England in India (2012)
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Topic: England in India (2012)
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Subject: England in India (2012)
Date Posted: 04 November 2012 at 12:28pm
------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
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Replies:
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 12 November 2012 at 12:26pm
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Dravid backs Dhoni as Test captain - http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/current/story/590920.html - http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/current/story/590920.html ... rightly so, a sensible guy like him knows the stats inside out. I really don't understand how this topic keeps coming up regarding the Indian Captaincy, MS Dhoni is India's most successful Indian captain by any stretch of imagination in any format. Well even by stats, just to show how ahead he has been against the second best, here are the statistics. In Tests - MSD and Ganguly ( Ganguly has the second best for Indian Test Captain) MSD as Captain in 39 matches, win 19, loss 10, drawn 10 Win % - 48.71% Loss % - 25.64% Drawn % - 25.64% Ganguly as Captian in 49 matches, win 21, loss 13, drawn 15 Win % - 42.85% Loss % - 26.53% Drawn % - 30.61% In ODI - MSD and Dravid ( Dravid has the second best ODI record for Indian Captain) MSD as Captain in 127 matches, win 73, loss 43, tied 3, no result 8 Win % - 62.60% Dravid as Captian in 79 matches, win 42, loss 33, tied 0, no result 4 Win % - 56.00 % In ODIs we have slightly complex calculation ( as per wiki) Win% = (matches won+0.5*matches tied)/(matches played-matches abandoned/no result) ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 14 November 2012 at 12:15pm
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England lost 4 matches in their sub-continent tour of UAE & SL earlier this year. Just look at the three of the four losses, I don't see any problem there. Pakistan Won by 10 wickets Pakistan Won by 72 runs Pakistan Won by 71 runs SL Won by 75 runs I really don't understand why media has made such a big issue that England can't play spin.England did well, but could not cross the line and losing by such slender margins shouldn't be a cause of any worries. I think the series will be closely fought,I would not be surprised if I see a drawn series. Last thing India should do is to underestimate them, if they do they might lose the series. India must understand that they have been good even in spinning conditions, I really don't know how experts are got it all wrong. I will go with India 51% and Eng 49%... will be a very closely fought series.
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 14 November 2012 at 12:28pm
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By the way , Yuvraj should rock this series and cement his place in the Test side. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 14 November 2012 at 5:35pm
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should be an interesting series, both teams have got heavy batting line ups but bowling remains a worry, I will expect some drawn games here, it's proper winter season so won't expect the heat to be any sort of a problem for the English, in fact they will very much like these conditions. should be a very close battle this, I'd probably go for a 1-0 win in favor of India, I can very easily be wrong though. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: mystery
Date Posted: 14 November 2012 at 7:11pm
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I feel England have a strong chance to win it as Indian batting is really weak if they get early wickets Indian would be in big trouble i would go opposite of Sam with 1/0 England.
------------- Rohit Sharma - What the world has seen is gear 1, gear speed 2,3,4,5,7,8,9 to be witnessed in IPL only. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 2:23am
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Indian batsman's average in 2012 , Kohli 62.62, second best is Dhoni with 52.10, none of the other batsman have had any decent year and are way below their personal mark, that's nothing but a terrible bad form ... Ashwin who is averages about 43 despite being a bowler is third, just goes to show that slump in Indian batting. Pujara averages 72, but he has played only 2 matches , so we can't consider that. Another thing that is repeated time and again in media by some experts makes me laugh at them .... George Dobell says "Both have declined sharply since respectively attaining the No. 1 Test ranking" , well India stayed at top close to 2 years and then lost a series and the ranking immediately, that can't be compared with England, yes England fought but just kept losing after they attained that position.There is another series called 2 chucks ... supposed to be funny, but too much of sarcasm makes one sick ( but well anyway , one of them is a clown who keeps making fun of others ... that why its funny ) they too were saying the same when ENG lost the series to SA. Completely misinformed.
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: kahmad
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 10:56am
| I think it will be a clean sweep for India. India has already enough score to bowl out England twice. |
Posted By: spin wizard
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 12:57pm
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Chances of England beating India are as good as me playing for the West Indies. ------------- In troubled times, being philosophical helps a great deal, it helps you to remain sane and not do any further damage. |
Posted By: mystery
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 2:39pm
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I totally disagree with both Kahmad and Spinny yes no doubt India have scored 300 for just 4 wicket loss yet the Pitch if England play properly can easily make 400 in their 1st innings too and with a deep lineup like they have its not too difficult atleast with Indian bowling lineup. Ashwin or Ojha are not Ajmal.
