Mouth watering prospect in melbourne!

[Bumper]

Border's recent comments suggest that MCG may be a slower wicket than normal. Dont know how much we can trust his words We dont know which version of Perth pitch is gonna be dished out. Last few games there have been high scoring, with even McWarne struggling to purchase 20 wickets. Adelaide has always been a patta thru out the test. Sydney will help the swing bowlers (I'll play Pathan at Sydney for sure, if he is not a super flop by then) & will start assisting spinners by Day 4. I'd say India has the highest chance of losing at Perth (assuming typical WACA pitch), followed by MCG. We can salvage a draw in the other two and if we play well, even fancy pulling off a win in one of them.

[The Outsider]

Sydney will help the swing bowlers (I'll play Pathan at Sydney for sure, if he is not a super flop by then) & will start assisting spinners by Day 4.

Rewind to 2004 Bumper when the ball was not turning even in the last session and compare it to the Super Series Perth wicket which became unplayable after day 3 with Warne and MacGill ripping through the World XI.

[jukkha]

Indo-Aussie war imminent Onwards and downwards, India are going to war with Australia down under. The battle of Melbourne is imminent as both countries prepare for battle. Australia with their all conquering, troops are well prepared having resisted and humiliated a Sri Lankan attack in November and currently doing the same to their neighbours New Zealand. Their super quick Ace Pilots of Lee, Tait and Johnson are ready for the attack and the Big gunners of Ponting, Hayden and Symonds are ready to blast. However they will be wise not to take the Indian troops for granted as they themselves have fought well in recent months, having defeated England and Pakistan. A new Captain leads the recruits, Anil 'Bomber' Kumble, having just defeated their bitter rivals Pakistan. Their new young wing pilot Ishant Sharma is expecting to battle against the Australian’s first hand after a good fight against Pakistan in the final battle during the absence of resting pilots RP Singh and Zaheer Khan. The Indian veterans of Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly and VVS Laxman are looking to carry the new recruits together with the re- introduction of their ace pilot 'Viru' who is looking to resurrect his past skills and do plenty of damage down under. India’s secret weapon ‘Lieutenant’ Yuvraj Singh, is currently waiting in the wings should India get into difficulties in their fight in Melbourne and he will surely fire with all guns blazing in this battle of all battles. Australia are firm favorites to defend their Island but this will be India's best chance to finally conquer ‘Down Under’ and reap the rewards for their deserving nation.

[Chandan]

Perth was quite lively during the T20 match vs NZ. Can someone give the scores for Pura Cup this year at Perth and also at MCG?

[talksport]

wow I liked the style ... Jai Bhajrang Bali

[Chaos]

wow, Socom indian navy seals :D

[Online]

hype hype hype :D hope those hopes dont have a crash landing

[Chaos]

hype hype hype :D hope those hopes dont have a crash landing

oi kya re what is this, be positive, i will damn disappointed if india dont put fight. Too much dominance by aussies. With the talent we have we should do good. These computer tech. helping aussies aint it ;)

[Chaos]

by me saying this... these players will be in hotel playing xbox or swimming...

[Online]

keep your hopes low. that way u can party if India makes more than 100 or gets 10 aussie wickets in a match

[Chaos]

keep your hopes low. that way u can party if India makes more than 100 or gets 10 aussie wickets in a match

just like how gilly got butt whooped last series? :hysterical:

[manoj_admlab]

