India continue coming of age
India's Test wins away from home are not very tough to remember – in recent memory there is Kandy in 2001, Port-of-Spain and Leeds in 2002, Adelaide in 2003, Multan and Rawalpindi in 2004, Jamaica and Johannesburg in 2006 and now, Trent Bridge, 2007.
There are only 29 victories in 200 Tests played abroad over the last 75 years. No wonder, then, that until recently we were known as poor tourists.
But those who continue to mock India’s away form do it at their own peril.
Here's another stat for you non-believers: In this millennium, India have won more Tests away from home (16) than any other country apart from Australia (26) in the same period.
Along with the advent of the "international Indian" (who lives in urban India but is comfortable with the language, cuisine, people and travel anywhere in the world) the persona and perception of the Indian cricketer has also changed dramatically.
They are neither apologetic nor timid, they do not offer excuses. They give as good as they get and are confident, street-smart and in-your-face.
The team currently playing in England is made up of this kind of men.
But last year saw the fabric of the team mysteriously unravel, a dismal season following the second ever series win over the West Indies in the Caribbean.
India’s poor World Cup showing saw houses vandalised, effigies burnt and discussions in Parliament.
The naysayers had a field day, predicting the end of a group of stars — Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble and Zaheer Khan were all on that hit list, while Rahul Dravid was barely holding on.
After being outplayed at Lord's, they were labelled a team with ageing stars, an unsettled opening combination, an erratic and inexperienced pace attack and worse, they didn't even have a full-time coach.
So this win, against an England team ranked second in the Test world and with a superb record at home, is a renewal of faith, not just because of the win but the way it came and the people who made it happen.
It might also be noted that teams from the subcontinent are often castigated for being unable to play the moving ball well.
Here the English batsmen, born and bred with the swinging ball in these conditions, found movement difficult to handle too on that first day.
I must say we all expected better umpiring in the match as a whole. Both teams suffered but it evened out in the end.
I also thought the sledging between players was over the top. I've been sledged in the past and things often heat up when you're playing and words are exchanged.
Some players are careful, aware of the stump microphones, some not so, like the young, excitable Sree Santh.
But the "jellybeans" incident crossed the line of what is acceptable. Zaheer was bang on when he stoically said, "It was insulting. I'm here to play cricket."
At times, these incidents can bring a team together. I remember Pakistan’s Yasir Hameed saying something during our Test series in 2004 and then everyone, even the quietest ones, had a go at him.
At Trent Bridge, the team suddenly looked a different unit so looking ahead to the third Test, Rahul might well say, "bring it on England, bring on the jellybeans".
But he will also sound a note of caution. Most of those famous away wins were followed by a defeat.
Dravid, Tendulkar, Ganguly and Kumble will all be playing their last Test in England next week. They will want it to be a final, historic hurrah.
Good Article Akash,
Buts lets not forget it will probably be Laxman's last test here and in most of those memorable wins away from home he was one of the main architets. His Innings in Adelaide and Sydney(even though we drew that one) were pure class. His fifty in this game was very much understated (like his 2nd innings in at lords and even joburg) and he and Kumble added some vital runs. lets hope you get a big score in the oval
Cheers!
Complain about this postSpot on. Whilst the Indian cricketer is no longer a meek and mild sould of old, it may be something to do with the emergence of India as a potential super power. Indian cricket also generates over 70% of the cricketing world's revenue. This no doubt accounts for most cricketing nations desiring to play them. Let's hope for a great test at the Oval next week and further signs of the young Indian guns showing their potential. A strong Indian cricket team will be good for world cricket.
Please no more repeat of the boorish and tiresome behaviour.
Complain about this post1. Umpiring was sub-par. I don't agree that it evened out, but i understand that it is a politically correct statement to make. How do you even-out giving caught-behind reprieve to two well-set batsman (Collingwood and Pieterson) while giving two well-set batsman out for wrong reasons (Sachin & Ganguly)? You can't even that with a couple of LBW reorieves for Karthik & Jaffer.
2. English team is increasingly turning into the Aussie team minus the actual performance to show for. Look at Sidebottom, Anderson, Prior - Sreesanth is a baby in retrospect even if his acts may be flouted as "even-out"
Complain about this postI think that there should not be to much read in to the last test, India won a very favourable toss, England played very under par on day one and landed themselves in it. We'll see a repeat of the Lords Test at the Oval except this time we wont let India off the hook.
Complain about this postGood one akash. perfectly balanced article. I still think you and shewag are the ideal openers for india. hope to see you n viru in the team back!!
Complain about this postThis is absolute rubbish. India are very lucky and have had all the luck in the series such as:
- rain at Lords saving them
- weather at Trent Bridge being perfect for bowling on Day 1 and then perfect for batting on Days 2 and 3 (good toss to win, but down to luck not skill)
- as for the umpires, England had more poor decisions, but because it was just Cook or KP compared to Tendulkar or Dravid, it have been deemed that India were unlucky. Jaffer and Kartik were lucky too.
India are not winning as they are the better team, but the luckier team.
As for the sledging, England have not gone OTT. If the Indians can't handle banter thats their problem. Back home they are treated like kings and so they think they deserve the same everywhere. Its great that a team has finally shown them that they are not that great and just mere mortals!
Complain about this postGood one akash. perfectly balanced article. I still think you and shewag are the ideal openers for india. hope to see you n viru in the team back!!
And i know this series would be 1-0 or 2-0 cos the way the first test has drawn, it already looks its been in history.
England are a decent side but i feel the commentators and the BBC ppl give them too much hype abt this England team. I dont know why they always say abt 2005 ashes?? is that the best ever cricket palyed by england?? Then what abt the team lead by gooch when botham played?
Freddie is good but how many times u keep on telling that since Fredie is not there we lost. and if Fredie is there and vaughy is not present u will turn the finger towards vaghy and say ' we missed a brilliant captain' Stop complaining and play ur games. I have lot of respect for the English team and their sports man but i never expected such behavior from their bowlers. esp sidebottom and andreson.. Do they think they r world class?
And the things done srisanth is also too bad and not accpetable. But its finally good to see an indian team to show it out for what they are getting for many years!!
Common india bring on..
the last match would be a tough match and it will be a better match than Aus - Eng or even a Ind - Pak since the fab four is gonna miss england after this series!!
cheers
Complain about this postRocky!
it is quite possible, as Matt Prior said, that a few jelly beans accidentally fell near the strip when they were brought out with drinks....and that Zaheer could have brushed them aside like many people have done before with small things on the pitch. It's a little unfair to accuse England of 'throwing' them at him when nobody saw this happen and it's just as plausible (if not more plausible) that they accidentally fell.
Complain about this postTime for English Cricket Trivia:
1. Secret of England’s 2005 ASHES success in England?
2. Why England lost (humiliated by) to Australia (0-5) - (Point missed by Schofield Report)?
3. Jelly Beans found in Trent Bridge Test were made in which country?
4. Who smuggled Jelly Beans to England ?
5. Why Paul Collingwood has been appointed as England 's one day captain?
6. Why Matt Prior got the nod ahead of so many other wicket-keepers?
Answeres:
1. "Jelly Beans" (Ricky Ponting- make sure they undergo security check up before taking the field - TIP for the next ASHES!!)
2. Because they forgot to take their Jelly Beans!!
3. South Africa !!
4. A South African called KP!!
5. Because he threatened to spill the beans (oops! Jelly Beans!)
6. Because he promised regular supply of Jelly-Beans!!
Complain about this postAakash lets not get ahead of ourselves, I am an Indian supporter but I thing the last test hinged on the toss! I think India would have really struggled had they not won the toss. Our second inns demonstrated this, do you think we could have managed 100+ more runs? In my opinion we still need to do better across the board to be considered a better test nation than England, hopefully the Oval will prove me wrong. Look out for me, I'll be wearing an England football top with an Indian Flag...
Complain about this postVery good article, Aakash....
I would also like to see you opening the batting with Sehwag in the not-too-distant future.
And British Indian, how can you say that India can't handle England's banter? When I last checked, India were leading the Test series 1-0!
Complain about this postLast one, I promise:
7. Why Duncan Fletcher was sacked as England coach?
8. Why Peter Moores was appointed as England coach?
9. Why England team was not reprimanded and punished for Jellygate scandal by Graveney, Moores and Madugalle (match refree)?
10. Why Sachin and Ganguly were given out by the world's best cricket umpire?
Answeres:
Complain about this post7. Because he threatened to abandon Jelly-Beans!!
