Australia tour of South Africa, 2011-12

[Trundler27]

This fella has serious talent for his age. Looks like another brett lee in the making..... Just 18 and already has 145+ pace with amazing accuracy and control.... Definitely a bright spot for australia...... I think their fast bowling line-up is the only reason preventing them from going down the drain like the windies during the late 90's. To be honest, we don't have a quick bowler in india anywhere near cummins' potential so let's stay away from this 'fast-tracking' talk for now. I'm happy that some of our quickest bowlers are part of the international setup and hopefully will be given enough opportunities in due course.

[kabira]

I am all for fast tracking but with mentorship. The guy will find what is lacking in him to be consistent at highest level, so even if he fells, he has chance to come back as better bowler.

[rkt.india]

I disagree with the fast tracking of Cummins into Test cricket. I don't think it'll work. However' date=' it can not be used to justify fast tracking Indian bowlers. Cummins bowls consistently at 140-150kph. Yadav and Aaron average around 135-143kph. They do not have the pace to justify fast tracking them into the team. I've certainly seen both of them bowl spells in the low 130s kph.[/quote'] no you are wrong. You have not seen Cummins in 4-5 day matches yet so you cannot claim that he bowls 150 in test. He did not bowl 150 even in T20 against SA. He was in between low 130s high 140s. Same is Yadav. His fastest today was 147K while average was 142.2K and I do not think he was still completely confident or putting his full effort. He was easily delivering at 142K on average without any sweat or fuss. Same is Varun. I have seen him bowling at 144K of average pace in ODD.

[Blue Panther]

See the difference btwn indian and aussie selectors. They c a pace bowler bowling at pace and immediately he is in the test squad. We got bowlers like umesh and varun bowling at pace for the past 2 or 3 years and umesh has played only 5 matches and varun is yet to make his debut.

[kabira]

See the difference btwn indian and aussie selectors. They c a pace bowler bowling at pace and immediately he is in the test squad. We got bowlers like umesh and varun bowling at pace for the past 2 or 3 years and umesh has played only 5 matches and varun is yet to make his debut.

not exactly true, its because they don't have pace attack that is stable. If you go back few years, Brett Lee was struggling to get a game when Kaspa, Mcgrath and Gillespie were there. The border Gavaskar trophy that they won, they did not play him in a single test match and relied on medium pacers.. Now they need a pace bowler in SA, thats why he is getting fast tracked.

[Blue Panther]

not exactly true, its because they don't have pace attack that is stable. If you go back few years, Brett Lee was struggling to get a game when Kaspa, Mcgrath and Gillespie were there. The border Gavaskar trophy that they won, they did not play him in a single test match and relied on medium pacers.. Now they need a pace bowler in SA, thats why he is getting fast tracked.

Well, excatly, we needed pace in england like australia need pace now. we selected rp singh, vinay kumar etc. Although varun got a chance, he didnt get a game there.

[kabira]

^we did not needed pace. Ishant, sreesanth are pacy enough. We needed consistent bowler who can keep pressure up. I agree Varun should have been played in atleast last game.

[rkt.india]

not exactly true, its because they don't have pace attack that is stable. If you go back few years, Brett Lee was struggling to get a game when Kaspa, Mcgrath and Gillespie were there. The border Gavaskar trophy that they won, they did not play him in a single test match and relied on medium pacers.. Now they need a pace bowler in SA, thats why he is getting fast tracked.

Brett Lee was coming back form injury at that time and regarding Kasper, he was preferred in SC on 2-004 tours because of his reverse swing and cutters, otherwise he has only played 38 tests in his career while Brett Lee played 70 even with some injuries, so you cannot say Brett Lee was ignored because of Kasper. If it was the case, Brett Lee would not have made his debut in 1999-2000 series because Kasper was there even then.

