Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[Theones]

Fast bowling was always the weakest sector for Indian cricket. During the 90s, it was Javagal Srinath, who was the sole genuine fast bowler. After him, that position was taken up by Zaheer Khan, with a few medium pacers (Agarkar, Mohanty, Pathan.etc) for company. But then it changed. Look at the current bunch of Indian pacers. There are several genuine pace bowlers, including Shami, Ishant, Umesh, Siraj, Natarajan and Bumrah. India never had such a wide choice of selection as far as pace bowling is concerned.

India strength from day one was his batting not bowling. India has produced tons of great batsman but no remarkable name in the field of bowling. I am surprised you forget to name Venkatesh Prasad along with Javagal Srinath. One reason why India lack fast bowlers is because majority of there population is vegetarian and don't consume any type of meat (meat provides necessary protein required for energy).

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[Maidak]

Completely agree with your point brother. Kohli dont have legends in his team but he has done well and made the players in his team. Specially in fast bowling department, India never had good test fast bowlers in fast apart from zaheer khan in test match cricket but during his captaincy he groomed any fast bowlers like shami and bumrah and thats why india is able to win in overseas conditions.

Fast bowling was always the weakest sector for Indian cricket. During the 90s, it was Javagal Srinath, who was the sole genuine fast bowler. After him, that position was taken up by Zaheer Khan, with a few medium pacers (Agarkar, Mohanty, Pathan.etc) for company. But then it changed. Look at the current bunch of Indian pacers. There are several genuine pace bowlers, including Shami, Ishant, Umesh, Siraj, Natarajan and Bumrah. India never had such a wide choice of selection as far as pace bowling is concerned.

Yes, India's pace bowling has obviously improved and we have to give credit to the authority for that. Because I think we all remember Bumrah when he played IPL for the first time. He was nothing like the bowler that he is now. And now they also have a strong pipeline of pace bowlers.

[Iranus]

Fast bowling was always the weakest sector for Indian cricket. During the 90s, it was Javagal Srinath, who was the sole genuine fast bowler. After him, that position was taken up by Zaheer Khan, with a few medium pacers (Agarkar, Mohanty, Pathan.etc) for company. But then it changed. Look at the current bunch of Indian pacers. There are several genuine pace bowlers, including Shami, Ishant, Umesh, Siraj, Natarajan and Bumrah. India never had such a wide choice of selection as far as pace bowling is concerned.

India strength from day one was his batting not bowling. India has produced tons of great batsman but no remarkable name in the field of bowling. I am surprised you forget to name Venkatesh Prasad along with Javagal Srinath. One reason why India lack fast bowlers is because majority of there population is vegetarian and don't consume any type of meat (meat provides necessary protein required for energy).

I agree with you on this point. Indians are mostly vegetarian and that's why their hand-eye coordination is really good. And that is the reason why Indians produce so many great batsmen over the years. But when it comes to raw power I think India lacks behind. And the exact opposite has happened with Pakistan where people consume a lot of meat and they also produce a lot of fast bowlers over the years.

[GbitG]

Fast bowling was always the weakest sector for Indian cricket. During the 90s, it was Javagal Srinath, who was the sole genuine fast bowler. After him, that position was taken up by Zaheer Khan, with a few medium pacers (Agarkar, Mohanty, Pathan.etc) for company. But then it changed. Look at the current bunch of Indian pacers. There are several genuine pace bowlers, including Shami, Ishant, Umesh, Siraj, Natarajan and Bumrah. India never had such a wide choice of selection as far as pace bowling is concerned.

India strength from day one was his batting not bowling. India has produced tons of great batsman but no remarkable name in the field of bowling. I am surprised you forget to name Venkatesh Prasad along with Javagal Srinath. One reason why India lack fast bowlers is because majority of there population is vegetarian and don't consume any type of meat (meat provides necessary protein required for energy).

I agree with you on this point. Indians are mostly vegetarian and that's why their hand-eye coordination is really good. And that is the reason why Indians produce so many great batsmen over the years. But when it comes to raw power I think India lacks behind. And the exact opposite has happened with Pakistan where people consume a lot of meat and they also produce a lot of fast bowlers over the years.