------------- Rohit Sharma - What the world has seen is gear 1, gear speed 2,3,4,5,7,8,9 to be witnessed in IPL only. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 2:48pm
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: kahmad
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 4:11pm
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If India gets Pieterson cheaply, then i dont think England will cross 200. Ashwin and Ohja are not Ajmal but they are still good enough to trouble the english Batsmen. |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 15 November 2012 at 5:04pm
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I don't agree that ENG will get rolled over that easily, I think both teams have an equally good chance of winning the series, India obviously have a slight edge, the good thing for India is that they've got Pujara and Kohli in the side who are the future of this test team, had they still be playing with Dravid and VVS may be ENG would have been favts to win this series. As for this test match, just the end of Day 1 but I think ENG should only look for a draw from here, Cook and KP will be the key for ENG and they'll need good support from Trott, Bell, Patel and Prior. ENG bat very deep so they will have a chance to frustrate India. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: spin wizard
Date Posted: 16 November 2012 at 4:29pm
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Eng 41/3, 300+ runs to avoid the follow on. India are out for revenge against India, they're not going to prepare pitches to suit England. England is going to find it extremely hard to beat India in any of these test matches. ------------- In troubled times, being philosophical helps a great deal, it helps you to remain sane and not do any further damage. |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 16 November 2012 at 4:51pm
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superb double hundred for Pujara, he is such a fantastic talent that man, ENG have an uphill task and the current pair of Cook and Pietersen is the main hope for England. A wicket early tomorrow and we could be seeing an early finish to this match, may be sometime on day 4 session 1 or 2. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 16 November 2012 at 5:15pm
What a knock by Pujara, I have been shouting at the top of my voice all the while, we needed the young blood long back in the places now occupied by Kohli and Pujara in tests, anyway let bygones are bygones. Just goes to show that my faith on future was absolutely true  .By the way I am expecting a big one by Sachin soon in next few matches  , maybe the elusive 300 mark.One other great achievement went almost unnoticed. Ashwin gets to 50 wickets in just 9 matches, just to give a comparison , in last 30 years only Philander has bettered that record while McGill is on par with Ashwin's record. Some achievement that. Back to the match, England are 41/3 and looks like in some trouble now, but beware KP is still out there and he can be real handful, he has got everything to turn the match on its head. At this stage India slightly ahead, but one good partnership will take England to safety.This match is far from over in my opinion. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 17 November 2012 at 12:41pm
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England 111/0 in second innings and looking good now. Indian bowlers did a great job in to enforce follow-on on this pitch, this pitch never had any devils in it, it was just slow and low and batsman needed to apply themselves for first 10-15 minutes. Cook and Compton just showed it in second innings. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 18 November 2012 at 4:28am
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Wow was about to write 123 for no loss and England started good without losing a wicket , but Zaheer got Compton . ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: Mikey
Date Posted: 18 November 2012 at 6:11am
| Pietersen shouldn't be allowed to play test cricket until he figures out how to play Left Arm Orthodox spin. He clearly has a black spot or technical glitch play this style of bowler, heck even Michael Clarke would get him out. Would actually consider dropping him for the next test. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 18 November 2012 at 6:29am
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: Mikey
Date Posted: 18 November 2012 at 6:35am
| It's a definite technical deficiency. He needs to work on it, adjust and fix it. Even if it's partly mental, doesn't mean he shouldn't work hard to mend the issue. Perhaps dropping him is far-fetched, but if he gets out twice to left arm spin in the next match, then the question will have to be put to the selectors. Yes, he is a class act and I enjoy his cricket when he's in full flow, but there's a problem. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 18 November 2012 at 9:53am
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Yes Mikey, I have no doubt that he has worked on it , infact he even said that while commentary stint during World T20, but you know sometimes somethings just don't click no matter how hard one tries.I guess it is one of those things with him. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 18 November 2012 at 10:53am
England lead by 10 runs with 5 wickets in hand , omnious signs this with just one over to go  .------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 19 November 2012 at 12:39pm
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A comprehensive win for the home side and no real surprise after the dismal 1st innings effort by England. Fine batting though by India against some rather ordinary bowling (Swann apart). A major selectorial blunder was picking Bresnan over Panesar and I expect that to be one of several changes for Friday. Bell goes home for the birth of his child , but he's not actually set the world on fire and I can't say he's a huge loss. Cook will again have to carry the batting and I fear the burden could prove too much. Mikey is right - KP has a real problem will left arm orthodox and his head seems scrambled as just how to address it. Graham Gooch was a class player of all forms of spin and I just wonder if KP's ego just won't allow him to listen to sound advise. No such problems for India and unless England score big in the first innings (and hopefully win the toss) they'll be up against it again. ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 19 November 2012 at 5:55pm
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India 1 up in the series, this series is going to be interesting, I am sure that England will put up a better fight in remaining matches. I was very happy that one crucial decision did not go in India's favor, coz if Cook was given out initially , then the match would have been over by 4th day morning and everyone would have said that pitches in India are not good enough for tests, some even say that pitches are doctored to suit home team only and whole load of usual nonsense would follow. At least now it should be clear that there is always scope when batman sweats it out. Good that Indians had 77 runs to knock off, which again showed there was nothing scary even on the 5th day pitch (apart from being slow and low). Nothing new about England selections blunders (atleast Indians stopped doing that), England did similar mistake against Pak and SL , not taking Monty in some matches along with other selection blunders. Next match, England might stun India with a improved performance, KP & Trott will want to put some runs, which is very dangerous signs for India.
