Cricinfo - Blogs - Different Strokes - From Rolls Royce to sedan

In the very early days of a crumbling empire, the first sign is usually a refusal to accept that some things have changed and the world will never be the same again. Throughout this series, and especially in the second innings in Melbourne, Australia batted like royalty but failed to realise that the kingdom, whilst not yet relinquished, was certainly not theirs to take for granted.

It called for some old-fashioned grit, some dogged resistance, the sort of boring, negative cricket that went against everything the Rolls Royce brigade stood for. Someone forgot to tell them that the Rolls had been traded in for the family wagon, complete with passengers, some of them out of form, some of them injured, some of them inexperienced and some of them still living in the past.

Hayden’s innings was a mixture of desperation, courage and ultimately, false bravado. When it comes off, that sort of arrogance is applauded for its audacity and fearlessness. He has played so many of those great innings and it would be churlish to forget those many moments during this short period of poor form. Today, when Australia needed a sober innings, Hayden refused to accept that role. The South Africans, mindful of that mindset, set their trap and got their man, as they have done all series.

Katich, and Haddin too were in the same frame of mind. None of this boring match-saving stuff for them. Driving expansively, they nicked balls that should have been left alone if sensible survival were the team orders. Perhaps Ponting was still harbouring hopes of a win – his dismissal was not that of a timid man looking to scrap for a draw. Likewise the vice-captain Clarke - three players caught in the short-cover region. There’s only one way to crash a Rolls Royce and that’s to do it in style!

The fat lady has yet to sing so I’m being cautious about writing off the Aussies with a lead of 180+ on a last day pitch. Regardless of whether SA chase down this total or not, one cannot help but wonder whether the modes of dismissal today were part of a team plan to keep attacking, regardless of the match situation or whether it was a case of some batsmen just refusing to accept the new reality of an army without the big guns.

Australia will not become a poor team overnight. There’s too much depth and too much pride to allow that to happen. They will continue to be competitive and will probably win more than they lose. The big difference now is that other countries have lost their fear of the mighty Aussie machine. The Proteas have proved that you can fight back against them and not just survive but thrive. It’s a credit to the SA think-tank that they have understood the psychology so well and given the Aussie batsmen enough rope to hang themselves. Their field settings and the line they bowled today relied heavily on the home team refusing to play out maiden overs or let too many go through to the wicketkeeper. In some senses, it was an ego thing.

The champagne days are over for the time being. No shame in that. The sooner this Australian team comes to terms with the new reality of their own mortality, the sooner they will learn to stop batting like millionaires. It’s been great entertainment and we’ve enjoyed the ride but it’s time to start playing ‘ugly’ again. The Australian cricket fan is knowledgeable enough to appreciate that and allow this new generation to find their feet without holding them ransom to the Rolls Royce legacy that we’ve been treated to since the early 1990’s.

Great teams need great bowlers. The dearth of quality bowlers is the main problem for Australia. If you have a very good bowling attack, which can get you 20 wickets whenever needed, it will give the confidence for all other funtions - batting, fielding, captaincy etc. If you don't do it well, the opponent's confidence on these same functions is given a big boost. Australian board has now got a big role now to play, to show that they have world class bowlers. They shouldn't just be great bowlers, but should also be having different strengths, otherwise they will end up having a one-paced attack. This is very well proven by the 2005 Ashes. England managed to have a very good bowling side, who were so different between themselves in style, that they stifled Australia then. The recent resurgence of India can also be attributed more to their bowling. Let's see whether Australia, who is supposed to have a great domestic setup, can find the future bowling greats soon!

True, true. Australia would also have to sift out the "reals" from the fakers. Mitchell Johnson for instance is the real deal. Lee isn't never was, never had the penetration of a genuine great, and his average of thirty plus after so many years in test cricket is a good measure of his skill. And while we're at it, let's get real about Haydos too. He's always been a very limited batsman, in shot variety and temprament. In any other day and age, in any other team, he would've struggled to his way to a career average of forty. Unfortunately, that other day and age has arrived before Haydos could wrap up his affairs cleanly. He would retire a defeated man; better today than later.
The family van doesn't have the muscle to keep burdoning itself with dead weight. The fakers must go.

