A year ago things were so bright on the test front. Having beaten Australia and England away. Not to mention a very unlucky drawn series in India. Finally top of the world. Only, it seems we didn't know what to do once there. Being so focused on getting to number 1, its as if once we achieved that lofty goal we said to ourselves "job done".
Say what you want about the Aussies but they ruthlessly pressed their foot down on the rest of the cricketing world for over a decade. They never seemed to think to themselves that they could now ease up.
The word "consistency" was heralded as a big reason why we did so well in 2008. But I wonder now if its that same consistency of selection that is partly to blame for players being too complacent. I mean, Ntini is averaging 57 this year and its clear that he just doesn't have that zip anymore. Yet, Mickey still seems to be behind him - saying today that one should give "iconic players longer to perform because they have earned it and deserve it".
Can you imagine and Aussie selector saying that? Those guys are ruthless. If you perform poorly, cheers buddy.
Thankfully, we're now in a position where we're "chasers" again. It's going to make for an interesting Newlands test match, that's for sure.
Friday, January 1, 2010
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1 comments:
To stop being chasers, you suggest they follow Australia!
Let's not try and find oversimplified reasons for the failure of SA ... remember nothing much changed between the two tests - between the one that SA almost won and the one that they lost.
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