Ian Chappell
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Former Australia captain, now a cricket commentator and columnist
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Can Australia bounce back?
The Symonds fiasco has shades of 2003 and Warne's drug bust. Can Ponting's team recover now like they did back then?
June 7, 2009
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Players/Officials:
Ricky Ponting
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ICC World Twenty20
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In trying to decide which teams might do well in the World Twenty20 tournament, the first question that leaps at you - apart from "Who was the psychiatrist who passed Andrew Symonds fit to resume his international career?" - is, "Can lightning strike twice for Ricky Ponting?"
In 2003, Ponting did a magnificent job of re-focusing the Australian team after Shane Warne was banned for a drug offence on the eve of the World Cup. This time the task of picking up the pieces will be more difficult because Ponting has fewer senior players in the squad.
The timing of Symonds' indiscretion couldn't have been worse. Australia already had a difficult enough task just trying to qualify for the semi-finals. With their loss against West Indies, it's now that much tougher for them to get past Sri Lanka and move on to a Super-Eight Group E that's loaded with talent.
With due respect to West Indies, the most likely scenario is a group that will include India, Australia and South Africa. That's the three best teams in the tournament, all in one Super Eight group. The lop-sided nature of the draw means that one of the big three will miss out on a semi-final berth. Following Symonds' demise, the chances that team will be Australia just rose like a sky rocket on New Year's Eve.
Because Twenty20 matches are brief there's very little time to recover from a setback. Therefore teams with match-winners at the top of the order or among the frontline bowlers are well placed to wrest the initiative. Australia just lost one of a rare breed; a player who can have a major affect on a game from the middle order. Nevertheless, Australia are still well credentialled and rank up there with India and South Africa. Virender Sehwag, Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina can all get a move on at the top of the order for India, and Zaheer Khan is a proven wicket-taker - though his fitness is under a cloud. Australia are well placed with Shane Watson, Brad Haddin and Ponting and the lethal pairing of Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee to make early inroads.
South Africa rely on a slightly different formula. Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis aren't a typical helter-skelter Twenty20 opening combination, but the team compensate with the sublime skills of JP Duminy and AB de Villiers. Dale Steyn and Wayne Parnell are a capable opening bowling pair, but the real surprise is South Africa's sudden reliance on spin. South Africa have recently stifled Australia's batting with spin in both the shorter versions of the game. The emergence of Roelof van der Merwe to partner Johan Botha, and the guile of Duminy, give South Africa a trio of wicket-takers in the middle- to late overs.
| The lop-sided nature of the draw means that one of the big three teams will miss out on a semi-final berth. Following Symonds' demise, the chances that team will be Australia just rose like a sky rocket on New Year's Eve | |||
In the other half of the draw, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and New Zealand will likely fight it out for a semi-final berth. Both Pakistan and New Zealand will be on their guard after a determined Dutch outfit dealt England's chances a serious blow.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have to survive a treacherous tilt with Australia and West Indies to reach the Super Eight stage. They should do that, but with Sanath Jayasuriya finally showing his age it'll be tough for them to progress much farther unless players like Tillakaratne Dilshan and Chamara Silva take up the slack.
New Zealand have a wonderful opportunity to reach the semi-finals. However, their top-order frailty and their penchant for stumbling near the finish line will ensure skipper Daniel Vettori has to work overtime - and not just when he's bowling.
Another captain who knows all about the travails of leadership is Younis Khan. If he can keep his players all pointed in the same direction, their strong bowling attack spearheaded by Umar Gul and Sohail Tanvir, with the eccentric but successful Shahid Afridi operating in the middle overs, should be enough to ensure a semi-final berth.
Sri Lanka could well be the team to miss out in Group F, but the other side of the draw isn't quite so obvious. However, what is clear is that a number of teams will be circling like vultures in case Australia are seriously wounded by the Symonds fiasco.
This will be another severe test of Ponting's leadership skills, and he'll be hoping the lightning strike isn't a repeat of 2005. In that year Symonds went on a drinking binge in the UK and Australia then lost an ODI to Bangladesh and the Ashes to England.
Former Australia captain Ian Chappell is now a cricket commentator and columnist
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Ian Chappell
Widely regarded as the best Australian captain of the last 50 years, Ian
Chappell moulded a team in his image: tough, positive, and fearless. Even
though Chappell sometimes risked defeat playing for a win, Australia did not lose a Test series under him between 1971 and 1975. He was an aggressive batsman himself, always ready to hook a bouncer and unafraid to use his feet against the spinners. In 1977 he played a lead role in the defection of a number of Australian players to Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket, which did not endear him to the administrators, who he regarded with contempt in any case. After retirement, he made an easy switch to television, where he has come to be known as a trenchant and fiercely independent voice.
