pakistani wickets in consecutive tests

[Manny_Pacquiao]

ya but the bhadvastanis were playing on cement wickets. big difference

[saneindian]

Aah Smith the liar being exposed again. Didn't he say we never asked for a specific type pf a wicket? Also regarding the Kolkata test vs SA early this year, IIRC the curator had said he will not shave off the grass from the pitch and there was plenty of green tinge on the track on day 1. It was definitely not a typical Indian wicket.

[rkt.india]

ya but the bhadvastanis were playing on cement wickets. big difference

that is why they made grassy wickets for their bowlers