Why Australia is the best test team in world?

Australians got a stiff competition from SA and India in 2008. Australians barely managed to overcome stiff Indian resistance in their own backyard while Indians trounced them 2-0 in India. India is a vastly improved test side from what it was 2 years ago. On the other hand SA was on the verge of dethroning Australia as number 1 test side in the world. Alas! They stumbled at the last step. Some would say that they are perennial chokers.

I think, even though SA and India have challenged Australian hegemony over last few years, Australia will remain number 1 team in times to come. In my earlier post "Why is Australia the number 1 team?" we looked at one aspect of Australian cricket - their bench strength. But more than their bench strength, it is their seriousness about about the test cricket that sways the ranking in their favour. Test cricket is considered to be the holy grail in Australia. 2008 was just an aberration for Australian cricket.

When the best players of the were playing in IPL 2009, Australian stalwarts were resting at home. They renounced playing lucrative IPL and also didn't participate in one dayers against Pakistan. Why so? Because they wanted to keep themselves fresh for Ashes. While IPL was in full flow, the voices emanating from Australian cricket suggested that the team was getting into groove for Ashes. Even today, when rest of the world is focused on ICC T20 championship (which is just round the corner), all the news coming from Australian team is about Ashes preparation.

ICC T20 championship is the most prestigious international T20 tournament in the world. Barring 1 or 2 T20 matches in a bilateral series, all the teams play international T20 matches only during ICC T20 championship. And what is the news from Australian camp about ICC T20 championship? Nothing...This says it all. Australians attach immense importance to test cricket and that is why they have been so successful in this format.

What hopes does Australia have in ICC T20 championship? Even though they are placed in group of Death, along with WI and SL, Australia has a strong T20 team. They should be able to go through to next round. Anyway, that is another story...

Win some and lose some

Whew! IPL 2009 is over. What a tournament? We won some and lost some. Let review.
It was a well organized tournament courtesy IPL administration and SA spare a "dog" in the first game.
DD were looking invincible all the way till semifinal when Gilly pounded them to submission.
Most valued & most talked about team lost matches and their most admired & reverved owner lost respect even while its marketing team created maximum brand value. Yes we are talking about KKR.
Most derided and bootom placed teams from IPL 2008 finished 1 & 2.
Broadcaster gained after 10th over due to commercial...oops...strategy break...while teams lost momentum in 11th over.
Indian players, who play all 3 forms of game, look jaded after non-stop playing on foreign shores - NZ and SA. Viru, Gauti, Yuvraj and Dhoni didn't perform half as well as they did last year. Zaheer and Ishant were not even as good as second string Indian bowlers. What will happen in ICC T20 championship?
Last but not the least my prediction about semifinalists was only 50% off mark IPL 2009 Semi-finalists :)

It is good that regular openers of DD have not performed so far...

In IPL 2008 DD had a very good team; in fact it was one of the best. The opening combination was supposed to be the best among the 8 participating teams. Viru and Gauti had a great history of scoring profusely at the top; they opened together in all formats of the game both in International and Domestic cricket. They only increased their reputation during IPL 2008 by performing exceptionally well. DD won the matches mostly due to brilliant performances of the opening combination; Shikhar Dhawan at number 3 bolstered their batting line-up. When DD won, they won by huge margin only because of openers and in some instances Shikhar Dhawan. The middle order never really got any chance to play in winning matches. This proved to be a bane for the team, middle order was never tested. When openers failed, middle order just could not deliver and team failed. Sadly DD could win only 7 out of 14 games at league stage.
IPL 2009 has started on a very different note. Viru & Gauti are not performing and Shikhar Dhawan is playing for MI. In the absence of opening cushion, middle order has blossomed. The performance of team in IPL 2009 is better than that of IPL 2008. The team has won 7 out of 9 matches played so far. There has been no change in middle order except that Shohib Malik is not playing. Rest of the middle order consisting of AB, Dilshan, Karthik and Mithi have given the team necessary impetus to win most of their matches.
Moving forward, it can get only better. The opposition can thank their stars that regular openers have not performed so far because if openers perform, it will become extremely difficult for them. The class players that Viru and Gauti are, it is only a matter of time when they start delivering for the team's success.

IPL 2009 Semi-finalists

There are 8 teams fighting for coveted 4 semifinal spots. Statistically, at the beginning of tournament, every team had odds of 1 in 2 for reaching semi finals. If IPL was about statistics, there would have been no craze. Every IPL fan has his own wish list while many cricket experts are predicting their last 4 teams.
In one of my earlier posts Controversies and Team Standings I analysed why it would be difficult for Royal Challengers and Knight Riders to go to semis. KKR are already out of contention - they have a thin chance; albeit theoretical. RC have won 2 out 3 after Pietersen left for national duty. RC has a good chance as they are placed better than MI and KXIP in points table but I still think they don't have momentum to go to semis.
Let us talk about the chances of other teams.
MI, one of the pre-tournament favourites, is languishing at 7th place. They have lost few close matches and have performed only in patches. They still have a chance but I think they will fall short.
DD and CSK, also pre-tournament favourites, have the best chance to go through the semis and I think they will. DD have taken a wrong step throughout the tournament while CSK are getting better with each game.
There will be fight for other 2 semi final spots between KXIP, RR and DC. I think KXIP and RR will take these 2 spots. They have the momentum on their side and they have turned some lost causes in their favour. Even though DC started strong and they still are one of the better placed team, I feel they would have a tough time.
Let's wait for final 4 while we enjoy the tournament.

Player Exchange - Ashish Nehra and Shikhar Dhawan

There was an exchange of few players before IPL season 2 started; a la European football clubs. The player exchange and transfer gives great opportunity to franchises improve their team strengths. At the same time players get a chance to improve their financial standing.
The news about exchange of Ashish Nehra and Shikhar Dhawan between Mumbai Indian and Delhi Daredevils go me interested. In last season, Daredevils' middle order performed poorly. Daredevils won matches when their top 3, including Shikhar Dhawan, performed and lost when 2 of the top 3 collectively had an off day. It looked, at first sight, a bit strange that Delhi Daredevils will forego Shikhar Dhawan who was a consistent performer especially when no-one else in middle order was performing. It is true that bringing Ashish Nehra will bolster bowling attack but in the last season Daredevils lost matches because of middle order and not because of bowling.
Analysing closely, I think, Delhi Daredevils management made the right choice. During last season middle order was rusty but it had quality batsmen. Now also the team has outstanding batsmen, both Indian and foreign imports. Now only if they can give credence to their name and put a few runs behind their back. It is not for nothing that Delhi Daredevils start as tournament favourites.