Bushrangers cannot make Warriors bat again
Western Australia wrapped up their four day Pura Cup match against Victoria at the WACA ground in Perth today with a win by an innings and 69 runs.The final seven wickets had fallen 12 minutes after the lunch break after PaulWilson bowled his best ever figures of six wickets for 76 runs.Michael Klinger and Graeme Rummans 71 run fourth wicket partnership was broken when Rummans 32 (from 79 balls) edged Wilson to the keeper Adam Gilchrist when Victoria were 156 for four wickets. This was Wilson’s second wicket of the innings having removed Jon Moss the previous day.Klinger 39 (80 balls) also edged Wilson to Gilchrist when the score was 171for five. Wilson trapped Cameron White 12 (16 balls) in front, out leg before wicket when Victoria were 172 for six wickets.Victorian skipper Shane Warne 0 (5 balls) was next to go, having squared upin defense to Wilson and edging to Gilchrist also. Matthew Nicholson dismissed Darren Berry 25 (32 balls) for his only wicket of the match when he had Berry playing around the ball and was bowled through the gate.Michael Lewis and Robert Cassell took Victoria to lunch at eight for 235. Then Cassell was Brad Hogg’s third wicket (he took the first two on the previous day) when the batsman 18 (34 balls) went to pull into the leg side and was rapped on the pad in front of the stumps – judged leg before wicket by umpire Lock when the ninth wicket fell at 236.The final pair of Michael Lewis and Will Carr added a single leg bye to thescore before Carr 0 (4 balls) became Wilson’s sixth victim, edging to Damien Martyn at first slip. Lewis remained unbeaten on 17 (46 balls).Wilson was by far the best bowler of the second Victorian innings with first-class career best figures of six wickets for 76 (8 wickets for 94 for the match.) Brad Hogg secured three wickets and Matthew Nicholson one wicket. Jo Angel and Michael Clark were wicket-less at the end of the innings.Brad Hogg was named man of the match for his entertaining knock the yesterday and the importance of the wickets he removed.No Victorian batsman made 40 runs in twenty two batsman’s innings whilst forWestern Australia five half centuries were scored in from just eleven.After the match West Australian television viewers were appalled to seeVictorian coach David Hookes voice his displeasure with the author of an article in a prominent Western Australian Newspaper this morning. He went on to describe the Victorian effort in the most disparaging of terms. “Piss-hole.”Warne: “I was pretty happy to win the toss. I thought it was a pretty goodwicket. Then as we saw today, the cracks in there have opened up already. When you think it is only half way through day 3 and you imagine what they are going to be like tomorrow, I think one hundred and fifty would have been tough to get last. Had we have batted better in the first innings it would have been a good decision to bat. We just didn’t bat well enough first.””If we had have fought back yesterday and bowled the WACA’s out for little bit of a less score, every run would have been a little bit harder. The WACA’s would have known what it would have been like to bat on last. I think that wicket could have been real ordinary last. The difference between yesterday and today with those cracks. They were open a long way today. If we had have bowled them out a lot cheaper, we could have been one fifty two hundred ahead, and I would have backed us from there.”The positive thing for us is that after four games we are still on top of the points. During the course of a year you are going to have some bad games some where along the line. I think generally no-one has 10 bad games in a season and the statistics prove you are going to have one bad game here and there. I think we can put this one down as a bad game. As long as we move on. We have South Australia Friday in Melbourne. We have played two games in Melbourne and won two. We’re pretty tough to beat at home.”We are in a pretty good position. The sign of a good team is if they bounce back. It is very important that in this next game we commit and do the things we have not been doing well. There were some good signs. I think our intent and our urgency in our second innings was OK. At none for eighty we were going along quite well. Then we lost a couple of wickets in a row and that put us on the back foot.”I thought Graeme Rummans and Michael Klinger showed a bit today. A couple of good thirties. We just need to have one or two of those guys go and get a big score. Jason Arnberger’s form continued. He looked very good at the crease and in this whole match, he looks very relaxed calm. He has made 500 runs for the year.”To lose someone like Matthew Elliott, Shane Harwood, Ian Harvey and Matthew Inness all pretty major players for Victoria it is a big loss. But having said that, it is a good opertunity for some other guys.”It all comes down to basics. If you do the basics better than the opposition then generally you are going to win most games.”Hookes: “I just want to say John [Townsend] I am pretty pissed off with your article in today’s paper. Accusing our players of saying something about Ryan Campbell and batting style. As I understand it you overheard a couple of our players talking on stump cam. Thats a pretty ordinary way of getting a bit of information. I think you owe the players and I have apologized to Ryan already, I think you owe him and apology too.””We batted piss-hole today. It matched the first innings. Warnie [Shane Warne] summed it up pretty well. We are a side trying to go forward. We played four games, four outrights, two wins and two losses. The losses have been very poor and both have been away. So thats a worrying trend. It might be like the dockers.”It is something that we are crystal clear in what is happening. I am not sure we have the ability to change it overnight. At least we are aware, at least the players are understanding of the learning process we are trying to go through. We will get through it, it is just a matter of how quickly we will get through