Chappell: Smith and Warner will be picked
Greg Chappell is in his third and final stint as an Australian selector, and while he’s made some tough calls along the way, the call to bring back Tim Paine was “one of the best” he’s made.
Expert Opinion
The harsh reality of Lynn decision
We all know that if Chris Lynn’s last name was different he would have been given ample time to settle in for Australia. Instead, his hand has been forced to leave international cricket.
It’s time to make the Gabba great again
We know the Gabba is a bit rubbish. But in a game where home ground advantage can mean everything, it’s a disgrace that we’ve had to wait so long for this Test, writes GREG DAVIS
Chappell: Finch’s struggles give selectors a headache
As if the Australian selectors didn’t have enough concerns with the Test team – suspensions, failures and a lost series — they now have a huge ODI headache leading into the World Cup: the captain.
Rivals see the light but Gabba in the dark ages
Thursday night’s lights-out drama has highlighted the Gabba’s mounting image problem. But it does have a couple of big pluses, writes Robert Craddock.
Pucovski selection not the gamble it seems
ROBERT CRADDOCK: At first glance, the selection of 20-year-old Will Pucovski for next week’s Gabba Test may seem an audacious gamble.
Pucovski gamble sees Aussies revive tradition
The time was right for drastic action, and in picking youngster Will Pucovski, Australian Test selectors have returned to a traditional approach, writes Ian Chappell.
Warne’s big Ashes call on Smith, Warner
With less than three Tests between now and the Ashes, spin king Shane Warne says banned men Steve Smith and David Warner must walk straight back into an Australian side that has serious questions to answer.
Craddock: Fragile Aussies bats no match for India
Australia normally takes for granted it has every base covered in home conditions but it could be headed for one its most humiliating defeats with India outperforming the Aussies in every facet.
Craddock: Indian series a rare tight tussle
Test cricket series in Australia in modern times normally means annihilation for the opposition but this series against India is shaping into one of the tightest and most enthralling, writes ROBERT CRADDOCK.
Impressive Paine stands up to Indians
There have been positive signs that the Australian Test team is heading in the right direction but none more so than Tim Paine’s leadership qualities with one particular moment standing out.
Why Kohli should be Australian of the Year
Yeah, OK, he’s Indian, but Test captain Virat Kohli deserves to be named Australian of the Year for doing the impossible – making us like and respect the Australian team again, writes Greg Davis
The pretty boys who made their mark with grit
Pretty and tough. Our minds tell us that the two words are mutually exclusive, but there are plenty of cricketers who fit both definitions. See ROBERT CRADDOCK’S Pretty-Tough XI here.
Injury Australia can’t afford to contemplate
The positive prognosis for Tim Paine’s finger complaint is good news for Justin Langer’s Australian side, because it needs him far more than it thinks it does writes ROBERT CRADDOCK.
Test v Big Bash: The old and the beautiful
At the same time that the Australians were trudging around Adelaide Oval like condemned men, Chris Lynn was positively bounding ahead of the Big Bash season, writes Mike Colman
Aussies can learn from Pujara’s patient knock
Cheteshwar Pujara’s outstanding ton was an innings of intelligence, patience and control, everything that is missing from Australia’s batsmen, writes MIKE COLMAN.
The ‘we hate you but we respect you’ Test XI
Like Wes Mantooth’s deep mix of hatred and respect for his rival Ron Burgundy in the movie Anchorman, journalist Greg Davis has put together his team of cricketers we love to hate.
Warne: Rattle the skipper and India will fall
No one fears Australia any more and it’s time they fought back in this Test series against India. Legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne examines how the Aussies can defeat the best team in the world.
India may rue not playing under lights: Warnie
Shane Warne believes India’s refusal to play a day/night Test in Adelaide this week is both a missed opportunity and a concession they are worried about Australia’s pace attack.
Will a new Aussie hero please stand up?
It will only take one Test match win against India to brighten the mood of Aussie sports fans. And ROBERT CRADDOCK writes the mood needs brightening as we look for a hero to restore our pride in the baggy green.
Phone call Tim Paine didn’t want to make
Ever had to make a phone call when you were so nervous you half-hoped no-one answered? That was me recently. Don’t miss Tim Paine’s first exclusive column.
No backlash expected for day-night Test
South Australian cricket chief Keith Bradshaw believes any fears of a backlash from the ball-tampering affair for Australia’s day-night Test against Pakistan are unfounded.
The night Kerry Packer sledged ‘lucky’ Langer
Did you hear the one Kerry Packer unleashed on Justin Langer? If anyone knows about luck in life and cricket it’s the new Australia coach and he’ll need to add amateur psychologist to his resume for the first Test, writes Robert Craddock.
Kohli typifies India’s new professionalism
NOT too long ago, Indian cricketers would be lounging on deck chairs and enjoying a cuppa and bickies. Virat Kohli leads a very different India with a new focus on professionalism, writes Robert Craddock.
Chappell: call to end bans hurts cricket’s recovery
AUSTRALIA’S women’s team is showing the country how cricket should be played and the Australian Cricketers’ Association should come to the healing party, writes Ian Chappell.
