Stop dreaming

Sub-continent team will really struggle in Aus...they are great at hitting through the line when the ball is at knee height but will get into a really bad tangle when chest/should/head height...pace is not too difficult to handle but bounce or swing / seam is extremely difficult to handle...and that is what you will get in Aus...

SA team has too many luxuries...players are kept in just until they make a score to prolong their spot in the team...remember them doing this with Gibbs and all the time it was keeping Amla out of the team...

Rossouw and Behardien are not at this level and just as Levi was found out, they too have severe limitations for the international game...

My team for World Cup would be:

Amla
de Kock
de Villiers
du Plessis
Duminy
Miller
Wiese
Steyn
Abbott
Morkel
Tahir

3 genuine quick bowlers, 1 genuine spinner, 1 medium pace all rounder (Wiese), 1 spinning all rounder (Duminy) and de Villers creates another option for a few overs...the plan is to have options should 1/2 bowlers get hit about which is likely considering that Powerplays are designed to encourage scoring so having bowling options becomes important...

There are 6 batsmen with one or more having ability to make a 70/80 + which gives a team score of 250+...our inability to defend these totals or chase totals in this range or more is due to bowling limitations...if 1/2 of our front-line bowlers have been hit, the captain has no-one to turn to and must persist with that bowler until 10 overs completed...concedes 60-70 rather than 45-55...end result is chasing +-300 rather than 275...you are more likely to win chasing 265-275 rather than 300...

Additional squad players would be Peterson (spinning option), McClaren (all round option), de Lange (fast bowling option) + 1 batsmen (will post when I think who this could be...guess Behardien and Rossouw are front of line due to recent involvement... )...

50 over cricket falls between the requirements needed for T20 (batsmen paramount) and test cricket (bowling paramount)...emphasis on multiple skills to provide options...

Must put team in position to defend 265+ or limit opposition to under 275...otherwise chance of winning reduces significantly...

i dont follow cricket anymore but if these are still our guys we in a timewarp
honestly

How much credibility is left in cricket? Pakistan lose to Ireland at 1000/1..... Bob Woolmer murdered.... constant match fixing allegations...

Lost it's shine for me.

My team for World Cup

de Kock
Roussouw
Amla
de Villiers
Duminy
Miller
Parnell
Petersen/du Plessis
Steyn
Abbott
Morkel

The other 4 will be
Maclaren
Berhadin
Philander
du Plessis / Petersen

Karma.

Well spotted. Theunis de Bruyn is a great prospect.
I went and watched him at the 6's. he really strikes the ball well.
His issue is how much will he play for the Titans when the stars are back i.e. there is no place for him when AB, Berhadin and Morkel return. Pity.

Russell wrote: Karma.

Well spotted. Theunis de Bruyn is a great prospect.
I went and watched him at the 6's. he really strikes the ball well.
His issue is how much will he play for the Titans when the stars are back i.e. there is no place for him when AB, Berhadin and Morkel return. Pity.

you are correct when the stars come back, but it is similar to our currie cup, the "big boys" dont really play much domestic cricket. Eg, AB has played close to 190 ODI's and only about 120 domestic games, probably about 60 of those where when he was still a junior before making the proteas, so lets call it 60 games in 10years. That also is one of our problems when it comes to depth, the big guns are always on International duty, so the domestic franchises are not exposed to the higher level players enough. I understand its not like rugby where they play 10-15 test a year, so the provincial sides get to train with the boks alot more thus creating more depth, and they are exposed to international players (super 15), so there levels are greater. Proof is the champions league. The S.A. franchises are unfortunately not at the same level. The Aussie franchises still hold their own and do quite well. If i am not mistaken, the dolphins and cobra's didnt win a game the whole tournament. A possible long term solution would be for CSA to create a strategy whereby the franchise's are exposed to greater teams around the world thus improving their levels aswell as the depth in the country.

laugh at me if you want but while I was out racking the leaves I was thinking that they should go to Kallis and invite him for net and if he feels good get him to play a couple of club matches then into the Province team and if he still feels good into the World Cup squad. Matfield came out of retirement and look how well he is playing, so why not Kallis as maybe he will be fresh and willing

chicken n chips wrote: laugh at me if you want but while I was out racking the leaves I was thinking that they should go to Kallis and invite him for net and if he feels good get him to play a couple of club matches then into the Province team and if he still feels good into the World Cup squad. Matfield came out of retirement and look how well he is playing, so why not Kallis as maybe he will be fresh and willing

That ship has sailed...

Now de Villiers comes out and says that the Proteas are a better team than the Aussies. The score of 4-1 does not tell us that.

the ozzies could field 2 one day sides that could be very competitive at the world cup whereby the proteas have zero depth

P, now you talking bud. Politics at school level is chacing away good kids from sports as they cant see a future for their talents. Late developers will never reach their true potential. Reverse discrimination is going to kill all our sports in SA. In 20 years our depth in all our top sports has just about disappeared and it seems will only get worse.
There are other factors like more lucrative overseas contracts, which will lead to players at a younger age, going overseas and maybe end up playing for those countries.
I met a very talented young man 6 foot 2 build like a brick shit-house (prop) who runs like a wing with all the ball skills. He doesnt play for his school side and has been contracted, after matric, to play in the French Academy. Our loss ! He just about cant speak a word of English and comes from Natal !? Now do we have a problem in our front row for the future ? Big yes Where are our scouts ? or are their hands tied ?
Dont get me started because I dont think my PC has enough ink ! :silly:
Thank goodness there are still very talented youngsters out there and one can only hope that they are not lost. Over all my years of watching and being involved in school rugger there are quite a few kids that stand out. None less than a fly-half that plays his rugger in PE with the surname of Bosch (grade 11 now). Raw talent and if he doesnt play Springbok rugger one day my name is not Andre.
I can only think that cricket is no different.
One lives in hope and that the CREAM will rise to the TOP.

I believe our cricket needs a revamp. The big schools in Pretoria play a lot of cricket. One of these schools has 5 of their top 6 in the provincial team. All are being pursued by universities. I think this is common in most provinces. The problem is that a lot of these kids would not get into varsity if they did not get a sport bursary. A year in they are not coping academically and as a result their cricket suffers. CSA should contract 24 players straight out of school for a year. Put Jennings in charge (or A N Other) and put them through their paces. Send them on tour to Australia and India for three months at a time. the cream will rise to the top.