The Toss

It is today isn't it?

Yes, I think given the bowlers they picked (no Kumble and 3 seamers) Ganguly did the only thing he could and send Australia in. Of course it will possibly backfire and make him look a goose (again) but the only chance they have of winning is getting through the top order on a green top.

bugger the ABC, they're not even on live now, during the game ...

0/22 off 3. The more things change.....

hehehehehe@horette

therad should be called tosser given magoo is in the team

Rain delay.

It looks like the Indian seamers are throwing the ball all over the place. What's the pitch playing like. From previous discussion, I am presuming it is doing a fair bit.

I can image the new Indian bowling coach's (Reid) pre game address. Do try for too much. Just put the ball in a spot and let the wicket help you. I can also imagine that he quit as Indian bowling coach after the first three or four overs. At least they seem to have tightened up.

Interesting that Bracken was on the wireless this morning and gave all the credit for his recent form to the coaching of Chook Reid. In particular, it took Chook 3 hours to give Bracken his inswinger back which he had been trying to find for 3 years

I hadn't heard that.

All the conditions have aligned perfectly for India. An overcast day, rain delays and they win the toss and elect to bowl. They could not have hoped for a better scenario. I just hope they make something of it and show that this will be a "test"ing series for Oz.

Difficult to tell how much the pitch was/is doing from the length the Indians were bowling. Nehra started looking a bit more consistent before the rain.

I think the reason Gangles sent us in was that this is there best chance of *saving* the test match rather than winning it.

Interesting to think that both captains probably would have sent the other side in- one to win the game, the other to draw it.

The Indians have approached this series in an unusual manner. Their stated aim seems to be to hopefully snag the odd draw. I suppose this is realistic and saves them having to wipe egg off their faces after the first two tests in the manner that every English captain has in the last 15 years, but it has made for a rather dull lead up to the series.

I wonder whether anyone associated with the Indian team thinks that anything other than a 3 or 4 nil result is likely.

It might be a master stroke to take all pressure off the team?

Not carrying on with all the bombastic bullshit gets Gangles brownie points with me. We've all seen how fazed Australia get by that sort of rubbish.

All that happens is we all remember the dickhead comments afterwards (you didn't quite 'make them grovel' in 1976, as I recall did you Tawns?).

Sod the media. Let them make up their own headlines themselves.

<>

they generally do

― horace, Thursday, 4 December 2003 02:53 (twenty-one years ago)

Are Hayden and Langer playing wildely as the crickinfo guy seems to be suggesting?

HAve any of the loud appeals been close?

powwow, re: your suggestion of "playing wildely", others have suggested that Justin and Matthew are more than fond of one another, a la Oscar.

Great day for the Australians really.
India had some good patches of bowling where they really put the pressure on us and stopped the scoring for a while but then seemed to loosen up a bit and the scoring really acellerated.
Really from when Harbajan came into the attack India seemed to lose their way.
He didn't bowl well at all, and that seemed to be enough to release the pressure on the other batsmen. The only wicket to fall in that period was Ponting, who mis-judged a bouncing delivery.

A few scares during the innings (LBs, a couple of catches), but they are gonna happen on a wicket that was offering some assistance, and overcast conditions.

Only 62 overs bowled though, lets hope the weather improves a bit so that the game has enough overs to be completed.

Brisbane is always like this at this time of the year.

Have you actually seen the day's play, Poseidon? I got the impression from the bit of radio commentary i heard that harby was like all the Indian bowlers - one or two good spells, but far too uneven.
Good to hear about Ponting belting that six off him. :-)

Why did the Australians take the offer of bad light last night?

Roebuck canned Gangles for choosing to bowl, pointing out Hussein's decision last year. An indian bloke at Wisden saw it differently, and I tend to agree with the latter.

The Indians problem all summer will be to taking 20 wickets. In terms of conditions, yesterday was probably their best chance. Bowling first also makes a draw easier - as Posieden pointed out. So it was simulaneously an attacking and defensive move.

>Have you actually seen the day's play, Poseidon?

Nope, that's only what I gleaned from the commentary as well. Didn't sound like Harbajan bowled that well to me. I certainly didn't think he troubled any of the Australian batsmen.