England in India (2012)

India has been facing a collecting failure at the top but thats nothing new nor the sole cause of the ongoing debacle,i remember during early part of mid 90s when india were relishing one series victory after another on home soil they published a stat which exposed the reality as the latter 5 wickets(lat 5 wkts in terms of adding runs) had fared as well or better during that stint,we have to give it to Cook who has been amassing runs in such a fashion that it is taking psychological toll on Indian bowlers and fielders,taking out the spin factor early in the inning instilling a belief in English camp,that coupled with the fact that they have come with a spin attack thats equally effective or better than the hosts -a fact which could be unprecedented in the entire history of visiting English team. so i think nothing is going right for the Indian team,bad forms but more than that a much improved and well equipped to

Edited by jaysjay - 08 December 2012 at 6:03pm

very impressed by Joe Root, I'm not saying he is extraordinary or anything but to make your debut on such a difficult track against India in India, facing 4 different spinners which is not natural for an Englishmen, coming in to bat at a difficult situation and scoring 73 is a very fine effort by this debutante, well played Joe Root.

ENG closing in on a remarkable series win in India, this is really a significant achievement for the English, what a performance this has been by a team that appeared absolutely clueless against spin at the start of the year against Pakistan!

That could be the reason mystery, but if we see ENG has been pretty clueless against spin even when they toured India last year for a 5 match ODI series.

A series win after 28 years and they deserved it. England were superior in all departments and the way they bounced back after the first test showed that they were hungrier than India to win the series.

Quite a stroll for the English batsmen yesterday - India just didn't look like bowling them out. Trott and Bell looked comfortable and even at the 1st drinks break I was convinced that the game was up and the series won by England.  Cook was fantastic throughout the series , as was Anderson. Twas great to see Monty bowl so well and finally see a win when he was in harness with Swann.  Finn  has a terrific future as long as he doesn't keep breaking down and Prior just gets better and must be favourite to get the one day job back now.  On the downside , Broad had a tour to forget and Bresnan struggled with bat and ball. Bairstow missed a chance to cement his place and Patel might find himself an outcast again because of the arrival of Root.  Root could well oust Compton at the top of the order (Root opens for Yorkshire) as Compton's application was commendable , but he didn't stick around for a big one.  
                       It's been a long haul in 2012 for England , but a satisfying end with what has to be one of their best results for many years.   New Zealand next and they need to keep up the good work - nothing less than anothers eries win will do ,especially against a side in turmoil.
                         As for India , the problems have been highlighted by other posters in this section. Suffice to say that there has to be changes in personnel and that anouncement from the lilttle master might just eb around the corner. I noticed he went off with a twinge in his shoulder and didn't come back at all - was that his last appearance in the test arena?   I hope not , he deserves a real ovation for his 23 years in the game and his fantastic achievements.
                              Jadeja brought much needed energy to the India fielding unit , which I have to say is one of the worst in the game today. They just lack energy and that seems to infect the bowlers as well - they need a rocket !
            

So the one dayers start tomorrow and England will start as underdogs after losing both warm up matches this week.  The only ray of sunshine was fine batting by Ian Bell , but all the bowlers have struggled in what are alien conditions for most of them. Tim Bresnan will have to find the form he's shown here before - something we haven't seen since his comeback from injury.  Kieswetter will hold onto the gloves but will need sruns to hold off the challenge of Bairstow. KP will be keen to get amongst the runs after signing a new central contract yesterday. No Sehwag for India - probably the right decision after his indifferent form - but I think England will be relieved he isn't playing. 
              Winning the test series was a fine effort and I think winning the one dayers would be almost as good - it's a big test for Ashely Giles , in charge for the first time.

ENG continue their winning ways, some brilliant hitting by Samit Patel towards the end in that game which really made the difference at the end, surprisingly good performance by Tredwell, never thought he'll do so well.

So England win the final one dayer , but it was a dead rubber anyway.  What have they learnt in this series ?  Well Root showed that he has the ability to perform at the highest level in all forms of the game and will do so for many years. Treadwell was terrific and deserves a go alongside Swann if the pitches take spin.  Keiswetter fell way short again and has been given more than enough chances - Buttler needs a run now.  Dernbach tries his damnedest , but falls short at the top level - there are just far too many loose deliveries. Woakes is promising and should get more gametime in New Zealand - don't forget this lad can weild the willow as well.   Morgan can't bat at 4 , especially with a new ball at both ends and England losing early wickets.  He's a finisher and needs to stay at 6 except when England enter the final 10 only a couple of wickets down.   Finn's problem with the stumps reared it's head again and needs sorting out before the tests in March.
                 Graham Gooch stands down as one day batting coach , replaced by Graham Thorpe. That's no bad move , as Thorpe knows how to construct a one day inings as well as any man.   Giles will be relatively happy , afterall they won 2 matches. He won't have been happy with the 2 lamentable batting performances , but he'll stamp his mark on this team soon enough , but the Champions trophy might be a little too close for it to work righ now.
               Finally , my old bug bear - umpiring.  I thought the Indian umpires were appalling and Steve Davies not much better - he needs to retire now!  Those Indian umpires haven't played 1st class cricket EVER and it showed. Just because the ball is going to hit the stumps doesn't necessarily mean it's out!!

well at the start of the tour if someone would have said ENG winning tests 2-1, drawing T20's 1-1 and losing ODI's 2-3, they'd have gladly taken it, a very successful tour for ENG has ended on a high.

Originally posted by Clobber I wish they would just accept the obvious fact that Prior is the best keeper/batsman in the world and put him into the limited overs teams, he clearly has the ability. I know his record isn't great for England in limited overs stuff but he's a better (and smarter) player now, and I just think he got shunted up and down the order so much that he was never sure how to go about an innings.

I'm with you 100% Clobs , he's in a different class to the rest of them.  They tried in at the top of the order , which didn't go too well. I think he'd been better used down at 6 or 7 as a finisher - maybe not so many clearing the rope , but plenty of fours .