SECOND TEST: St GEORGE'S PARK

South Africa have claimed the moral high ground, unaware of the implicit contradiction that when you claim the moral high ground, you lose the moral high ground.

Woof. Woof.

Comments

[Carrot]

Yet another Clarke Time dismissal.

[Carrot]

All-"coloured" attack from South Africa. Not the most well-liked word, but regularly used by them, so....

You wonder whether a time will come when the whole team is. Apparently there's a feeling that the white guys make better batsmen but the black Africans make better bowlers, which for whatever reason has been borne out in the teams they've fielded. I can remember one black guy in the middle order recently, and a keeper a few years earlier, but that was about it.

This stuff really shouldn't matter of course, but you could argue that for a country with a history like South Africa's that it probably matters more than other places. I might not really want to be a young white guy with ambitions to play first-class and international cricket in South Africa at the moment with all the quotas and whatnot, but I wouldn't have wanted to be a young black guy at any other stage of their country's history with ambitions to be anything at all. Balancing that artificially is always going to be difficult, but you have to try to do it somehow.

[Carrot]

OK Steve Smith, impress me.

[SaggyGreen]

I’m watching Foxtel with the volume down. Wish I could here the Afrikaans commentary.
It’s such a pretty language.

[Carrot]

Very good player, Tim Paine. It makes you wonder what might have been circa 2010/11/12 when he was out with that finger. That was definitely a low ebb for Australian cricket and we could have done with him then.

[Carrot]

243. It's shit, but it's not THAT shit. Yet again we have our lower-order to thank for that. I have always found good lower-order batting to be a sign of a side in a decent place. That what was we missed in some of those bad years, too.

[I am and will always be Not Trampis]

Carrot that's a black mark against you!!

Player behaviour is unacceptable.

Umpires and the CAPTAINS have to change otherwise get rid of them!

This is a much better pitch than the useless trash from the first test IMHO

[Carrot]

I assume that's just a very bad pun, but feel free to explain if it's not....

I can understand onfield behaviour coming under the microscope..... sort of. It's tedious, but it's one of those things where a line needs to be drawn somewhere. It's one of those things where legislating ruins freakin' everything though, and turns everything into a bureaucratic nonsense. "Calm down boys, let's play some cricket" should be all that's necessary. Instead we get "Oh my God, Rabada's shoulder brushed Smith's in his celebration! Bring me my smelling salts, the Players' Code of Behaviour, a QC, the coach, captain and Union Representative, we must hold a trial immediately!!" It's all very, very boring.

The De Kock/Warner thing is a nonsense, though. Two players had an argument. OFF the field. So what. We shouldn't even be hearing about it.

[Pathard]

Really enjoying Test.

Feel that Ozzie SJWs are getting set to torch.

News Ltd scum-hacks don't know which side to take.

No mention of land confiscations of White Farmers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJp27QMR2KU

[Pathard]

South Africans have just had announced their farmers will have their land confiscated without recompense and the cricket tour continues with the only doubt upon it everyone suddenly wondering hoe many cocks were on Warner's mrs's carousel

[I am and will always be Not Trampis]

Bad pun!! it was a good one

concur with test. Great pitch where the good batsman stand up. Absolutely Brilliant does it again.

If all CAPTAINS understood respect for the batsman is part of the spirit then no need for the umpires to intervene when they clearly should have.

[Carrot]

This is great stuff. They're all over us like a rash at the moment, but a 50-run partnership or two plus some down-the-order biffing from a Starc or a Cummins and South Africa might be looking at a nasty little chase. Drop-in pitches should be banned - it's only proper pitches where you're playing the conditions as much as the opposition that produce matches like these.

[Carrot]

.... And why is it always the unlikely player that stands up in these situations? What odds would you get on Khawaja being the one to stand firm in the face of a 1st-innings deficit when the likes of Warner and Smith have failed?

[Carrot]

And on that point, Khawaja being that guy is what makes it doubly exciting. If it was almost anyone else we’d be feeling a bit better about things. Instead we’ve this flippy-floppy, reverse-sweeping imitation David Gower, who is as likely to play a the best shot you’ve ever seen as he is to throw it all away at a moment’s notice.

Not holding out much hope for Marsh the Younger, here. Not sure if cagey lead-building partnerships are quite his thing.

[Big Ramifications]

I like the wild dogs reference.

R!

[I am and will always be Not Trampis]

Rabada is one hell of a bowler. I just wish he would stop taking Warner's pills.

Poor captaincy on both sides.

Great test to watch as you must have a good technique to survive. Absolutely Brilliant is on another world.

[Carrot]

Ninepins!

[Tony Tea]

Lambada is a dead set gun. Murali's world record for wickets is already in sight. (Good!) Pity Lambada is a dead set psycho.

[I am and will always be Not Trampis]

Mate at least he does not chuck!!
Needs a good captain

[Philsgone]

Missed this test as I was away, but like all recent series its close and the difference is one good, if not great innings. Lara is the bets bat I ever sww, but AB is the most dynamic. Agree that captaincy is the real issue in regards to all this bad behaviour, FAF and Smivvy are complicit. Rabada had to go though. Man of match then 2 match holiday.

[sportsbizz]

great blog on cricket thanks for sharing

http://sportsnewz.in/cricket/

[I am and will always be Not Trampis]

Some-one has to say it. He is rabadder!