I think their biggest problem is that Australian sporting fans don't simply accept that there's a time for rebuilding. I remember when McGrath retired there were a lot of cricket fans who said Australia wouldn't be hurt at all because Stuart Clarke could play the same role. And MacGill will come in for Warne and our attack will be sweet.

Well Clarke is injured, MacGill has retired and all we have left is slim pickings. Siddle has potential but is inexperienced, Johnson may or may not be the strike bowler Australia needs going forward. Lee is out of form and injured and it's difficult to say which came first. We have real problems with our attack, and also our batting.

But going back to whta I said at the start. Australian cricket fans never accept their side has been outplayed. It's the fault of the Indian umpires, or Marcus Trescothick's cough lolly. Australia lose the world series because of blinkred selection two years in a row, and of course it's because of our schedule.

Brett I am not sure that all Australian fans would agree with you. The third days play at the MCG was hard to take as an Aussie but full credit to South Africa, they are never out of a match and have shown the ability to turn the match when all is going against them. If Lee and Clark had of both been fit and firing and we had an inform batting lineup, then I would have backed us to win. But there are always plenty of ifs and time doesn’t wait. For two years after Warne and Mcgraths departure we have done pretty well. Now with comprehensive losses to India and South Africa pending the rebuilding begins.

I think its time to take a different approach to team selection, lets get some 10+ year players in so that in 2-3 years we can have a strong core. Ponting, Mcgrath, Warne all started playing at a young age. Its hard to say how Lee will come back, I am doubtful, he had a good 18 month period post Mcgrath, but that is it, Clarks future…? Hughes and Hilfenhaus should be given a chance.

SA have out played Australia in all departments,batting,fielding,bowling.They desrve to win the test serious.Australia is a very good side,dont forget that but South Africa have a young strong talented bunch of guys with self belief.I reckon SA will beat in side in the world at present.The Australians had a lot to say before the tour,they should start taking responsibility for their arrogance.Smith is a better captain than Ponting as well,Ponting have always looked good with the likes of Mgrath and Warne,i have never rated him and he is now found wanting with a normal cricket side,he is still a great batsman,dont get me wrong.They have lost two of the best bowlers of all time,bowlers like that comes once in a generation,they now have to think and fight like South Africa and India,cant wait for the Sydney test.

Australia over the last decade had the services of the all time greats like the Warne, McGrath, Waugh brothers, Ponting, Gilchrist etc. Their ability to turn matches on its head by sheer virtue of their cricketing brilliance has been unmatched over the last decade. These guys had the potential to contribute in more ways than one and in a manner that could only evoke gasps and left their opponets in a daze. That is what made the team that comprised these brilliant cricketers to become the most feared one. The success of australia was attributed to their strong domestic setup overlooking the genius of warne, McGrath, Waugh and Gilchrist. The current team comprises of individuals that are good but who do not measure up to the heights that their predecesors achieved. It is a well known fact that Geniuses are born and not made by a cricketing setup including one as seen in Australia. Is this New age cricket Mr.Ponting? well most definiteky not.

Thanks for the early comments. I must admit that what surprised me today was the way they kept playing big shots, even when the situation probably called for a more circumspect approach. The South African tactics were brilliant - they soon figured that Hayden and Katich were not going to consolidate first and perhaps launch a cautious attack later in the day and they set fields accordingly and bowled wide of the stumps. Haddin too was playing at balls that were far too wide to be entertaining at that stage of the match.
It may sound strange but Hayden's innings was almost a selfish one. Normally that comment is reserved for a slow, boring knock but today, he was trying to power his way back into form when the team needed a gutsy, solid start. He's too experienced to use the "that's the way I play" excuse. He's proved that when he wants to, he can play well within himself when(Oval 2005). On that day, his Test spot was saved by a careful knock but today it was death or glory.

The current Oz team resembles the Indian team of the 90s. Lot of "greats" in Hydo, Hussey, Ricky, Clarke, Lee & Symo. But as an inexplicable norm, (Only) One of them clicks at a time. I guess this situation will exist only until Haydo, Lee and Symo are replaced with in-form players like Jaques, Watson and Marsh. This however has segregated the fakes (particularly Clarke, Symo, Lee and Ponting-as a captain) from the real deals. On current form, my money is on the Poms to win the 2009 Ashes. But in all, I respect the Ozs in spite their slump during the transition. Realistically, next year will see Oz and SA constantly tugging for the No 1 position. India is improving as a fielding side. But unless they reach the SAn or Oz standards of fielding, they will remain 3rd or 4th forever, tugging with England. It still remains easy for teams to strike their way with Hard hits, out of India's clutches. Srilanka and Pakistan are not playing enough to treaten the rankings. Thanks for 2008.

