Champions League 2009

Ponting, Clarke, North and Haddin is a strong middle order Raj, that kills the WI batting line up in comparison. Watson is in red hot form. Bat him at 6 and he'll make a lot of runs. We have a lot of top batsmen in Australia: Hughes, Jaques, Klinger, Hodge, D Hussey, Cameron White, Voges and a few others who are international quality, who don't get a regular run in the side.
Australia's fast bowling stocks are brilliant, besides the 5 you mentioned Raj there's also the likes of Bollinger, Nannes, Geeves, McKay, MacGoffin, Noffke, Dorey, Tait and a couple of decent youngsters emerging.
I'm quitely confident at the depth of fast bowling , batsmen and keepers in Australia, while all the youth players coming up are strong fielders (look out for Warner, he's the next Jonty or Ricky in the field).
Spin bowling is going OK. Krejza from all reports has improved a hell of a lot since his debut and has been working hard during the off season. Just took a 4 for in the first first class game of the season for Tas which is a good sign. Holland might be one to look out for and there's a young man from NSW named Stephen Smith who's a leg spinning all rounder not unlike Adil Rashid of England.

I still agree with Lara. WI have lost 8 tests in a row against Australia in Australia, they don't have the fire power to change that. Australian batsmen LOVE pace, the quicker the better. Swing is what kills them, Steyn, Jones, Wasim, etc. None of those WI boys swing the ball prodiguously on reputation. I expect Australia to win all the tests.

Australians have seen Edwards before and he's not unlike Tait which the Australian batsmen would have contended with in the nets and State cricket. WI need swing to win. If they swing it, they got a chance. 

Trinidad are into the finals to meet NSW and that should be a very good game.  T&T is full of flamboyant player, Ganga is the only one who can't really bash it around at a rate but he plays a perfect role in the side.

How well has Ganga led the side. I am really impressed by the way he has led his squad. Also - how often does a SAF team field as bad as they did?

Oops I never realized that - chokers at club level as well. One reason I feel T&T are playing with such flair because these guys representing a nation unlike other teams.

T&T is football mad too, good to see they still produce some quality cricketers. Kieron Powell is a gem with the long handle, Sherwin Ganga looks a tidy 2020 sort off spinner and then you have the Bravo bros.

Do you reckon Spinny that in the tests Australia will go for a 4 pronged pace attack (Hilfenhaus, Siddle, Johnson, Lee)? That's what they're saying out here. I reckon if Watson plays then Hauritz should get a shot and Watson can be the 4th seamer. That means , most likely that Lee won't play. It will be interesting to see who gets picked.

He has a new found self belief. You can actually sense from him that he knows think he deserves to be playing top line cricket. He's now played against NZ and SA in tests at home, the Ashes, the CT and the CL in the last 12 months. In that time his numbers have been good and he has improved a great deal. His bowling has come along really well and he's a threat in ODI cricket. I'm impressed. I like Krejza too, he's aggressive and spins it a hell of a lot. They say he has improved a great deal so it should be good to have a couple of options.
Hauritz could still be left out however.

WINDIES has some depth in their batting matey, they just don't have the same temperament as players from other sides. Sarwan is a bit of a Graeme Hick. He could have been the next Lara, bit of a waste. Chanders is a giant in a team of dwarfs and Gayle is too big headed. Bravo has genuine talent, but it's been a really long time since he played test cricket on a regular basis due to injuries and contract disputes.

Lee is a brilliant. They were always saying he'll become an all rounder, but it never really eventuated. I thought at the start Johnson would be a bit like Lee and Warne, but he's a bit more than that. However, Lee is showing how good he really is in limited overs cricket. 5 sixes and a four in his 48 is awesome. 2/10 off 2 overs with 2 left to bowl at the end presumably is astonishing. His economy has been under 4 this CL and his form is awesome. His pace is up there as well. If he continues like this in the 7 ODI series v India he has a really good shot. I dare say that Siddle would be the man to make way for him because they are both hit the deck and pacy sort of bowlers. Albeit, I'm a fan of Siddle and I think he deserves to be in the side. It's a really tough call.

I saw Lee's batting - it was clean and fierce hitting by him.

Well done to NSW - interesting that the semi-finalists were made up of teams that had no overseas players in them, although from next year T & T will likely be the only side to have not used overseas players at some point or other.

Now, how about a challenge match between NSW and the Sialkot Stallions for the 'Champion of Champions' clash?!

L$$ .. I mean Lee was instrumental, Infact there was so much at stake.

T&T won US$1 million milk, the Stanford Superstars (West Indies) won US$20.  Someone like Mohammed is one of the richest Cricketer in the Windies, being part of all these big money winnings.