Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[SATWAT]

Bowlers were not the reason why India lost the first test it was the batsmen who were responsible for such a pathetic defeat. I donot think changing bowlers will do the magic. Poor fielding and  in batting should be worked on first.

When you have defeat then you have to change many things not only one right now they are facing some serious dilemma as Kohli now back Rohit unable to join for second test Shami is also not available and if I am right then Ishant is also not available so too many problems around with Team India need something magic to fix.

[Vishnu.Reang]

BCCI just posted this in twitter so its safe to say that there would be no #ucking Natarajan in the playing XI. Siraj/Saini going to replace injured Shami.

https://twitter.com/BCCI/status/1342045902203047937

Maybe it is a good step. Let them include Saini and Siraj. Once they get hammered all around the park by the Australian batsmen, these two will end up like Kedar Jadhav and more deserving bowlers will get the chance. The Kohli/Shastri duo is acting like a mafia now, by denying opportunity to deserving players and picking their sidekicks for the playing XI.

[teosanru]

But talking about 3rd pacer it's a difficult choice to make. Problem is that Test bowling is different from other formats. You just can't go on to bowl Yorkers or bouncers and get away. The most important thing is to move the ball Saini is better than Natrajan in that whereas Shami is much better than both in them. So i feel Shami should remain intact in the team.

No matter how good a bowler is in the short format his patience level will be tested for sure in the long format because they need to face a different situations even they need to bowl for the entire day and go wicketless which will definitely affect the confidence level. But we shouln't go to that much level for now just look at their capabilities and hope for the best is the smart option so in my opinion, choosing Natarajan is the better choice because he is having the ability to destroy the opponent batting lineup which already proved by his performance in the short format in the same conditions as well.

You are right but Shami is too good as a bowler to sit out of the playing XI i mean yes he didn't have that good first match but I still feel India would think thrice before keeping Him out of the playing XI. But yes If Shami is injured this is a golden opportunity for the other bowlers but I still feel that Siraj/ Saini are better options as they have better swing in their bowling.

~snip~
I don't know why is no one talking about this. But the complete batting Line-up of Indian team has no lefty I think this does gives a great advantage to Aussies in tests. Right hand left hand combination especially in opening does have a great advantage.

But talking about 3rd pacer it's a difficult choice to make. Problem is that Test bowling is different from other formats. You just can't go on to bowl Yorkers or bouncers and get away. The most important thing is to move the ball Saini is better than Natrajan in that whereas Shami is much better than both in them. So i feel Shami should remain intact in the team.

Good point...

Pant and Natarajan could fill that gaps tho. In domestic both Natarajan and Saini has more or less similar performance. Shami is injured bhai and already ruled out.

BTW Natarajan doesn't enjoy support from "powerful" circles. I just hope that he will not end up like Karun Nair.

His future is secure in IPL. National team is another drama, let's hope for the best.

Yeah sorry I just came to know about it today that Shami is injured. I think Pant can be a option then in place of Saha.
Coming to BCCI politics didn't the supreme court kept a tenure of 1 year on BCCI office bearers? How come Ganguly and Jay shah are continuing even after a long time? I don't know but I have started to dislike Ganguly after his recent affiliation with Jay Shah and some controversial decisions I just hope he doesn't loses his fan following due to this petty politics.

[mersal]

BCCI just posted this in twitter so its safe to say that there would be no #ucking Natarajan in the playing XI. Siraj/Saini going to replace injured Shami.

https://twitter.com/BCCI/status/1342045902203047937

Maybe it is a good step. Let them include Saini and Siraj. Once they get hammered all around the park by the Australian batsmen, these two will end up like Kedar Jadhav and more deserving bowlers will get the chance. The Kohli/Shastri duo is acting like a mafia now, by denying opportunity to deserving players and picking their sidekicks for the playing XI.

Saini and Siraj are also good bowlers since they are having better Ranji records compared to Nattu but already Natrajan proved his effectiveness in that pitch conditions then why still he is not into their consideration is the big question. It's not okay to accept RCB quota into the International career.

[bryant.coleman]

Saini and Siraj are also good bowlers since they are having better Ranji records compared to Nattu but already Natrajan proved his effectiveness in that pitch conditions then why still he is not into their consideration is the big question. It's not okay to accept RCB quota into the International career.

First of all, India should have a proper India A team, which will tour countries such as Australia, South Africa, New Zealand or England at least two times a year. BCCI can include potential national team pickups such as Siraj, Saini and Natarajan in this team. Let them play against Australia A or England A, and prove their potential. It will be more justifiable than picking these players directly from the IPL and pushing them to the test squad.