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: spin wizard
Date Posted: 20 November 2012 at 2:52pm
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Will say it again, I don't see England having much chance of winning in India. India is out to embarass them, and surely they for starters won't make Mohali type pitches and I think, that's the critical thing. Also, want to see Rahane in for Gambhir. ------------- In troubled times, being philosophical helps a great deal, it helps you to remain sane and not do any further damage. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 20 November 2012 at 3:40pm
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"I don't even want to see this wicket,". "There wasn't enough turn and bounce for the spinners… Hopefully in the coming matches we'll see the wicket turn, right from start, or as soon as possible so that the toss doesn't become vital." "I don't think the match referee can question a pitch just because it's turning,","When the wicket seams right from the first delivery, nobody asks questions. What you don't want is ridges in the wicket and then one ball hits your head and next your toe. At times, in the subcontinent, on pitches like this, the toss becomes vital. The only way to take the toss out of the equation is to have pitches that turn right from the start. The game may end in three-and-a-half days, but both teams will have an equal opportunity to win the game." Anything wrong there in what he said ? Dhoni is someone who always plays the game fair, he calls spade a spade, sometimes when he looses he says that toss was vital to which some section get angry and say he gives reasons, well many a times when he wins and if there is a toss advantage he rightly puts it across, If I am right even after World Cup finals he said that once dew came, it was easier to bat on. He does not miss words, some people are just can't digest his success. What I like about him , he does not give a damn about anyone speaking nonsense, it hardly bothers him.Rock solid guy.One of the best traits that captains should have. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 20 November 2012 at 5:21pm
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ENG's trump card in this series, if they were to have any chance whatsoever of doing well was Steven Finn, he is a man who can bowl very well even in subcontinental conditions and of course Graeme Swann... without Finn ENG do not stand much of a chance. Umpiring in the first test has been below par, while most decisions went against ENG, a few went for them too, including the crucial one of Cook early in the 2nd innings. I don't give ENG much of a chance actually, if the pitches are result oriented then we might as well see India winning 3-0 or something like that, nothing much seems to have changed for England, really can't see anyone turning it around for them atm, except for Cook, but he alone won't win them test matches here. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: jaysjay
Date Posted: 20 November 2012 at 5:37pm
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i think its only fair that he demands turning pitches,every cricket nation is guilty of preparing pitches that suit them,and if India want to improve their away record they need to offer bouncy wickets during domestic matches so players can get adapted to it from early age and it becomes a part of their muscle memory to deal with the extra bounce,however testing fast pitches during international matches would beat common sense as you are losing on the home advantage,and neither would a serier loss do any good to your self confidence which is a vital part of this game nor would it make you a better player of fast bowling overnight, ------------- for what a man would like to be true,that he more readily believes. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 20 November 2012 at 7:41pm
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India does not have any problem touring abroad, if they had they would have not drawn with SA and other places.Their records earlier to 2011 was great. Take out ENG and AUS - 2011 , India has a great 4-5 years abroad and as well as home. One bad season , does not make them bad.WHen this constantly happens with many ( like many other teams) they you can say they have a problem.India have always had great touring right from 2001, from 2004 their records has been better than many. Lot of decisions went against India , not England. This is what Stuart Broad tweeted "On DRS. I hear 12 decisions would have been overturned in the Test. Potentially match changing but India would have had 8 of them"... clearly shows who had a rough match. Sensible guy... tweeted the truth, but there was a funny reply by some English media person in affirmative saying something like this --> yes from 5 days to 4 days ... twitter can be funny at times and virtual battle ground between two people who don't like each other. Stuart was actually saying that India was at loss without DRS, while a angry meidaperson took revenge on him. India always get lot of decision against them because of lack of DRS , nothing new there , they are kind of used to it, it happened in previous tours too and many crucial decisions too, never the less for a change so I would want the rub of the green to go to India's way henceforth. I want to see if how other teams cope up when lot of decisions don't go their way. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 22 November 2012 at 12:16pm
