Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[teosanru]

Game got over so soon. First time after a long time India did right and chose to follow on. Still they won by 137 runs. The bowlers too played a big role in the win but definitely Virat's 254 was a savior.

This time SA did not even put up a fight. India easily managed to score 601 and take wickets.

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings. South Africa in the previous match somehow managed to reach India's first innings total but unfortunately this time they couldn't do it. I know the fate of the third match would be the same if India gets to Bat first South Africa needs to find some luck if they bat first then maybe they can try to break India's strategy.

[1715406653]

1715406653

[1715406653]

1715406653

[1715406653]

1715406653

[1715406653]

1715406653

[7788bitcoin]

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings.

If it was a batting pitch then you show the weakness in the South African batting line up as they are not able to score runs, only Philander and Maharaj proved that the pitch does not have any demons to throw away the wickets like that and the problem with the bowling is that they always tour subcontinent wickets with no quality spinners and then you do not expect to win matches with average players.

[Avirunes]

Game got over so soon. First time after a long time India did right and chose to follow on. Still they won by 137 runs. The bowlers too played a big role in the win but definitely Virat's 254 was a savior.

This time SA did not even put up a fight. India easily managed to score 601 and take wickets.

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings. South Africa in the previous match somehow managed to reach India's first innings total but unfortunately this time they couldn't do it. I know the fate of the third match would be the same if India gets to Bat first South Africa needs to find some luck if they bat first then maybe they can try to break India's strategy.

TBH I really feel sad when I see how good South Africa was before the WC and now. They have been struggling quite a lot not only with good team but also with teams like Pakistan and Bangladesh(in WC). I don't know what has gone wrong for them but I feel like that they need to change their team a lot with more experienced and consistent faces whether it be bowling or batting.

[Sithara007]

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings.

If it was a batting pitch then you show the weakness in the South African batting line up as they are not able to score runs, only Philander and Maharaj proved that the pitch does not have any demons to throw away the wickets like that and the problem with the bowling is that they always tour subcontinent wickets with no quality spinners and then you do not expect to win matches with average players.

The real problem with South Africa is that they can't find replacement for AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla. These two players used to be the backbone of their batting lineup and the new players (Aiden Markram/Theunis de Bruyn) are not able to perform as well as them. And once experienced players such as Faf du Plessis retire, this issue will become even worse.

And I don't agree with the second part of your post. Keshav Maharaj is a very good spin bowler and he has proved this by taking wickets in the pace-friendly tracks in South Africa, NZ and England. He was out of form during the first two matches, but I hope he'll be soon able to pick wickets after acclimatizing with the Indian conditions.

[JSRAW]

Is it a sarcasm regarding Team Selection... Don't know.

Quota system in games (Guess they already know it but don't want to accept in public) which is a core reason SA cricket is heading towards doomsday. I don't think they are going to do anything about it anytime soon.

[Haunebu]

Is it a sarcasm regarding Team Selection... Don't know.

Quota system in games (Guess they already know it but don't want to accept in public) which is a core reason SA cricket is heading towards doomsday. I don't think they are going to do anything about it anytime soon.

This does feel sarcastic. Did not expect Gibbs to speak in such a manner. Embarrassing that they cannot accept their failure. The fact is that drastic changes are required if they wish to stay relevant in International Cricket.

When you see their own team players like De Kock and Rabada arguing, you know there is something wrong with the team. I miss the old South African players like Smith and Pollock who made South Africa a dominating side in the past.

[7788bitcoin]

Is it a sarcasm regarding Team Selection... Don't know.

What kind of bouncy tracks do they require to trouble good batsman is the biggest question  . Srilanka recently defeated South Africa in Durban and the next one in Port Elizabeth and i wonder what kind of excuse do the South African players tell about that and if India tours South Africa in the near future they will white wash them in their home ground as India does have a lethal fast bowling line up.

[JSRAW]

Is it a sarcasm regarding Team Selection... Don't know.

~Edited out~

This does feel sarcastic. Did not expect Gibbs to speak in such a manner. Embarrassing that they cannot accept their failure. The fact is that drastic changes are required if they wish to stay relevant in International Cricket.