Maybe your logic is right, but I am not feeling in this way because all Indians are not vegetarians, just 50% or 60% many communities are eating meat like Christians. Muslims and some good number of Tamil Nado it's all about system in long run Indian Board authorities were feeling comfortable with spin and batting tracks, but after good thing was happening as they were investing good in MRF Pace Academy now it's giving good dividend, and they have some good number of quality pacers specially after Sri Nath and Prasad due many youngsters doing good for them. Kapil Dev and then we have Zaheer Khan and now Ishant Sharma with over 300+ wickets which is great from them in difficult situations, but now they have some good number of fast bowlers those are doing good in IPL and domestic, so this is bringing big change for them with quality and balanced team.

[Sithara007]

I agree with you on this point. Indians are mostly vegetarian and that's why their hand-eye coordination is really good. And that is the reason why Indians produce so many great batsmen over the years. But when it comes to raw power I think India lacks behind. And the exact opposite has happened with Pakistan where people consume a lot of meat and they also produce a lot of fast bowlers over the years.

This is the most ridiculous logic I have ever heard. Pacers like Kapil Dev, Venkatesh Prasad and Javagal Srinath were vegetarians and Srinath regularly averaged around 90 mph during his prime days. Even among the current bunch of pacers, I guess Ishant Sharma is a vegetarian. So the diet hardly makes any difference, IMO. The main issue is the lack of support offered by the pitches in India. So the majority of the youngsters opt for spin. Good examples are those of Ashwin and Kumble, who are physically more suited for pace bowling.

[Iranus]

I agree with you on this point. Indians are mostly vegetarian and that's why their hand-eye coordination is really good. And that is the reason why Indians produce so many great batsmen over the years. But when it comes to raw power I think India lacks behind. And the exact opposite has happened with Pakistan where people consume a lot of meat and they also produce a lot of fast bowlers over the years.

This is the most ridiculous logic I have ever heard. Pacers like Kapil Dev, Venkatesh Prasad and Javagal Srinath were vegetarians and Srinath regularly averaged around 90 mph during his prime days. Even among the current bunch of pacers, I guess Ishant Sharma is a vegetarian. So the diet hardly makes any difference, IMO. The main issue is the lack of support offered by the pitches in India. So the majority of the youngsters opt for spin. Good examples are those of Ashwin and Kumble, who are physically more suited for pace bowling.

Actually, I don't think Anil Kumble and Ravichandran Ashwin are best suited for pace bowling. Yes, they are tall but not every tall bowler can be a pace bowler. And if we talk about science we all know that consuming meat gives you a lot more protein than only consuming vegetables. I am not saying this is the only reason but I am saying this could be a reason.

[CryptoBuds]

~
Indian Board authorities were feeling comfortable with spin and batting tracks, but after good thing was happening as they were investing good in MRF Pace Academy now it's giving good dividend, and they have some good number of quality pacers specially after Sri Nath and Prasad due many youngsters doing good for them. Kapil Dev and then we have Zaheer Khan and now Ishant Sharma with over 300+ wickets which is great from them in difficult situations, but now they have some good number of fast bowlers those are doing good in IPL and domestic, so this is bringing big change for them with quality and balanced team.

As the Indians are finding more and more pacers the team is looking much more balanced than before. Yes, India has had a few fast bowlers in the past but I am not really convinced that they were absolutely world-class. But I think, in recent times they have found some pace bowlers who can actually complete in that level.

[Sithara007]

Actually, I don't think Anil Kumble and Ravichandran Ashwin are best suited for pace bowling. Yes, they are tall but not every tall bowler can be a pace bowler. And if we talk about science we all know that consuming meat gives you a lot more protein than only consuming vegetables. I am not saying this is the only reason but I am saying this could be a reason.

The vegetarian diet in India is rich in protein, and I don't think that meat eaters are having an advantage in terms of physical power. I would still persist with my claim that a lot of younger players opt for spin bowling, because the grounds in India doesn't provide adequate support for seam/pace bowling. Only a few grounds like the one at Mohali support pace bowling, and that is the reason why the domestic teams that are based in these grounds have a good supply of pace bowlers.