it.”When you consider no Elliott and no Harwood as well. You are probably foureleventh of your side out. It still seems pretty unfair that the game wasbrought forward. The lack of time and space between games for us. Nothing to do with the Test players being available, I think thats great to be able to bowl Robert Cassell and Will Carr to Marto [Damien Martyn] and Gilly [Adam Gilchrist] I think that is excellent for them.”We have some different set plays that we use in one-day cricket and four-day cricket. The set play got two wickets for us yesterday. It is an awareness thing for the players. If the other team is getting away from us if we can do some certain things that are set, it is positive for the players that are out on the field.”Hogg: “It is always good to play with the Australian boys when they come back. They have a presence about them. The team always lifts when they are around and enjoys their company. It was good to have them back, and it was good to be able to perform with them here.”We got off to a good start. When we get off to a good start we generally do well. Hopefully that will continue for the rest of the season. If we keep playing like this we could take out a final.”I have been pretty happy with my batting. I think I have under-performed in my career, hopefully it continues as it is going now.”He [Adam Gilchrist] is one of the legends of the game at the moment. It isalways good to have someone like that coming back. He is Vice Captain ofAustralia, he has led Australia at times. It just helps the boys. It probably gives a bit for Huss [Michael Hussey] when he takes over when the boys aren’t here.”You always want to be in the hunt to play cricket for Australia, whether it is to play one day cricket or Test cricket. If you keep playing for the Warriors and are performing well, doing your bit for the team, the rest will look after itself. If Test or One-Day selection come, they come. I am proud of what I have achieved in the past. If Test selection happens again I will be more than ready for it.”Wilson: “Obviously I was pretty lucky. It was my day today. All the bowlersbowled well. I was just lucky to get the wickets today. It is pleasing from the point of view that I have just changed states. Hopefully for me it is just a great start. For me personally it has been great just to play with Adam [Gilchrist]. We have known each other for years since we played in Country New South Wales. To be able to play my first game for WA with Adam has added a little touch to it as well. Hopefully we can play like this for the whole season, which means we can be pretty successful.”The best thing about being a part of this side, everyone has great input and advice in certain situations in the game. Everyone is looking out and looking ahead to see what can be done differently.”The ball has been coming out pretty well all year, even in club stuff. Last time I took five wickets here for South Australia we lost. The best thing is that this time we comprehensively won. Whether you take two wickets or six, it doesn’t matter so long as your team is winning.”The body is pretty good at the moment, it is always pretty ugly, but at least it is running in and doing the things I want it to do.”I thought today I didn’t bowl as well as on the first day. You are always looking for areas for improvement. If you think you have got it right, you are in trouble next time you bowl. You are only as good as your next game and that’s what I am looking forward to.Gilchrist: “It was close to perfect. It was an outstanding performance by the bowlers in those conditions. Day one the toss was fifty fifty as to which way we wanted to go, so I was pretty happy to lose it. Then to come out and execute their plan so well, it was outstanding. Throughout both of their innings.”I thought of McGrath and Gillespie and Co. in Brisbane and how ruthless they were with their line and length. These guys were just as good as that, just as consistent.”What Justin [Langer] Marto [Damien Martyn] and myself tried to bring back into this game was the enjoyment, a lot of pride in playing for the state. To show that we were keen to play. Certainly the enjoyment and the right attitude. That’s probably a bit of a catch word we have tried to have filtered into our squad is having a good attitude. We all know what that kind of attitude is like to be successful. We are just trying to make sure that we replicate that day in and day out. I think we were outstanding in that capacity in this game.”You always take a day off when it comes around. I am thrilled with what I have gotten out of this match. Some runs , some catches and generally a goodworkout. In this busy schedule it is always nice to get that little bit of free time.”I guess that’s the way you want it. You want some guys to be unlucky to be left out not lucky to be getting a game. Selection for this match was a bit of a nightmare, it was a bit of a tough decision with regards to who we had to leave out from the batting line up. It is going to focus more on the bowling. The selectors are going to have a few nightmares. But that is a healthy situation.”It was an ideal opertunity for guys to play. It is always going to be a touchy issue. This round of games has been handled well. The McGraths, Gillespies and those guys that have a big workload and have the more physical aspect of the game running in trying to bowl quick. I have absolutely no drama with those guys missing it. In an ideal world we’d all play for everything we were available for. We have to monitor on an individual basis a lot of honesty has to come from the player. I think we are heading towards that in regards to the Australian cricket team and it’s management. I think we are heading towards a good honest assessment and that it is done on an individual basis.”What was proven to me at the end of the day was that there are a lot of theories going around but if you have fairly simple plans and execute them well, you are going to do well, no matter whether it is first-class cricket or Test cricket or one-day cricket.”