Before we write obituaries of Aussie cricket, lets hand it to them. They've been the undisputed #1 side for well over a decade. What they need to realize is that they were fortunate to have two all-time great bowlers in Warney and McGrath at the same time. Without these two, they remain a good side shorn of greatness. Johnson is the only one with potential to be a great. It is a bit unfortunate that their decline has coincided with the ascendancy of SA and India. I am tempted to include England in the same league; as they too have some outstanding players to go with their usual mediocre ones.

As a cricket fan, I am really happy to see at least three sides, if not four sides evenly matched which would make for truly compelling viewing in the days ahead!

As Michael Jeh points out, the Aussies have not yet come to terms with their change in status. Brett Lee, for example, blamed food poisoning for his poor form in India. There was talk of how he felt great on returning to Australia and he was bowling at over 150Ks. It didnt turn out that way did it? Imagine the horrors if something were to happen to Mitchell Johnson. They need to gamble on young talent. We kept hearing about how systematic Aussie cricket was. How they planned everything and their state cricket was better than International cricket. Where are the players then? I think they will find it easy to find batting replacements. But to find bowlers who can step in right away is going to be hard. They will continue beating WI, NZ et al. But India,SA and England will have the measure of the Aussies

I don't know, people were saying the opposite in Nagpur, Katich should have thought outside the box, Ponting should have put victory before punishment and bowled Watson instead of Hussey/Krejza. When teams have won in Aus, they have won by playing attacking cricket - compare India in Melbourne last year to India at Perth - , so Aus's approach wasn't inherently wrong. They are not at the moment good enough, that's all, it's going to take some time to rebuild and get back to the top but because of their strong domestic structure they will hover around the top four and eventually get back the top spot unlike the Windies who have faded away. And Brett, after losing to India, Ponting said in no uncertain terms that they were outplayed, so I don't know about the media and the fans, but Aus did not grudge credit and I don't think they will after this series, should they lose, as they look likely to.

No one really owns being the best Cricket team in the world. The power center usually shift from country to country every decade. The Australian media, administrators and the players make it look like that they have an exculsive ownership on the #1 rankings in the tests. A teams approach is as good as the quality of players it has in its disposal. Great quality of bowlers is very important to make a winning team. Australia lost that quality in its bowling at least two years ago. So now they really can't control the opposition the way they used to. Emergence of good quality fast bowlers especially in India and South Africa means that these teams can challenge Australia on equal terms. India could always match Australia in batting even a few years ago.It is now that they can afford to be agressive because of the quality of their bowlers and their opening batsmen. I just hope that whoever dominates the test cricket in the next decade shows more humility. No one will cry for the dethroned.

Really enjoying reading the varied comments, all of them intelligent and reasonable, despite not necessarily agreeing with each other. I do take the point that many readers make - we should not forget SA's wonderful cricket and character in all of this analysis. To fight back from two situations where they were virtually at unbackable odds is a wonderful thing. Smith and Kallis have led their young team beautifully and one of the big things has been their slip catching. If it goes near them, they catch it! No second chances for players like Ponting, Hussey, Symonds, Haddin etc. The other simple fact is that SA have counted on Aust still batting like the glory days and coming unstuck. Good reading of the psyche by Smith. At WACA and MCG, lots of Aussies got out once well set, going hard at the bowling. It's like they just can't accept that they may now have to bat like everyone else. Tendulkar has made that change to his game and he's not devastating anymore but effective.

