Matches or series when your team astonished you in a good way

[Flem274*]

Both series are quite notable for the way in which they were won. In the UAE series NZ trailed by 74 runs in the 1st innings in both the tests they ended up winning. Obviously guys like KW, Watling and Wagner were instrumental but was great to see rookie spinners and someone like Nicholls play a significant role. Also the fact that it was NZ's first away series in 2 years.

I think the India series showed it's one thing to have skillful bowlers and completely another to successfully exploit favourable conditions. The feeling was NZ might be ripe for the taking because India's attack was every bit as good as theirs (which is not off the mark), yet NZ completely outbowled India like never before. For the record I feel similarly about people complaining (in recent times at least) about Indian conditions not being conducive to pace bowling - India's quicks have worked out exactly how to bowl at home.

i agree

india fell into the same trap england often do and bowled slightly too short for nz decks. it's best to err full here and work your way back if required. the kookaburra will swing in nz if you give it every chance.

 

[ankitj]

2001 Australia tour to India

How can there be a different answer.

 

[trundler]

2001 Australia tour to India

How can there be a different answer.

Well I guess the umpires were playing for India

 

[Moss]

2001 Australia tour to India

How can there be a different answer.

Ha ha. Someone needs to write the definitive book about that series, there was a DVD out within a year I think.

 

[Moss]

Here's an odd one from a team I don't necessarily support. I happened to watch highlights of each of the 3 tests and a good part of the tri-series when Sri Lanka toured Australia in 1995-96, just before the World Cup. Lanka were beaten 3-0 and lost the ODI finals 2-0 and of course Murali was called and sat out for a major part of the tour. But you could tell this was a different Sri Lanka - not just in the way they refused to take a backward step (Chapelli has spoken very highly of Ranatunga's leadership ever since) but in the way a number of senior and emerging players were suddenly making their presence felt.

While I wasn't one of those who went "aha this lot will win the world cup" right away, it was the point I started to think of them as contenders (not just in a world cup sense).

 

[BoyBrumby]

The 2005 Ashes is probably going to take some topping for sheer, untrammelled joy, but the subsequent OZ tour up here in 2009 was probably more astonishing in terms of the result.

Jimmeh and Monty batted for what felt like days to secure the draw in Cardiff with one wicket in hand, we'd been smashed by an innings and several in the fourth test and, so bad was the form of our incumbent #3, we were forced to play a debutant in the fifth and deciding test.

Luckily said bow-maker was one IJL Trott and the rest is history.

I'll also throw a mention to the 2000 Windies tour up here. The West Indies were on the way down by then, but could still call on the services of Walsh, Ambrose and Lara and duly thrashed us in the first test by an innings.

They subsequently secured a 130+ first innings lead in the second test, but Caddick, Gough & Cork blew them away for 54 in their second dig, leaving us with a decidedly ticklish chase of 188 in the fourth innings. We got there for 8 down, with Dom Cork scoring the best 33* of his career.

Ball definitely held sway throughout and happily our greater depth in the seam dept (Craig White even returned a couple of Michelles in the final two tests) eventually got us home 3-1, our first series win over the Windies in about 30 years.

 

[wpdavid]

The 2009 ashes clincher at the Oval is one of my favourite tests. As you say, we'd been smashed by plenty in the previous test and the series looked like going as expected. Background was that we'd started the year being dismissed for 50 in The Caribbean and Aus had won well in SA. Instead, we actually batted well enough to set a total at the Oval, Broad had his first godlike spell against Aus, Trott matched KP's 158 to set up a massive 4th innings target and Fred's direct hit to shift Ponting meant we won comfortably. Day 5 was one of those glorious end-of-summer days at The Oval when things had actually gone well for us.

 

[GIMH]

The 2009 ashes clincher at the Oval is one of my favourite tests. As you say, we'd been smashed by plenty in the previous test and the series looked like going as expected. Background was that we'd started the year being dismissed for 50 in The Caribbean and Aus had won well in SA. Instead, we actually batted well enough to set a total at the Oval, Broad had his first godlike spell against Aus, Trott matched KP's 158 to set up a massive 4th innings target and Fred's direct hit to shift Ponting meant we won comfortably. Day 5 was one of those glorious end-of-summer days at The Oval when things had actually gone well for us.

Was actually Day 4

 

[wpdavid]

Was actually Day 4

I was still celebrating on Day 5 mate.

 

[wpdavid]

I was still celebrating on Day 5 mate.

Actually, I should have known that the match finished on Day 4 as I know it was a Sunday and the Oval matches always start on Thursdays.

 

[Moss]

I remember that series for Australia blinking a couple of times - dispensing with Hughes very quickly after he came good in South Africa earlier, and going in with 4 quicks at the Oval while Swann did the damage for England. Felt very uncharacteristic and was an early sign of the selectorial panic we saw in the 2010-11 Ashes. England by contrast really held their nerve when it mattered, and the Trott selection came off so well (I recall so many were clamouring for a Ramprakash recall in that final test).

 

[wpdavid]

I remember that series for Australia blinking a couple of times - dispensing with Hughes very quickly after he came good in South Africa earlier, and going in with 4 quicks at the Oval while Swann did the damage for England. Felt very uncharacteristic and was an early sign of the selectorial panic we saw in the 2010-11 Ashes. England by contrast really held their nerve when it mattered, and the Trott selection came off so well (I recall so many were clamouring for a Ramprakash recall in that final test).