First-class match Pura Cup - 17th Match Western Australia v South Australia 2007/08 season Played at W.A.C.A. Ground, Perth, on 14,15,16,17 December 2007 (4-day match) South Australia 1st innings R M B 4s 6s SR MTG Elliott c Rogers b Inness 26 39 28 6 0 92.85 SA Deitz c Langer b Magoffin 1 24 19 0 0 5.26 MJ Cosgrove lbw b Inness 23 83 54 3 0 42.59 CJ Ferguson b Dorey 15 60 48 3 0 31.25 NT Adcock lbw b Dorey 0 10 6 0 0 0.00 AH Delmont c Ronchi b Magoffin 7 23 17 1 0 41.17 GA Manou c Ronchi b Inness 2 21 15 0 0 13.33 RJ Harris b Dorey 12 29 22 1 0 54.54 JN Gillespie not out 51 128 83 10 0 61.44 DJ Cullen b Inness 33 86 79 4 0 41.77 PC Rofe c Pomersbach b Inness 4 13 11 0 0 36.36 Extras (lb 10) 10 Total (all out; 63.4 overs) 184 (2.89 runs per over) Fall of wickets1-11 (Deitz, 6.2 ov), 2-27 (Elliott, 9.3 ov), 3-74 (Ferguson, 24.1 ov), 4-74 (Cosgrove, 25.4 ov), 5-74 (Adcock, 26.1 ov), 6-83 (Delmont, 30.6 ov), 7-83 (Manou, 31.1 ov), 8-111 (Harris, 36.5 ov), 9-174 (Cullen, 59.6 ov), 10-184 (Rofe, 63.4 ov) Bowling OM R W Econ SJ Magoffin 17 10 30 2 1.76 MWH Inness 17.4 5 59 5 3.33 BR Dorey 19 6 53 3 2.78 AK Heal 6 0 20 0 3.33 TP Doropoulos 4 1 12 0 3.00 Western Australia 1st innings R M B 4s 6s SR JL Langer b Gillespie 109 203 157 14 0 69.42 CJL Rogers c Adcock b Harris 51 165 115 9 0 44.34 SE Marsh b Rofe 10 49 33 2 0 30.30 AC Voges c Adcock b Harris 5 41 26 0 0 19.23 LA Pomersbach c Cosgrove b Rofe 75 111 72 6 4 104.16 TP Doropoulos c Manou b Harris 1 15 9 0 0 11.11 L Ronchi c Manou b Gillespie 62 94 61 7 2 101.63 AK Heal c Cosgrove b Rofe 7 15 16 1 0 43.75 BR Dorey c Manou b Harris 1 25 23 0 0 4.34 SJ Magoffin c Elliott b Gillespie 1 19 7 0 0 14.28 MWH Inness not out 3 5 4 0 0 75.00 Extras (b 2, lb 3, w 2) 7 Total (all out; 87 overs) 332 (3.81 runs per over) Fall of wickets1-142 (Rogers, 40.6 ov), 2-167 (Langer, 48.6 ov), 3-171 (Marsh, 51.5 ov), 4-197 (Voges, 57.5 ov), 5-215 (Doropoulos, 61.1 ov), 6-304 (Pomersbach, 75.5 ov), 7-322 (Heal, 79.5 ov), 8-326 (Ronchi, 82.3 ov), 9-328 (Dorey, 85.4 ov), 10-332 (Magoffin, 86.6 ov) Bowling OM R W Econ RJ Harris 28 10 77 4 2.75 (1w) JN Gillespie 23 3 85 3 3.69 (1w) PC Rofe 21 1 95 3 4.52 DJ Cullen 15 0 70 0 4.66 South Australia 2nd innings R M B 4s 6s SR SA Deitz run out (Inness) 26 61 49 4 1 53.06 MTG Elliott b Inness 6 22 14 1 0 42.85 MJ Cosgrove not out 15 46 28 3 0 53.57 CJ Ferguson not out 1 7 5 0 0 20.00 Extras (lb 5) 5 Total (2 wickets; 16 overs) 53 (3.31 runs per over) Did not bat NT Adcock, AH Delmont, GA Manou, JN Gillespie, RJ Harris, DJ Cullen, PC Rofe Fall of wickets1-28 (Elliott, 5.2 ov), 2-45 (Deitz, 14.2 ov) Bowling OM R W Econ SJ Magoffin 6 1 21 0 3.50 MWH Inness 5 3 10 1 2.00 BR Dorey 5 1 17 0 3.40 Toss South Australia, who chose to bat first Points Western Australia 2*, South Australia 0* Umpires PD Parker and RJ Tucker

[Donny]

You can find all the Pura Cup scores and match details here: http://www.aussiecricket.net/forum/viewforum.php?f=3&sid=950627b1b6c384d0da49e141a5b9f923

[manoj_admlab]

Indians to offer a sterner test Keith Stackpole December 16, 2007 12:00am THE Australia-India Test series will be a battle of the old guard against the new. The Indian side will be probably the most experienced to tour here, with Australia the only country the sub-continent team has failed to conquer in an away series. Its players are match-hardened, coming off a tough home series against Pakistan, and most of the batsmen are in top form. The one big query is the captaincy of Anil Kumble. Will he be able to conjure a game plan to deliver the Indians the 20 wickets needed to win a Test? He should receive plenty of advice from the three former Test captains (Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly) in his team. Playing the first two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney is a bonus for the Indians. This year, the MCG has given the quicks little assistance and should help India's slow bowlers. And Sydney is Sydney, a slow bowler's paradise. It will be Tendulkar's last tour of Australia and no doubt he will try to deliver something special. Let's hope the Little Master has a lot more luck than on previous tours, during which he was been the victim of some questionable umpiring decisions. He was rested from the Tests against Pakistan to prepare for this series. Tendulkar's nemeses in previous clashes have been Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie. They dismissed him six times each. The series will test the mettle of our new group of players and will tell us where our future lies as a cricketing nation. Statistics show India has only won four of 32 Tests in Australia. Two of them were at the MCG and one each in Sydney and Adelaide. Kumble's team will earmark the third Test in Perth (where India has lost both Tests played) for a draw. It's been a long time since a Test was played in Perth in mid-January when it is boiling hot, dry and conducive to big scores. The Aussies had a dream series against Sri Lanka, but this will be a much tougher battle.

