Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[ZAINmalik75]

Zimbabwe Vs Afghanistan
Zimbabwe 1st inn 586/10
Afghanistan 1st inn 11/1 (continuing)

Zimbabwe were all out for 586 and Afghanistan were batting in their first innings where Afghanistan lost a wicket early on. An analysis of Zimbabwe's batting reveals that three batsmen have scored a century and one batsman has scored a half-century, so this is undoubtedly a batting-friendly pitch. But if Zimbabwe can bowl well then positive results can come for Zimbabwe.

To be honest Afghanistan were looking a strong opponent and everyone except ordinary performance from them because compared to them thier opponent are quite weak. but surprisingly things going beyond our expectations and out of no where Zimbabwen were on fire and scored more than 500 in thier first inning against quality bowlers of Afghanistan. while on the other hand fan expect same kind of performance from them in return, but unfortunately thier main consistent performer Atal got departure on very first phase of thier innings alongside with his partner Malik. Now looking to trail and their batter situation I think they will hardly scored 250 around which I don't think will help them to tackle the horrible defeat

[Publictalk792]

Corbin Bosch collected 18 runs partnered with Markram, 28 runs partnership with Rabada, 35 runs partnership with Dane Peterson. So it can be said without a doubt that he is the hero for being the only batsman to score 301 runs for South Africa.

In the condition of Pakistan's second innings, Pakistan will not be able to give a lead of many runs. Moreover, Pakistan is trailing by 2 runs so far. Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel are unbeaten so if it is possible to form a long partnership between them then maybe Pakistan can give some runs lead. But it is certain that Pakistan will not win this match as they were all out for 211 runs in the first innings so it seems unlikely that they will score more than that in the second innings.

You make strong point that Corbin Bosch was star of South Africa innings his important partnerships with Markram and Rabada and Dane Peterson. His 301 runs were very important in setting competitive score. About Pakistan chances you are correct that they have tough task ahead. Since they are only 2 runs behind they still have chance to take small lead if Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel can work together well. However considering they only scored 211 runs in their first innings it is unlikely they will score much higher in their second innings making it hard for them to win match.

[Sithara007]

The second new ball has been taken and India just need 14 more runs to avoid the follow on. Once again, the lower order batsmen have rescued India from a possible innings defeat. Nitish Kumar Reddy is batting on 44, while Washington Sundar has made 18 till now. And before that, Rishabh Pant made a few runs down the order. If India can get Australia's lead down to less than 150, then they may still have a slight chance in this match. But we need to remember that the remaining batsmen are all genuine tailenders - Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. 

[fuguebtc]

The second new ball has been taken and India just need 14 more runs to avoid the follow on. Once again, the lower order batsmen have rescued India from a possible innings defeat. Nitish Kumar Reddy is batting on 44, while Washington Sundar has made 18 till now. And before that, Rishabh Pant made a few runs down the order. If India can get Australia's lead down to less than 150, then they may still have a slight chance in this match. But we need to remember that the remaining batsmen are all genuine tailenders - Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. 

Australia can score 474 runs in their first innings, but India will not be able to score 400 in their first innings. India is far behind. The batting of Indian batsmen is erratic like in the previous matches. We have not seen any better batting than Kohli and Rohit. At the same time, KL Rahul could not play a big innings. Jaiswal played a wonderful innings of 82 runs only. Also, Nitish Reddy is unbeaten with 47 runs.

India is now 268 runs after losing 7 wickets. Nitish Reddy and Washington Sundar are now at the crease. India is still behind by a big margin of 206 runs. Since India has already lost 7 wickets. So I don't think this team will be able to score another 200+ runs. Australia will be able to take a big lead at the end of the first innings. Scott Boland has bowled very well. Scott Boland has taken three wickets for 37 runs in 17 overs.

