I thought punter didn’t like hodge and that’s why he didn’t get picked
You can be a jerk and get picked so long as you’re mates with the captain, symmonds and martyn two good examples there
Symonds was also put in the ‘too hard basket’ eventually
I suspect Punter’s disdain for Hodge came from the time he was caught at short leg last ball of the day, when Stevie Wonder could see what was coming next. Take the hit or duck underneath it.
For good reason.
EVERYONE likes pointing the finger when it comes to Australia’s disappointing on-field fiasco in March.
Rarely can you have a conversation about Australian cricket without the ball tampering scandal in South Africa resurfacing.
What could simply be put down as a monstrous failure of leadership from Steve Smith, combined with David Warner cockily attempting to flout the rules, has regularly been turned into a debate equalling the calibre of a national crisis.
Read more: Documentary exposes Aussies
Former selector Rod Marsh blasted Australia’s “toxic” culture in his recently released book. The former Aussie wicketkeeper said the ugly “win at all costs” mentality developed after his career behind the stumps finished in 1984.
Mark Taylor, who captained Australia for 50 Tests through the 1990s, took exception to the West Australian’s barb and fired back on Channel 9’s Sport Sunday.
“I don’t like the comments, obviously,” Taylor said. “Is winning important in Australian cricket? My word it is. Is it to win at all costs? In my opinion, no, it never has been.
“Another week in cricket, another book. And what happens in books? People tell stories in black and white.”
The broadcast got a little hairy after panellist Peter FitzSimons began grilling Taylor on-air.
“How is it that vicious sledging blossomed, bloomed and flourished under your watch?” the former Wallabies lock said. “When did Cricket Australia bring them in and say: ‘Stop this or do not play again’. It flourished on your watch.”
Fitzsimons said Taylor, currently a Cricket Australia director, had “done nothing” to stop sledging.
These comments slam the game…#9SportsSunday
Taylor responded saying sledging had got “ridiculous” in recent years but insisted players were been told to ease off in the South African series.
“Even Rod Marsh (when asked if sledging should be stopped) said no,” Taylor fired back. “It’s never going to be stopped but there’s always going to be competition”.
The 104-Test star ripped into Marsh again, saying his claim that Cricket Australia took pleasure out of banning Smith, Warner and Cameron Bancroft was “absolutely ridiculous”.
“I know Steve Smith personally and I didn’t have any pleasure in (banning) any of the three,” he said.
Taylor revealed Cricket Australia had “some reviews coming up shortly” but couldn’t go into details.
“I’m sure that those in the media people like ourselves will enjoy the stuff in those reviews. That will come out,” he said.
BRUTAL TRUTH IN AUSSIE ‘CRISIS’
Tim Paine, comparitavely, didn’t do a bad job: Change my mind. Source:Getty Images
The knives were out for the Australian cricket team as the rebuilding baggy green unit slumped to a 1-0 series defeat to Pakistan.
A stunning draw in Dubai — labelled by many as one of the greatest escapes seen in Test cricketing history — was quickly overshadowed by a mammoth 356 run loss in the second Test.
As expected, critics were out in droves pretending to be rattled by yet another Australian batting collapse in the UAE. What they didn’t realise was the result was comparitavley sublime next to the last time they played in the Middle East.
Mark Taylor reminded Australia of its horror 2-0 loss to Pakistan in 2014, a series with a near full-strength line-up.
“Four years ago Australia went to Dubai to play Pakistan. Two Test Matches. Same series. We lost the first Test by 255 runs. Second Test by 350. That was with everyone available,” he said. “(We had our) best possible 11 players on the field. We did not have our best possible 11 players on the field. Obviously three are out through suspension. We’re missing Cummins and Hazlewood.
“We’re missing Cummins and Hazlewood. We had five bowlers out. We had potentially five of best players not playing. We ended up with a draw and a heavy defeat which as you say talk about expectations, four years ago, we didn’t do any better. We did worse with our best 11 players.”
I hope Taylor’s a better director than he is a commentator.
Great captain…terrible commentator…how do we find out what he’s like as a director of CA?
Under his watch they have banned two of Australia’s best batsmen for 12 months in an over-the-top decision. Then they have screwed over Maxwell badly, then they have picked the worst Aussie side to play since the 80’s. Then you factor in domestic scheduling and development.
He and his mates are clearly doing a bad job.
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How long has Taylor been a director? Genuine question… I have no idea.
Rod Marsh is the last, absolute last, person I’d listen to about sledging.
And people should ask Mike Whitney about his first Test wicket.
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Oct 2015, I believe he replaced Benaud.
hmmmm…well his abilities as a director are probably on par with his commentating then
Well I go where the in crowd goes
I always thought sledging became a hot topic after stump microphones became ubiquitous in international cricket
Not a lot of sympathy for the Australian cricket team after that thumping by Pakistan.
Perhaps Tim Paine should have got before the cameras and gone all sob, sob, teary to elicit sympathy.
Marsh is an absolute cockhe@d and how he can put it all back on the next generation reinforces he’s a flog.