8. Because he showed tremendous character by supporting the use the Jelly-beans!!
9. Because all of them have shares in company which manufactures Jelly-Beans!!!!
10. Because he was promised by Vaughan that he will give him some Jelly-Beans to taste!!!!!!!!
"I think that there should not be to much read in to the last test, India won a very favourable toss, England played very under par on day one and landed themselves in it. We'll see a repeat of the Lords Test at the Oval except this time we wont let India off the hook."
Duncan, didn't England win a favourable toss at lords? Did the batsmen pile it on there? England's batting is a problem right now and no amount of 'luck' can actually make up for it right now.
Luck can only take you so far, if you're good enough luck doesn't matter. Are England good enough to stop whining about luck and start winning without it?
The oval should be a good game, but if England are going in for short stuff like they did in the fourth innings at trentbridge, I can see only one winner and they sure as hell won't be the ones wearing the three lions.
Akash a very interesting read, and the key to India's fortune in this game will be Dravid. The team's managed to get along without any substantial contributions from the skipper until now, the oval will need him to fire as well. I so wish Munaf was fit he would revelled in these conditions.
Complain about this postAlways look forward to your articles Akash, well done.
India followed your words in your previous article "time to stand up and be counted" at Trent Bridge and they need to do the same again at the Oval.
It is going to be a fantastic contest and I think that one of the 'galacticos' will at least get a century this time.
lets hope for good weather and another 'classic test match'!
Complain about this postHi its me Nitish, Total fond of Captainship of our former Captian Saurav "Dada" Ganguly. He makes a unit of Indian Cricket team to always to win in difficult situation and at any cost, If we have to Pay a fine for that but The Pride of the Nation is most importent for us.
Singing out
Nits
Complain about this postAkash, as an Indian supporter, I think your article is very good, though with one glaring omission - you've glossed over Sreesanth's actions with "young, excitable Sreesanth". Youth is no excuse for his actions - I believe (and depserately hope) that the beamer was a complete acciddent, but to overstep by a couple of feet in an attempt to bounce the batsman was just plain wrong, it was an attempt to injure another player - which goes against everything that cricket stands for.
It was very heartening to see India give as good as they got, but I believe Zaheer (not Sreesanth) was the perfect example of how to go about it - he followed up his words with actions - he did not resort to wild bouncers or shoulder nudges, but excellent, controlled, in-your-face bowling. And that shut Prior and Vaughan and everyone else way better than Sreesanth's antics. Zaheer walked away with his head held high and his reputation enhanced - Sreesanth's come away looking like a playground bully. Let Engalnd sledge as much as they want, this Indian team is good enough to take it all and hand it back with interest.
What England did with the jellybeans was wrong - but they are not my team, India are - my focus is on supporting India all the way, but not being blind to their faults.
To the "British Asian" poster - luck is what you make of it. England had the chance to bowl India out at Lords, but lost that due to their own slackness and slow over rate. Again, at Trentbridge, when Sidebottom was bowling, the ball was doing a lot and the Indian team could have folded - but they didn't, all the batsmen applied themselves and showed how to bat. No luck involved there mate, pure and simple application, guts and skill - something which England were sadly lacking. Read some of the articles by various cricket writers in different newspapers to get an informed opinion.
Complain about this postGood article, I think India deserved to win and if eng are resorting to childish pranks then they are clearly on the run. Dravid is a cool customer and exudes class, Sreesanth is talented but far too volatile he does India no favours with beemers and that no ball was deliberate ask Botham and he should know ! Also barging Vaughan, were he on a rugby field he would likely find himself on the wrong side of a ruck and get the treatment !! he will instead get some chin music when he bats with a bit of luck. Prior will come unstuck, dropping half chances will cost Eng games, he talks rubbish and needs some serious runs still think Chris Read is streets ahead as a keeper. Should be a good final test but Eng will need to shut up and concentrate on scoring runs or India will shut up shop and walk off with a draw and a deserved series win. Still much prefer playing India than Pakistan at least India stay on the field !!
Complain about this postGood balanced view Aakash.
Lots of people are saying the Trent Bridge match was all to do with the Toss. Yes it was a good toss to win, but at the same time the Bowlers have to do the Business and land the ball in the right place. England won the toss at Lords and that was also a good toss to win, yet India did not use the ealy morning conditions at all. That was where England took control of the Test. So you could say England were lucky to win the Toss and nearly won the game.
Complain about this postWhilst I agree the jellybean insult was just that; I am not too sure we should be labelling Sree Santh the term of being street smart by apparently deliberately bowling a dangerous beamer and follwing it up with both a shoulder charge and deliberate no ball; sorry, but in all my years of playing and watching, that had to be deliberate. Maybe this will, too, galvanise England and fire them up for the Oval. I hope for one, that the Indian Tour management have the guts to drop Sree Santh for his partt in this match; it was, and is, a disgrace.
Complain about this postreasonable article Akash!.
Complain about this postIndia played the better cricket than England, and they managed it for longer, and the result is there for all to see!.
I also agree regarding the Indians giving back a lot of banter, unlike what was happening in the past.
however, it should be said that guys like Sreesanth are bringing the nation in to disgrace and disrepute by his nonsensical behaviour!. banter and aggression has a limit, and the jellybean issue, and Sree's behaviour has really overstepd the line by a long way!.
Cricket should be played within the spirit of the game, and roudysm can't be the order of the day, whatever You call it Banter, Aggression, or anything!.
Well Akash the Indians surprised me.
They were outplayed at lords and one could not help but think of a situation where they would be subdued. I am an English Cricket fan but my heart goes to those big boys who helped India in that memorable test win (Tendulkar, Ganguly Laxman, and Khan), Congratulations wish you the best But Not at the Oval.
Complain about this postThe toss was not crucial at Lords. The weather was the crucial element!
The toss was the important factor at Trent Bridge.
One thing is for sure, England need more contribution from the tail. Our 2nd innings score was good, but the tail collapses too easily. Need someone to take on the batting role that Gilo had.
PS - I don't remember anyone saying that we lost cos 'freddie' wasnt there
PPS - Rahul, I think you need to get an informed opinion
Complain about this postHi Aakash,
It was nice read.
British Indian - I need to put some different point of view for your 'Lucky' Commnets
1. Eng won toss at lords....still they lost...becoz on last day only 3-4 hrs play was played. India won second toss, and had there been rain on last day, still India would have won comfortably. Here remember, in first test it was low scoring game compared to second test. India merely scored 290 odd in second innings of first test and Eng scored more than that in the second innings of second test.
So no luck bad planning by Eng, they knew rain was going to come.
You also said that day 2-3 in trentbridge was good for batting and thats why you did not get Indians out. And the same attack took 3 wickets just after couple of days in the same weather and pitch was still good for batting (rather better for batting). That was really unlucky, right? why your great seam attack got the wickets on the same pitch in the same match when match was not yet lost...
Eng didnt have more poor umpiring decisions compared to India. Cut the crap. Check the stats.
And with all poor decisions still India won, why couldnt you win. The way MV got out was real unlucky, huh? or the way Colly got out...when you have 7 wickets in hand and two set world class batsmen playing, you should have got 150+ target for India, which you could have defended.
So dont talk about which one was the luckier side...
Please...
Learn the game instead..
Complain about this postYour right, the jelly beans really crossed the line didn't they? As opposed to that loveable "excitable" rogue Sree Santh who bowled a beamer, and a couple of quite deliberate no balls to intimidate the batsemen. Beamers and deliberate no balls are widely recognised as the lowest a bowler can go. But no, your right, it was the jelly beans that we're really outrageous. What a ridiculous load of tosh.
Complain about this postLove your articles Akash. Do you believe that umpiring mistakes even out?
It didn't even out in SA.