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Agreed Raj , India had the worst of the bad decisons - but TWELVE bad decisons in a single test is appalling ! Tony Hill simply isn't good enough , but there just doesn't seem to be anyone out there to take his place. Simon Taufel has got some job on to get international umpiring up to scratch - there's far too many poor ones on the so called elite panel. You have to feel for Samit Patel - his 1st test and he gets two shockers before he's got started. If he's dropped tomorrow then Hill should apologise! ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 22 November 2012 at 6:13pm
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Very harsh indeed on Samit but I think he will be given another go because lately Samit has looked to be in fabulous form, I think England should stick with him, esp now that Bell is unavailable. I don't know if England will consider playing Monty tomorrow, but I think they should play him in place of Anderson, Broad, I believe will do better than Jimmy in India, ENG though will still miss Steve Finn very badly. If ENG are to turn this around they have to win the toss (something not in their hands) and they will have to do something very very special against spin and Swann and Monty will have to bowl very very well to get India out, and even all that may not be enough!  ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: mystery
Date Posted: 22 November 2012 at 7:19pm
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It mainly depends on the toss if India bat first its all over for England just like last game. So really hope England win the toss and Sam Monty will surely play. ------------- Rohit Sharma - What the world has seen is gear 1, gear speed 2,3,4,5,7,8,9 to be witnessed in IPL only. |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 23 November 2012 at 5:10pm
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another century for Cheteshwar Pujara, no wonder this lad was talked about so much before he entered the side, what a performer he has been!!! ENG had India on the mat at 125/5 and then 169/6, they have allowed things to slip away though. Ashwin and Pujara got a good partnership going and ENG could well be looking at a difficult score now. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 24 November 2012 at 8:16am
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Visitors 65 for no loss after 30 overs, where all the talk about unfair to have turners. It is simple , play well and win, play worse and lose, as simple as that. Great batting by Cook and Compton .------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 24 November 2012 at 8:20am
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While India was 169 for 6, when Pujara was ably supported by Ashwin to pull the score to 280. Just goes to show that more than this turner, green top pitches discussion it is the players who should adapt to any condition and win the game.
EDIT: Wow 66 for 1 as I wrote, but Trott,KP,Prior are all capable batsman, while Samit is know to be a good player of spin.Very interesting now that Indians got a breakthrough  .------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 24 November 2012 at 9:21am
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KP has started positively , 18 of 18 balls, more than that he looks assured at the crease when compared to first test. Why not bring Yuvi at other end, coz KP's 1 hour of this positive batting could do serious damage.
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 24 November 2012 at 10:37am
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Cook and KP have played brilliantly so far, India will be in toruble if this partnership is not broken soon, at 165/2 ENG have surprised everyone!!! There is plenty of turn and bounce out there, ENG quite simply have played well, really well!!! ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 24 November 2012 at 11:43am
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England 178 for 2 at stumps, Cook and KP looking in great touch in reply to India's 327 all out. So trail by only 149 with 8 wickets in hand, in spite of losing the toss. More often than not, your fate is in your own hands, no doubt toss,conditions and various other factors do matter (and there is nothing wrong in saying that toss was crucial when it actually is), but when you play great cricket you don't lose, that is what Cook and KP did . Had these two not played like this (and if England had crumbled) I am damn sure that this pitch would have been made to be some kind of snake pit,dust bowl or whatever nonsense that anti spin propaganda bandwagon of experts blabber about. What I hate is, squarely putting the blame on turners when a team cannot play or can't show lack of application on challenging tracks. Back to game, England are 60 to 40 ahead in the test.