[kro55]

Actually, I don't think Anil Kumble and Ravichandran Ashwin are best suited for pace bowling. Yes, they are tall but not every tall bowler can be a pace bowler. And if we talk about science we all know that consuming meat gives you a lot more protein than only consuming vegetables. I am not saying this is the only reason but I am saying this could be a reason.

The vegetarian diet in India is rich in protein, and I don't think that meat eaters are having an advantage in terms of physical power. I would still persist with my claim that a lot of younger players opt for spin bowling, because the grounds in India doesn't provide adequate support for seam/pace bowling. Only a few grounds like the one at Mohali support pace bowling, and that is the reason why the domestic teams that are based in these grounds have a good supply of pace bowlers.

I have to add one more thing here that a lot of kids are interested in fast bowling from their childhood. But what most often ends up happening is they don't get good enough ground or good coaching as the coaches most often focus on the well-performing ones. And smoking and drug addiction is also a big cause why a lot of young players lose their pace.

[galambo]

Maybe your logic is right, but I am not feeling in this way because all Indians are not vegetarians, just 50% or 60% many communities are eating meat like Christians. Muslims and some good number of Tamil Nado it's all about system in long run Indian Board authorities were feeling comfortable with spin and batting tracks, but after good thing was happening as they were investing good in MRF Pace Academy now it's giving good dividend, and they have some good number of quality pacers specially after Sri Nath and Prasad due many youngsters doing good for them. Kapil Dev and then we have Zaheer Khan and now Ishant Sharma with over 300+ wickets which is great from them in difficult situations, but now they have some good number of fast bowlers those are doing good in IPL and domestic, so this is bringing big change for them with quality and balanced team.

One reason why Indian batting failed specially against Pakistan in UAE is because they used to play fast bowlers with speed of 120 to 130 in IPL but Pakistani pace bowlers used to bowl over 140. This league structure is not good for cricket in the long run, player who can perform good in test or ODI is real cricketer.

[Sithara007]

One reason why Indian batting failed specially against Pakistan in UAE is because they used to play fast bowlers with speed of 120 to 130 in IPL but Pakistani pace bowlers used to bowl over 140. This league structure is not good for cricket in the long run, player who can perform good in test or ODI is real cricketer.

Well.. that's strange. In the IPL we have tearaway pacers like Kyle Jamieson, Lockie Ferguson and Anrich Nortje. They normally bowl within the 140-150 kmph range. On top of that, the pitches in the UAE were not very supportive of the pace bowling. The scoring rate plummeted during the 7-15 overs, and during this time it was the medium pacers and spinners who dominated the bowling attack. The top wicket takers were two spinners - Wanindu Hasaranga and Adam Zampa, followed by Trent Boult.

[pakhitheboss]

Maybe your logic is right, but I am not feeling in this way because all Indians are not vegetarians, just 50% or 60% many communities are eating meat like Christians. Muslims and some good number of Tamil Nado it's all about system in long run Indian Board authorities were feeling comfortable with spin and batting tracks, but after good thing was happening as they were investing good in MRF Pace Academy now it's giving good dividend, and they have some good number of quality pacers specially after Sri Nath and Prasad due many youngsters doing good for them. Kapil Dev and then we have Zaheer Khan and now Ishant Sharma with over 300+ wickets which is great from them in difficult situations, but now they have some good number of fast bowlers those are doing good in IPL and domestic, so this is bringing big change for them with quality and balanced team.

One reason why Indian batting failed specially against Pakistan in UAE is because they used to play fast bowlers with speed of 120 to 130 in IPL but Pakistani pace bowlers used to bowl over 140. This league structure is not good for cricket in the long run, player who can perform good in test or ODI is real cricketer.

One thing I can agree with you is that T20 format is not real cricket. Your main aim as a batter is to hit the ball out of the ground and as a baller is to take a wicket. ODI and Test cricket require a lot of skills and patience and that is why those who love cricket as a game are always watching these matches. I do not think Pakistani balling was a problem, the biggest problem was losing the toss.

[Juggy777]

One reason why Indian batting failed specially against Pakistan in UAE is because they used to play fast bowlers with speed of 120 to 130 in IPL but Pakistani pace bowlers used to bowl over 140. This league structure is not good for cricket in the long run, player who can perform good in test or ODI is real cricketer.