[minairia3]

Zimbabwe Vs Afghanistan
Zimbabwe 1st inn 586/10
Afghanistan 1st inn 11/1 (continuing)

Zimbabwe were all out for 586 and Afghanistan were batting in their first innings where Afghanistan lost a wicket early on. An analysis of Zimbabwe's batting reveals that three batsmen have scored a century and one batsman has scored a half-century, so this is undoubtedly a batting-friendly pitch. But if Zimbabwe can bowl well then positive results can come for Zimbabwe.

To be honest Afghanistan were looking a strong opponent and everyone except ordinary performance from them because compared to them thier opponent are quite weak. but surprisingly things going beyond our expectations and out of no where Zimbabwen were on fire and scored more than 500 in thier first inning against quality bowlers of Afghanistan. while on the other hand fan expect same kind of performance from them in return, but unfortunately thier main consistent performer Atal got departure on very first phase of thier innings alongside with his partner Malik. Now looking to trail and their batter situation I think they will hardly scored 250 around which I don't think will help them to tackle the horrible defeat

It was unimaginable that Zimbabwe's batsmen would score more than 500 against Afghanistan's bowlers. Because a few days ago we saw that Zimbabwe's batsmen batted very badly in the ODI format match. Zimbabwe's batsmen could not make any advantage against Afghanistan's bowlers. But Zimbabwe played brilliantly in the first Test match. Zimbabwe scored three centuries. Sean Williams was able to score 154 runs. Also, Brian Bennett was unbeaten on 110 runs. Afghanistan is also able to bat quite well. If Afghanistan can bat well, this match is most likely to be drawn.

[Sithara007]

India has avoided the follow on, as once again the lower order scored much more runs for India, when compared to the top-order. The top-order (consisting of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli) made a total of 145 runs, while the middle order (Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar) have so far made a total of 128 runs (and they are still adding runs out there). For the 5th test, the Indian selectors need to make some tough choices. IMO, they need to drop not only Rohit and Virat, but also Mohammed Siraj as well. 
 

[Vaskiy]

The second new ball has been taken and India just need 14 more runs to avoid the follow on. Once again, the lower order batsmen have rescued India from a possible innings defeat. Nitish Kumar Reddy is batting on 44, while Washington Sundar has made 18 till now. And before that, Rishabh Pant made a few runs down the order. If India can get Australia's lead down to less than 150, then they may still have a slight chance in this match. But we need to remember that the remaining batsmen are all genuine tailenders - Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj.  

Australia can score 474 runs in their first innings, but India will not be able to score 400 in their first innings. India is far behind. The batting of Indian batsmen is erratic like in the previous matches. We have not seen any better batting than Kohli and Rohit. At the same time, KL Rahul could not play a big innings. Jaiswal played a wonderful innings of 82 runs only. Also, Nitish Reddy is unbeaten with 47 runs.

India is now 268 runs after losing 7 wickets. Nitish Reddy and Washington Sundar are now at the crease. India is still behind by a big margin of 206 runs. Since India has already lost 7 wickets. So I don't think this team will be able to score another 200+ runs. Australia will be able to take a big lead at the end of the first innings. Scott Boland has bowled very well. Scott Boland has taken three wickets for 37 runs in 17 overs.

At least India needs to score 350+ runs. Other than Rohit Sharma and Akash Deep, every player has contributed to the score. In today's innings, Jadeja was expected to stand wicket and score runs. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are building a good partnership. Scott Boland's bowling continues the spell as he's believed to be the one to break the partnership. A century from Nitish Kumar Reddy (60*) and a half-century from Washington Sundar (30*) could give confidence and reach 350+ runs.

[Iranus]

India has avoided the follow on, as once again the lower order scored much more runs for India, when compared to the top-order. The top-order (consisting of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli) made a total of 145 runs, while the middle order (Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar) have so far made a total of 128 runs (and they are still adding runs out there). For the 5th test, the Indian selectors need to make some tough choices. IMO, they need to drop not only Rohit and Virat, but also Mohammed Siraj as well. 

Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are batting very responsibly. As a result, India's first innings total is getting longer. India is moving towards a big total. However, India's top order players needed to bat well. If the top order could bat well, it would have been easy for India to collect more than 400. Now if India wants to collect 400+, both Reddy and Washington will have to score centuries.

India's total is now 298 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. India has already collected 77 runs from the Reddy-Sundar pair. Reddy has collected 66 runs and Sundar is unbeaten on 33 runs. However, India is still behind Australia by a big margin of 176 runs. Except for Yashasvi Jaiswal, no other batsman in India's top order can bat well.

[Sithara007]

Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are batting very responsibly. As a result, India's first innings total is getting longer. India is moving towards a big total. However, India's top order players needed to bat well. If the top order could bat well, it would have been easy for India to collect more than 400. Now if India wants to collect 400+, both Reddy and Washington will have to score centuries.

India's total is now 298 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. India has already collected 77 runs from the Reddy-Sundar pair. Reddy has collected 66 runs and Sundar is unbeaten on 33 runs. However, India is still behind Australia by a big margin of 176 runs. Except for Yashasvi Jaiswal, no other batsman in India's top order can bat well.

The biggest joke is that the team management was actually planning to drop Nitish Kumar Reddy, so that they can include one of Kohli's favorites (Washington Sundar). In the end, Sundar replaced Shubman Gill. Imagine how many runs India could have made, if Reddy was not there in the playing XI. Sundar has provided excellent support BTW. All that said, I would have picked Ravichandran Ashwin over Washington Sundar any time of the day. The partnership between Reddy and Sundar has now reached triple digits, and this is proving to be a big headache for the Australian captain.

[dezoel]

After using one and the half day finally the Zimbabwe team has been all out and their innings comes to an end. Who would have thought that they would get 583 in the first innings of this test. Three centuries by the Zimbabwe batsmen in an innings, i do not know when was the last time Zimbabwe made three or more centuries in a test innings.

Not only this, when the Zimbabwe come to bowl they made sure that Afghanistan do not get away with a good start. Blessing Muzarabani and Trevor Gwandu took one wicket each and also they bowl with good length. They need to continue to take wickets and hope Afghanistan may be out before 383 runs (200 runs less than the Zimbabwe score) so they can have a follow-on enforced.

Matches like these and performance like this from Afghanistan is surely not acceptable in test format as their mostly well renewed players want more money and want to play franchise cricket and T20I and ODI just because of this we need ICC rethink about their decisions as they are granted test status to countries like these Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland need to be out of test format with immediate effect.

We have the weakest Zimbabwe batting side score their highest ever test score in this test match with a player who is having 7th number in batting and his last three ODI innings having score of 0, 0, 9 score century which happened just because of shameful bowling from Afghanistan as four bowlers conceded centuries during their bowling.

Brian Bennett hits century on 110 with the help of 4 sixes on 124 balls which is main feature of the day and at the end of second day we have Afghanistan on 95 for 2.

[Minecache]

Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are batting very responsibly. As a result, India's first innings total is getting longer. India is moving towards a big total. However, India's top order players needed to bat well. If the top order could bat well, it would have been easy for India to collect more than 400. Now if India wants to collect 400+, both Reddy and Washington will have to score centuries.

India's total is now 298 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. India has already collected 77 runs from the Reddy-Sundar pair. Reddy has collected 66 runs and Sundar is unbeaten on 33 runs. However, India is still behind Australia by a big margin of 176 runs. Except for Yashasvi Jaiswal, no other batsman in India's top order can bat well.

The biggest joke is that the team management was actually planning to drop Nitish Kumar Reddy, so that they can include one of Kohli's favorites (Washington Sundar). In the end, Sundar replaced Shubman Gill. Imagine how many runs India could have made, if Reddy was not there in the playing XI. Sundar has provided excellent support BTW. All that said, I would have picked Ravichandran Ashwin over Washington Sundar any time of the day. The partnership between Reddy and Sundar has now reached triple digits, and this is proving to be a big headache for the Australian captain.

If Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar had not batted responsibly, India would have probably lost all their wickets within 260-280. Due to the responsible batting of these two lower order batsmen, India is in a very good position at the moment. India lost their seventh wicket for 221 runs. And now India's total is 326 runs. India has already collected 100+ runs from this pair.

Nitish Kumar Reddy is unbeaten on 85 runs and Washington Sundar has collected 40 runs. India is still 148 runs behind Australia. However, it seems that India will be able to collect at least 70-90 runs easily.

[Sithara007]

This particular match seems to be a repeat of the 3rd test (Brisbane). Back then, India avoided follow on thanks to some high quality lower order batting from Ravindra Jadeja, well supported by a fighting 31 from Akash Deep towards the end. And this deflated the morale of Australia and when they came out to bat, the batsmen fell like a peck of cards. Australia ended their second innings at 89/7, and the continued rain interruptions made sure that the match will end up as a draw. 

[Out of mind]

India have lost 7 important wickets to achieve the target of 474 runs. They still need 136 runs to achieve the target given by Australia, at this moment Australia will try hard to bowl India out. If India loses their wickets at this moment, then they will definitely fail to achieve their target in this match. If the partnership of Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar breaks at this moment, then India will be under a lot of pressure. And Australia is bowling brilliantly to break this pair at this moment, but they are batting patiently.

[fuguebtc]

The second new ball has been taken and India just need 14 more runs to avoid the follow on. Once again, the lower order batsmen have rescued India from a possible innings defeat. Nitish Kumar Reddy is batting on 44, while Washington Sundar has made 18 till now. And before that, Rishabh Pant made a few runs down the order. If India can get Australia's lead down to less than 150, then they may still have a slight chance in this match. But we need to remember that the remaining batsmen are all genuine tailenders - Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj.  

Australia can score 474 runs in their first innings, but India will not be able to score 400 in their first innings. India is far behind. The batting of Indian batsmen is erratic like in the previous matches. We have not seen any better batting than Kohli and Rohit. At the same time, KL Rahul could not play a big innings. Jaiswal played a wonderful innings of 82 runs only. Also, Nitish Reddy is unbeaten with 47 runs.

India is now 268 runs after losing 7 wickets. Nitish Reddy and Washington Sundar are now at the crease. India is still behind by a big margin of 206 runs. Since India has already lost 7 wickets. So I don't think this team will be able to score another 200+ runs. Australia will be able to take a big lead at the end of the first innings. Scott Boland has bowled very well. Scott Boland has taken three wickets for 37 runs in 17 overs.

At least India needs to score 350+ runs. Other than Rohit Sharma and Akash Deep, every player has contributed to the score. In today's innings, Jadeja was expected to stand wicket and score runs. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are building a good partnership. Scott Boland's bowling continues the spell as he's believed to be the one to break the partnership. A century from Nitish Kumar Reddy (60*) and a half-century from Washington Sundar (30*) could give confidence and reach 350+ runs.

Washington Sundar scored 50 runs off 152 balls. Nitish Kumar scored 94 runs off 157 balls. And India's total is 345 runs. These two Indian batsmen are batting excellently. Honestly, I did not expect such a great batting from India's lower order. India's top order has not been able to bat well against Australian bowlers. I thought that India would probably lose all their wickets before 300. But due to the excellent batting of Nitish Reddy and Washington Sundar, India is moving towards a big total.

Australian bowlers are trying their best to break this pair. But Australia is not succeeding. The Australian captain has changed the bowlers several times. But even then Australia is not able to take these two wickets. We are not seeing good bowling from Nathan Lyon today.

[Sithara007]

Washington Sundar finally got out, but not before frustrating the Australians long enough. India is now down to the tail, with Jasprit Bumrah joining Nitish Kumar Reddy at the crease. Mohammed Siraj will be batting at no.11. Indians would like to cut Australia's lead down to double digits. And that target is achievable, as they are currently trailing by 124 runs. Reddy is 99 not out at the moment, and a century at Melbourne, that too against Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins will be very special for him.