[rkt.india]

Cummins prepared for the big test When Pat Cummins was still a schoolboy with stars in his eyes, he saw his "favourite" Test series play out. A daring South African outfit toppled the world's best, the Australian team that nobody believed they could beat, in their own backyard in 2008-09. Three years later, Cummins has been named in Australia's Test squad to face South Africa after a dizzying rise from debutant Twenty20 player to owner of the baggy green cap, having only played three first-class matches. "I was over the moon to get the Twenty20 gig and now to be going into the one-day series," Cummins said. "But the baggy green for Australia is obviously one of the most coveted things in sport and to be part of a Test series is a big deal." With the ability to bowl consistently at around 150 kph, excellent control, variations and maturity beyond his years, Cummins has been talked up as the next big Australian thing. He had success in the two Twenty20s against South Africa, taking five wickets and maintaining an economy rate of below 7, and expectations have become his shadow. Cummins is taking it in his stride and says he does not see it as extra pressure but, rather, extra belief in his ability. "It's almost given me more confidence in that I've got the backing of fellow players and obviously past players as well," he said. "I guess it does put a little bit of added pressure trying to live up to those comments but it has helped." Cummins has earned praised from New South Wales team-mate Shane Watson and national T20 captain, Cameron White, and said that working with people he used to idolise is something he is relishing. "I've never really played with any of the guys or worked much with them, but I am enjoying part of the squad with those guys, who have obviously been around for a long time and successful in every form." He has also earned praise from former South Africa coach Mickey Arthur, who said Cummins should earn his first Test cap against South Africa despite his lack of experience in the longest form of the game. Cummins' performances in the T20s appear to have only confirmed what the selectors and administrators suspected all along - that his execution is exceptional. And they see that as enough evidence that he will be able to adapt to Test cricket. With T20 slowly starting to be seen as a breeding ground for players to be introduced onto the international stage, Cummins serves as another example of that theory. Without saying whether or not he bought into it, Cummins did say that T20 cricket has the potential to make or break a career. "You can either be lucky or unlucky in T20 cricket," Cummins explained. "Some days you can bowl beautifully and go for 40-odd and the next day and you can get a few lucky ones away and get a few sky balls and you end up with three or four wickets. "I think it's a platform where you can really succeed and put your name forward, but it's also one when you can be unlucky at times." For Cummins, it has been the audition for higher honours. He said he concentrates on three things when bowling, no matter what type of match he is playing. "Accuracy is vital in all forms of the game and I guess pace is a big part of that as well," he said. "Also moving forward to the red ball and the one-day stuff, swing and movement is also a big part." Before leaping onto the Test stage, Cummins will be part of the ODI series, a three-match affair that promises to be intense. "It's the first one-day series I've been a part of and Australia are No.1 ranked in the world at the moment so I guess we're going into the competition pretty confident and hopefully we can get a few good wins." http://www.espncricinfo.com/south-africa-v-australia-2011/content/current/story/536885.html

[rkt.india]

Cummins will have mixed emotions - McDermott Craig McDermott, Australia's bowling coach, will hark back to his teenage tearaway past to guide Pat Cummins as he presses for a place in the Test team on the tour of South Africa. McDermott made his debut for Australia in the 1984 Boxing Day Test against the West Indies at the age of 19, entering the team at a time when confidence was low and results poor. He made a strong start against Clive Lloyd's tourists and followed it up on the 1985 Ashes tour, before enduring a few spells out of the team. Those good and bad days are now McDermott's resource as he helps Cummins and the rest of the Australian attack plan for the three ODIs and two Tests in South Africa. "It'll be interesting to see how he [Cummins] develops in the one-day series in South Africa after bowling well in the T20s," McDermott told ESPNcricinfo. "It'll be up to the selectors who they pick for our Test attack, but when we've got three or four blokes who can now bowl 140kph plus, it's a big plus for us, and we've still got James Pattinson sitting at home in Australia who has bowled well as well." McDermott said the empathy he felt for young fast bowlers had been useful, and noted the example of the work he had done with Pattinson as well as Cummins. In Sri Lanka, Pattinson spent a great deal of time honing his skills despite never being quite close enough to selection in the Test XI. "I think it's been very helpful, particularly with young guys like James Pattinson," McDermott said. "Throughout the Sri Lanka tour he trained his backside off day in, day out and didn't really play much cricket. He's come to South Africa and bowled very well in the T20s and is unlucky to not stay on for the Tests. "Pat Cummins has come in as an 18-year-old, so there are a lot of emotions he's going through. He's had some good experiences through the Champions League T20, and now we've just got to make sure that we bring these guys through and nurture them while getting them hard for Test and one-day cricket." Simon Katich was the first captain to enjoy having Cummins at his disposal in first-class cricket, in three Sheffield Shield matches at the end of last summer. Katich described Cummins as "an absolute dream" for any captain, as a young bowler with rich gifts and a level head to know how to use them. "For a kid who is only 18 years of age, he has an amazing brain on him already," Katich said. "Control-wise he knows what he's trying to do, so from a captaincy point of view it wasn't hard to captain him. "He can bowl good pace, he can swing it both ways, and he's just a good young kid, so he's got a lot going for him. We are going to miss having him around, but we knew that once he hit his straps and got opportunities we probably weren't going to see him too much." Cummins is blessed with the ideal, wiry physique for bowling at high speed, and Katich felt he did not need to put on much more size at all in order to be fully developed. "I don't think he has to get much bigger. You only need to look at someone like Brett Lee; he was never huge over his career, he was strong but he didn't have to get that bulky," Katich said. "Pat's the same, he's quite lean and wiry but he's still able to bowl at 150kph. He's obviously got a young body but he's done a reasonable pre-season with us, so hopefully that'll hold him in good stead. "He's still got a long way to go and no doubt he will admit that, but he's a quick learner, he's got a lot of natural skill, and he's got a good head on his shoulders. He's very mature for his age and he's a smart lad, so I think he'll be more than capable when he gets his opportunity, if he keeps learning the way he has." http://www.espncricinfo.com/south-africa-v-australia-2011/content/current/story/536906.html