Well.. that's strange. In the IPL we have tearaway pacers like Kyle Jamieson, Lockie Ferguson and Anrich Nortje. They normally bowl within the 140-150 kmph range. On top of that, the pitches in the UAE were not very supportive of the pace bowling. The scoring rate plummeted during the 7-15 overs, and during this time it was the medium pacers and spinners who dominated the bowling attack. The top wicket takers were two spinners - Wanindu Hasaranga and Adam Zampa, followed by Trent Boult.

@galambo the real reason was fatigue the Indian player’s were tired, and instead of opting out of the tournament or taking a break from IPL to be fit they decided to turn up and put in a horrible show.

Furthermore the team that played Pakistan could easily play any pace bowler if they were fully fit, but sadly they weren’t hence they lost the match, but going ahead in future test matches I’m sure they’ll do well against any pace bowler.

[og kush420]

@galambo the real reason was fatigue the Indian player’s were tired, and instead of opting out of the tournament or taking a break from IPL to be fit they decided to turn up and put in a horrible show.

Furthermore the team that played Pakistan could easily play any pace bowler if they were fully fit, but sadly they weren’t hence they lost the match, but going ahead in future test matches I’m sure they’ll do well against any pace bowler.

Before the match IPL was declared as strength of Indian team (that India has advantage since they have just played IPL in UAE) while after the match same IPL was declared the reason of India losing the game. Pakistan was just a better side then India on that day and they out classed India, better accept this fact rather then hiding your loss behind such lame reasons.

[BALIK]

Maybe your logic is right, but I am not feeling in this way because all Indians are not vegetarians, just 50% or 60% many communities are eating meat like Christians. Muslims and some good number of Tamil Nado it's all about system in long run Indian Board authorities were feeling comfortable with spin and batting tracks, but after good thing was happening as they were investing good in MRF Pace Academy now it's giving good dividend, and they have some good number of quality pacers specially after Sri Nath and Prasad due many youngsters doing good for them. Kapil Dev and then we have Zaheer Khan and now Ishant Sharma with over 300+ wickets which is great from them in difficult situations, but now they have some good number of fast bowlers those are doing good in IPL and domestic, so this is bringing big change for them with quality and balanced team.

One reason why Indian batting failed specially against Pakistan in UAE is because they used to play fast bowlers with speed of 120 to 130 in IPL but Pakistani pace bowlers used to bowl over 140. This league structure is not good for cricket in the long run, player who can perform good in test or ODI is real cricketer.

One thing I can agree with you is that T20 format is not real cricket. Your main aim as a batter is to hit the ball out of the ground and as a baller is to take a wicket. ODI and Test cricket require a lot of skills and patience and that is why those who love cricket as a game are always watching these matches. I do not think Pakistani balling was a problem, the biggest problem was losing the toss.

We cannot say that t20 is not real while there are t20 world cups happening but this is true that it requires very less skills than the other two formats of cricket. And in the semis, if Pakistan won the toss I have no doubt that they would have won the match too.

[Theones]

We cannot say that t20 is not real while there are t20 world cups happening but this is true that it requires very less skills than the other two formats of cricket. And in the semis, if Pakistan won the toss I have no doubt that they would have won the match too.

T20 is more about entertainment then cricket. Just like in baseball you have to hit every ball same is the case with T20 cricket. There are bowlers wh have very good bowling record in T20 but have very low wicket taking record in Test. Pakistan despite losing toss in the semis, gave Australia a tough fight. Otherwise team batting second have won quite easily.

[CryptoBuds]

One reason why Indian batting failed specially against Pakistan in UAE is because they used to play fast bowlers with speed of 120 to 130 in IPL but Pakistani pace bowlers used to bowl over 140. This league structure is not good for cricket in the long run, player who can perform good in test or ODI is real cricketer.