I don't see how anyone in their right mind could call Ponting Clarke and Lee "fakes". Hayden can be called a flat pitch bully, and Katich is not a true opener. Hussey has had a bad run but it is the bowling that has let them down, at 144-6, the older Aussie team would have buried SA. The fact that SA has managed to score 400 twice owes more to the fact that the spinners are second rate, while Siddle is just an honest work horse. Lee and Johnson are superb bowlers but you can't take 20 wickets with two bowlers. The selectors should also be blamed for picking Symonds over Watson, that was a mistake. Even Paul Harris is more useful than either of the two spinners, and Kallis has bowled very well, the difference has been the bowling, how many shouts for LBW have you heard? Almost none, and when McGrath and Warne were bowling, you heard it every other over.
But I will be the last one to cry for Australia, but one has to be fair when assessing the Aussies

"Ponting the best captain" that is the most hilarious comment i have ever read. On what basis can a person class ponting as a best captain. He lost ashes with mcgrath/warne/gilchrist/langer ...the invincible team. If a team looses a series with players of such great talent then i would put my finger right on the captain. Now they are no longer there and the team is loosing. This "Best Captain" is running around the ground like a headless chook. I think its time to get a new captain for australia. They need some fresh ideas on the ground. May be clarke can do the job, though i believe hussey would be a better choice. He is a thinking cricketer, a much cleaner cricketer and inspiring cricketer then the current captain and vice-captain. He is the only one in the team who plays according to the situation rather then just attack at all cost. Also i agree with user comments that shaun marsh and watson should get into the team based on their current form. Not having watto cost them the series

Fantastic article. Absolutely correct in every way. Aus will lose this series, maybe even 3-0 but that is not the end. Aus is rebuilding, it has been talked about non-stop for the past few years. This is part and parcel of the deal. We have played the top two nations in the past few series and have lost. It will take time. Everyone, as usual is very quick to jump on the back of Aus. This is something they will also have to deal with. The constant criticism and accusations of arrogance will not cease until Aus is down and out. This is a natural reaction to winning for the last 15 years. There is a fine line between arrogance and confidence. At least Aus has the results to back up their supposed arrogance when teams like India and England can point to a couple of games or two and claim ascendency. Say what people will about Aus there has not been a better team to watch in the last decade, in victory and defeat. And to all the knockers, Sandeep, Fouad, Brett etc. Aus will be back

I think the Aussies have fallen into a bit of a 'good old boy' mentality, with serial offenders such as Roy and over-the-hill blokes like Haydos being persevered with primarily b'coz they are the type you'd want to drink a few pints with. What's worse, a lot of the young 'uns (Watto, Stuart Clark) seem to break down when asked to put in an honest season's work... and all this time, India seems to be managing a seamless transition, South Africa could probably field a second top/middle order with their backup players, and both teams have players who don't mind the rigors of modern schedules... it's high time the crown went to deserving teams, which Ricky's Aussies never were, merely holding on from the glory days of Waugh, McGrath, Warney, etc.

Will the "old" Oz be back - let us analyze. For the next 5 years, their bowlers will be - Johnson (a clever variation bowler at best); Hauriz/ Krejza/Hilfen/Siddle (mentorless and haunted Ronins); Lee, Watson, Clark are half the champs as Warne/McGrath for annihilation acts. That Symonds, Katich & Clarke can bowl parttime, I guess, will only hurt selection of the rest of their bowlers. So, the bowling attack seems Very ordinary, when compared to the Oz of the old. In batting, it is inevitable that the new comers will be more Clarke-like than Haydo-like - given their average bowling strength and decimal win/loss ratios. I see only 1-2 more yrs for Ricky, Hussey, Symo & Lee (Haydo's gone). So, we are looking at a major overhaul. It is impossible to say who and how good their replacements will be - including what will be their new attitude. So, I guess, we should just give the benifit of doubt to the Oz "domestic system" and wait. There are too many variables for easy predictions here!

A more apt title would be - "Formula-I to go-carts!". The present situation just tells us how GREAT those two guys (Warne and McGrath) were!! hats off to them. It is not that the current Oz team is bad. But it is just that these two guys lifted the previous Oz team to such unbelievable heights from where its players could win from anywhere, and whatever manner they wanted to, in a fast and furious manner! Among other teams, only SL will feel a similar pinch when Murali goes. I am mighty happy to have existed during the era of Lara, Sachin, McGrath and Warne and to have witnessed them at their best. I see few among the current bunch of visible cricketers that can entertain us similarly.
And yeah .... Oz go-carts will have to learn to drive slow and steady - the common way!!