Complain about this postVery balanced article? Sreesanth barges into Vaughan (in a non contact sport), bowls a beamer and a deliberate no ball and is young and excitable yet England players crossed the line. To be honest neither team did themselves any favours with their behaviour, particularly the foul language but it seems that everything is being pinned on England. This has been a fantastic series to watch so far, with conditions generally favourable to the bowlers yet some superb batting on show. The result of the 1st test was an absolute travesty with England cruelly denied by the weather, India had the good fortune to win the toss but were skillied enough to make the most of their good fortune in the 2nd test and deservadely won. Lets not get too down on the England team and remember that we are missing Flintoff, Harmisson and Hoggard (600 test wickets). im looking forward to the last test and expect it to be a close contest once more. Just to finish Aakash a balanced article would be one where the writer is fair to both teams and does not accuse one team of crossing the line and then not criticise his mates for the large contribution that they made to the disorderly behaviour
Complain about this postOne win does not make this team a great team. Likes of Ganguly and Tendulkar must recognize that they are not young anymore and should pave way for new promising members. Tendulkar has been a failure for the past 5-6 years. Scoring centuries against teams like Kenya and Bangaldesh is not of the same standard as against Australia and England. Personally I feel that the players should get paid for their performance, and not for the lack of it. If they score runs, pay them 250 rupees a run, if they take a wicket pay them 10,000 rupees a wicket (or some scale of that nature). If they win, pay for their airfare and hotel. If they lose, they pay back the Government. Believe me, this will make them open their eyes very fast. Another observation: why are bowlers are so erratic? They give away lot of runs in no balls and wide balls. There should be a limit to this. Good luck team.
Complain about this postinteresting article aakash. quite a few mentions on the topic of sree santh by your readers.
Complain about this posti was once walking through the park with my young son , when a mugger decided to display a knife in order to steal my phone..i defended myself and if the police or the cameras were there..i'd possibly be getting a lecture!!
the case is similar here..the likes of anderson and sidebottom and co thought they'd start a joust with india..india replied back..so whos guilty?
well the answers clear..if i saw themugger again..i'd say to him.."u shouldn't have tried to mug me..should u??
Hmmm...jellybeans, thanks for the tip but I do have an "informed" opinion - in fact, the part addressed to "British Asian" is so informed that it's a regurgitation of what Geoff Boycott wrote in the Independent :)
You say luck, I say skill, we can agree to differ or argue till the cows come home - but what either of us thinks doesn't make any real difference to the game or the result. That said, I won't let something as trivial as that stop me from expressing my views and I hope it doesn't stop you as well.
Wishing for no rain and more proper cricket at the Oval, in the hope that what everyone will be talking about after the game is the cricketing skills of the players and not their ability to lob jelly beans or shoulder barge opponents.
Complain about this postStill Hope for England , Last Summer India won their dirst ever test match in SA to lead the series 1-0 , they duly went and lost the next two tests and series 2-1.Hopefully India have learned from their mistakes and will win the series.
Complain about this postAn interesting article and I do agree that India, as a touring side, do look a lot better suited to handle life outside of their home country these days. This is good news for international cricket I believe.
However, what makes me raise a wry smile is the predictably polarised comments by so many people here claiming luck this, gamesmanship that, in order to bolster their own team's performance issues. Stop complaining and start enjoying the cricket - despite the rain this is one of the most fascinating series' we have had for a long time.
Both teams have points to prove - India's aging middle order want one final hurrah to cement their place in modern cricketing history; the inexperienced bowling attack need to show that they can adapt to English conditions and support the traditionally batting-heavy test team; English batsmen like Strauss and Bell need to perform to cement their future test career; the young English bowling attack have been asked to step in and look to gain places for when the likes of Harmison, Hoggard, Jones, Flintoff etc regain full fitness. The standard of cricket, considering the conditions of play this year, has been suitably high.
OK, luck might have had its effect on the series thus far, but this is cricket and I cannot remember a time when luck wasn't an issue. Obviously I would have liked England to have won the toss on Friday but that wasn't to be. Similarly Indian supporters would have liked to see Sachin get his ton. Swings and roundabouts. At the end of the day the scorebook reads 1-0 to India and that's not going to change.
Personally I'm really looking forward to the Oval Test and continued high-class cricket and I hope everyone else on this board can put the bickering aside and do the same.
Well played India, come on England!
Complain about this postAakash,
I think India played very well and deserved to win this test match. But, Vaughan is a classical player and its nice to see his return to imperious form. These days you don't see such players whose game is modeled on timing. When in form, Vaughan reminds me of Mark Waugh, another great player. Anyways, I agree with some of the readers over here that Laxman looks like shadow of himself now and its high time that Yuvraj Singh gets his due. Why am I saying this? Ok, Laxman bats with tail and he is not a swift runner between wickets. Also, he is not in improvising, in both these aspects, Yuvraj Singh wins hands down..The only thing thats lacking in his game is that Yuvraj is less experienced but you play to get experienced isn't it. Fast bowling has been revelation from both the sides and I wish we have some more wickets like this all over the world. Hats off to groundsmen
Complain about this postPeople seem to think it was 'win the toss win the match' : i.e. British Indian (what a stupid name) and Duncan ! That is ridiculous, the ball still has to be put in the right place and batsmen still have to be got out, its not a given at all.
Remember India last time they were here being put in under dark clouds and on a green pitch at Headngley. The bowlers were producing extravagant lateral movement and yet India scored almost 630, and went on to win the match !! That was through sheer hard graft and concentration. England could easliy have done the same this time but instead crumbled to 198 all out.
Complain about this postWell Said Akash,
Those days are gone when Indians were considered "Gentlemen" on the field and used to take the "light banter" meekly. This is a new Indian side and the entire credit goes to Sourav Ganguly. 2nd test was a testimony to that. Good all round performance by India, good effort by England. Umpires had few bad days in the office which evened out in the end. Jellygate was ridiculous (though it may seem a no-event for some) and Sree was a disgrace. A one match suspension wouldn't harm his excitable youthful energy. Everybody makes mistakes and hopefully he will learn from that.
Having said that i'm still surprised that some of the English fans, infact most of them are yet to accept the fact that India defeated England by sheer class and determination. So much crying about the toss !!! Didn't Eng win a crucial toss in the 1st test ?? If their seamers couldn't finish off the tail (with a slow over rate) is that India's luck or England's poor judgement. Having born and brought up (played cricket) in those conditions and all the met-info they got why didn't England play accordingly on 4th and 5th day of 1st test ? Bowling 10 overs/hr knowing the fact (from Mets) that it'll rain on 5th day and calling India lucky !! Bah !
To British Asian - You need to learn cricket. Stop being a crybaby. India won an important toss. But still the bowlers had to put the ball in right places and the batsmen had to negotiate. Steve Waugh once said - A toss definitely starts a match but it never ends it. Where are those who said Indian batsmen can't play the swing balls. Did you see how Saint Matt Prior got out in the 2nd inning? And all the British media could talk about is "Indian Galacticos". Well i hope in the final test "Battleship Galactico" fires in full strength.
If you still wanna cry about toss, weather and luck then quit watching cricket and start playing Poker.
Good Luck India for 2-0.
Complain about this post"Who lives in urban India but is comfortable with the language, cuisine, people and travel anywhere in the world.
Complain about this postThey are neither apologetic nor timid, they do not offer excuses. They give as good as they get and are confident, street-smart and in-your-face. The team currently playing. THESE MUST BE THE LESSON WHEN EVER THEY PLAY ON ANY SOIL, Very very Good.
England lost the Test because they were outplayed by India in all four departments - batting, bowling, fielding and sledging.
But the bad losers that they are, the English, they will always manage to find an excuse, and blame it on the toss or the conditions or the umpiring or the un-sportsmanlike behaviour or the 'luck' - this last one is the most ridiculous of all in my opinion, and typically English.
I hope India thrashes them badly in the the third Test and that should put an end to their whinging once and for all -- well, for a couple of days at least.
Complain about this postAakash, nice post. However, I have to agree with Rahul in #16. Let's not gloss over Sreesanth's behavior, especially the shoulder barge, of which there can be no doubt that it was intentional. That crossed the line as much as the lame jellybean incident did. It was boorish, unnecessary and showed disrespect to the opposing captain. I'm all for the new India and standing up to the pathetic schoolyard bullying of others, but let's not go down that path as a response. I think Sreesanth's response to Andre Nel was far more suitable, and entertaining to boot. I've read that Sreesanth is embarassed by his behaviour and wants to apologize to Vaughan. I hope he has done so or is going to. He needs to channel his energies into his bowling, and South Africa showed he is capable of that.
As for all this whining about luck of the toss. If the toss really is that crucial, then perhaps the ICC can institute a rule whereby the team that wins the toss wins the match outright and people don't have to waste their time, money and energy on a match that has a foregone conclusion, and the viewers will be spared the constant drone of commentators going on about "luck" and "crucial toss." Or instead of tossing a coin to see who wins the toss, institute a quiz contest on cricketing history or some other competition, so that it doesn't just come down to "luck." May the most knowledgeable captain win.:)
If England had won the toss and gone on to do well, would we be hearing how lucky they were to win the toss or would we be hearing what a great team they are and how well they performed? I suspect the latter. Reminds me of the WC 2003 when Ian Botham complained that India had got the better of the conditions in a day-night encounter and so defeated England. Yet, when England benefited from exactly the same conditions against another team, he was silent.