I think his sarcastic tone is directed towards South African selection system.

When you see their own team players like De Kock and Rabada arguing, you know there is something wrong with the team. I miss the old South African players like Smith and Pollock who made South Africa a dominating side in the past.

If it wasn't for Faf then Kock and Rabada both were about to fight, its bad when we talk about spirit of the game.. But i would be lying if i say i don't enjoy these moments in Test Cricket. 

Tbh for me from 90s to mid 2000ish was golden time. We had so many Legends in the Test Cricket.

~Edited out~
and if India tours South Africa in the near future they will white wash them in their home ground as India does have a lethal fast bowling line up.

India was suppose to win the last series there with at least 2-1 but Virat and Shastri did many blunders with selection despite having strong team but this time i am hoping for different outcome.

[Sithara007]

Cricket South Africa (CSA) is solely responsible for the death of cricket in that country. Their stupid quota system has destroyed the quality of their national team, as well as the domestic cricket in that country. I can understand quota system in education and employment, as I come from India where up to 70% of the seats are reserved based on the caste. But implementing quota system in sports is just ridiculous.

And take a look at those who have benefited from this quota system. Kagiso Rabada got his selection for the first time to the national team in 2015, thanks to this quota system. Ironically, Rabada hails from a very influential family and studied at one of the premier educational institutions in South Africa. Now how can someone justify the selectors giving priority to this guy over some white guy just because of his race?

[SaShiRaJaVu]

Tbh for me from 90s to mid 2000ish was golden time. We had so many Legends in the Test Cricket.

The introduction of T20 introduced many flashy players in world cricket and now majority of the teams have great players who can play different shots but to play test cricket you need to have a solid defense and concentration and patience for a long period of time and it is hard to find players who could excel in the longer format and every team is struggling in that aspect. In the past we had many legendary players in the test format but now we have Smith and Kohli who plays consistent innings other than that i could not find many players.

[bryant.coleman]

Tbh for me from 90s to mid 2000ish was golden time. We had so many Legends in the Test Cricket.

The introduction of T20 introduced many flashy players in world cricket and now majority of the teams have great players who can play different shots but to play cricket you need to have a solid defense and concentration and patience for a long period of time and it is hard to find players who could excel in the longer format and every team is struggling in that aspect. In the past we had many legendary players in the test format but now we have Smith and Kohli who plays consistent innings other than that i could not find many players.

Well.. you may disagree with me, but Hashim Amla was a world class player who could match the skill set of Steve Smith and Virat Kohli in test cricket. But he never got the accolades and media attraction that both Smith and Kohli received. Shivnarine Chanderpaul was another such player, who was suitable for test cricket. In case of Chanderpaul, he received very harsh treatment from the selectors (probably because of his race and his openness about his religion). It is the way modern cricket works. Test cricketers are not given the praise they deserve. Most of the fans would go crazy after T20 specialists such as Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell and Chris Gayle. But classy test players are not in much demand.

And it is applicable to the bowlers as well. I would rate Dale Steyn as the best pace bowler the world has seen since the WW2. Unfortunately, he has not received much respect, even from his own countrymen. 

[onrise]

Tbh for me from 90s to mid 2000ish was golden time. We had so many Legends in the Test Cricket.

The introduction of T20 introduced many flashy players in world cricket and now majority of the teams have great players who can play different shots but to play cricket you need to have a solid defense and concentration and patience for a long period of time and it is hard to find players who could excel in the longer format and every team is struggling in that aspect. In the past we had many legendary players in the test format but now we have Smith and Kohli who plays consistent innings other than that i could not find many players.

Though SA have lost this 3 match series but still we have 3rd test match left and it is still 4 more days to go. I think some changes would be done in the SA team and they would like to either win it or draw the test match atleast and would not like to have a white wash.

[teosanru]

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings.

If it was a batting pitch then you show the weakness in the South African batting line up as they are not able to score runs, only Philander and Maharaj proved that the pitch does not have any demons to throw away the wickets like that and the problem with the bowling is that they always tour subcontinent wickets with no quality spinners and then you do not expect to win matches with average players.