Read the Kim Hughes biography and marsh and Lillie used to bully Hughes incessantly because he got the nod over marsh. Germ of the highest order. If he can do that to his own captain imagine the $hit he would have put on the opposition.
And Australian cricket went backwards on his watch as a selector. take it as you will but he over rid selections and carried on like a toyless three year old if he got challenged. And he made pat Howard look competent.
And who the frig is the private school bum sniffer waffling on like he knows what’s going on. If I was Taylor I would have thrown his port all over his Ralph Lauren polo shirt and redirected his fathers money to Somalia. Or Fujitsu.
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GLENN Maxwell was told to scores “big red ball runs” but the Victorian star will miss his chance for “meaningless” T20s.
Andrew McMurtry
WHEN Glenn Maxwell was not selected for the Australian team for the two-match Tour of the UAE against Pakistan, some eyebrows were raised.
The reason was Maxwell hasn’t converted enough half-centuries into centuries and really big scores and was told to go back to Sheffield Shield cricket to score runs.
But at the first opportunity to score red ball runs with the first round of the Sheffield Shield, Maxwell was carrying drinks in the UAE.
The situation was heavily discussed on ABC’s Offsiders with ABC Grandstand journalist Alister Nicholson led the criticism.
The cricket writer wasn’t happy Maxwell would miss his opportunity to do what he was told to do to play in a series of pointless T20 matches.
“We have the circumstances where he’s (Maxwell) flown out to carry the drinks essentially in a Test match when he could be playing in the Sheffield Shield,” Nicholson said.
“He’ll now go an play some meaningless T20 matches over there, when we could be playing Sheffield Shield. He’s been told he needs to produce big red ball runs and he’s not being afforded the opportunity to do it.”
.@AlisterNicho on the “crazy set of circumstances” Glenn Maxwell is in:
“He’s been told that he needs to produce big red ball runs and he’s not being afforded the opportunity to do it”#Offsiders #Grandstand @Gmaxi_32
@OffsidersABCMaxwell missed Victoria’s first Sheffield Shield match against Western Australia, with 20-year-old youngster Will Pucovski scoring a huge 243 in the side’s massive score of 504 and the innings and 45 run win.
He will also miss Victoria’s second match against NSW at the MCG starting Thursday with T20 matches in the UAE on October 24, 26 and 28.
Maxwell also scored 707 runs at an average of 50.50 last season, including a top score of 278.
Langer previously pinned the Victorian’s omission from the Test side on his lack of centuries across all formats.
This is the closest Glenn Maxwell got to needing to wear his whites in the UAE. Source:Getty Images
The Offsiders panel included former Australian cricketer Mel Jones who said the move seemed to be part of an attempt to change the culture of the side.
“I’ve heard it, almost like Donald Trump gets on a role with a certain phrase, but I’m not equating (Australian coach Justin Langer) to him, but there is a word in there all the time and you think, number one he’s a good bloke and how important is it to the set-up and is there a message to a certain someone,” she said.
“It comes back to me as in, Glenn Maxwell where are you at the moment and what are you doing to get back into the side.”
“And I think the fact he didn’t go on the Australia A Tour a couple of months back certainly sent the message that he wasn’t being looked at. Now all of a sudden with
injuries they are in strife.”
Herald Sun reporter David Davutovic said there were cultural issues with the side and compared the Australian cricket team to the Socceroos.
“Culture is a big one and I think he’s inherited from what I hear,” he said. “I really liken it to Ange Postecoglou when he took over the Socceroos in 2013 from Holger Osieck where there was a lot of hard yards at the start but then it was for the greater good.
“Langer is looking for real old school gritty batsmen like what he was, rather than a quick fire 50 or 60, he wants blokes that are going to roll their sleeves up, dig in, trickle their way to 100 then go on from there.”
After a 1-0 series loss in the UAE Test series, there have been several major talking points, including questions about the domestic system and how it’s preparing the next generation of cricketers for Test conditions.
Will Pucovski put on a big show in the Sheffield Shield. Source:Getty Images
Out of Pucovski’s attention-grabbing double-century — just the ninth Australian under 21 to hit the score along with the likes of Ricky Ponting, Doug Walters and Don Bradman — has meant he has been thrown into the selection mix.
But Jones asked for patience before we get too excited, especially when comparing Australian prospects to the likes of Indian youngster Prithvi Shaw, who has burst onto the scene as an 18-year-old.
“I think because we play India and you have Shaw coming in who is a youngster from the under-19s doing so well but they’ve got a billion people to pick from,” she said.
“It’s slightly different. We are looking for the next superstar, but because of the way in which Australian cricket is at the moment, with all this turmoil going around it, I think there just need to take a deep breath and work out if we look for the Ashes in comparison to this home series.”
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Al Jazeerah keep running stories on match fixing, yet they seem very reluctant to release any real evidence, just their claims. They refuse to name any players and they refuse to back up the claims being made by some criminal spot fixer.
If someone is doing something wrong and you have evidence, give it up to authorities to deal with, stop playing these stupid games.
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So he bats as much as he bowls. That still makes him an all rounder…
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Gets on a role.
actually. this belongs in the biscuit thread