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It is a pity Australia capitulated. My opinion is Symonds's presence would have made a big difference. I fail to understand CA's attitude towards Symonds;personally, it's bias-ridden! Furthermore Ian Chappell's comments re- the player's state of mind is also unjustified. My impression is that Symonds has always been portrayed as a different 'animal' by CA, something that could have sparked a 'rebellious streak' in the player. Anyway Symonds, I'll have the opportunity to enjoy your cricket exploits outside the confines of what comes across as a regimented Australian side with some players favoured more than others, not always for cricketing reasons. You failed to 'qualify' for the favourites and therefore labelled a dissident. I just cannot take Ian Chappell and have my chuckles when I think about him and Lawry when they played Ali Bacher's SA side in the '70s. I think their silly remarks since had all been fashioned after that hiding from Richards, G Pollock, Lindsay, et al.
Posted by Askone on (June 09 2009, 11:17 AM GMT)Why does Ian Chappell talk so big about the Australian cricket team? He is a commentator and should stick to talking about 'technical aspects' of the game and not on predictions. Where is Autralia compared to other teams except in arrogance? Or is he hinting - No Symonds, no Australia. The commentators should stick to giving commentary. For the sake of making a few more bucks, don't say or write anything and everything. Be rational. People love sports. The money comes from them. Don't make money at their expense.
Posted by youfoundme on (June 09 2009, 09:38 AM GMT)Australia have gone wrong in a few departments as far as selection goes. First off, with the form that Mike Hussey has been in I couldn't believe that he was even considered. The likes of James Hopes could have done a better job with the bat, and even added another bowling option. Same goes with Brad Hodge who showed us in the IPL that he is a big Twenty20 specialist, yet the Australian Selectors keep turning a blind eye towards him... Sending Symonds back to Australia was a big mistake as well, as it unsettled the dressing room and probably disturbed the flow of things and you can't do that at the eve of a major tournament. The ICC board wants teams to be at their best and I think they would agree with me in saying Australia was no where near that. "New Zealand have a wonderful opportunity to reach the semi-finals. However, their top-order frailty" The Black Caps top-order in Twenty20 is probably the best Ian, I don't know how someone like you can see through such a thing...
Posted by AHappyMind on (June 09 2009, 07:55 AM GMT)As usual, Ian Chappell doesn't know what he's talking about and as usual, he over-rates the Australian Cricket team! Australia are not in the top 3 in world cricket in any form of the game and Sri Lanka are now a better side than Australia with their new bowling attack. Chappell thought Sri Lanka would lose and his rubbish Aussie cricket team will go through: Australia is now an average cricket team with or without Symonds and events created by Shane Warne (who should have his records deleted from the books) and he should accept it. Australia's dominance is over. get over it.
Posted by Greg.of.Qld on (June 09 2009, 03:38 AM GMT)The selection of the Australian team is an absolute joke, 4 of the IPL top 10 batsman are not there, how a Hussey, Clarke, Watson can get a run before Hayden , Gilchrist, Brad Hodge or Symonds is beyond me. I know some of these guys are retired but if we are serious about winning this tournament then surely we must select the best side possible. Did anyone give Haydos a call 1/4 mill for 3 weeks work would have had him interested, especially after losing a fortune in the Storm Finacial Services crash
Posted by Mooses on (June 09 2009, 00:33 AM GMT)NirmalK and henchart got it on the money. The Aussie middle just aren't handling the spin at the moment, and M Hussey isn't handling much at all. Leaving the 20/20 experienced Hodge out _again_ was a huge mistake, and also experienced 20/20 bowlers for the out of form Bracken and inconsistent Lee. Even Quiney or Fergusson would have been a better bet in the middle order - at least they have a go! And it is about time Johnson was moved up the order - _the_ most inform batsman in the squad. Selectors - just pick a 20/20 squad, not an Ashes team.
Posted by MalikZ on (June 08 2009, 22:42 PM GMT)In hindsight, this article was a total waste….Ian needn't have worried about Australia being kicked out of super sixes because Australia was not good enough to get to the super sixes in the first place..He grossly over evaluated Australia's potential..as it stands, Australia will not be among the top three teams (as claimed in the article) but instead will be among the bottom three….
Posted by asiba on (June 08 2009, 19:55 PM GMT)well we the WEST INDIES have advanced to the Next STAGE --Sri Lanka jus t bust Australia tail---dah suit them !
Posted by Big_Bad_Wolf on (June 08 2009, 13:09 PM GMT)Please Ian, can you give credit where it is due? WI trashed Aus and they will reach the Super 8's. Aus faith might just rest in the hands of the Windies as I dont see Aus beating SL by a mile to up their NRR.. T20 is an unpredictable format and i think WI stand a good chance as any other team in this competition of winning.
Posted by NirmalK on (June 08 2009, 11:01 AM GMT)well I think that SL will stand a very good chance of winning todays match because of the fact that the aussies will be under a lot of preasure, besides SL has a better balanced bowling attack with two good spinners and two good Fast bowlers.If the Batmen click then the aussies will certainly have a run for their money.