Complain about this postI agree , and also believe they should continue to be aggressive - I feel SriSanth needs to realize that he almost cost India the game . On one end Zaheer was bowling to a plan and on the other Santh was in another world. Santh if your reading this , leave the bling bling at home and focus on bowling to a plan or step aside. I think Zaheer and RP would make a better opening pair if Santh can't handle it for the next game.
Sure England is rated as the 2nd best Test team but keep in mind they are missing Hoggie, Freddie, Simon Jones and Harmisson and bowling with a 2nd string attack. If there was ever a time for India to win an overseas test and take the series 2- 0 it is surely now.
It's do or die for both teams at the Oval - hope for a good game.
Complain about this postGood article as always Akash,
India have improved drastically away from the subcontinent in recent years. They surely deserve a higher ranking than 5th in test matches. However if they beat England in the next match, they wud be elevated to 3rd place in the tests just behind england.
India's bowling has also improved dramatically over the last few years. The emergence of Munaf Patel, Sreesanth, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan has not gone unnoticed.
If India can find a few batsmen to replace Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman, the future could be a bright one for Indian cricket.
Complain about this postPeople are arguing that sreesanths antics are worse than englands pranks and sledging. while sreesanth has apologised, been fined and apologised again, the entire english cricket establishment has sided with the england players stupidity.
Complain about this postoverall sreesanth was ok, he could have bowled much better if he did not try so hard to do many things, and his whole performance was way better than james anderson englands bowling "captain"!!
his beamer was accidental, pietersen made too much of a show trying to avoid it. i once saw gavaskar pat down a head-high beamer from imran khan with his bat, that is what a legendary batsmen does. imran immediately apologised and both went about their business. gavaskar did not have to do
what kp did, lie flat on the ground like he had been poleaxed or something. also people say sreesanth shoulder charged vaughan, if you see the footage he brushed past vaughan, not like he put his shoulder into vaughans chest or something. and he has been fined and shows remorse over it.
not unlike the english cricketers, who sprinkle jelly beans on the pitch and say i did not do it when caught. the jelly beans are probably being used to keep the shine on the ball. even vaughans "apology" comes with statements asking for footage of people throwing the beans.
as for the toss, if england batsmen cannot deliver in home conditions then the less said about them the better!!
I think 3rd test is going to be a thriller,India will win it.Jellybean incidence need to be investigated by ICC,since every one on England side from TG,Coach,MV,KP and MP are all giving statements,they think it is a joke for them but to me it TAMPERING.If found involved they should be punished severely so that in future generation of cricketers should NOt dare to think of disrespecting the game.Thanks-alam USA
Complain about this postaakash:
why dravid? doesn't he have a couple (or more) of years left in him? when is the indian team in england next?
will the brits back down and request for the stump mikes to be turned on for the ashes?
Complain about this postAs usual, another fantastic column from Aakash. Pity such a cerebral cricketer is not on the Indian eleven.
Complain about this postWinning in the Carribean is not what it once was as the Windies are a very poor shadow of who they once were. I also expect England to come out firing in the next test as this side are better than they showed in Australia in the summer and in the last test.
I expect England to come back, show the metal they have and take the series. If the Pietersen fires its good night India. Some of you are saying England was outplayed in all departments, I seem to remember India being outplayed in all departments in the first test!
Complain about this postPaul Collingwood has risen in my estimation. I have tended to regard him as a journeyman Test batsman and a rather dry old stick. I still see him as a journeyman Test batsman (although a wonderful fielder), but I thought his remark that Zaheer Khan prefers blue jelly beans to pink ones was the most sensible of all the excessive commentary upon the mildly silly, but inoffensive, episode. His humourous jibe put the incident into perspective - of course, the perpetrator did not intend to insult Zaheer Khan.
Complain about this postWhoever the perpetrators, sledging cannot be condoned. This is cricket--a tradition more than a game. It demands refinement and character. Anyone--Indian, English, Aussie, caught sledging or rubbing their dirty feet on this great game should receive a two year ban. Letting such behaviour go by classifying it as "on-field banter" is just bollocks. The message should be clear--If you want to be a yob, go play football or some American gladiatorial contest masquerading as sport. Cricket is a game for gentlemen.
Complain about this postIndian were good, but very much helped by an extremely biased toss, which they won. As for the Jelly Beans going over the top, thats nothing compared to Sree Sanths antics
Complain about this postAkash,
your writing prowess has flourished with every article that you write! Kudos
My grouse, after filtering the so-called "jingoism," on many message boards has been about belittling of the jelly bean incident. Upsetting a batsman's concentration after he has taken guard is simply said, cheating. I don't understand why everyone, including Graveney and Vaughan, feel this is trivial. Or I'm probably too naive.
Sledging and its uglier counterparts are really an inadequate player's defense to make up for skill. It should not be condoned.
That said, I don't understand why it would be so hard for a player to ignore it. The best way to confront immaturity is by ignoring it; in fact, it's a potent counterattack. I hope somebody can shed some light on this.
Complain about this postPerfectly balanced article???
India have been exceptional??
England went over the top??
Answers, NO, NO and probably
Not once do you mention the thuggery of Sree Santh's shoulder barge, or his beamer to KP which was "accidental" and soon followed by the worlds biggest no ball bouncer, EITHER Sree Santh is a terrible sportsman, cheat and thug or he has the worst run up consistency in cricket at any level on the planet.
Where i do believe England were petty and poorly behaved your article is very one sided on the matter without even mentioning the discretions of the Indian team and i find this disappointing from a supposedly neutral BBC columnist.
Complain about this postWhen will the English ever learn...
Mr Duncan, your post is a joke.... Im sick and tired of the never ending excuses..
This is not playing roullete in Vegas for heavens sake. This is cricket. The level of luck involved is miniscule. Teams and players make their own luck. India won a favourable toss but thats no excuse for the English.
The 2nd best team in the world playing in home conditions. And they were beaten comfortably in conditions favourable to them. The english should be embaressed instead of giving all these lame excuses. The comments by Bob Willis on SKY borders on the ridiculous.
And Im sick and tired of people making Sreeshanth the scapegoat here. People accidently bowl beamers all the time. We've seen it happen in cricket. These are guys charging down the wicket and hurling the ball at 85 miles an hour. Your bound to get one or two wrong.So, an Indian fastballer is finally showing some aggression and the rest of the world cant handle it.Cause the usually meek Indian is giving some of that spit back.Stop whinging.
You were comprehensively outplayed and beaten. Get over it. Now, go and pray to your stars that you dont get thrashed again at the Oval..
ANd great article Akash..
Complain about this postThe entire English cricketing establishment (whatever that is) has excused the english players has it? Well seeing as almost every english commentator and journalist has fiercely criticised the english players (and rightly so) I think your comments belong in the file marked "uninformed hyperbole." And please, enough of this nonsense about the english feeling superior cos of some kind of colonial mentality. Nothing could be further from the truth, and its nothing more than a cheap shot which undermines considered and calm debate.
Complain about this postAakash,
I thought your analysis of the Tendulkar dismissal (on Cricinfo) was brilliant. Rarely, do we get to read such insightful analysis!
Which leads me to my next question. You may have seen the articles explaining why Sachin was getting beaten (seemingly) by Sidebottom's outgoing deliveries (because he was playing for the one coming in or straightening up). Would be great if you gave us your views on that.
Jitesh
Complain about this postIts true that India are slowly growing out of the tag of poor travellers. But the challenge is maintianing that intensity on a consistant basis. The team generally rushes to clebrate success too much and loose the main focus in the larger conext of things (i.e wiining the series) as it happened in the Carribiean and South Africa not long ago. Getting rid of this tendency is a true challenge that has to be addressed and Rahul needs to be more inspiring and authoritative .He has that enviable track record (much better than Ganguly) to command respect and there is nothing wrong in being agressive and demanding sometimes on the field. He seems to be technically supreme in his judgement and analysis and needs to inclucate/cultivate a domineering personality to generate that killer instinct from his team. The habit of getting into complascancy and getting laidback (with explanations like these things happen...which sometimes Rahul uses freaquently) too soon needs to be got rid off and even if they loose the team has to fight to the last instant to extract the result. I am sure Rahul has all the right credentials to do that and now is the time for that killer instinct to surface.Bottomline at the end of the day the result is all that matters and the ability to play as a unit. With end of the Greg Chappel saga (who has been a unfortunate happening to Indian cricket...with his domineering style etc.) it is really heartening to see good comebacks and good performances from the players.Who knows we may not even need a coach if we perform like this consistantly.