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 25 November 2012 at 4:47am
Cook and KP get tons , good batting that. Still no Yuvi  . Cook and KP look good for a big big one here .------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 25 November 2012 at 8:49am
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ENG have lost out on an opportunity to get a big lead here, 86 is good but considering how vulnerable England are chasing on such tracks in the 4th innings, anything over 100 and India will feel they have a chance. ENG should have got a lead of around 120-140. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 25 November 2012 at 11:15am
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India tottering at 117 for 7 with just 31 runs lead.Fantastic effort by England. This is what MSD said, good to have pitches that stay true right from the start of the match, evens out lot of things and whoever plays well, takes risk comes on top of the game, which England just did here. Bring on similar pitches in Kolkata and Nagpur ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 25 November 2012 at 11:20am
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For India to have any sort of chance Gambhir should get a big one, while Bhajji has to pull out his 3rd century. Gambhir was troubled , but he looks good for a fighting knock tomorow. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 25 November 2012 at 11:23am
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amazing stuff from Panesar and Swann, esp Panesar, why on earth did he not play at Ahmedabad??? ENG spinners have done better than India's, ENG's batsmen have done better than India's, if ENG don't win this from here, they'll never win anything in India. It cannot get easier than this for the English. as for MSD, I doubt if he will say anything about pitches again, may be sometimes it's good to just allow the curators to do their job and not instruct them too much!!! In search of home advantage IND perhaps had seriously underestimated Panesar and Swann!!! ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 26 November 2012 at 7:27am
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Who'd have thought of a 10 wicket win and a 10 wicket win by England - certainly not me ! After a really poor year's cricket , they've finally shown why they were number 1 last year. KP's innings was out of this world - definitely the best I've seen any Englishman play in Asia. Monty Panesar's 11 wickets were fully deserved - he was far and away the best bowler on show in Mumbai. Getting Tendulkar twice with excellent deliveries gave the whole side a lift , especially as he fell cheaply on both occasions. Cook's ton was in sharp contrast to that of KP's .but just as important and allowed KP to free his arms. I think this win will give England the self-belief that's been missing for some time and they just might go on and win this series now. One thing's for sure - Monty will be playing in the last 2 tests ! ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 26 November 2012 at 8:37am
Great that series is locked at 1-1 now, but now going to next two matches I guess India will outplay England in next two matches,now that they are hurt big time. Get the feeling that all good innings by Cook and KP is over for rest of the series, just hope Trott does not raise to the ocassion. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: Alfie103
Date Posted: 26 November 2012 at 7:55pm
India could fix this quite quickly and bring in DRS but for some reason they don't. Only got themselves to blame really. |
Posted By: zuhair_abbasi
Date Posted: 28 November 2012 at 6:29am
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England is blessed to have a batsman as skillful as KP. Few shots he played of Ojha were just mesmerizing. His reach makes him so much better from the lot. That said, England still have a lot of grey areas - apart from cook and KP, they have not really shown signs of playing spin confidently. Bell needs to return, for he is a good player - but he too struggled in the UAE. Will England drop Broad? Or as Sir Ian Botham said, the England dressing room may have become too 'matey - matey'? Bring in Bell and Finn - get rid of Bairstow and Broad. Surely, Kolkatta and Nagpur will be very slow and low pitches. It will play good for the first two days - but Monty especially will have to work twice as hard to get the some purchase. Of India's men - they will simply drop Harbhajan and play a pace bowler. A word on Pujara - the ore I watch him play, the more he impresses me. Maybe too early to call - but he seems a like to like replacement for Dravid. The way he keeps the eyes on the ball and never commits early on the front foot is just amazing. ------------- http://thecricketinsight.blogspot.com/ |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 28 November 2012 at 6:10pm
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Prior is another batsmen apart from Cook and KP who has looked good Zuhair, I do agree that Finn and Bell should come in but for Anderson and Baristow, I'd like to see Broad being persisted with. I doubt if ENG will make any changes though, they may opt not to change a winning combination. One thing is for sure, India will be under tremendous pressure on day 1 at Kolkata, a bad day for India there and well, we could really see something special this series. Dhoni's captaincy in tests is already under a lot of scrutiny. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 05 December 2012 at 9:29am
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Alistair Cook is a useless tosser !! 3 successive wrong calls and India bat first yet again. The pitch is slow and both sides will be looking to score big in their first innings. Sehwag got himself run out to present England with their 1st wicket. Gambhir made another useful 60 and menacingly Tendulkar is still there on 69*. Not the old Tendulkar though , far more circumspect and I think England will feel pretty happy at the moment as Dhoni partners the little master , Indian 223-5 after 73 overs. A couple more wickets and England will feel they've had the better of the 1st day. ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 05 December 2012 at 7:17pm
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at 273/7 definitely ENG will feel they have won the day, the first two sessions were pretty much even but the last session going ENG's way to leave India in trouble at 7 down. ENG have a golden opportunity here, IND don't look like they'll make too many as genuine tailenders are already at the crease, if ENG can bat well and score big this could be a great chance for ENG to seal another win. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 06 December 2012 at 4:47pm
India getting roasted now by the English, congratulations to Alistair Cook on becoming the highest centurion for England and he has done it all at a very young age of 27, Cook is destined for greatness in his cricketing career.  This has been quite a remarkable turnaround by ENG since the Mumbai test, they are now in the drivers seat and in the next 2 or 3 days they can ensure that they don't lose this series no matter what happens at Nagpur. Who would have thought this??? ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: vize
Date Posted: 06 December 2012 at 7:24pm