Root’s behaviour crossed the line
ENGLISH captain Joe Root remonstrating with Peter Handscomb was more than simple “banter”, as Cricket Australia described it, and there are boundaries that shouldn’t be crossed on the field, writes JON ANDERSON.
Why Marsh is game’s true enigma
WHEN Australia needed someone to answer the SOS, an unlikely hero stepped up. But Shaun Marsh’s ton – in a sense – proved why he is the most maligned batsman in the country.
England’s tail faces searching examination
AUSTRALIA’S fast bowlers are comfortable facing short-pitched deliveries. The same can’t be said of their England counterparts and they can expect plenty of chin music, writes Ian Chappell.
Warne: ‘Get nasty, England, it’s the only way’
THE second Ashes Test in Adelaide will be a true test of character for England’s senior players says Shane Warne, and they must become the bullies if they are to have any chance of victory.
England’s Ashes debacle self-inflicted
MITCHELL Johnson left a trail of England casualties in his wake during the 2013/14 Ashes series. But this time, with Johnson in retirement, the hurricane of destruction is coming from England themselves.
Root still carrying Ashes ‘demons’: Warne
I WARNED you, didn’t I? SHANE WARNE writes the Poms are lucky they are headed to Adelaide and not Perth, and highlights the three key areas they must address to avoid Ashes disaster.
Bancroft sinks English with and without bat
IT was hard to know what part of Cameron Bancroft’s day caused England more damage, his straight bat at the crease or his straight talk afterwards, writes Robert Craddock.
How Khawaja can conquer spin demons
EVERYTHING was set up beautifully for Usman Khawaja at the Gabba; good batting deck, adopted home ground advantage, top Shield form. Then he came face-to-face with his old enemy, spin.
Why Aussies should fear the beard
ENGLAND’S spinning all-rounder Moeen Ali could well turn out to be a trump card for Joe Root’s men this Ashes summer, writes Aussie spin great Ashley Mallett.
Shaun Marsh is the new Shane Watson
SHAUN Marsh is Australia’s most controversial, uncontroversial cricketer. A so-so Test batsman capable of the occasional outstanding innings – and frustrating fans.
Selectors must ignore Renshaw’s horror numbers
ONE thing is clear about Australia’s first Test team – Cameron Bancroft must play. But so too should the out-of-form Matt Renshaw, writes Robert Craddock.
Top 25 Ashes players since World Series Cricket split
FORTY years ago, many of Australia’s finest players joined Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket. Robert Craddock marks the anniversary of the great divide with his best Ashes 25.
Strauss stokes fire with limp response
THE silent vigil England cricket chief Andrew Strauss is keeping outside Bristol police headquarters has become an embarrassment, writes Ben Horne.
Wade’s selection just doesn’t add up
MATT Wade is not the best wicketkeeper in Australia. That has never been in dispute. He’s not even the best keeper/batsman. So why is he the proud owner of a lucrative CA contract?
Aussie team a shadow of its former self
OVERPAID. Over-rated. Pampered. Prima donnas. This is feed back from fed-up Australian cricket fans – the same ones who once worshipped the Punters and Pigeons of this world.
Peace at last: now the battle for hearts and minds
AUSTRALIAN cricket has leapt out of the frying pan and into the fire, the pressure now on Steve Smith’s team to restore lost faith in the game in Bangladesh.
Mallett: Why Smith and co can’t cry poor
HEARD the one about the out-of-work multi-millionaire who lined up for the dole? Steve Smith and his players need to stand up and be counted for the sake of the game, writes Ashley Mallett
Endless season taking toll on flat Aussies
IN the midst of a pay war Australia’s cricketers need to find the enthusiasm for a tournament that not many know is on.
Ashley Mallett: Our cricketers are greedy
CRICKETERS aren’t being paid a pittance anymore, and the pay stand-off is all about greed, writes Ashley Mallett
Cricket’s calamity in waiting
HOW Australian cricket is following the greedy pay war that ruined American Major League Baseball and the consequences could be severe.
A chance to bounce India off their perch
IF AUSTRALIA can weaponsie India’s fear of failure on home soil in the decisive Test of an incredible series in Dharamsala, a young side will come of age.
Don’t let Gabba lose its character
COMMENT: Put a drop-in deck at the Gabba and you spoil the greatest cricket wicket in the world. It’s that simple. The Gabba we know and love would be no more.
Starc a member of the ‘SAC’
CRICKET needs an honour roll, perhaps a special club, for players like Mitchell Starc for efforts beyond their traditional calling.
Aussies tear up India’s home comforts
AUSTRALIA’S confidence might have bemused India. Having shown it was justified under the most trying of conditions, the tourists now have the upper hand.
Pain in the neck a head scratcher for Lynn
AFTER being ruled out of Australia’s three-match Twenty20 series against Sri Lanka, Chris Lynn’s neck injury may see him contemplate quitting first class cricket.
Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/cricket/expert-opinion/page/3