Complain about this postI've said this before on a comment board, and I'll say it again: dropping jelly beans on the pitch is childish and stupid, and Vaughan has rightly apologised. What I haven't seen is any evidence of players throwing them at Zaheer Khan or placing them at any position on the wicket that could be deemed to be tampering. Either of these actions would obviously be more serious and should result in punishment.
I am taking the distinct lack of any evidence (when surely the media would delight in showing any on a constant loop should it exist) as meaning that this didn't actually happen. I think that the Indian fans (and the few rogue Aussies who love sticking their oar on) should therefore stop going on about it as if it was proven fact! It was a childish prank that went too far, and the England establishment are correct in brushing it off as one. Collingwood is not betraying colonial bias by trying to make a joke out of it (get that chip off you shoulder, Dastur #36), and contrary to what "the colonials" (I include the Aussies in that) believe, the Empire is not something that regularly enters the head of most modern Britons...
Complain about this postHang on a second, how come you all complained when Johnathan Agnew wrote an alleged pro-England blog yet when this bloke writes a clearly biased India blog, you all nod along in agreement?
Some people wrote that this blog was perfectly balanced! Are you blind or something? The guy is clearly biased towards India, something I wouldn't have a problem with if all of you hadn't bitched about JA's blog the other week. Hypocrites.
Complain about this postThe English cricketers Matt Prior, Coach Moores, Kevin Pieterson should all forfeit their entire match fee for infuriating the Indian cricketers with sledging.
To me verbal assault is as bad as bat-waving
Complain about this postRavi Balky
I see many English fans are still going about about the toss and luck. The toss at Lords was crucial because England got to bat under clear skies with the weather not assisting the seamers in any manner allowing England to get away to a solid start.
In stark contrast when they came out to bat the second day in lords under overcast conditions, they lost 7 wickets for 20 odd runs. England's batting form is what's letting them down this series. They're yet to post a total in excess of 300 this entire series and yet the English supporters turn a blind eye to this lacunae and prefer instead, to focus on trivial matters like the toss and luck.
Really great teams do not let luck be a part of their winning strategy. Right now, neither England nor India are in that class. Both teams are evenly matched with India holding a slight psychological edge after the comprehensive victory at trentbridge.
Complain about this postIt is funny how some people are complaining about toss. There is always a toss in every cricket test match that is ever played. If we start blaming the toss, majority of the wins can be deemed undeserved.
Why no one mentions the home field advantage? The home team gets to prepare the pitch and plays in the familiar conditions. There is certainly an advantage there. We always have teams blaming the conditions when they come to play in India. England certainly has the home advantage but they were outclassed or at least matched in their presumably strongest suit ie swing bowling. And that is credit to India.
To balance the home field advantage, I think it is more balanced if the visiting team wins the toss. May be the toss should be equally distributed and the visiting team should get to decide which ones they want.
Complain about this postGood article Aakash. India played badly at Lords but England also failed to get the Indian side out. The Indians used the conditions at Trent Bridge to their favor and won fairly in the second test. Let's not forget that both tests have been quite entertaining and not mind-numbing draws. Sledging and unprofessional conduct on the field makes both sides look bad, albeit verbal or physical. One hopes both teams have learned their lessons from this test and will be better behaved and be the role models they are supposed to be for the younger cricketing generation.
Complain about this post"James Harpin wrote: Indian were good, but very much helped by an extremely biased toss, which they won. As for the Jelly Beans going over the top, thats nothing compared to Sree Sanths antics" --
What's an extremely biased toss ?? Is it some kind of special toss or coin? Or may be it's the same coin from the famous hindi movie "Sholay" where Amitabh Bacchan had 'Heads' on either side of the coin !!
Grow Up !! Don't be a disgrace to cricket..
Complain about this post"the Empire is not something that regularly enters the head of most modern Britons..."
That may be true, which makes one wonder why you still give out awards, such as those given to the Ashes 2005 winning team, with the word 'empire" still in it. Surely the name of the awards should be updated to reflect current reality and current geo- and realpolitik? I mean what relevance does Order of the British Empire have in today's world? Maybe change it to Order of Britain.
I'm not being facetious, but when Brits tell their former subjects to get over colonialism and then proceed to give out awards directly linked to a long-lost empire, it's a tad insulting to those territories that struggled for and won their independence from that empire. Does Italy give awards called Order of the Roman Empire? Colonialism caused genuine effects - good and bad -- in British territories and some of those concerns are still valid today, but I agree with you that it shouldn't be dragged into everything to cheapen every discussion about India vs. England.
Mark, weren't you the one complaining that Aakash was one-sided even before JA wrote his column (or at least at the same time that JA wrote his column)? So if you had a problem with Aakash being one-sided before/at the same time as JA's column, then I'm sure you complained on JA's column that he too was being one-sided, right? If you're not that Mark, apologies.
Complain about this postSreesanth is such a talented and exciting player. He just had one bad game and am sure he will bounce back and give a wonderful performance in next test. In his interview yesterday he is embarrassed by his behaviour . I felt he is so striaght guy who admit his fault. He is so proud to play for the country and he do that so hard. He is young and learning. So lets back him.He has everything to grow up as a great bowler for India
Complain about this postI would like to say that participants on both teams overstepped the mark on occasion, for incidents that we are all aware of.
Just a thought on the Zaheer/jellybean incident: Black footballers sadly have to occasionally put up with all sorts of abuse, including bananas thrown on the pitch but sometimes the player will pick up the banana & start eating it to show they are not intimidated. It would have been great if Zaheer had munched the offending jelly beans & asked if there were any more, hopefully stopping the jellybean nonsense in its tracks!
Amongst all the nonsense there has been some good cricket, let's hope that it carries on that way: good cricket & no more nonsense.
Complain about this postWhen the Indian "Fab Four" finally do retire, India are going to hav massive problems in the batting department if they can't find someone useful to replace them.
People like Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina hav the talent to become some of the greatest cricketers in the future. However, their form is very unpredictable. Kaif hit a memorable 87 in 2002 wen India beat England in the Natwest Series final. He hasn't shown that form since. Yuvraj Singh played well in mid-2006 but soon faded away.
India need to hone some good batsman or else it could be very tough in the future...
Complain about this postKS #62:
I actually agree with you on the point regarding MBEs etc, but without sounding like a cop-out, I would say again that most people of my generation don't really associate them with an Imperial past - it's simply an award given to recognise achievement. The title has as much to do with tradition as anything else I suspect. Also the Roman Empire fell a significantly longer time ago than the British one! My point was more along the lines that it seems irrelevant to most modern Britons to be accused of being colonialist in everything we do, when we have no direct experience of it, and don't really care about it either!
Back to the cricket: English fans complaining about losing the toss really need to get over it, you're putting us to shame! Any decent team should be able to overcome that, you're just ading fuel to the fire of those who accuse us of whinging!
Complain about this postit is my wish that sachin should concentrate in his batting and he should score a ton in the final test and he should score at least 3 tons in the coming one dayers at England and thus he should prove his mental stregth to the entire world of cricket . Kindly give the email address of mr.Sachin Tendulkar to mail my views thanking u
Complain about this postG'day people, love the Aussie contributions to this thread!
There is a certain pleasure, isn't there, in winding up English supporters by saying that they whinge - no offence meant, it just makes for such good entertainment.
Much the same as telling an Indian/Pakistani that Pakistan/India are a better cricket team!
Or telling an Aussie that.... that.... damn. Thoughts anyone?
I am sure the English enjoy having loads of South Asians and Antipodeans living in their country and then slagging them off at every opportunity:)
Complain about this postJames McQuaid,
I hope I didn't give the impression that I think all modern Britons are still colonialist in their thinking. And I do agree with you about the significance of the award being mostly historical and traditional and not a show of triumphalism.
On re-reading my post, I think I brought up an irrelevant point really and that point would be more relevant to a discussion that arises when some Brits choose to see the Empire purely through rose-tinted glasses and stifle any criticism with cries of "Get over it." So my apologies for any unintended insinuations. As I said, most countries have not had their independence for very long and that legacy is still very controversial and touchy - for both sides, especially in academia and politics. It's inevitable that it would creep into cricket, and there are times when I think it is a valid point of discussion in sport, but not in this case and we shouldn't cry wolf too often about colonialism, otherwise we will cheapen really meaningful discussions about its legacy - good and bad.
