NZ Warm Up Match Thread

[foreignfield]

You are building a very impressive CV on this forum, hhm. I guess there are a few propaganda ministries out there who cherish such skills. Do they follow the cricket in Damascus?

[foreignfield]

Interesting that hhm takes so much delight in Zimbabwean players failing. I guess it shows that his posts are more about him than about genuine support of Zimbabwe.

Here's a thought. To hhm, failure is a only a promise of greater things to come in the distant future. Panyangara recorded figures of 3-101 and 1-120 in 2004, none of those wickets falling before the opposition had scored less than 399 runs (and naturally a second innings was not needed). So should we be lucky enough to see NZ score 700-odd for 3 decl., with Vitori taking 1-120, we will find hhm clamouring for his return to the side in approx. 2019.

[hhm]

Do they follow the cricket in Damascus?

Unfortunately they don't. Thankfully, I'm having a cup of tea with Bashar tomorrow morning, and I'll try and persuade him to build two state of the art grounds, so Pakistan can move their base there(instead of that ring of undemocratic elements of the Yanks - UAE, Bahrain, Saudi & Qatar). The ECB will be thrilled that they don't have to be battered on such shores anymore. While I'm at, I may be be able to convince him to signup to the ZCF too! Telling him BobbyM, Chavez & Mahmoud are regulars, should have him calling for his ipad at that instant! Wish me luck!

[foreignfield]

Do they follow the cricket in Damascus?

Unfortunately they don't. Thankfully, I'm having a cup of tea with Bashar tomorrow morning, and I'll try and persuade him to build two state of the art grounds, so Pakistan can move their base there(instead of that ring of undemocratic elements of the Yanks - UAE, Bahrain, Saudi & Qatar). The ECB will be thrilled that they don't have to be battered on such shores anymore. While I'm at, I may be be able to convince him to signup to the ZCF too! Telling him BobbyM, Chavez & Mahmoud are regulars, should have him calling for his ipad at that instant! Wish me luck!

But please explain to him that "batting" only refers to putting willow to leather. Or else I fear he will use the grounds for more sinister purposes.

[hhm]

Far from it eugene. A genuine assessment will reveal my love for Zim cricket. Unfortunately, I think the selectors are inept, biased & confounded, and some fans are clouded with emotion. It's not a celebration of the failures of our players, but rather the highlighting of reality. You don't want to admit it, but you know they will disappoint!

Common sense dictates that, in the absence of Mpofu&Vusi, a team of:
Duffin, Tino, Taylor, Matsi, Hami, Ewing(c), Taibu(wk), Elton, Panyangara, Rainsford, Price;
would do better on this tour, than:
Tino, Hami, Taylor(c), Taibu(c), Waller, Forster, Meth, Cremer, Shingi, Jarvis, Vitori

I will not throw in half-baked youngsters, while we still have excellent players, who are more mature, experienced and have age on their side (26-30), simply because we decide they are over the hill and inferior! All our future series will prove the opposite.

A mere glance at the allround struggles of the English Lions in Bangladesh (second string ban), comprising of the bright youngsters of English cricket, who are generally, also the best performing players in their County cricket, proves that this particular team of ours is in no way superior to Bangladesh, and would probably get whitewashed there. So all this joy over a Test return win against Bangladesh, clearly fooled many!

From what you're saying in your own naughty way foreignfield, let's face it, our bowlers simply don't have the pace to talk about. Jarvis, Vitori etc, simply can't generate and sustain the kind of pace that will trouble batsmen, so they need to hone other skills which will see them having more success with the new ball. So yes, in another 2-4 seasons, Vitori might be a more qualified bowler, deserving to strut his stuff at this stage. Right now he's no De Lange/Cummins, nor Philander(pace - class), just a lucky man aginst a lethargic Bangladesh!

[Flower power]

Far from it eugene.

A mere glance at the allround struggles of the English Lions in Bangladesh (second string ban), comprising of the bright youngsters of English cricket, who are generally, also the best performing players in their County cricket, proves that this particular team of ours is in no way superior to Bangladesh, and would probably get whitewashed there. So all this joy over a Test return win against Bangladesh, clearly fooled many!

English players have always struggled against spin in sub continent conditions .Their Test team has just proven that vs India and now Pakistan......
So using England Lions as a comparison will not do justice .

[The Saint]

I will not throw in half-baked youngsters, while we still have excellent players, who are more mature, experienced and have age on their side (26-30), simply because we decide they are over the hill and inferior!

Matsi, Chigs excellent? Now there's a charitable assessment if ever i heard one. How come Matiskinyeri never did much in over 100 O/D games if he was so good? And Chigumbura would have to be one of the most useless cricketers i've ever seen, a "all-rounder" who can't bat or bowl.

From what you're saying in your own naughty way foreignfield, let's face it, our bowlers simply don't have the pace to talk about. Jarvis, Vitori etc, simply can't generate and sustain the kind of pace that will trouble batsmen

Neither does Panyangara.

[jimbo]

I am not swayed by the payanagara argument, I mantain my stance in that if he was getting plenty of five wicket hauls as meth masakadza and chatara have been doing then surely he would be in the squad. he must rip it up at domestic level before he dons the zimbabwe shirt, there are plenty of others far more deserving than him of a call up at present..Lets not romanticise the notion that just because someone has experience that it translates to inspired performances because it doesnt...look at maragwede now if you want an example someone who has been round the block but has just not been firing of late