Yes, the champagne days are over. Now the Aussie's must rebuild. I fear we are becoming like the Poms, picking players for one or two tests and then discarding them. Look what has happened to the spinners since Warnie retired. Casson, Hauritz, White, Krejza, McGain and Hogg. Pick oone and give him time. What about Cullen. He is a 10 year player worth investing in. Now with the batting we need to rebuild. Bringing back Symonds aged 33 and injured is not the answer. We need to put a middle order together for the next 3 to 5 years. David Hussey (yes he could play until 35), Marcus North and otehrs need to be considered. Why are the selectors chopping and changing with pace bowlers so much. Hillenhaus is in then out. Same with Bollinger. At least they have stuck with Siddle he could be a 10 year player. Does anyone really thing McDonald is a long term bet. He is a solid Shield player but is he could enought to bat at 6 or does he have the firepower to get test batsmen out.

The Indian posters above seem to have conveniently forgotten that India won't be taken seriously until they actually win a test series IN Australia. Is 2007/08 forgotten already? If anything India face a bigger generational change than Australia with Tendulkar and Dravis shortly to follow Kumble and Ganguly off stage left.

And as for manners, well Australia may have pushed the envelope on sledging, I'll take that anyday over Indian match fixing, support for zimbabew, racism, over rates, ball tampering and then the walkout's that occurred whenever India refused to be accountable for the above

Congratulations to Ponting for taking it on the chin and leading from the front. If you Tendulkar's captaincy, win rate for hundreds and disciplinary record than it would be intruiging to watch the Asian media and supporters trash your reputation More power to you.

Maybe we overrated Taylor & Waugh as captains. Maybe they could attempt more because they had so much talent. Especially bowlers. McGrath, the best since Lillee. Warne, the best since O'Reilly. And Gilchrist, the best ever wicketkeeper batsman. Even here in NZ, batsmen bat better when they know the bowlers will do the business. As Hadlee & Bond did.

Ponting has had great moments as a captain, esp Adelaide 2006. But he had Warne then to do magic. If Ponting really wants to prove his captaincy, he needs to lead the rebuilding of the Aussies. Anyone can lead a team that is already great.

Graeme Smith modelled himself on Steve Fleming = how to compete with a side lacking something: in NZ's case, sheer talent; in SA's case, self-belief. That's where the really great captains prove themselves. India did the same through Ganguly & now Dhoni. The Aussies need to relearn how to do the same thing.

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And as for manners, well Australia may have pushed the envelope on sledging, I'll take that anyday over Indian...
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1)Match fixing - Joking, aren't you?
2)Support for zimbabwe - Are we talking the team's behaviour or politics and how friendly the average people in these countries are?
3)Racism - One outlying "obnoxious weed" and not a whole pack of sledgers (if indeed he made THAT comment)
4)Over rates - Seriously? Ask Punter's pocket
5)Ball tampering - Are you Hair in disguise?
6)Walkouts - You mean the threats ? Again, we are in politics and not in team behaviour territory.

Anyways, I love the way Aussies played in the last 10 years, I admire and respect them but I wish I could empathize with them more.
I hope they rebuild fast, for we can ill afford a mediocre test field, as it appears right now excluding SA and India.

I am reminded of a discussion my friend and I had regarding captaincy styles. We were using the analogy of engines, bogies and train tracks to distinguish between Tendulkar and Ganguly. Tendulkar was an engine in front of the bogies, but not really connected to the rest of the train, so he moved expecting everyone else to follow - bad idea. Ganguly knew that the rest of the team needed a push, so as an engine he attached himself to the back of the train and pushed. His performance suffered, but the team went ahead. Then came the clincher - in the Australian team everybody was an engine, so it did not matter where Ponting was - the team prospered nevertheless. I guess now is the true test - what does Ponting the engine do when the rest of his team are engines no more?

i love this debate! minimal blind support of a team/country and there are some intriguing opinions. As "Thats all Ricthie" [sic] mentioned, India have a bit more proving to do outside the subcontinent. As i said before, i have a feeling they might get deflated a bit once Dravid, Tendulkar, and Laxman leave, which isn't really THAT far away. Most of the Proteas are quite young and show a lot of promise. Even Kallis isnt "over the hill" yet. Sad that NZ, PAK & WI (somewhat) cant join the party (altho for PAK isnt reeeaally their fault), otherwise it would be 8 amazing teams at the highest level. the way it's meant to be!
stop these ridiculous 7 match ODI series and bring proper test series home & away for all 8 & see how it turns out.