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Well played by England, a superb win in Mumbai and a really commanding performance in this test so far. They have laid a solid platform for a huge first innings score but there is still some way to go. I still think that the middle order needs to show that they can play spin bowling in these conditions and unusually for England of late, they have 3 genuine tail end batsmen. If India can get a few early wickets tomorrow they will be right back into this, but thats easier said than done, particularly at the way Cook is carrying on so far. I expected Panesar to do well in this series given how he was impressive in the UAE but even so, I didnt expect him and Swann to outbowl India's spinners. He hardly seems to bowl a bad delivery and even managed to get a bit of turn on the first day. To trouble batsman of the calibre of India in their home conditions is no mean feat. Cook has been almost impossible to dismiss and to become the youngest player to reach 7000 runs as well as Englands highest ever centurion is an excellent achievement. I agree, certainly has the potential to become a legend of the game. |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 07 December 2012 at 7:00am
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Eng in reply, 337 for One.This is massive and my worst fear has came true.There was something really seriously wrong about India when they lost in UK and Aus, it was not technical or foreign conditions and losing like this at home just goes to show that.If it was just unable to play seam , they would have smashed England at home, the real problem is that none of their players are contributing in batting, seam or spin conditions.It only one or two batman that have been firing since that England tour. Chances for India to turn it around are bleak, someone needs to score a double or triple soon for this bad form to end, and get some confidence back for entire team. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: flipper
Date Posted: 07 December 2012 at 12:58pm
Great reading on my return. So when is spin wizard making his debut for the Windies and will it be on the T.V? ------------- Warwickshire County Cricket, Edgbaston Birmingham England. County Champions 2012 |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 07 December 2012 at 5:41pm
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No collapse for England Vize, they are marching along at 509/6, and a few quick runs tomorrow morning would mean India will have to bat for around 4 1/2 sessions to save this game, meaning they will have to bat pretty much till tea on the final day and hope they have a big enough lead which ENG won't be able to score in one session, meaning they'll have to score runs as well as survive. There are several reasons for the situation that India find themselves in, firstly the new batsmen are no VVS, Rahul or Ganguly and even Sachin and Sehwag are only a shadow of their old self, so it's obvious that India are no longer the dominant side even at home that they were perhaps 4 years back, without Kumble the bowling loopholes have shown up and Zaheer too is not the same Zaheer that was. So all in all one can say that the youngsters that have replaced the senior players withh either take time to settle in or are just not good enough, I guess in the bowling department they are just not good enough while in batting the likes of Pujara and Kohli may take time but will eventually be good replacements for Rahul and VVS... forget Sachin, no one can replace him. Having said all that congratulations to England on this wonderful performance, Cook leading from the front, this is as good as it gets for the English, their hard work has paid off, well done guys, this series win if it happens is as big as the Ashes, absolutely no doubting that. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 08 December 2012 at 8:18am
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India 142/6 and still trailing by 66 runs, just a matter of time before England will wrap this up to sit pretty at 2-1.This is a massive beating for India in at home. So, where is all the old talk ? India reached No 1 playing at home ? so what happened now aren't they playing at home now ? Right from India in England 2011 summer till this series India have been pathetic in Tests. Alteast now the blinkers will be off that when India did become No 1 , they truly played well and deserved to be there while they were there, now that they are not playing well , batting or bowling well they are losing it badly, home or abroad.It hardly matters. The biggest beneficiary seems to be England who beat India (when there were No 1) in 2011 summer and claimed No 1 spot. So going to the next match , if India level the series that will be really great achievement at home. On the other point regarding pitches turning from day 1, today the 4th day hardly halfway and we see 10 wickets, lot of spin and bounce.This is exactly what Dhoni said.No doubt they could not capitalize on winning the toss. Something on Cook, he has been in absolute dream form.That 1st test big innings in losing cause has done wonders for him.It's all about confidence.He has simply murdered anything that has come his way since then with great patience, perseverance,girt and determination .------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: alpesh
Date Posted: 08 December 2012 at 9:58am
| All credit to Cook for England's success on this tour. If you assess carefully, you will find that Cook is the difference between the two sides. He has negated the toss, pitch, crowd & everything else. Just take him out of the equation & both the teams would fare pretty much the same |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 08 December 2012 at 11:23am
However the real problem is Indian batting, even before the series I brought out the averages and Ashwin had the third highest average in 2012. Look today, he has second best average among Indian batsman (51 runs/innings) behind Pujara (103 runs/innings) this series. Gambhir and Shewag - 42 odd, while others Yuvraj - 25, Sachin -22, MSD -18, Virat - 17.That goes to show the real root cause of all the issues for India. This is not new, even when VVS and RD were there, it was the same reading since England tour, it's only one or two batman putting up a fight all the while and they keep changing every series. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 08 December 2012 at 5:06pm
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what is quite disgusting to see really is that Sachin is not even 20% of the player that he once was but still he wants to keep playing, I mean everybody in the world can see how much he is struggling but he just wants to keep playing. I have tremendous respect for him but just look at Ponting, he has hit a double hundred this year but he knew he isn't the same old Ricky that he knew and he took a call which was absolutely correct. Sachin continuing to play at this stage of his career is a very negative message to every youngster who is trying to make a place in the side, it means even a 20% Sachin Tendulkar is better than a 100% younger player. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: jaysjay
Date Posted: 08 December 2012 at 5:23pm
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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 ------------- for what a man would like to be true,that he more readily believes. |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 14 December 2012 at 1:03pm
