[ScouseCat]

Lehmann out of Ashes squad
Wisden Cricinfo staff
April 5, 2005

Shaun Tait, Brad Haddin and Stuart MacGill have been rewarded with an Ashes berth after fine performances in the Pura Cup while Darren Lehmann, who missed the New Zealand tour, has been left out of the side. Brad Hodge, on the fringes for a while, was also named in the 16-man Test squad. The rest of the squad featured the Australian regulars, with no surprises. Ricky Ponting, as captain, will lead a Test contingent featuring seven batsmen, seven bowlers and two wicketkeepers.

http://<br /> http://aus.cricinfo.c...05APR2005.html


Shaun Tait, a rising star, has been included after a superb domestic season

Test Squad:

Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Brad Hodge, Simon Katich, Michael Clarke, Adam Gilchrist, Brad Haddin, Jason Gillespie, Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Michael Kasprowicz, Shaun Tait, Stuart MacGill, Glenn McGrath.

ODI Squad:

Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Simon Katich, Andrew Symonds, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, Brad Haddin, Shane Watson, Brad Hogg, Jason Gillespie, Brett Lee, Michael Kasprowicz, Glenn McGrath.

[ScouseCat]

I am really pleased to see Shaun Tait included in the squad to tour England. The Poms wont know what hit them when they see what this kid can do with the ball. After facing Tait and Lee, they'll be begging to face Warne.

[Caesar]

Most Predictable Squad Ever.

[michaec]

Yes, a predictable squad. From an English point of view it will be good to see just how far we have come in the last couple of years. I'm under no illusions about actually beating Australia, but even losing the series by the odd test will be an improvment!

[ScouseCat]

Originally Posted by michaec

From an English point of view it will be good to see just how far we have come in the last couple of years. I'm under no illusions about actually beating Australia, but even losing the series by the odd test will be an improvment!

But will losing yet another Ashes series to Australia be good enough for the average English cricket fan to take? The media over in England doesn't help things by always talking up England's chances and saying how great they are. It's almost like they're setting everyone up for a huge let down when they fail against Australia, and also the players don't seem to recover mentally from being belted by us, mainly your batsman.

[michaec]

Originally Posted by ScouseCat

But will losing yet another Ashes series to Australia be good enough for the average English cricket fan to take? The media over in England doesn't help things by always talking up England's chances and saying how great they are. It's almost like they're setting everyone up for a huge let down when they fail against Australia, and also the players don't seem to recover mentally from being belted by us, mainly your batsman.

Well, obviously English cricket fans will want the team to win, but anyone who's actually expecting to beat Australia is an extreme optimist to say the least! I'm sure that if the team are competitive, we win at least one test and lose, say, 2-1, then I think that most fans will realise that it represents a vast improvement over recent Ashes series and shows that the team are developing. However, the team need to follow that up by going to Australia in a couple of years time with a realistic chance of winning, i.e. they need to keep on improving, or it's all for nought!

[OldFanatic]

Originally Posted by michaec

Well, obviously English cricket fans will want the team to win, but anyone who's actually expecting to beat Australia is an extreme optimist to say the least!

Come on man! Why start with a negative attitude? Indians always take a lot more positive attitude when facing Australia. They don't outright predict series wins in the Indian media, but tying a series is always considered to be the minimum expectation. Whether or not it is actually achieved is another story.

[michaec]

I wouldn't call it negative, merely realistic. If it were a one-off match then yes, we would have a chance of winning. But over a six test series, you would think that with Australia being so much stronger than England at the moment that they will prevail. England have made great strides over the past couple of years and if it were anyone else than Australia then the fans and the media would be expecting the win. As I said in a previous post, if we can keep this Ashes series close, then we have to be looking to go to Australia for the next one looking to win it, this England team hasn't even tested itself against the best yet.

[billyboy23]