PlanetCricket

Without further to do, here is the 2013 Australian Ashes squad to take on England in their territory.
The Australia A squad can be found at the end of this article. Your views are most welcome right here or via The Baggy Green Blog’s Facebook page. The comment tab is at the footer of the article, moderation is active.

2013 Australian Ashes touring squad:

Batsmen:
Michael Clarke (Captain)
Ed Cowan
David Warner
Phillip Hughes
Usman Khawaja
Chris Rogers
 
All-rounders:
Shane Watson
James Faulkner

Wicket-keepers:
Brad Haddin (Vice-captain)
Matthew Wade

Bowlers:
Nathan Lyon
Peter Siddle
James Pattinson
Ryan Harris
Jackson Bird
Mitchell Starc

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Gayle celebrates his century.

With very good reason, the world of cricket is focussed on the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. The stadium has today played host to the single greatest display of hitting the world has ever seen. Christopher Henry Gayle has proved today precisely why he is the greatest Twenty20 batsman in the world. I cannot think of a way to put what he has achieved into words, so I will simply give you the raw numbers:

Big Ant Studios, developer of an as yet unnamed cricket title set for release this year, have today released the beta version of their player editor for PC.  The ‘Cricket Academy’ allows you to create players for the game, customise their appearance to very fine levels of detail and then share individual players or whole squads online. The players made now will be usable in game on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 editions of the game, so regardless of which platform you want to get the game for, you’ll be able to get your favourite players ready.

A trailer video released previously shows off the features of the editor, and a series of ‘player cards’ have been released showing players created by the Big Ant team using the editor. In the Cricket Academy, these player cards are able to be shared on social media and we’ll be awaiting your creations in our forum.

The Cricket Academy will be a key part of the very customisable nature of the upcoming game, with created players able to be used in the game’s Career mode, a long awaited feature for a Cricket title.

Download the Cricket Academy Beta here for PC – download.cricketacademygame.com

Discuss this news in our forums here!

Brendan Taylor celebrates his ton

Much has been written about Zimbabwe’s place in Test cricket recently. I am not the only one that has questioned whether their return to Test cricket was really deserved. They won their comeback Test against Bangladesh, but have put in abject performances against bigger opposition, losing five Tests on the bounce, most of them heavily. After their losses in the West Indies, the questioning voices were mounting and not without reason. Brendan Taylor was being questioned, both as a batsman and a leader, and Shane Shillingford and Marlon Samuels cashed in on a hapless collection of batting efforts from the tourists.

It must be all the more impressive, then, that a month on we’re talking about a crushing Zimbabwean victory.

The Bangladeshis, playing Zimbabwe for the first time since they were defeated in 2011, have been defeated again. This time, the loss is by the enormous margin of 335 runs, and can be boiled down to one key difference between the two teams: discipline. For four days, the Zimbabweans were clinical and disciplined in everything they did. In the field, they chased every ball and threw every return in to Richmond Mutumbami over the stumps. With the bat, they valued their wickets, and with the ball they bowled tight lines. Judging by the lazy, slashing hack that accounted for Shahriar Nafees, the Zimbabweans just wanted this victory more than their opponents.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the renewed application of skipper Brendan Taylor. In the Caribbean, he was regularly undone by loose shots, like a baffling reverse-thing only a few balls into his stay at the wicket. Fast forward a month, and he bats for eight hours in the first innings to post an adhesive 171. Not content with this, he then returned in the second innings for a four hour stay that earned him an unbeaten century. Clearly a man who thrives on responsibility, he now averages half a run under sixty as captain, with four centuries in seven games.  This mindset has rubbed off on the rest of his players, particularly the likes of Graeme Cremer who, with a batting average that previously towered at a lofty six, hung around for 42 and 43 in this Test, even sacrificing a maiden fifty when it meant saving his captain from being run out.

English domestic cricket has been grabbing cricket fan’s attention for years now. I’m a huge follower of county cricket for the sole reason that this is the platform from where the future international stars arise. County cricket of England no doubt has a monopoly over the domestic cricket of rest of the cricketing nations. It has been going on for so many years now and therefore it is so popular and hugely followed all throughout the cricketing globe.

There are certain aspects that one has to focus upon when it comes to English domestic cricket. No doubt, it’s a great platform for all the local English players but at the same time, it’s an equally great opportunity for players from nearby countries like Ireland and Scotland to play alongside foreign stars and quality local players, side-by-side also getting an opportunity of making a name for themselves at the international level because this is the cricket that matters.

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