[Ram]

What a poorly written article...

[manoj_admlab]

MCG shock in store for Indians By Ken Piesse December 16, 2007 INDIA'S old masters - Sachin Tendulkar and company - are the targets as Ricky Ponting's Australia go for a world mark of consecutive Test wins. The heavy hitters Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly have remarkable records but are past their best, especially on Australian pitches where the bouncy conditions unsettle and intimidate. Melbourne, venue for the Boxing Day Test, is likely to have the initial pace, which will immediately challenge the reflexes and nerve. Head curator Tony Ware says the early MCG wickets this summer may have been more sluggish than many had hoped but the extra time in preparation for this one should lead to one of the best wickets of the season. "Everyone got excited about the pace at the WACA the other night," Ware said. "We won't and never will have anything like that here, but we will be trying to produce the best possible wicket which holds together into the business end of the Test." Australia are considering taking four pacemen into the first Test, including "wild thing" Shaun Tait, for the first time on Australian soil. Win in Melbourne and the Aussies are eyeing a record-equalling 16th Test win in a row, emulating the feats of Steve Waugh's Australia in 1999-2000 and 2000-2001. India's previous coach, Australian legend Greg Chappell, says India may be flat-track bullies on the low and slow pitches of the subcontinent, but they are vulnerable Down Under. "Their ability to counter the extra bounce will be critical," Chappell said. "It has undermined almost every challenge here and it's a major factor in why their record is so poor here." Chappell says the frequency of consistent performances from the ageing quartet has also narrowed. "They've played a lot of cricket," he said. "Ganguly is 35, Sachin and Rahul Dravid are almost 35 and Laxman is 33. "They are batting differently than they did in their prime years." Chappell says the recent run-fests on home pitches can all but be discounted given the bounce and seam on Australian pitches. Tendulkar and Laxman, scorers of some of the great recent centuries against Australia, also are not playing with their former freedom. "They've both been trying to play risk-free cricket and trying not to get out, rather than playing how they used to," Chappell said. The Sunday Mail (Qld)

[siddhu]

guru ghantaal at it again....

[putrevus]

By Ken Piesse December 16, 2007 INDIA'S old masters - Sachin Tendulkar and company - are the targets as Ricky Ponting's Australia go for a world mark of consecutive Test wins. The heavy hitters Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly have remarkable records but are past their best, especially on Australian pitches where the bouncy conditions unsettle and intimidate. Melbourne, venue for the Boxing Day Test, is likely to have the initial pace, which will immediately challenge the reflexes and nerve. Head curator Tony Ware says the early MCG wickets this summer may have been more sluggish than many had hoped but the extra time in preparation for this one should lead to one of the best wickets of the season. "Everyone got excited about the pace at the WACA the other night," Ware said. "We won't and never will have anything like that here, but we will be trying to produce the best possible wicket which holds together into the business end of the Test." Australia are considering taking four pacemen into the first Test, including "wild thing" Shaun Tait, for the first time on Australian soil. Win in Melbourne and the Aussies are eyeing a record-equalling 16th Test win in a row, emulating the feats of Steve Waugh's Australia in 1999-2000 and 2000-2001. India's previous coach, Australian legend Greg Chappell, says India may be flat-track bullies on the low and slow pitches of the subcontinent, but they are vulnerable Down Under. "Their ability to counter the extra bounce will be critical," Chappell said. "It has undermined almost every challenge here and it's a major factor in why their record is so poor here." Chappell says the frequency of consistent performances from the ageing quartet has also narrowed. "They've played a lot of cricket," he said. "Ganguly is 35, Sachin and Rahul Dravid are almost 35 and Laxman is 33. "They are batting differently than they did in their prime years." Chappell says the recent run-fests on home pitches can all but be discounted given the bounce and seam on Australian pitches. Tendulkar and Laxman, scorers of some of the great recent centuries against Australia, also are not playing with their former freedom. "They've both been trying to play risk-free cricket and trying not to get out, rather than playing how they used to," Chappell said. The Sunday Mail (Qld)

Who is listening to this idiot greg chappell again , he screwed up indian team big time , not even six months ago he was singing all praises for the indian batsmen and now he is saying they cant play anymore.Did he forget to mention , aussies are the oldest team. All india needs is strong match to start in first test with like they did in 2004 , they need a strong start with Aussies on back foot , if they lose early they will be in for long tour

[manoj_admlab]