The thing is that South African team does not has any quality spinners. Best spinner from South Africa I last remember was Imraan Taahir and he has retired so South Africa's best bid was Keshav Maharaj Only. Moreover, every pitch in the sub continent is a batting pitch until you have a squad with good bowling. I think South Africa tried to beat India with their strength which is Pace bowling and it turned out that Pace bowling had almost zero effect on Indian team.

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings.

If it was a batting pitch then you show the weakness in the South African batting line up as they are not able to score runs, only Philander and Maharaj proved that the pitch does not have any demons to throw away the wickets like that and the problem with the bowling is that they always tour subcontinent wickets with no quality spinners and then you do not expect to win matches with average players.

The real problem with South Africa is that they can't find replacement for AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla. These two players used to be the backbone of their batting lineup and the new players (Aiden Markram/Theunis de Bruyn) are not able to perform as well as them. And once experienced players such as Faf du Plessis retire, this issue will become even worse.

And I don't agree with the second part of your post. Keshav Maharaj is a very good spin bowler and he has proved this by taking wickets in the pace-friendly tracks in South Africa, NZ and England. He was out of form during the first two matches, but I hope he'll be soon able to pick wickets after acclimatizing with the Indian conditions.

Actually South Africa miserably failed in developing an A-team in almost every department. Each slot can see the lack of experience because they haven't played enough matches.

[SaShiRaJaVu]

Well.. you may disagree with me, but Hashim Amla was a world class player who could match the skill set of Steve Smith and Virat Kohli in test cricket. But he never got the accolades and media attraction that both Smith and Kohli received.

I do not disagree with you, to be popular you need to be charismatic and have an appeal to the general public and then only you will get the recognition you are looking for from the media, players like Hashim Amla, Chanderpaul were really great players but they were too gentle to become that popular.

And it is applicable to the bowlers as well. I would rate Dale Steyn as the best pace bowler the world has seen since the WW2. Unfortunately, he has not received much respect, even from his own countrymen. 

To call Dale Steyn the best pace bowler after WW2 means you have to ignore bowlers like Wasim Akram, Malcolm Marshall, Dennis Lillee, Glen Mcgrath, Waqar Younis, Allan Donald and the West Indies bowlers of the 70 and 80, Walsh, Ambrose were incredible as well and many more to add in the list.
Dale Steyn is one of the best pace bowlers in history.

[Indymoney]

Well.. you may disagree with me, but Hashim Amla was a world class player who could match the skill set of Steve Smith and Virat Kohli in test cricket. But he never got the accolades and media attraction that both Smith and Kohli received.

I do not disagree with you, to be popular you need to be charismatic and have an appeal to the general public and then only you will get the recognition you are looking for from the media, players like Hashim Amla, Chanderpaul were really great players but they were too gentle to become that popular.

And it is applicable to the bowlers as well. I would rate Dale Steyn as the best pace bowler the world has seen since the WW2. Unfortunately, he has not received much respect, even from his own countrymen. 

To call Dale Steyn the best pace bowler after WW2 means you have to ignore bowlers like Wasim Akram, Malcolm Marshall, Dennis Lillee, Glen Mcgrath, Waqar Younis, Allan Donald and the West Indies bowlers of the 70 and 80, Walsh, Ambrose were incredible as well and many more to add in the list.
Dale Steyn is one of the best pace bowlers in history.

If you agree then I can correct this he is one of best fast bowler after WW2 for South Africa as if we check all list then TBH we have many others more great then Dale Steyn as you already mention.
Right now biggest problem for South Africa is their domestic system is not producing good players like these because of too many internal problems like white black issue is one of biggest right now and they have not strong and good system like Australia or England which is biggest failure in my view.

[ene1980]

Right now biggest problem for South Africa is their domestic system is not producing good players like these because of too many internal problems like white black issue is one of biggest right now and they have not strong and good system like Australia or England which is biggest failure in my view.

There must be a reason for the domestic system to deprive of talents, either people are not interesting in taking cricket as a career or the salary a cricketer gets is not that great, if you have mandatory reservation for players rather than their skills it will also impact a fair process and the culmination of bad policies might be the reason for this situation, South Africa used to produced exceptional talents to world cricket and now they struggle to find good talents is surprising.