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2 days into the final test and England are yet again in a seriously strong position. Finally amassing 330 was a fine effort after a poor start , good stuff from KP , Prior and the new boy Root. Root's innings was the 2nd longest on debut by an Englishman - only beaten by no less than W.G Grace! The pitch is very slow , but Jimmy Anderson took it out of the equation with some fine full swing bowling. A beauty to remove Sehwag 2nd ball and another to clean up Tendulkar - both bowled middle stump! Tendulkar looks a shadow of the player he was and looks despondent - and I get no satisfaction out of that whatsoever. This could well be his last test and Fletcher could also be a casualty , although he has no say whatsoever in which eleven takes the field! The pitch can only get worse and at 87-4 after England's 330 you'd have to think India are behind the eight ball. Still , Kohli and Dhoni are at the crease , but they didn't look too happy against the reversing ball. I'm biased , but Jimmy Anderson's control of reverse swing is fantastic and he's doing it at pace too - he deserved his 3 wickets and will get more. Going in with a single seamer was a real gamble by India - it depended on winning the toss and for once , Cook called correctly. If England do go on to win it'll be the finest comeback I'll have witnessed by any England side - hammered in the 1st test , they've really shown some resilience and no little skill. Absorbing cricket and I'm really looking forward to the 1st session tomorrow. ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 14 December 2012 at 5:31pm
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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. India are struggling, and ENG's score of 330 on this pitch is like a 450 on any normal pitch, I'd expect ENG to wrap this 3-1. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: Clobber
Date Posted: 15 December 2012 at 12:06am
| I don't know about it being a beauty to get rid of Sehwag, I don't think I have ever seen a world class player play inside the line of an inswinger and have his middle stump flattened ever before! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 16 December 2012 at 3:08pm
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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! ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: mystery
Date Posted: 16 December 2012 at 10:50pm
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Yes Sam but England's struggle was mainly due to the quality of spin Pakistan had.
------------- Rohit Sharma - What the world has seen is gear 1, gear speed 2,3,4,5,7,8,9 to be witnessed in IPL only. |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 17 December 2012 at 4:07pm
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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. Anways, ENG have achieved a remarkable series win in India after 28 long years, outstanding performance by Alistair Cook who was named Man of the Series, a brilliant comeback by Monty Panesar and good contributions by Swann, KP, Anderson and Prior throughout the tour. well done England, absolutely brilliant!!! ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 17 December 2012 at 4:27pm
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Congrats England of winning the series, they truly deserved to win being the better team of the two. Though with 1-1 locked, for a short while, I expected India to hit back hard at England in, but it was not to be in 3rd test where their first innings cost them the match dearly. 4th test, it was all about who would blink first, neither did falter and it ended in a tame draw on a pitch that was assumed not to last more 3 days by experts, but the pitch looked like it could last 10 days of test now  .Nothing new, experts and media always get it wrong most of the times, just like modern day umpires.To show how experts get it all wrong every time, I would like to bring the very 3rd post even before the series started , when no one gave England a chance, and there was all the talk about how India would beat England at home and how England was bad playing spin. Below post was on 14th Nov 2012
Now I would like to bring England's Comprehensive Sub-continent Report Card in 2012 including win and loss both. Pakistan Won by 10 wickets Pakistan Won by 72 runs Pakistan Won by 71 runs SL Won by 75 runs England won by 8 wickets India won by 9 wickets England won by 10 wickets England won by 7 wickets India-England draw the match Other than the two tests shown in RED, England have had a fantastic 2012 Sub-continent record. ------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: dips_december
Date Posted: 17 December 2012 at 5:20pm
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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. Cook was brilliant and led from the front. Compton was steady and Trott and Bell finally came good when it mattered. KP's reintegration was a successful and he showed his class in Mumbai. Joe Root couldn't have asked for anything more on his debut tour. He showed great application and further proved that England were more determined than India. Prior was brilliant as a batsman, as a keeper and provided valuable inputs. Jimmy Anderson lead the attack brilliantly and was ably supported by Finn at Kolkata. Swann and Monty stood out and were better than the 5 or 6 spinners that India tried by a long long way. Broad, Bresnan and Samit Patel were disappointing but overall England were brilliant. Now India. Sehwag scored one brilliant hundred and people started saying he was back to his destructive best. He ran out of fizz pretty soon! Gambhir looks a totally different player from the one he was 3 years back and I don't understand how he is still in the team or even Sehwag for that matter. Pujara was the only bright spot. He showed that there is talent in domestic cricket and that if opportunities are provided there are results to be seen. The great man looked all at sea against Anderson and Panesar and I hope that he comes to some sort of a decision soon. Kohli was largely disappointing except for the well fought hundred in this test. Dhoni was more concerned with the pitches rather than his team's performance and his own keeping was not up to the mark and neither were his leadership skills. His 99 in this test will probably go down as one of his best innings but he remains vulnerable overseas. Among the bowlers only Ravi Ashwin batted well to some extent. The rest were poor with the bat and were miserable with the ball. Ojha was good in the first test but other than that he was disappointing. The spinners were totally outperformed and lacked the bite and the zip! The pacers never really existed I guess. Zaheer looked out of form and out of shape while Ishant tried to do a little better in Nagpur than what he did in Kolkata. Why were Dinda and Awana brought into the squad remains a mystery! While England can celebrate their hard fought win and enjoy Christmas, India have a lot to think about. I hope they realise quickly that they need to arrest this slump before MSD has to term a performance as worse than the 2007 World Cup win. And as long as they keep referring back to past performances to draw satisfaction they will never move forward!