[mersal]

Saini and Siraj are also good bowlers since they are having better Ranji records compared to Nattu but already Natrajan proved his effectiveness in that pitch conditions then why still he is not into their consideration is the big question. It's not okay to accept RCB quota into the International career.

First of all, India should have a proper India A team, which will tour countries such as Australia, South Africa, New Zealand or England at least two times a year. BCCI can include potential national team pickups such as Siraj, Saini and Natarajan in this team. Let them play against Australia A or England A, and prove their potential. It will be more justifiable than picking these players directly from the IPL and pushing them to the test squad.

As per the statements made by the selectors in the past they simply don't consider IPL performances to consider while picking team India squad but they actually consider IPL performances as the only criteria to get selected. So they are basically contrary to their action so we can't expect them to do such things because BCCI is interested in money-making than winning international trophies in the recent years.

[ene1980]

As per the statements made by the selectors in the past they simply don't consider IPL performances to consider while picking team India squad but they actually consider IPL performances as the only criteria to get selected. So they are basically contrary to their action so we can't expect them to do such things because BCCI is interested in money-making than winning international trophies in the recent years.

In the shorter format these kind of selection procedure will work and hence they are performing well but we are not seeing the same kind of performance in Test matches. The selection procedure for Test matches should be first class performance and the Indian middle order of Rahane and Pujara is holding the spot for a long time but the rest of the batsman keeps changing every series and until they sort that out they will always struggle while touring.

[Indymoney]

As per the statements made by the selectors in the past they simply don't consider IPL performances to consider while picking team India squad but they actually consider IPL performances as the only criteria to get selected. So they are basically contrary to their action so we can't expect them to do such things because BCCI is interested in money-making than winning international trophies in the recent years.

In the shorter format these kind of selection procedure will work and hence they are performing well but we are not seeing the same kind of performance in Test matches. The selection procedure for Test matches should be first class performance and the Indian middle order of Rahane and Pujara is holding the spot for a long time but the rest of the batsman keeps changing every series and until they sort that out they will always struggle while touring.

they need two more supports for Raane and Pujara because if you have four specialist batsmen for test team then you can enjoy otherwise you have to be really troubled in every tour of England Australia and New Zealand just try to have some good and quality batsmen in domestic cricket for just test spot is not hard job for country like India.

[JSRAW]

BCCI just posted this in twitter so its safe to say that there would be no #ucking Natarajan in the playing XI. Siraj/Saini going to replace injured Shami.

https://twitter.com/BCCI/status/1342045902203047937

Maybe it is a good step. Let them include Saini and Siraj. Once they get hammered all around the park by the Australian batsmen, these two will end up like Kedar Jadhav and more deserving bowlers will get the chance. The Kohli/Shastri duo is acting like a mafia now, by denying opportunity to deserving players and picking their sidekicks for the playing XI.

Atm Shashtri enjoying kohli's backing so no one can do much about it.

Anyways, Apart from 1 Pacer. News coming up that Jadeja +Pant + Gill are going to replace Kohli +Saha+Shaw for 2nd test. Jadeja will play as an all rounder.

Coming to BCCI politics didn't the supreme court kept a tenure of 1 year on BCCI office bearers? How come Ganguly and Jay shah are continuing even after a long time? I don't know but I have started to dislike Ganguly after his recent affiliation with Jay Shah and some controversial decisions I just hope he doesn't loses his fan following due to this petty politics.

Yeah, initial tenure was for 9 months but then Covid happened and process got delayed. Supreme Court hearings are ongoing along with other important issue, next hearing is schedule next month so let's wait and watch.

As per the statements made by the selectors in the past they simply don't consider IPL performances to consider while picking team India squad but they actually consider IPL performances as the only criteria to get selected. So they are basically contrary to their action so we can't expect them to do such things because BCCI is interested in money-making than winning international trophies in the recent years.

That's some routine bullshit from the selectors. Sadly no one asking the questions, especially sport journalists.

[Iranus]

As per the statements made by the selectors in the past they simply don't consider IPL performances to consider while picking team India squad but they actually consider IPL performances as the only criteria to get selected. So they are basically contrary to their action so we can't expect them to do such things because BCCI is interested in money-making than winning international trophies in the recent years.

In the shorter format these kind of selection procedure will work and hence they are performing well but we are not seeing the same kind of performance in Test matches. The selection procedure for Test matches should be first class performance and the Indian middle order of Rahane and Pujara is holding the spot for a long time but the rest of the batsman keeps changing every series and until they sort that out they will always struggle while touring.

they need two more supports for Raane and Pujara because if you have four specialist batsmen for test team then you can enjoy otherwise you have to be really troubled in every tour of England Australia and New Zealand just try to have some good and quality batsmen in domestic cricket for just test spot is not hard job for country like India.

