SIX!

Today's papers contain an abundance of Ashes prognostication and speculation about the composition of the Test team into the future.

Chappelli (still doesn't like Steve Waugh):

Ricky Ponting's best bet

BEFORE we do a King Charles I on Ricky Ponting and behead him as Australian captain, I want to ask one question: Judging from the table below, who is the bad skipper?

Doyen:

Richie Benaud backs Ricky Ponting

RICHIE Benaud has spun another one past the bat, turning 80 on October 6 without the media noticing.

Beefy is a goose. Oh, and he has a book to sell:

Botham's joy at Aussie bickering

IAN Botham has boasted that drama between Ricky Ponting and Shane Warne is increasing England's chances of winning the Ashes in Australia for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century.

Chuck Berry (appears to have made his mind up vis-a-vis Callum Ferguson):

Ashes: time for changes

AFTER losing the past three Tests and allowing the Ashes to slip through our fingers last year in England, it's time for change - no panic, just some tough decisions to rejuvenate the team.

Speaking of Ferguson. The push is on:

Ferguson gains support as a future Test captain

WHILE debate rages around the leadership credentials of Ricky Ponting, the man many have tipped as an Australian Test captain-in-waiting, Callum Ferguson, admits the thought is enticing.

Assorted pundits including, gasp, a chick:

Experts agree: it's time for Khawaja, Harris

IN-FORM New South Wales batsman Usman Khawaja and Queensland fast bowler Ryan Harris should be picked in the Australian squad, under Ricky Ponting's captaincy, to take on England, according to experts polled this week by The Sunday Age.

Comments

[m0nty]

Ah, it was Chris Tremlett who broke Anderson's rib.

[nick]

Bruce Buffer : Chriiiiiis 'the tremblleeeeer' Tremletttttttt.

Series opener abandoned due to rain.

No one cares

[Lou]

Will Swanton said in the Herald that North will be handling spin duties at the Gabba to allow for four seamers. Sounds fair enough, neither he nor Huss are going to be dropped anyway. It would always be a bowler that gets canned if anyone does.

I like Ferguson, I'd like to see him back in the ODI line-up, but the thing that always annoys me about players who are injured is that they go from being good players starting their career (in this case) to being the next saviour of the the Aussie middle order and future Superhero captain material.

And it's only cause they aren't playing.

Shit, give the bloke a chance. Classic media pumping someone's tyres. The sport's journalists are like teenage kids; so desperate for someone to hero-worship that they just make stuff up.

[Tony]

One thing all too often overlooked in this here transition period is injuries, which have decimated the ranks, especially the fast bowlers.

Hewy is right to put the blow torch Nielsen & co.

Granted, the transition period has coincided with an expansion in the game formats, which in turn has lead to an increased workload on the Playing Group, but the Team Management Group have so far proved singularly incapable of coping with wear & tear injuries.

(Or is the "increased workload" a pigment of my colourful imagination?)

[Hewy]

I don't buy this increased workload story. Playing cricket keeps you fit for cricket. It's the other extraneous stuff that can cause the problems. Perhaps that's what increased workload means - more games means more of Neilsons training!

The papercut was so named when he was on the fringe of Australia selection. As soon as he got a regular game and actually played cricket rather than just follow Neilson's coaching routines, he's been injury free.

[m0nty]

Can we bat Sthalekar at six?

[Tony]

Sthix, even.

[Lou]

Michael Hussey has some cheek even mentioning that he has had a couple of decisions go against him.

I hope he is giving Akmal a tithe of his CA contract as he may not have even had the chance to moan about his bad luck in India without him.

[Yobbo]

I don't buy this increased workload story. Playing cricket keeps you fit for cricket.

Training too hard and playing too much results in injuries. Especially to bowlers, because they are moving in ways that a non-bowler will never do. It's a lot different than just being an athelete who runs around a lot, because running around is a fairly typical activity that humans have evolved to do well. Rotating your arms above your head in the fashion of a fast bowler is not.