[MCcricket]

This will be an exciting series, two equally matched sides, bouncy tracks, fast bowlers.SA have the home advantage, Imran Tahir will be vital how he performs,mght be a close one this.Australia might win also Smith seems out of form.

[JeffThommo_fan]

kashh haamre bowlers bhi aise hote:(( consistently:((

Our Ishant Sharma was bowling at the same speeds in CB series in Australia and he was only 19 then. Don't worry buddy, very soon you will see lots of fast bowler from India as well coz now every youngster knows- ticket to Indian team is to bowl fast

[say2chander]

Too short a series to get excited.

[Pagalpanti]

Is it only me fearing or Ponting is looking at his dangerous best? He played some really wonderful shots, from India's perspective he is coming back to form at wrong time. :nervous:

[JeffThommo_fan]

okay will see.he has good pace but let him bowl 150+ then we talk him up.I have seen him clock 150 in a domestic game but nothing more and on espn speed guns ravi rampaul is clocking 149km/h

I don't understand why everyone start questioning speed guns. Speed guns are not made to tell wrong speeds. They are never commanded to over-hype certain bowlers or underrate certain bowlers. Occasionally, they can give wrong speeds, but that you can judge pretty easily. Suppose, a fast medium bowler is bowling and you see 78 kph or 182 kph on the speed gun, that you can judge pretty easily, that speed gun was wrong or was not working. But, 97 % of the times, speed guns are correct and standards are same for measuring the speeds all over the world. Same speed guns are used in tennis or baseball.

[JeffThommo_fan]

Ponting gone.....I think M Marsh will be next in

[ganeshran]

There is a match thread too

[ganeshran]

Cummins gets his first ODI wicket

[rkt.india]