You are right. For a good performance against any big team, it is necessary to have 4 world class batsmen in the team. For a team like India, adding 4 talented batsmen to the squad is not a difficult task. They have a lot of young talent. The Indian management should develop these young talents into world class players.

[teosanru]

BCCI just posted this in twitter so its safe to say that there would be no #ucking Natarajan in the playing XI. Siraj/Saini going to replace injured Shami.

https://twitter.com/BCCI/status/1342045902203047937

Maybe it is a good step. Let them include Saini and Siraj. Once they get hammered all around the park by the Australian batsmen, these two will end up like Kedar Jadhav and more deserving bowlers will get the chance. The Kohli/Shastri duo is acting like a mafia now, by denying opportunity to deserving players and picking their sidekicks for the playing XI.

You think Kohli/Shastri Duo is mafia? I feel Shah/Ganguly duo is a bigger mafia currently in cricket which are actually backing this Shahstri/Kohli Mafia. There is a dire need of change in team management and I think someone like Rahul Dravid can be a better coach for team India.

BCCI just posted this in twitter so its safe to say that there would be no #ucking Natarajan in the playing XI. Siraj/Saini going to replace injured Shami.

https://twitter.com/BCCI/status/1342045902203047937

Maybe it is a good step. Let them include Saini and Siraj. Once they get hammered all around the park by the Australian batsmen, these two will end up like Kedar Jadhav and more deserving bowlers will get the chance. The Kohli/Shastri duo is acting like a mafia now, by denying opportunity to deserving players and picking their sidekicks for the playing XI.

Atm Shashtri enjoying kohli's backing so no one can do much about it.

Anyways, Apart from 1 Pacer. News coming up that Jadeja +Pant + Gill are going to replace Kohli +Saha+Shaw for 2nd test. Jadeja will play as an all rounder.

Coming to BCCI politics didn't the supreme court kept a tenure of 1 year on BCCI office bearers? How come Ganguly and Jay shah are continuing even after a long time? I don't know but I have started to dislike Ganguly after his recent affiliation with Jay Shah and some controversial decisions I just hope he doesn't loses his fan following due to this petty politics.

Yeah, initial tenure was for 9 months but then Covid happened and process got delayed. Supreme Court hearings are ongoing along with other important issue, next hearing is schedule next month so let's wait and watch.

As per the statements made by the selectors in the past they simply don't consider IPL performances to consider while picking team India squad but they actually consider IPL performances as the only criteria to get selected. So they are basically contrary to their action so we can't expect them to do such things because BCCI is interested in money-making than winning international trophies in the recent years.

That's some routine bullshit from the selectors. Sadly no one asking the questions, especially sport journalists.

Covid is a big excuse. When Bihar elections can take place in Covid what's a big deal with the BCCI elections? The same old story earlier it was Srinivasan now it's Shah/Ganguly it's just the dictators that change the hunger of power always remains supreme. Surprising to see even Ganguly haven't felt that he should step back to give chance to others as a fair process.

[eaLiTy]

Covid is a big excuse. When Bihar elections can take place in Covid what's a big deal with the BCCI elections? The same old story earlier it was Srinivasan now it's Shah/Ganguly it's just the dictators that change the hunger of power always remains supreme. Surprising to see even Ganguly haven't felt that he should step back to give chance to others as a fair process.

It is not an excuse as a new strain of virus is identified the government should take action if not we will again loose another year and there are reports coming out that someone flying from UK tested positive and rumor is that he has the new strain and if that is the case the government has to string in action now and isolate the patient before getting out of hand and BCCI elections are not a priority while general elections are the base of democracy.

[pakhitheboss]

Covid is a big excuse. When Bihar elections can take place in Covid what's a big deal with the BCCI elections? The same old story earlier it was Srinivasan now it's Shah/Ganguly it's just the dictators that change the hunger of power always remains supreme. Surprising to see even Ganguly haven't felt that he should step back to give chance to others as a fair process.

It is not an excuse as a new strain of virus is identified the government should take action if not we will again loose another year and there are reports coming out that someone flying from UK tested positive and rumor is that he has the new strain and if that is the case the government has to string in action now and isolate the patient before getting out of hand and BCCI elections are not a priority while general elections are the base of democracy.

Do not expect a lot from government of India, if European nation are struggling then you cannot expect much from India in regards to the new virus strain.

