The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877.The team also plays One Day International cricket and Twenty20 International, participating in both the first ODI, against England in the 1970–71 season and the first Twenty20 International, against New Zealand in the 2004–05 season, winning both games.
History
The Australian cricket team participated in the first Test match at the MCG in 1877, defeating an English team by 45 runs, with Charles Bannerman making the first Test century, a score of 165 retired hurt. Test cricket, which only occurred between Australia and England at the time, was limited by the long distance between the two countries, which would take several months by sea. Despite Australia's much smaller population, the team was very competitive in early games, producing stars such as Jack Blackham, Billy Murdoch, Fred "The Demon" Spofforth, George Bonnor, Percy McDonnell, George Giffen and Charles "The Terror" Turner. Most cricketers at the time were either from New South Wales or Victoria, with the notable exception of George Giffen, the star South Australian all-rounder.
A highlight of Australia's early history was the 1882 Test match against England at The Oval. In this match Fred Spofforth took 7/44 in the game's fourth innings to save the match by preventing England from making their 85-run target. After this match The Sporting Times, a major newspaper in London at the time, printed a mock obituary in which the death of English cricket was proclaimed and the announcement made that "the body was cremated and the ashes taken to Australia." This was the start of the famous Ashes series in which Australia and England play a Test match series to decide the holder of the Ashes. To this day, the contest is one of the fiercest rivalries in sport.
Australians are four time ICC world champions (50 overs)in the years 1987,1999, 2003, 2007
Latest Ashes Controversy
Controversy, it seems, just cannot part ways with the Australian cricket team. After a troubled Indian spring,Australia's very own 'C' word trailed the team like a shadow, all the way into a Birmingham watering hole along with David Warner and then to Bristol where former coach Mickey Arthur was given the sack 16 days prior to the start of the first of 10 back-to-back Test matches of The Ashes.
The team, credit to them, kept it in lock throughout the first match at Trent Bridge, which they lost by the narrowest of margins. But no sooner had they finished preparations for what should be as exciting a Test match at Lord's on Thursday, controversy was to come crashing out of the door and ram into them in the form of leaked documents from the legal file of Arthur, who is suing Cricket Australia for wrongful terminationof contract.
That skipper Michael Clarke and former vice-captain Shane Watson don't see eye to eye, as was revealed from the documents, was no shocker. However, at a time when the Australian team is trying its best to project a united front to the world, the timing couldn't be worse. A possible split in the team that has revealed itself hours before what could be the most important Test match of the series, with a win getting them back into contention and a loss all but conceding defeat, is far from what Australia would have hoped for as they reached London.
Perhaps, the excitement and the grandeur of playing at the home of cricket is the best possible antidote they could hope for as they get set to lock horns with England in the second Test at Lord's.
Moving on to cricket, both teams could make at least the one change for the match. England could draft in Tim Bresnan for the rather ineffective Steven Finn, who bowled a bit too short for the hosts' liking in Nottingham. The pitch at Lord's is expected to be as dry as the one at Trent Bridge, if not more. England have just the one spinner in their unchanged 13-man squad for the second Test in Graeme Swann, and would bank on the likes of Joe Root to bowl a few overs in between.
On the other hand, it would be interesting to see if Australia go in with two spinners. Ashton Agar, who had a dream debut in the first Test, will be one of the first names on the sheet. And even though the Australian quicks did not perform badly, the dryness of the pitch could force Nathan Lyon also coming into the side in place of Mitchell Starc, who is the only viable option if any pacer has to be dropped. However, as they have proved time and again, reading the minds of the personnel behind the Australian team selection is as complicated as deciphering John Milton's polemical speech, Areopagitica. You could well brace yourselves for seeing a James Faulkner taking field to provide an all-round option with Ed Cowan getting the boot.
With the bowling attacks of both teams being well capable of taking 20 wickets, as was proved in the first Test, the battle could well be decided by which team's batting line-up shows up. On paper, England clearly have the better firepower in the first half of the team sheets.
Ian Bell's return to form would only have provided a major boost to what is already a prolific line-up from numbers one through seven, save for perhaps Jonny Bairstow. Australia, if they are to better this England batting, would be relying on their three most experienced players — Clarke, Watson and Chris Rogers. Lord's could also see 26-year-old Usman Khawaja make a return to the eleven at number three and, along with Steven Smith and Phil Hughes, will be expected to provide a robust back-up to the three seniors.
If the topsy-turvy first Test is anything to go by, where predicting which way the match would go was impossible right until what was the final delivery of the match when James Anderson broke through Brad Haddin's resistance, London is in for some daytime fireworks over the next five days all right. The neutrals would be hoping for an Australia win, which would provide for a gripping latter half of the first leg of the double header.
The team, credit to them, kept it in lock throughout the first match at Trent Bridge, which they lost by the narrowest of margins. But no sooner had they finished preparations for what should be as exciting a Test match at Lord's on Thursday, controversy was to come crashing out of the door and ram into them in the form of leaked documents from the legal file of Arthur, who is suing Cricket Australia for wrongful terminationof contract.
That skipper Michael Clarke and former vice-captain Shane Watson don't see eye to eye, as was revealed from the documents, was no shocker. However, at a time when the Australian team is trying its best to project a united front to the world, the timing couldn't be worse. A possible split in the team that has revealed itself hours before what could be the most important Test match of the series, with a win getting them back into contention and a loss all but conceding defeat, is far from what Australia would have hoped for as they reached London.
Perhaps, the excitement and the grandeur of playing at the home of cricket is the best possible antidote they could hope for as they get set to lock horns with England in the second Test at Lord's.
Moving on to cricket, both teams could make at least the one change for the match. England could draft in Tim Bresnan for the rather ineffective Steven Finn, who bowled a bit too short for the hosts' liking in Nottingham. The pitch at Lord's is expected to be as dry as the one at Trent Bridge, if not more. England have just the one spinner in their unchanged 13-man squad for the second Test in Graeme Swann, and would bank on the likes of Joe Root to bowl a few overs in between.
On the other hand, it would be interesting to see if Australia go in with two spinners. Ashton Agar, who had a dream debut in the first Test, will be one of the first names on the sheet. And even though the Australian quicks did not perform badly, the dryness of the pitch could force Nathan Lyon also coming into the side in place of Mitchell Starc, who is the only viable option if any pacer has to be dropped. However, as they have proved time and again, reading the minds of the personnel behind the Australian team selection is as complicated as deciphering John Milton's polemical speech, Areopagitica. You could well brace yourselves for seeing a James Faulkner taking field to provide an all-round option with Ed Cowan getting the boot.
With the bowling attacks of both teams being well capable of taking 20 wickets, as was proved in the first Test, the battle could well be decided by which team's batting line-up shows up. On paper, England clearly have the better firepower in the first half of the team sheets.
Ian Bell's return to form would only have provided a major boost to what is already a prolific line-up from numbers one through seven, save for perhaps Jonny Bairstow. Australia, if they are to better this England batting, would be relying on their three most experienced players — Clarke, Watson and Chris Rogers. Lord's could also see 26-year-old Usman Khawaja make a return to the eleven at number three and, along with Steven Smith and Phil Hughes, will be expected to provide a robust back-up to the three seniors.
If the topsy-turvy first Test is anything to go by, where predicting which way the match would go was impossible right until what was the final delivery of the match when James Anderson broke through Brad Haddin's resistance, London is in for some daytime fireworks over the next five days all right. The neutrals would be hoping for an Australia win, which would provide for a gripping latter half of the first leg of the double header.
Hope aussies will recover soon and bounce back............
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