Complain about this postAmazed at comments from British Indian!
England were lucky at Lords as they won the toss and batted in perfect batting conditions. KP likes to sledge but is unable to be at the receiving end of it. Very childish!
In the Trent bridge test, England certainly had the better share of umpiring decisions. Cook, Vaughan and KP were all out once before actually being given out. Tendulkar and Sachin were given out when well set.....
Anyway, India are one up in the series.
Complain about this postAkash,
Well written article and a good reflection of the Indian cricket team. It is a good evolution for the team indeed. But the Indian psyche is such that the team seems to really rest on its laurels which is the cause of downfall in the future matches. Yes, we won a convincing victory, savor the moment learn from it and start fresh, not put your feet up and relax going into the third test and then cut a sorry figure. This also brings in the question of consistency.One good match and then the forthcoming match might be a complete rout. So, all said and done, i sincerely hope new realizations and evolution within the team brings in new perspective and approach leading to greater consistency. Good Luck Team India!
Robin.
Complain about this postHi Akaash,
Complain about this postI like your article, well written! However I have one question for you. a question that I am sure gives all true Indian fans and even the Indian selectors sleepless nights !
As you say this is the last series for a lot of the senior players.They may not be a team of ageing stars right now, but very soon will be.
Tell me, honestly, who do you think is going to replace these "ageing stars" after they retire? Apart from a few, I cannot see any real international class talent around in the domestic leagues. The rise and fall of Irfan Khan is a case in point. How many players are really up to the rigours and demands that international level cricket involves?
I hope you will be one of the players pushing for the opening spots, and I was a big fan of yours after the momentous Pak and Australia series all those years ago.
As for the Oval test - well, the English team tried everything in the last test and they will try again, very hard to win the next test. It tells you one thing at least - England was playing some below par teams until now and feeling very pleased with themselves, they know now that they are up against some real competition !
First, I'm an India fan.
Complain about this post1. Too much is being made of Sreesanth's beamer. If you saw the coverage you'll notice that the ball speed was 127 kph and the next ball that Sreesanth bowled was at 141 kph (which is closer to his usual delivery speed), so I think it's obvious that it slipped out of his hand.
However, shoulder barging was definitely unacceptable, but he was fined, so justice is done.
2. Too much is being made of sledging. It's been one of the honorable traditions of the game for a while. At least in England it's only the players who are doing it; in Australia the players, the media, the PM and everyone to the bell boy at the hotel or the immigration officers at the airport does their best to undermine a touring team's confidence and morale! To their credit however, the Aussies respect people who can absorb this and still do well - that's why Laxman and Tendulkar are highly regarded. However, tossing sweets on the pitch was going too far. Nice of Vaughan to apologise though.
3. Much had been said about the umpiring and the weather and luck, so I will not add to that. But I do understand how England must have felt at Lords - Indian fans have been used to their team being unable to finish off the opposition (especially tail-enders) Great teams make their own luck.
And thank goodness for neutral umpires!! Can you imagine the extent of controversy if there were home umpires in this series?
Here's hoping for a close contest at the Oval and may the best team win.
I find it absolutely extraordinary that people on this posting see a couple of sweets left on a pitch, puerile though such behaviour is, as more serious than barging, beamers and going at least 2 feet over the crease to bowl.
There is absolutely no evidence that jelly beans were thrown.
Get real Akash,and the rest of you whining on about jelly beans.
Sreesanth's behaviour was wild. As Darren Gough commented this morning, it's very difficult to comprehend how someone can 'accidentally' let a ball go out of his hand at 90-ish miles per hour. Sreesanth has been very lucky to be given the benefit of the doubt this time.
As to luck, anybody knows that luck plays a part in all sport, including cricket. I'd be interested to know how the Indian side would have batted had they been put in first at Trent Bridge. This doesn't excuse English batting collapse when the pitch was drier but the fact that Trent Bridge was like a soggy pudding would have affected anyone's batting.
Regarding sledging, Geoffrey Boycott commented that the ICC should have got a grip on this particular issue donkeys' years ago and never has. Maybe they were afraid of upsetting mighty men such as Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, past masters at the personal filthy insult, as people like Geraint Jones and Ian Bell have learned.
The answer to all this behaviour is to dock runs not to fine them money - in that way the outcome of the match could be affected by players' behaviour and so the team will police itself much more. Why should Sreesanth care about a match fee fine for barging Vaughan - he'd have cared a lot more if the Indian side had been fined 25 runs. Same goes for silly antics like jelly beans- I reckon they would go for 10 runs. 10 runs for personal insults and filthy language...... and so on.
Complain about this postFair points Akash.
I, however, think it would have been right to suspend Shri Saanth for one game. Not for the beamer though - which I believe was unintentional, but for hurling into Vaughan.
Also, it is time the English fans stopped talking about luck. All the whining make them sound like sour losers.
The umpires have have copped a fair bit of criticism. Maybe Taufel's form is slipping? Although I am not subscribing to any conspiracy theory yet.
Jellygate - I think the biggest punishment for this puerile act is that the Aussies will never let them forget about it. Other than that, it is overblown by the media.
And yes, the cricket was exciting.
Complain about this postSpot on Akash!
Would like to see you opening again for India. What happened? You were once compared with Sunny? But faded away...Keep your faith and you will be there. Best of luck!!
Complain about this postIs BritishIndian trying deliberately to wind the Indians up . Congarts to India. Any way at least people have started to wake up and realize that we can't be put down anymore just because we don't speak the Queen's English, or was we are coming from a developing country (for some still!!!) Gone are the days were we were too gentle and submissive, and allowed us to be taken for granted this is the new India in all respects!!
Complain about this postJust a word of caution though, in the last few series we have played we had surrendered the lead in the very next match , against Windies, SA and against Australia.I hope they have learn't their lessons and hope the story doesn't repeat itself.
"Here's another stat for you non-believers: In this millennium, India have won more Tests away from home (16) than any other country apart from Australia (26) in the same period"
Yes Akash,
Were those victories against Kenya, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe? etc..........
Complain about this postGood article. However it should have been mentioned, that this is a legacy of Saurav Ganguly. Though no way the best cricketer or batsman India ever produced, it was Ganguly who instilled confidence and toughness in Indian team and made it a true national team. He always led from the front (some time even overstepped in doing so), stood by his boys (unlike Dravid) and brought in the much needed mixture of will to win and arrogance in the team. However they should be careful not to allow this toughness to boild down to limitless sledging and unsporting activities on the ground.
Complain about this postI am not regular here. Nice to see Akash here.. I believe he should get the credit for India's good showing in Australia in 2004. India didn't buckle like they did on previous tours down under because of how Akash and Sehwag blunted the lethal Aussie pace battery. Always wanted to see him back as India's test opener.
Complain about this postok, i have read a lot of comments about luck. lets see if i can clear some delibrate misunderstandings from the English fans.
1 - toss - england won 1, india won 1 (nothing to talk about)
2 - Umpiring - it evened out, it really did, trust me.
3- Rain saving india - every cricket fan watching that match knew that there will be rain on the 3rd and 5th day. even with the rain we had a lot of cricket on a 5th day wearing pitch. if u can't get the last wicket in 8 overs (which is what england bowled at sreesant and dhoni) then u don't deserve to win, indians knew there will be rain around lunch time, but the rian fell much later plus simon touffel gave england every chance of winning by delaying tea on the 5th day. had england batsman batted on the first day in bad light then indians would have had to bat on the fifth day as well, but since england took light the unpires were forced to offer the light to the indian batsman at the same reading. plus why did they take the light on the first day, they were in great position. does anyone know that there were only 96 runs left when India were offered the light. so instead of saying that "RAIN saved india, please give creadit where its due, DHONI and LAXMAN saved india.
4 - england are missing hoggard(well replaced my sidebottom and anderson), harmision(good when firing, but probably still remembers the 1st bowl from the ashes), flintoff (very good bowler, woudln't have made any runs on the pitches we have had so far, and this is also why india aren't missing sehwag), jones(would have replaced anderson, but whats the gurantee that he would have taken more wkts then anderson already has), giles(most boring bowler of all time panesar is much more atacking then him, i think he had promised his mom that he willl never come around the wicket and actully try to take any wickets) i think thats all i have heard -- now my point-- india are missing harbhajan, pathan, nehera, balaji, sehwag, agarkar, munaf, VRV singh. Now time for truth england are really missing flintoff and thats it. india are really missing Munaf and thats it. so its pretty even.