Every election in India is important because thats what constitutes democracy. If Bihar election can be conducted so can the BCCI elections too.

[Sithara007]

Do not expect a lot from government of India, if European nation are struggling then you cannot expect much from India in regards to the new virus strain.
Every election in India is important because thats what constitutes democracy. If Bihar election can be conducted so can the BCCI elections too.

You don't need to compare EU/US with India. In India, we have witnessed a 75% reduction in the incidence of new COVID 19 cases during the last 1-2 months. But this should not give rise to any complacency, as the cases are still increasing in some of the states such as Kerala and Delhi. BCCI elections are a joke and I don't think that they can result in some productive output even if they are conducted.

[JSRAW]

Coming to BCCI politics didn't the supreme court kept a tenure of 1 year on BCCI office bearers? How come Ganguly and Jay shah are continuing even after a long time? I don't know but I have started to dislike Ganguly after his recent affiliation with Jay Shah and some controversial decisions I just hope he doesn't loses his fan following due to this petty politics.

Yeah, initial tenure was for 9 months but then Covid happened and process got delayed. Supreme Court hearings are ongoing along with other important issue, next hearing is schedule next month so let's wait and watch.

Covid is a big excuse. When Bihar elections can take place in Covid what's a big deal with the BCCI elections? The same old story earlier it was Srinivasan now it's Shah/Ganguly it's just the dictators that change the hunger of power always remains supreme. Surprising to see even Ganguly haven't felt that he should step back to give chance to others as a fair process.

Government has no say in it as Supreme Court is handling the process. I wouldn't blame any individual as this is a case of big fuck up and conflict of interest, to understand this drama watch this 27.35 min video of Shekhar gupta. He tried to summarised all the fuckery beautifully from start to finish.

[onrise]

With Kohli out, 2 new test debutants its will be a massive pressure on team India. Another burden of lowest test score will be back of their mind and to come back strongly from the last test will be a real challenge for team. As far as result of the test match is concerned not expecting any change in that with OZ might lead with 2-0. Shane Warne has jumped in and commented that OZ will blow away India in this Boxing day test match. It would be interesting to see how India responds to it.

[ene1980]

With Kohli out, 2 new test debutants its will be a massive pressure on team India. Another burden of lowest test score will be back of their mind and to come back strongly from the last test will be a real challenge for team. As far as result of the test match is concerned not expecting any change in that with OZ might lead with 2-0. Shane Warne has jumped in and commented that OZ will blow away India in this Boxing day test match. It would be interesting to see how India responds to it.

The pressure depends upon the dressing room atmosphere, Kohli was leading the team when they registered the lowest score in their history and with Kohli gone the team management will be under pressure including the coaching staff and the players having nothing to loose and they have a really young team apart from a couple of players and they should play freely than to absorb the pressure and under perform .
Regarding the Shane Warne comment, Australian always perform well for the boxing day match and this will not be any different and India needs to show that in their performance and according to many experts the chances are slim. Even the odds makers have given Australia as a heavy favorite.

[JSRAW]

4 changes in the Indian squad, Australia going unchanged. From here Indian team performance can only go up as they just need to score 37 runs. 

[onrise]

With Kohli out, 2 new test debutants its will be a massive pressure on team India. Another burden of lowest test score will be back of their mind and to come back strongly from the last test will be a real challenge for team. As far as result of the test match is concerned not expecting any change in that with OZ might lead with 2-0. Shane Warne has jumped in and commented that OZ will blow away India in this Boxing day test match. It would be interesting to see how India responds to it.

The pressure depends upon the dressing room atmosphere, Kohli was leading the team when they registered the lowest score in their history and with Kohli gone the team management will be under pressure including the coaching staff and the players having nothing to loose and they have a really young team apart from a couple of players and they should play freely than to absorb the pressure and under perform .
Regarding the Shane Warne comment, Australian always perform well for the boxing day match and this will not be any different and India needs to show that in their performance and according to many experts the chances are slim. Even the odds makers have given Australia as a heavy favorite.

It is a game of experience when you are playing abroad and that too with one of the best team in the world. So taking youngster and playing when ideally it should have being the experienced lot taking on the OZ as its not in India. If OZ win the toss, they may choose to bat in anticipation of making big score in first innings and giving India follow on and then winning it by innings and few runs. Would be interesting how well India can defend this match.

[mersal]

Anyone noticed that Sunil Gavaskar made a statement about Kohli leaving the national duty for his wife's pregnancy which got refused for Nattu even when came as a net bowler! A lot of drama is going on Twitter about this but most people call this jealousy towards Kohli.