Yeah, I thought Hughes was unlucky to be dropped after, iirc, the second test. And Hauritz, I think, was the spinner unlucky not to be picked at The Oval when there were quite obviously different conditions to those at Leeds where their quicks had skittled us in the previous test. They also panicked a bit in the first test and bowled Marcus North's part time slow staff for too long when one of their quicks would have expected to remove Panesar pretty swiftly. Irrespective of the state of the pitch, we all know who Panesar would rather be facing.

 

[vcs]

It was a weird series, I think Australian players dominated most of the individual stats (because of the crushing victory at Headingley) but you couldn't really say that England didn't deserve their series win, because they also had convincing wins at Lord's and the Oval. I think even Marcus North made a ton or two.

Also, Australia's win over SA earlier that year looks like a massive upset in hindsight. Think their bowling attack was spearheaded by Hilfenhaus, Bollinger, Siddle and Andrew ****ing McDonald. SA were really jinxed against them at home until the Sandpapergate series.

 

[tony p]

At the age of 22, in 1989 I spent 6 months watching cricket in England.

The Ashes series which i saw that year is just the best cricket i've seen as we WEREN'T EXPECTED TO DO WHAT WE DID. I didn't care that England were crap.
Saw the Lords, Old Trafford & Oval tests in their entirety, and it was brilliant.

Also saw the Aussie's play Middlesex at Lords & Essex at Chelmsford, in the days when they actually played county sides. And the weather was great all summer.
Never had a better year.

 

[Moss]

It was a weird series, I think Australian players dominated most of the individual stats (because of the crushing victory at Headingley) but you couldn't really say that England didn't deserve their series win, because they also had convincing wins at Lord's and the Oval. I think even Marcus North made a ton or two.

Also, Australia's win over SA earlier that year looks like a massive upset in hindsight. Think their bowling attack was spearheaded by Hilfenhaus, Bollinger, Siddle and Andrew ****ing McDonald. SA were really jinxed against them at home until the Sandpapergate series.

Johnson I think was a big part of the South Africa series win, he played the role of enforcer there. But it all went south for him in England and the Barmy Army let him know it.

 

[vcs]

Oh yeah I totally forgot him, think he hit a few people in one of the matches, he was pretty fiery.

 

[grecian]

Early 1985, the then Archbishop of Durham had made headlines with a series of talks or articles where he cast doubt on the literal truth of the resurrection of Jesus. I think his exact words included 'a conjuring trick with bones'. It was classic liberal theology about not taking the supernatural elements of the Bible literally. Obviously most people weren't offended by this, but it's not quite what you expect form a senior cleric. Some of the tabloids had already been offended by his support for the miners' strike, so he was seen as fair game to the likes of the Mail and the Express. England proceeded to build an extraordinary score in the 4th test; I think it was at Madras. Fowler and Gatting both hit massive double hundreds and at one point we were 600+ for 3. Maybe 629,maybe not. Hence Spitting Image's latex puppet of the Archbishop of Durham, complete with miner's hat, patiently explaining that 629 for 3 shouldn't be taken in a literal sense.

Yeah, 84 India was up there for me. I am in firm belief that we were worse in the 80s than the 90s, when we were awful too, other than beating a few terrible Packer deprived Oz sides in spectacular fashion, but we were also missing the likes of Gooch, Underwood, Boycs, and Lever. Foster had one of the great bowling spells as well. Big Gatting fan so his breakthrough was massive for a teenage me, and to do it with our main all-rounder, being the frankly crap Chris Cowdrey was incredible.

I always remember the jokes about religion back then. Q "are you religious?" A "No I'm Church of England"

Poor Tim Robinson went from murdering these and Oz and everyone declaring him the next great English Batsman, to being humiliated by the Windies with a barrage of fast bowling, earned himself the nickname "Michelin man" as he wore so much protection, can't say I blame him mind.

 

[Pothas]

517/1 at Brisbane.

I can't really remember how confident people really were about England going into that series, I think the were seen as having a decent chance but half way through the first Test it looked like being the standard away ashes. What followed was amazing of course but I think this was the great unexpected moment.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

2002 NZ in the Windies. 1st time we'd won there. Bond took wickets and Fleming and Styris (on debut) scored 100s.

Drawn test series in India 2003. Was amazed when we scored 630/6 with 4 100s in the 2nd tests.

2001/02 VB Series - I know we lost to SA in the finals but it was great to beat Australia in pool play. Likewise in a few Chappell Hadlee series when we were underdogs.

 

[wpdavid]

517/1 at Brisbane.

I can't really remember how confident people really were about England going into that series, I think the were seen as having a decent chance but half way through the first Test it looked like being the standard away ashes. What followed was amazing of course but I think this was the great unexpected moment.

It may go without saying that I wasn't 100% confident before the series. iirc my stated view was that our weaknesses were bigger than Australia's weaknesses. And then we woke up to 517 for 1. That of course was the one ashes series away from home when I didn't dread turning on the radio to regularly find out that England had done even more badly than I expected.