Hogg, not Tait, better MCG option Jon Pierik December 18, 2007 12:00am TEST great Steve Waugh has urged national selectors to play spinner Brad Hogg, and not in-form paceman Shaun Tait, in the Boxing Day Test. While acknowledging India's veteran batting line-up, the former Australian captain believes a spinner is a must for the drop-in MCG pitch, which may not provide the fast bowlers with much encouragement. The tourists, who arrive in Melbourne this morning for the four-Test series, can expect a short-pitched barrage at the MCG but Waugh said Hogg would provide some important balance to the Australian attack. "I think they should have three quicks and a spinner," Waugh said yesterday. "It's probably 50-50 right now but Hogg deserves a chance. He has never let Australia down. "I think he has proven one of our best one-day players in the last four years. "Every time he has played he has done well. He contributes with the bat, ball and in the field, and is very enthusiastic. "Tait is probably ready to go and there would be a temptation to play him. I think Hogg deserves a chance. If you don't give him a chance now, he will probably never get a chance. "If it doesn't work, you can always make a change for the second and third Tests." Tait has vaulted into Test calculations because of his high-voltage pace and the way he flattened New Zealand's top order in the Twenty20 clash in Perth and in the Chappell-Hadlee one-day series. It's understood national selectors will seriously consider naming a 13-man Test squad as early as tomorrow with both Tait and Hogg in the squad. A final decision on the make-up of the team would be made after a final inspection of the pitch. Waugh said Brett Lee, Stuart Clark and Mitchell Johnson - the three quicks who did the job against Sri Lanka - don't deserve to be squeezed out for Tait, meaning it will be a battle between pace and spin for the final bowling spot in the XI. Victorian leg-spinner Bryce McGain has had an impressive domestic season with 21 wickets at 31.9, and will get the chance to press his claims against India in a three-day clash at the Junction Oval from Thursday. But Hogg is still the frontrunner for the spinner's spot. A key member of Australia's past two World Cup victories, Hogg said he was in career-best form and ready to add to the four Tests he has managed in 11 years - the last four years ago against Zimbabwe at the SCG. In four Pura Cup matches, the left-arm wrist spinner has 13 wickets at 30.69 - although he has been wicketless in his past two games. In his favour is that the likes of Sachin Tendulkar have had trouble picking his wrong-un.

[Chandan]

Australia writes India off!! India too old, too tired, too rushed Jon Pierik December 18, 2007 12:00am INDIA will today fly into a hornet's nest in Melbourne amid concerns about its ageing stars and preparation for its four-Test battle with Australia. Former Australian stars Steve Waugh, Ian Healy and Damien Fleming yesterday expressed reservations about whether the tourists could give Australian spectators the contest they desperately crave this summer. And yesterday bookies all but wrote off the tourists' hopes of becoming the first visiting nation in 14 years to claim a Test series victory on Australian soil. India will have just one full day to acclimatise before beginning its lone warm-up clash - a three-day affair against Victoria at the Junction Oval - ahead of the Boxing Day Test. While the tourists have just completed three tough Tests at home and scored a breakthrough series victory against Pakistan, the conditions will be vastly different here. Healy, a former Australian wicketkeeper, said India's governing body had not done the right thing by Anil Kumble's team. "It's not so much a crowded schedule, it's when they plan it," Healy said. "They didn't have sufficient thought when doing it. "But they have gone along with it for some reason and left themselves short for a series that should be extremely important. "It could be the last time we see three of their legends. The other thing is they know how precious a victory is to their country and it seems to me their administrators haven't given themselves a fair chance." Healy said another tour match would have provided the ideal preparation to combat an Australian team just two wins away from equalling its own record streak of 16. "Another fortnight might have been perfect. They are coming off some hard cricket of late but hard cricket in totally opposite conditions," Healy said. "That's not good. I just think they are going to have to cram too much, too quickly." While India boasts vast experience - Sachin Tendulkar, 34, Sourav Ganguly, 35, Rahul Dravid, who turns 35 in January, and V.V.S Laxman, 33, are all nearing the end of their careers - there are concerns about the team's fitness and ability to stay healthy after an overload of cricket in recent months. "My concern with India is that they have played that much cricket they are going to have to keep their energy up in this Test series," Fleming said. Centrebet last night had Australia at $1.26 to claim the series. The draw was next best with $6, while India was $8. Other betting agencies will not open their books on the series until later in the week, but TAB Sportsbet's Gary Davies gave the Indians little chance. "Australia is clear favourite to win and the draw is next," he said. "But Australia just don't have a quality spinner, that gives the punters who want to back India some hope." Before leaving India yesterday, Kumble declared his men were primed for the rugged challenge which awaits. "The last time around we came pretty close to winning the series," he said of the 2003-04 drawn series. "We have the potential in the team to go out there and do it again. "For some of the senior players this will be the last tour of Australia. It will be a great challenge for all of us."