Ridiculous things you really didn’t need to know about this Test match

By Andrew Gigacz

  • AUSTRALIA IN SYDNEY is an anagram of IN A RAINY DAY TUSSLE.

 

  • PAKISTAN IN SYDNEY? is an anagram of YES! AND STAY IN PINK!

 

  • DRAW IN SYDNEY is an anagram of DRY ENDS. I YAWN.

 

  • A TIE IN SYDNEY is an anagram of I.E. DENY SANITY.

 

  • Australia were all out for 127 in the first innings. The last time a side was dismissed for 127 was in 2002. The team was Australia and the opponent was also Pakistan. Australia won the match by 32 runs. Ricky Ponting is the only Australian from that match still playing Test cricket.

 

  • At least in their first innings, no Australian had to worry about getting past 50 and not making 100.

 

  • GOOD OMEN FOR AUSTRALIA: For the third time in their history, Pakistan have been dismissed for 333 in a Test. On both previous occasions, Pakistan batted second and the total was made in their first innings. On both occasions, Pakistan LOST the Test match (Melbourne 1977 and Faisalabad 1995).

 

More ridiculous facts to come as this Test unfolds.

About Andrew Gigacz

Well, here we are. The Bulldogs have won a flag. What do I do now?

Comments

  1. Ridiculous fact: Australia sucked today!

  2. Real fact: Australia struggle as soon as the ball does a bit. Reason: big chunks of intuition are taken away in process-driven approaches.

    Bring back odd back lifts, and improvised techniques.

  3. Why for the love of god did Ricky bat? I am halfway around the world, haven’t seen the pitch but on hearing the conditions when I woke up this morning I would have bowled without hesitation.

  4. Interesting fact- Ameer, more normally spelt as Amir means Prince in Arabic.

  5. I think JTH is right. Australia’s techniques would be described as “world’s best practice”. And we know what it usually means when that phrase is rolled out.

  6. Great to see you gettin’ the hang of this cricket talk Danni.

  7. lol nah, sorry Gigs Cricket talk does not make sense to me. That was just my Lebanese general knowledge.
    now will someone please tell what a Flipper is!? lol

  8. Richard Naco says

    An American friend of mine once said that watching cricket was exactly the same as watching a game of baseball if you’re stoned.

    I’ve never been able to watch the flannelled fools ever since then.

  9. Richard Naco says

    … and a flipper is a sea based mammal.

    And evidence that Paul Hogan has made some seriously weird career moves since Croc Dundee.

    (I’d answer this more seriously, only I’m completely straight right now.)

    ;)

  10. SO I WAS RIGHT!
    lol Gigs! you didnt tell me i was right when someone mentioned Warnie’s flipper and i asked if he had bought a dolphin!

  11. Don’t listen to Richard. He doesn’t know about cricket.

    A flipper is what a leg spinner bowls when he’s not bowling a leggie or a googly. See? Simple!

    Richard, re comment 8: What a coincidence. An Australian friend of mine once said that watching baseball was exactly the same as watching a game of cricket if you’re high on speed… :-)

  12. …Gigs
    u lost me at
    leg spinner, leggie, googly.
    what does Google have to do with Cricket?
    Unless its a type of bowl that is so fast the guy with the bat is unable to hit it cos his eyes so ‘googly’?
    lol

  13. Richard Naco says

    Touche’ Gigs.

  14. Often the gap between bat and pad for the Aussies was as obvious as something really obvious – hence their struggle. Will be interesting to watch them fight it out from here.

  15. Steve Healy says

    Danni, a leg spinner is a spin bowler who bowls it with their wrist so the ball spins away from a right handed batsman. A googly is a ball that a leg spinner bowls that cleverly turns the other way, so it does trick the batsman you were right about that.

    And by the way, it’s Mohammad Aamer not Mohammad Ameer.

  16. Steve Healy says

    Oh no! Watson!

  17. (Melbourne 1977 and Faisalabad 1995)

    I’ve never heard of Faisalabad..

  18. Come on Josh. Don’t you do Asian studies at School? It’s in Pakistan.

    Incidentally… AUSTRALIA’S IN FRONT!!!

  19. Peter Schumacher says

    As was out mowing the lawn, staking tomatoes and generally being useful I did not see the manner of Watson’s demise, Bugger (that he didn’t get the ton and that I missed it).

    I don’t think that Phil Hughes deserves another chance any time soon. Irrespective of what he did in South Africa he is clearly out of his league in this company.

    Danielle a googly is something that leg spinners bowl and then because they get into the habit of bending their wrist over in so doing can’t bowl leg breaks any more. And Clarke is out. How can he be the captain in waiting?

  20. Peter. New captain in waiting: SR Watson…

  21. Kamran Akmal has dropped Hussey THREE times, all of Kaneria.

  22. Peter – re: Phil Hughes. Don’t be too hasty. There’s been many a player written off early in their career. Steve Waugh, Matty Hayden, Damien Martin, Glenn McGrath, Justin Langer.

    Hughes has made runs at Test level against a good South African side. He probably just doesn’t believe at the moment.

  23. Dave Nadel says

    I “watched” the test in Sydney on the radio from the beach at St Leonards. The high point for me today was Geoff “Henry” Lawson explaining that the reason that the test side is full of New South Welshmen is that NSW produces good cricketers. In fact of the seven NSW registered players who have played for Australia this summer, only Michael Clark, Brad Haddin, Dougie Bollinger and Phil Hughes are actually from NSW. The others are from Queensland (Watson and Hauritz) and Western Australia (Katich). And of the four NSW raised players, Haddin at least is a questionable selection – he is a good batsman but there are at least three better wicketkeepers playing Sheild cricket.

  24. Hi Gigs

    Likewise, I have caught this match on the radio and I reckon your ‘ridiculous things about this test’ pale in comparison to statements made by some of the commentators. Yesterday, they were discussing Punter’s eyesight and like the good doctors/scientists they are they concluded that your eyesight worsens as you age and therefore old man Ponting should retire becuase he is going blind. I may as well have tuned in to The Goon Show.

    Cheers and qc (quiet chuckle)

  25. John Butler says

    Gigs

    You are a genius for predicting this one yesterday.

  26. Gotta go with the omens!

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