SA-The best country for fast bowlers It's a good thing Mitchell Johnson will be playing in South Africa over the next few weeks. The last 16 months haven't been a memorable time for him: in 11 Tests during this period, Johnson has taken 32 wickets at an average of 42.03. For any frontline bowler, that's a generous average; for a leading strike bowler of a team, those numbers could be grounds for dropping. Fortunately for him and for Australia, their next campaign is in South Africa, which, over the last few years, has been one of the most favoured countries for fast bowling. Since the beginning of 2006, fast bowlers have averaged 29.12 in South Africa, and more than 32 in every other country. Part of the reason is probably the strength of the home team's pace attack: fast bowling has traditionally been South Africa's strongest suit, and the fact that they play at home every season obviously means their performances will influence the overall numbers more than those of any other side. Johnson himself had a series to remember in 2009, taking 15 wickets in three Tests at 25, and roughing up batsmen with his short stuff. He has already made a mark this time too in South Africa, taking 3 for 20 in the rain-shortened first ODI in Centurion. What the table below shows is that some of the countries that used to offer favourable conditions for pace bowling don't quite assist fast bowlers to the same extent anymore. The most prominent example is Australia, where the fast-bowling average since 2006 is 34. Even that is an improvement on the corresponding numbers between 2000 and 2005: the fast-bowling average in Australia during that period was 36.34. That was the second-highest, next only to India. What's also clear from the table is that in South Africa the ratio of wickets taken by pace to those taken by spin is the highest, which means spin makes the lowest percentage contribution in terms of wickets. That, again, is partly due to the lack of attacking spin-bowling options for South Africa - Paul Harris normally plays the defensive role - but it remains to be seen if the advent of Imran Tahir changes that ratio to some extent. The average for spinners in India and Australia is even higher - it's more than 40 in both countries - but that's explained by India's ability to play spin really well, and by Australia's lack of quality spinners since Shane Warne. Pace and spin in each country in Tests since Jan 2006 Host country Pace-wkts Average Strike rate Spin-Wkts Average Strike rate Wkts ratio-Pace:Spin South Africa 752 29.12 54.0 183 35.43 71.1 4.11 New Zealand 519 32.11 58.0 198 32.95 75.1 2.62 England 987 32.61 58.8 323 36.35 69.0 3.05 West Indies 458 32.92 63.7 280 34.27 71.2 1.64 Australia 649 34.01 62.6 205 45.71 84.1 3.17 Bangladesh 211 35.97 62.8 260 32.35 62.8 0.81 India 371 37.83 69.8 351 42.24 83.2 1.06 Sri Lanka 368 39.23 68.8 380 33.81 67.6 0.97 Pakistan 157 43.36 73.6 88 59.32 107.5 1.78 Most fast bowlers who've played in South Africa over these six years - both home bowlers and overseas ones - have enjoyed the conditions. Several of them have done better in South Africa than in other countries during this period. The list below compares the averages of bowlers in South Africa with their overall bowling averages since the beginning of 2006. On the tour of South Africa in 2006, for instance, Stuart Clark took 20 wickets at less than 16, though his overall bowling average is excellent too. A better example is India's Sreesanth: in two series in South Africa, in 2006-07 and 2010-11, he took 27 wickets at less than 29; in all other countries since 2006, he has averaged 41.66, with only 60 wickets in 21 Tests. Similarly, Brett Lee's bowling average in South Africa is almost 10 lower than his overall average during this period. The one top bowler who doesn't conform to this trend is James Anderson. On the tour to South Africa in 2009-10, Anderson took 16 wickets in four Tests, but at an average of 34.25; his overall average since 2006 is 29.58. Fast bowlers who've flourished in South Africa since Jan 2006 Bowler In SA-Tests Wickets Average Strike rate overall ave since 2006 Stuart Clark 3 20 15.85 35.4 23.86 Mohammad Asif 3 19 18.47 39.7 23.53 Brett Lee 3 17 19.52 40.9 29.22 Dale Steyn 22 126 20.50 37.0 22.21 Shaun Pollock 10 35 24.48 56.3 30.62 Mitchell Johnson 3 16 25.00 52.1 30.43 Makhaya Ntini 24 112 25.02 44.9 28.25 James Franklin 3 15 25.60 36.6 41.63 Morne Morkel 12 51 26.74 48.7 30.22 Zaheer Khan 5 23 27.86 51.3 28.71 Sreesanth 6 27 28.55 47.5 37.59 With fast bowlers doing so well in South Africa, it isn't a huge surprise that opening partnerships don't tend to thrive there. In all Tests since 2006, the average opening partnership in South Africa is 30.23, which is almost five runs fewer than the next-lowest, 35.04 in New Zealand. In fact, the partnership average in Australia is about 42% higher than that in South Africa, and the rate of century partnerships is almost twice as high: there've been 11 in 105 innings in Australia, compared with six in 108 in South Africa. In the last few games, though, the stats have been looking better for opening pairs: they average 38.16 in the last four years - there are three other countries (excluding Pakistan, which has hosted only five games during this period) that have lower averages. In fact, on India's last tour of South Africa, there were century stands for the opening wicket in successive innings of the Centurion Test, while on Australia's last tour there, Simon Katich and Phil Hughes added a massive 184 in Durban. For the most part, though, South Africa remains a country that offers more to the fast bowler than most other countries. If that holds true this season as well, then Johnson surely won't be complaining. Opening partnership in each country since Jan 2006 Host country Innings Runs P'ship average 100/ 50 stands Pakistan 34 1713 51.90 4/ 6 India 92 4444 49.37 12/ 22 Bangladesh 62 2508 43.24 6/ 13 Australia 105 4435 43.05 11/ 17 England 156 6000 39.47 11/ 32 West Indies 89 3393 38.55 7/ 19 Sri Lanka 95 3582 38.51 8/ 22 New Zealand 86 2839 35.04 5/ 14 South Africa 108 3235 30.23 6/ 18 http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/537305.html

[Cricket Tragic]

Has to be good conditions for bowling if Sreesanth took wickets.