The Future of Australian Cricket

[vijabl]

Cricketing fortunes, the same as every other aspect of life, come and go in cycles. Some cycles are long, some not so long. The last noticeable end of a cycle was the demise of the great West Indies team. The beginning of the end of the next cycle for the Australian Team has just begun.

I have been watching cricket since 1956 and am familiar with the signs, the most important being the lack of the once-prevalent depth of talent in Australian cricket. There are certainly some good cricketers waiting to repsresent their country but the last of the truly special players, Michael Clarke, is gone. Not so long ago Australian Cricket was the envy of the world with its infrastructure and talent. The infrastructure is still there but the talent is waning. Soon Matthew Hayden will be dropped. There is no guarantee he will regain his spot if Clarke opens with Gilchrist in the One-Day game. The Tests are still open to speculation.

There is too much to go into here but suffice to say that 2007 may be the last time Australia seriously challenges for the World Cup for a long time after that.

Bangla Desh Cricket has a lot to look forward to. As long as you persevere you will eventually succeed at the highest level. ;)

[bourny3]

Interesting thoughts. I wouldnt say Australia is on a steep downward track though. Because there are good players waiting in the state teams. Marcus North, even young players Callum Ferguson, Mark Cosgrove. I say those two because they are South Australian and so am I. But I can see Australia losing a few more tests than they are losing now.

[battye]

C'mon, we can never remain the best forever, but most of the current players could be replaced with another domestic player of equal quality. Maybe they are not of equal quality now, but in a few years..

Haddin, Watson, Bracken, Williams, Tait, Hopes, North.. there is a lot of talent in the domestic league, and talent in the domestic league will be transferred to the international stage.