International Test Cricket Series – Australia vs New Zealand

Let the action return to the cricket pitch please?

The issue for New Zealand’s new coach Mark Greatbatch was always going to be under threat for his selection choices.

International Test Cricket Series Odds
Thursday, March 18, 5.30pm EST (11am Wellington local time)
Australia –300
Draw +375
New Zealand +750

International Test Cricket Series Match Odds
Thursday, March 18, 5.30pm EST (11am Wellington local time)
Australia –200
Draw +250
New Zealand +550

A veteran of 41 Test, Greatbatch was always going to fit into one of two moulds – a brilliant visionary or a man stuck in the past and it appears with his latest selection that it is the latter.

The announcement of the return of Mathew Sinclair into the 13-man squad adds to the Hodge podge feel of the Black Caps squad going into this Test series against Australia.

Sinclair has been dropped from the Kiwi team five times thus far in a career that has failed to ignite since debuting for his country in December 1999.

Averaging 32.55 in his 32 Tests, the right hander has had a torrid time against Australia scoring 212 runs in eight tests in which he batted in both innings all but one time.

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His returns were far from impressive top scoring with 69 and reaching double figures nine times including three ducks, his last match at Wellington against the all-conquering 2000 Aussies team, he was trapped by Colin ‘Funky’ Miller for 4 in the first innings who was brought into the attack in just the ninth over. The second innings saw Sinclair’s wickets skittled by Brett Lee for a third-ball duck.

If he does get a strip against the Aussies it will be at the cost of Peter Ingram, another of Greatbatch’s doomed selection decisions. Ingram, a veteran of the New Zealand domestic showed glimpses of style against Bangladesh but has been totally outclassed by Australia in the one-day series and is in serious doubt to excel in the Test arena against the likes of Ryan Harris, Clint McKay, Mitchell Johnson and Doug Bollinger.

Neil Broom has also been given the chop further weakening the Black Caps.

After retaining the Chappell-Hadlee in the one-day series Australia has swapped their limited overs players for their Test team, Phillip Hughes, Steven Smith, Marcus North, Simon Katich along with Michael Clarke are ready to square off against the Kiwis.

Australia is trying to push aside the Clarke fiasco which saw him fly home to break up with his fiancée. The media storm following the vice captain back across the Tasman is now in the ‘beyond a joke’ region, the personal lives of sports stars now seemingly more important to newspaper editors than what these people do for a living.

I for one hope that Clarke maintains his silence and the focus returns to that on the pitch. How many of these so called columnists, editors and decision makers would enjoy their lives being splashed across the front and back pages of every publication.

The only reason people care about a relationship failure is to distract them from their own boring lives.

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