Now my honest prediction -- India will try to hold on to a draw, it would be awesom if they tried to force a win, but knowing India they won't, England on the other hand will go flat out to try to win, and i am giving 55-45 in favour of England, the series will be a draw, but i hope i am wrong and India ends up winning 2-0.
Complain about this postthere was a lot of talk about how India will be trashed and how they won't be able to take 20 english wkts, but people have short memories and they forget that India drew with australia in australia 1-1 whereas english got hammered 5-0.
Very true, however India should definitely be the best by now and also should have proven themselves a stronger competition for the Australians. They have it all, but their inconsistency is a definite problem. They need to worl alot more, and England should just be a stepping stone.
Complain about this postTo all the English fans sobbing like spoilt children who have lost their jelly beans,
I would say one thing.
This pathetic performance of the Anglo-Boer team is completely consistent with the 06/07 Ashes performance.
In the second test 6 decisions went against India and 2 against England. In the first test Sachin was victimised twice and Dravid once by umpires. Had India won the toss in the first test, India would have won that match also.
The Jellybean incident and the comments were sick beyond belief. Poor Sreesanth retaliated against the outrageous behavior of the opponents. Why blame him? Those who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind.
Complain about this postBang on.. Akash - can we see more of you as a columnist now? Its been great to read your columns here and on Cricinfo..great stuff, keep it coming.
Complain about this postIn the 60's and 70's when India would come to play England and the Indians were jolly good chaps.
Why were they jolly good chaps? ... Because they got thrashed and didn't frankly expect to win against the country who were their former lords and masters for 200 years.
Now its different. The players were born post Indian indepedence with no empire hangups. Also the emergence of the Indian economy on the world stage, gives Indians confidence that they can compete with anyone.
The problem we are seeing on the cricket field at the moment is the Indians 'are not taking it lying down' and the English are surprised that all Indians and Gandhi types who turn the other cheek.
Complain about this postTo all English fans defending Jellygate
http://content-ind.cricinfo.com/engvind/content/current/story/305017.html
An excerpt
chairman of selectors David Graveney termed "childish", but tried to defend England's conduct on the field."Nobody would argue that a couple of lads put a couple of jellybeans down there," he said. "It was meant to be a joke and now looks a bit silly. I think people will try and read things into it, but it has no meaning whatsoever."
Note the emphasis on the word 'put'. Hopefully this matter is now laid to rest as to whether jellygate was deliberate or not. It's time both teams stopped being childish and let the game do the talking.
Complain about this postFunny how Sreeshant's display is categorized as youthful indiscretion when it was obviously the more flagrant offense while the jellybean incident is crossing the line. Why do we desi's feel the need to brag about every little thing we think we have achieved while glossing over details we feel are irrelevant.
Complain about this postAmit (75) - how can you say that just commenting on luck is whining? I didn't say that England had bad luck losing the toss at TB and that was that - it was up to them to make up for it, and the truth is the batsmen let Strauss, Vaughan and Collingwood down.
Teams always ride their luck - to say that it plays no part at all in sport (or indeed in life) is not true. I bet you any money that Dravid was thanking his lucky stars to win that toss at Trent Bridge!
Complain about this postI have read various comments posted about about how one team's sledging was worse than the others or how India were lucky for the victory...at the end of the day, does it really matter?
Anderson and Sidebottom's behaviour towards the Indian batsmen was a disgrace in the first innings (remember, no provocation from Indian bowlers in first innings). Sidebottom's primal scream at one point was outrageous...
On the other side, Sreesanth should be ashamed for his behaviour...it doesn't matter how much provocation was made, there is no reason or need for bargeing someone or bowling beamers/bouncers.
Look at Zaheer Khan...great bowling performance and he might have made a comment or two but nothing like Anderson/Sidebottom and most efinitely nothing like Sreesanth...maybe these bowlers should see who got the best figures in the match.
When it comes to luck, it is part and parcel of the game of cricket. England knew the weather conditions at Lord's and should have planned appropriately...don't blame 'luck' for the ineptness of English management to quickent he over rate.
And as for the toss at Trent Bridge, hasn't it always been the case that the toss can prove decisive in certain matches? The Indian team still had to put in the performances and if you look at most of England's first innings dismissals, they were due to bad shots, not exaggerated movement of the ball (now, don't say we're 'lucky' that the batsmen played bad shots!)
Take a leaf out of Vaughan's book...he hasn't mentioned luck in any of his assessments of the match - simply that England were outplayed!
People, the two teams are close in terms of quality...small things will decide who wins and who loses...lets hope the cricket does the talking in the next match so there is no room for such futile arguements.
Complain about this postSreesanth i ls an embarassment.period.
The guy needs to go......eccentric,maverick and did I say embarassing.
Having said that,he at least was man enough to admit he was wrong about his shoulder-barging etc.
Last I checked the puckered English cricket establishment were still defending the jellybeans incident and the incessant sledging as 'players rights'.
Complain about this postGlynne,
Any one would be happy with proceedings after a tough fought victory. If a captain lost the toss and won the match, he would say "good toss to lose".
Like someone said, every match has a toss.
- The team batting first has to usually play in bowler friendly conditions first couple of hours of the match.
- The team batting last will always have the pressure of batting fourth where even 150-200 runs could be challenging.
Both these factors even out. so quit crying
Complain about this post(88) Glynne Williams: "I bet you any money that Dravid was thanking his lucky stars to win that toss at Trent Bridge! "
Toss is a critical factor (not the only determining factor) in cricket, nobody denies that. But India winning the test solely due to Luck and Toss is just mind bogling to Indian fans !! What's the problem accepting that Indians bowled at the right places and batsmen played according to the merit of the ball. Each team had their fair share of luck. Why can't the English fans understand this simple fact ?? In that vein why don't you say that England got THRASHED by the Aussies 5-0 during the Ashes just because of "Bad Luck" and "Biased Toss" !! There is nothing wrong in accepting a defeat. But not giving credit to the winning team (performance) is beyond me. Infact you can actually count the number of English fans in these blogs who gave balanced comments. Rest all just talked about "how lucky the toss was", "how the weather favoured indians" etc etc. Who is accustomed to this type of weather? Indians or the English ?? What does that tell ? Lucky !!!
Complain about this postTo all those who think the jelly beans incident is trivial and therefore is not classed as interfering with the wicket, I say, bring it on. (This includes Mr. Graveney).
I mean, the ICC don't care, the umpires don't care and the match referee doesn't care.
The rules should clearly be changed so that it allows all the players to bring an assortment of "goodies", lay it on the wicket and we can all have a little bit of fun. On the other hand, there is no such thing as an "accidental" beamer! Although there is no need for physical contact.
If sledging is not an issue, why worry about switching off the stump Mikes? (This one is for Mr. Moores).
Complain about this postTrue, India won this test,but they are nowhere near the class needed to test oppositions away from home. they were just plain lucky in this test match. this WAS the same side that struggled in the lords test. they just had better batting conditions...
judging by how we play after a win, i am 85% sure that we will try to play for a draw to win the series and as usual we will lose to draw it.
Complain about this postI still feel the England batting is stronger than India although the bowling is quite evenly matched.
I think the above exaggerates the 'toughness' of the modern Indian cricketing pysche. Indian Test cricket is laced with one off matches where they periodically manage to impose themselves. This appears to be due as much to the complacent nature of the their opposition as to any real oneness within Indian Cricket, and the test team in particular.
England, like Australia in 2004 are guilty of taking India for granted, especially as they managed to bulley India in the first match. This is not India's fault, but England will not make the same mistake twice in the 3rd test - where I would predict a much more professional bearing from the home team.
The likelihood is that India will feel they have won their battle on this tour and will show a lack of ruthlessness if England fight back in the 3rd test. 1 - 1 will almost certainly be the final result and hopefully England will learn much about respecting their opposition in future.
I must admit that it really shouldnt take a bunch of jellybeans to fire up a fast bowler. All the fun appears to have left international cricket, surely there are far more serious issues to worry about out there.
Complain about this postTo say that a team won because of conditions only and not by skill is absolute rubbish. Remember India is playing in England and not in India. English batsmen were supposed to play well in their home seaming conditions. If you crib so much about the first innings , they should have played extremely well in the second innings to avoid defeat. The conditions on the fourth day were equally good as the second and third days. You can't say the pitch deteriorated.