Replace Neilson as coach and bring in Shane Warne as coach. He will be able to lift the team mentally and bring much needed tactics. Bring in Hughes, Bollinger and Klinger to replace Hayden, Lee and Symonds. Nothing to lose now by selecting some young guys. It is the ideal time to blood them into test cricket. Also make Clarke captain. He has the energy and enthusiasm needed plus with guidance from Warnie could become a great captain.
Wonder who Ponting's blaming now...Pitch, Umpires, Selectors, Weather, Food, Health, Form, Spectators...or all of the above.
Lets not forget that Australia lost to a class act South Africa ..no1 in the world....srry India but SA is the best in the business.

Empires have fallen before and will go on falling.but when we look back in retrospection the true gr8 cricketing empire was tht of the Windie's coz of the way they carried themselves on the field......do away with all this sledging and play CRICKET..as the old adage goes..keep ur eyes on the ball.

Someone earlier said that Ponting is the best CAPTAIN. From what I've read on cricinfo Ponting the captain was quite flat during the last Tests, and even in India where I got to watch him. His success rate is due to a great team. Dhoni and Smith are both better captains, and Sehwag is a great vice-captain. Both Dhoni and Smith have been imaginative and have marshalled their bowlers better than Ponting, managing to get 20 wickets in Tests against the Aussies. Of course the positive impression of Smith and Dhoni might be due to the great performances of their teams. In 2008, both SA and India's top 6 scored more than 6300 runs over the year (excluding Duminy and Yuvraj), and both teams have developed dangerous opening bowling partners over the year (Steyn/Ntini and Khan/Sharma). On both counts, Aus did worse (5500 runs for top 6, Lee/Clark not firing). Even taking this into acct, Ponting still looks worse than the other two in how he captains on the field.

I can't believe how reactionary some of these comments are. They lose two games, one was a record run chase and another on some ridiculously lucky partnership combined with their top bowler getting injured. They probably would have drew the series in India if not for rain in the first test, and even the great team of five years ago that everybody talks about lost in India.
Australia has 5-10 players in their domestic system that would be automatic selections for any team other than the top 3 (India, SA, Aus) that can't get a game in test cricket, but they will now. I hate Australia and love to see them lose but they won't be down for long.
Their shortcomings are the very average tactics of Ponting and the poor work of the selectors, in particular the insistence on playing unfit veteran players and spinners that can't even take wickets in domestic cricket.

That was insightful:who would have thought Aus would miss two of the top 5 wicket takers of all time & an amazing wk/batter? The fact is Aus are rebuilding & will take years to find players of that calibre again. Aus immediate concern is how to manage its team in the interim & maintaining a consistent selection policy is the key here.I believe Aus has the domestic depth to provide good solid players to keep the team in the top 3.Remember: more than 1 champ has been knocked out & regained their title. As others have mentioned SA played superb cricket & should be applauded for this. They recovered solidly from tuff positions in both tests with bat and ball. These have been intense 5 day games not 3 day floggings.As far as skippers go captaining a team of superstars is never easy - too many egos.More than one prof team with big names has failed to live up to the hype due to bad leadership & lack of direction.Punter isnt in Waughs class but he is still very good & his record is excellent.

Michael, before I read your post I had planned to blog on that Oz 2nd innings. I look at it a little differently. I do not see this performance from Australia as a disregard to the situation. Rather it was a case of the situation getting to the batsmen and indecision making them take the worst decision possible, i.e. trying to 'ensure' a particular kind of lead instead of batting as well as they can. This happens when your bowlers do not inspire confidence and the batsmen (falsely) force themselves to set a target of ~450 (which may be 150 too many for the situation they are in) to enforce the win. I have seen Indian batsmen go through that 'we'll make up for poor bowling' stage numerous times in late 90's and 2000's.

You are spot on the Rolls Royce-sedan syndrome. But while you feel they refused to drive the sedan like a sedan, I feel they tried that upto a point. But when the moment of truth came they decided to aim loftily & pressed pedal too hard, instead of extending the fight.