Series win highlights widening gap between Aussies, others: Roebuck

Sydney, Mar.31 (ANI): Australia's emphatic two-nil series win over New Zealand further highlights the widening gap not only between these two sides, but also between Australia and the other cricketing nations in terms of both performance and results on the field, feels noted columnist Peter Roebuck.

In a syndicated column for the Sydney Morning Herald, Roebuck says that the Kiwis have fallen short and, like a struggling player, "needs to identify and correct its weaknesses."

"It's not a question of the top three or four sides coming back to the field. It's a matter of the rest meeting their challenge. Cricket cannot survive as a narrow game played by a few powerful nations and regarded as a recreation elsewhere. A wide gulf has appeared between the sides," Roebuck says.

He says that the Australians should be pleased with themselves, having "batted adventurously and played shrewdly, keeping a disciplined length, exhibiting canny tactics."

"As far as Kiwi cricket is concerned, it's back to the drawing board. Beforehand, Daniel Vettori described the series as season-defining. Perhaps too much was expected," he says.

On Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson, Roebuck says that while he is enjoying a purple patch, "he is too inconsistent to be put in the top bracket of bowlers." This after Johnson claimed a ten for in the Hamilton Test.

"Overall, the Australians were efficient as opposed to irresistible. It ought not to be sufficient to squash a sturdy opponent. Unfortunately the Kiwis did not provide stern opposition. Their cricket is in a state of flux," he concludes. (ANI)