[AjithBtc]

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings.

If it was a batting pitch then you show the weakness in the South African batting line up as they are not able to score runs, only Philander and Maharaj proved that the pitch does not have any demons to throw away the wickets like that and the problem with the bowling is that they always tour subcontinent wickets with no quality spinners and then you do not expect to win matches with average players.

The thing is that South African team does not has any quality spinners. Best spinner from South Africa I last remember was Imraan Taahir and he has retired so South Africa's best bid was Keshav Maharaj Only. Moreover, every pitch in the sub continent is a batting pitch until you have a squad with good bowling. I think South Africa tried to beat India with their strength which is Pace bowling and it turned out that Pace bowling had almost zero effect on Indian team.

I think South Africa's biggest problem is the bowling department. India have very cleverly constructed batting pitches and have a great batting lineup thus they always try to put up a great total in the first innings.

If it was a batting pitch then you show the weakness in the South African batting line up as they are not able to score runs, only Philander and Maharaj proved that the pitch does not have any demons to throw away the wickets like that and the problem with the bowling is that they always tour subcontinent wickets with no quality spinners and then you do not expect to win matches with average players.

The real problem with South Africa is that they can't find replacement for AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla. These two players used to be the backbone of their batting lineup and the new players (Aiden Markram/Theunis de Bruyn) are not able to perform as well as them. And once experienced players such as Faf du Plessis retire, this issue will become even worse.

And I don't agree with the second part of your post. Keshav Maharaj is a very good spin bowler and he has proved this by taking wickets in the pace-friendly tracks in South Africa, NZ and England. He was out of form during the first two matches, but I hope he'll be soon able to pick wickets after acclimatizing with the Indian conditions.

Actually South Africa miserably failed in developing an A-team in almost every department. Each slot can see the lack of experience because they haven't played enough matches.

Lack of experience is a reason, and there is no one to lead it perfect. Between the wickets if a strong partnership is developed the match wouldn't have ended this worse. By the end of the first innings from South Africa it is almost confirmed that India is gonna win the match. At least it is a must win for South Africa in the next match to show their ability.

[Sithara007]

Right now biggest problem for South Africa is their domestic system is not producing good players like these because of too many internal problems like white black issue is one of biggest right now and they have not strong and good system like Australia or England which is biggest failure in my view.

There must be a reason for the domestic system to deprive of talents, either people are not interesting in taking cricket as a career or the salary a cricketer gets is not that great, if you have mandatory reservation for players rather than their skills it will also impact a fair process and the culmination of bad policies might be the reason for this situation, South Africa used to produced exceptional talents to world cricket and now they struggle to find good talents is surprising.

South Africa is still producing exceptional talent. But the problem is that they are playing for the other countries and are refusing to represent SA. One player who got much attention from the media lately is Marnus Labuschagne. A while back, almost half of the English team was made up of Kolpak players, such as Tom Curran, Matt Prior, Jason Roy, Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott.etc

The same is the case with New Zealand as well. In fact, a few years back there was even a debate whether the NZ South Africans XI will be able to defeat the rest of the New Zealand team. More than a dozen South African cricketers have shifted to NZ, including BJ Watling, Colin Munro, Glenn Phillips and Neil Wagner. And it started with Grant Elliott (now retired).

[Murat]

Amzing, India has shown why they should be considered as one of the best team in the current cricket times. since it's a home series for them but their performance was really outstanding, In every sector, they have dominated over the guest team, I think the development of Indian cricket totally comes in a planned way and domestic cricket has a lot of credit to do so, On the contrary to South African cricket, they are just on the opposite, their domestic cricket is not well-shaped and they can't produce new talent players who could replace their age players, one thing this is mentionable that the flavour of test is not going well in recent time so this reason is also responsible to their poor performance in India. hope to see a good condition of South African cricket.

[JSRAW]

Interesting Statistics as far as World fast bowlers(including Indian pacer too) concern in Indian condition. Only team comes close to India is Australia, Oz name is interesting as well because it was Oz's spin attack who broke the spine of Indian batting line up and won the game in the recent time.