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Posted By: MalhotraRaj84
Date Posted: 17 December 2012 at 6:00pm
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dips, the fact is, to win a test match you need batting and bowling to compliment each other. If one of them is weak the other can't pull it through no matter how strong one of them is. Exactly the thing that I have been telling all these years (only few understood), no matter how strong batting line up is - bowlers have to get opposition wickets. No matter how strong the bowling is, batsman has to score runs.Obviously one of them will be better than the other in comparison, but both department have to be good to win. No team can win without a crap batting/bowling.Must be nuts to say that a team can win without a good batting or bowling. As of now India's batting is more of a worry than its bowling, http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/averages/batting_bowling_by_team.html?id=7339;team=6;type=series. If there is anything that needs to get fixed, it's the batting dept. The fact that R Ashwin has the second highest average among Indian batsman does say a lot about the current form the team is going through. The only thing that is positive (that I can imagine of ), makes me happy about this series loss to England is that it proves 4-0 losses that happened in England and Australia was not due to their inability to play on fast and bouncy pitches, but it was due to bad cricket and have been terribly bad even at home. From England tour 2011 to England's tour 2012 , India have been bad - Hope to see this bad phase vanish, the law of averages (I mean bad performance) has to reverse soon and end somewhere. I guess it has ended. Hoping for India's Race to No 1 again ... started! atleast from next series.
------------- Race to No 1 again ... started! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 18 December 2012 at 8:18am
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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 ! ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 18 December 2012 at 8:20am
It was a hairy-fairy waft Clobs , but it was also the 1st over and that Jimmy was on the money straight away was very impressive. Is it me or did Jimmy look considerably quicker in India than he did against SA at home ? ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 10 January 2013 at 7:18am
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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. ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: Clobber
Date Posted: 10 January 2013 at 9:35am
| Bairstow isn't on the tour mate, he's still off on "personal grounds" |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 13 January 2013 at 4:59pm
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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. India are just clueless at the moment, they have faced such situations overseas but I don't think India have looked this clueless at home in a very long time! ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 22 January 2013 at 7:08pm
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after a good start to the series ENG are back to their old ways at the subcontinent, the conditions at Mohali and Dharamshala are expected to be very English like, will be interesting to see if ENG can turn things around there. ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 28 January 2013 at 9:32am
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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!! ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |
Posted By: Clobber
Date Posted: 28 January 2013 at 7:08pm
| 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. |
Posted By: sam_ahmed
Date Posted: 28 January 2013 at 7:10pm
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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. ENG do have their problems in ODI's though, good analysis by Sledge but in my opinion: 1) Dernbach is total crap, I'm saying this since ages, why was he played until the 4th game? Woakes is a better option than Dernbach but personally on subcontinental wickets I'd have liked Ajmal Shehzad, I've said this many times before, Shahzad bowled very well in the World Cup and never played a game after that, surprising!!! 2) Whay on earth can Matt Prior not play in ODI's??? he is miles ahead of every other WKB ENG have tried in the last 3 - 4 years ------------- God is a better planner... so whenever u'r plan fails, cheer up... God has a better plan for you! |
Posted By: Clobber
Date Posted: 28 January 2013 at 10:41pm
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Shahzad's performances basically fell off a cliff after that - he's been released by not one but 2 county sides in the last year which should tell you something. I will reserve opinion on Woakes, but am not convinced by him as a bowler - England like him because he is a pretty decent batsman but I've not yet seen much to suggest that his bowling is international class. |
Posted By: Sledger
Date Posted: 01 February 2013 at 7:32am
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 . ------------- Mental disintegration works for me !! |