[Marvell1]

Washington Sundar finally got out, but not before frustrating the Australians long enough. India is now down to the tail, with Jasprit Bumrah joining Nitish Kumar Reddy at the crease. Mohammed Siraj will be batting at no.11. Indians would like to cut Australia's lead down to double digits. And that target is achievable, as they are currently trailing by 124 runs. Reddy is 99 not out at the moment, and a century at Melbourne, that too against Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins will be very special for him.

Washington Sundar returned to the dressing room after scoring 50 runs from 162 balls. Washington Sundar gave a wonderful innings to the Indian fans. With the help of Washington Sundar, Nitish Reddy also played well and is moving towards a century. Nitish Kumar Reddy is now unbeaten on 99 runs. Despite not being able to play a big innings, Washington Sundar was able to survive at the crease for a long time.

After losing Washington Sundar's wicket, India quickly lost Bumrah's wicket. India lost its eighth wicket for 348 runs and its ninth wicket for 350 runs. Now batting. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Mohammed Siraj. India is now trailing by 124 runs. If India can play well in the second innings, then India has a great chance of winning the match.

[libert19]

Both NK Reddy and Washington Sundar played good, I would give more credit to Reddy though, because he was calm and composed to Sundar but that does not nullify Sundar's contributions.

It was thrilling cinema like stuff to see whether NK Reddy were going to make century or not, and I am glad it was positive outcome in the end, great shot to reach the hundred as well.

Entertaining day overall.

[noormcs5]

India has avoided the follow on, as once again the lower order scored much more runs for India, when compared to the top-order. The top-order (consisting of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli) made a total of 145 runs, while the middle order (Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar) have so far made a total of 128 runs (and they are still adding runs out there). For the 5th test, the Indian selectors need to make some tough choices. IMO, they need to drop not only Rohit and Virat, but also Mohammed Siraj as well.  
 

When India saved the follow-on, they saved half the test match and by the end of the day they are trailing by 116 runs. I don't say that India are completely out of trouble but they still have something to breathe now. If they bowl well in the 2nd innings, and bat well too, they can surely draw the match, if they can't win it.



After Yashasvi Jaiswal made 82, we did not see any other batsmen settle down like him but then came Nitish Kumar Reddy. He made 105 runs and is still battling the innings not out. I don't know how long can he survive further but now the match for India is wide open and they need to play better in the 2nd innings.

[CryptoBuds]

After Yashasvi Jaiswal made 82, we did not see any other batsmen settle down like him but then came Nitish Kumar Reddy. He made 105 runs and is still battling the innings not out. I don't know how long can he survive further but now the match for India is wide open and they need to play better in the 2nd innings.

Except Jaiswal, India's top order and middle order batsmen batted very badly. No batsman could stay at the crease for long. Experienced batsmen like Rohit, Rahul and Kohli failed to bat well. And completely unexpectedly, Nitish Kumar Reddy surprised everyone with a brilliant batting performance.

Nitish Kumar is still unbeaten on 105 runs from 176 balls. This was a much-needed innings. Also, Washington Sundar's innings of 50 runs from 162 balls was very much needed. If Washington Sundar had not provided adequate support to Nitish Reddy, Nitish would not have been able to score a century. The excellent batting of this pair changed the entire scenario of the match. At the end of the third day, India was able to score 358 runs for the loss of 9 wickets.

[Mahdirakib]

It was thrilling cinema like stuff to see whether NK Reddy were going to make century or not, and I am glad it was positive outcome in the end, great shot to reach the hundred as well.

I was thinking the same thing. Siraj was on the focus of everyone after the fall of Bumrah's wicket. Anyway, that's a well deserved century for Nitish Reddy. Draw is the most possible outcome of this match now. Australia had made a flat pitch, I'm not expecting any dramatic moves on the final two days of the match. The result could have been in favour of Australia though, but the lower order batsmen of India has saved them again.