Well.. that's strange. In the IPL we have tearaway pacers like Kyle Jamieson, Lockie Ferguson and Anrich Nortje. They normally bowl within the 140-150 kmph range. On top of that, the pitches in the UAE were not very supportive of the pace bowling. The scoring rate plummeted during the 7-15 overs, and during this time it was the medium pacers and spinners who dominated the bowling attack. The top wicket takers were two spinners - Wanindu Hasaranga and Adam Zampa, followed by Trent Boult.
[Snip image]

^ Actually, I think the pitches were a little bit predictable and not very healthy for good cricket. Because most of the time the team winning the test and choosing to feel first was winning and the first bowlers got very little out of the pitches. And cricket is a game wherein my opinion these are should have more wickets because they are the impact bowlers. But like spinners should also have more wickets because now it is it's the job of a leg spinner to take wickets not to check runs.

[Sithara007]

LOL.. After the India vs England test at the Oval (2nd September), we didn't had a single test match for almost three months. Did anyone noticed this? Just proves once again that test format is dying. There is interest in test cricket only when the pig-3 sides are playing. No one really cares when smaller teams like West Indies or Sri Lanka plays test cricket. Anyway, Sri Lanka will be hosting West Indies for another meaningless bilateral tour. The first test is scheduled for 21st November. Apart from Jason Holder, there is hardly any experienced player in the Windies squad.

[JSRAW]

LOL.. After the India vs England test at the Oval (2nd September), we didn't had a single test match for almost three months. Did anyone noticed this? Just proves once again that test format is dying. There is interest in test cricket only when the pig-3 sides are playing. No one really cares when smaller teams like West Indies or Sri Lanka plays test cricket. Anyway, Sri Lanka will be hosting West Indies for another meaningless bilateral tour. The first test is scheduled for 21st November. Apart from Jason Holder, there is hardly any experienced player in the Windies squad.

Umm what are you talking about bhai? T-20 WC just finished so it understandable. WTC schedule is about to kick in anyway and plenty of test series are lined up for the next few months.  

SL vs WI (21 Nov)
Ind vs NZ (25 Nov)
Ban vs Pak (26 Nov)
Aus vs Eng  (8 Dec)
SA vs Ind ( 17 Dec)

Edit

Bloody hell.... Sexting scandal, Paine is gone. Surprisingly it happened in 2017-18-ish but CA still handed him captaincy after Sand paper gate.

BREAKING: Tim Paine resigns as sexting scandal engulfs Aussie Test captain

Tim Paine has stood down as Australia captain after being investigated by Cricket Australia over sending a co-worker an explicit image of himself along with a string of lewd messages.

The 36-year-old was promoted to captain following the ball tampering scandal in South Africa in 2018 but has resigned in shame following the latest scandal to rock Australian cricket.

In a statement just released, Paine has told Cricket Australia that he will quit as captain, effective immediately.

Cricket Australia chairman Richard Freudenstein said: “Tim felt it was in the best interests of his family and Australian cricket to take this decision to step down as captain.

“The Board has accepted Tim’s resignation and will now work through a process with the National Selection Panel of identifying and appointing a new captain.”

According to the Herald Sun, the messages date back to the eve and the morning of the first Ashes Test at the Gabba in 2017.

They report that while some of the messages were too explicit to publish, the exchange included Paine suggesting to the woman: “Will you want to taste my *** ?? F*** me, I’m seriously hard.”

The messages also included what was described in the texts as a “dick pic”.

In a correspondence with Australia Cricket authorities in June 2018, the woman claimed she was offended by “Mr Paine’s sexually explicit, unwelcome and unsolicited photograph of his genitals in addition to the graphic sexual comments”.

Cricket Australia reportedly became aware of the messages as long ago as March 2018 after letter of complaint were sent to Cricket Australia and to Cricket Tasmania - the latter of which she worked at before resigning in 2017.

It is also reported that complaints were made to the Australian Human Rights Commission regarding alleged sexual harrassment in releation to the exchange.

[Iranus]

the real reason was fatigue the Indian player’s were tired, and instead of opting out of the tournament or taking a break from IPL to be fit they decided to turn up and put in a horrible show.
Furthermore the team that played Pakistan could easily play any pace bowler if they were fully fit, but sadly they weren’t hence they lost the match, but going ahead in future test matches I’m sure they’ll do well against any pace bowler.

Well, if you chase money then there are some consequences to be faced and the Indians did face those consequences. But yes Indians have really good batsmen so I don't think that even classy pace bowling should be too much of a problem for them.