English team is always over rated by their media and fans ( just like the overrated indian middle order).
Complain about this postTo Mark Green.
Complain about this postEngland lost because they did not respect india enough?????
Dude I am busting into laughter. Indian Test team is by far and large better than the English test team of today.
If only, it can be the other way around about the respecting opposition piece.
This test series is India's to loose. England cannot win the third test (they are not good enough), but India can loose it.
I think people are forgetting that Sidebottom patted Tendulkar on the back and said 'Well done' after Sidebottoms spell which Sachin survive.
That's respect.
John Lever bowled an Orange in a county game, the ball exploded on the batsman's bat, quite funny, the batsman laughed.
That is a JOKE, England players left Jelly beans on the pitch, that was a MISTAKE, bowlers giving batsman stares, that has always happened, always will happen, always should happen, you always should get worked up so you really want the wicket.
I don't understand what people are moaning about, I even saw a comment about pitch tampering!
A jelly bean, when a number 10 is batting, has been left on the pitch, must of been a deliberate ploy by England,you know, had the ball hit a round blue sweet on the pitch, the 20 cameras at the ground wouldn't notice, like the 20 cameras at the ground didn't see anyone throw jelly beans, because it didn't happen.
It would of been a clever ploy by the captain on the field at the time, Andrew Strauss, Zaheer Khan was destroying England...
Ask yourself a question, it's some jelly beans, a tail ender was there, you really think it was intentional and a tactic?
Like rubbing a SWEET on the ball, ahy, Rahul?
Complain about this postI am sure North Indians will ask for Karthik to be sacked after he scored 11 against the Sri Lankan A team. They would be pushing for Gambhir. This is the same Politics that led to the ruin of India's overseas poor tourists image
Karthik is a class act, and knows how to play fast bowling Gambhir and Yuvi need some mroe practice
ravi Balky
Complain about this postInteresting to note that Sreesanth has had run ins even with Sachin Tendular in Indian domestic cricket.
Complain about this postNo matter how other teams behave on the field, the Indian team should not indulge in bad behaviour.
Let the batting and bowling do the talking.
Sreesanth should be dropped for 1 Test and I think that will happen.
You are full of it. This is a boring sport not to say the least. It's maybe the fourth sport in england and australia. And they beat you mojority of the time. The english only have "gentleman" play it. If you call challenging a gentleman macho, try that to a rugby player.
This is boring sport played by folks who couldn't run the 100 yard dash in 16 sec. Play baseball and you will never to back to criket again.
Complain about this postI am jus surprised how some of the English fans aren't just plain embarassed by the JB thing(like I am about Sree's antics).
The JB throwing(left on the wicket.....!!!Oh come-freakin'-on) could either have been:
1.A joke- in which case Vaughan and co possesses sub-human intelligence and should be in a zoo where there is more likelihood of creatures getting and enjoying their joke
2.A tactic - in which case they should take turns kicking each other's behind for incompetence.
How difficult is it to acknowledge that players from both teams goofed up .
Its just that one has been fined and has apologized and some are making asinine excuses and ludicrous jokes about it.
Complain about this postBD in post 100 wrote: "Play baseball and you will never to back to criket again."
I have played baseball and really, I think it's no better than a form of glorified fly-swatting--unintelligent, inelegant and crass. And as for cricketers being unable to run the 100 yard dash in 16 seconds, let's see you bowl five successive overs or try to score 20 runs without passing out. As Bob Dylan put it, "Don't critiicise what you can't understand."
Complain about this postTo BD:
Complain about this postDespite that you find the sport boring, and stupid and for people for are not great athletes. Still, you manage to find time to log on the blogs read all the comments and then make an effort to post comments !!!!!
Guys.......Guys...................here is the bottom line -
1st test - drawn
2nd test - Won by India
India lead 1-0!
Who is the better side? INDIA! Why? Cause the score says 1-0 .... and thats that!!
Complain about this postwhy North Indians are keeping quiet for my posting about their bias towards Yuvraj and Harbhajan. How about tamilnadu cricketers like Sriram. S and Balaji in the team, besides Kathik
Atleast, the English speaking content of Indian team will go up
ravi Balky
Complain about this postIndia may be winning, but then it can always be said that the team has an ageing batting line up, there were many favourable Umpiring decisions to both teams, but if one had gone Englands way, Dhoni and Srrestanth, out, this series would of been 1-0 after one test, and then at Trent Bridge, Ganguly wasn't out, Tendulkar wasn't out, Jaffer, Kartik, were out, relatively even.
India are old.
Complain about this postre: luke # 106#
i'm an england supporter and even i admit that india deserve to be 1.0 up! why??
Complain about this postwell, as one of the top journos wrote..its great having talent but it's skill on top that is required..as shown by the indians.
lesson to learn is , we can only improve if we know our shortcommings. sidebottom kept on missing the edge..because tendulkar kept on playing his off stump..do u understand? if he defended outside off..he'd be knicking it!!!simple??
as far as lords goes..vaughan was out 2nd ball lbw to ganguly..remember??oh..its wasnt shown more than twice on sky and hence it possibly didnt register..
anyway..i'd like too see a better performance from england this time..in the meantime , i've enjoyed watching india and yes..it'sgreat to have excellent competition..otherwise lets get west indies back soon..regards chris
Couldn't agree more with you, Mr.Chopra.
I look forward to your syndicated articles in the printed version of Delhi's newspaper as much as I look forward for at least one more of your innings at the top for India. The Aaakash Chopra-Veeru Sehwag partnership was just beginning to be comparable with India's best opening partnerships. I enjoyed whatever you both gave us to remember.
Good Luck!
Complain about this post" He prefers blue ones to pink ones"
A third rate English cricketer to Zaheer Khan, a match winner.
I shudder to think what this illiterate Englishman's fetishes are.
Collingwood desrves a two year ban.
And now the English coach wants the stump mikes removed. What does this say?
Complain about this postYou want to give the England ODI captain a 2 year ban for saying 'I think he prefers the blue ones'.
Rahul Dravid accidently rubbed something on the ball a few years back, he didn't get a 2 year ban there, so why would Paul Collingwood who was JOKING be banned?
It's called Irony.
Complain about this postMorres wants the stump mics remove so people stop moaning like they are now.
How typical the sour grapes from England. The nation whose only hope in times not so long gone, was a reliance on poor weather to save a draw.
The sledging was disgusting, and the Indian response was nothing less than the arrogant English deserved. How they love to accuse the Aussies of arrogance! Kettles, pots and black.
All the talk of keeping things on the field and not responding directly to questions of unsporting behaviour are compounded by the nonsense that wicket mics should be turned down. Why? Because the English have been caught out to be the bad guys. Beautiful spin, but only in the media box. Take the loss, England. You deserved nothing but shame from the pathetic way your team behaved.
I'm joyous to have never passed the Tebbitt Test.
Complain about this postHi !
Complain about this postRahul Dravid would never say "Bring it on England...".He is a compliant and lackadaisal
captain.
'How typical the sour grapes from England. The nation whose only hope in times not so long gone, was a reliance on poor weather to save a draw. '
Well that was then, this is now.
Someone tell me what happened in the first test?
What sour grapes?
Chat happens, it has for the last 30 years., Kartik and Sidebottom had a laugh at the crease after the chat.
When your batting, you really couldn't care less what fielders were saying.
Complain about this postLucifer,
You may visit me as PowerSardar in 606.
It is indeed my honor to be your friend.
We talking about Jelly Gate there.
Complain about this postHi,
We have not yet won the series.... just one Test. So my advice to team India and the Indian media is not to get carried away.
Dont you think the Jellybeans issue was exposed out of propotion ??
Dont forget the Shree's action going a bit far with Eng captain !!!
Rgds
Datta
Complain about this postKuwait
Dear All,
I had been reading the comments and I thinks all those who have commented are all biased. I personally feel that Mr. Sreesanth should get his act together. He has shown such attitude which is not that is for an Indian. We have been tolerant lot and that is the character of an Indian. I feel also that this jelly bean business is done by some one who was scared of Zaheer and Zaheer should have taken it as compliment.
Complain about this postAs far as sledging goes this is a part and parcel of the game. The sledgers sledge those who get carried away with it. Ask Aussie player Kasprovich what happened to him at Sharjah when he tried to take on Sachin. Its in the game and it just cannot be removed.
Hope our Indian players play the game and give a fitting reply by winning the series 2-0.
if there was five more overs in first test ur legends and tough guys wouldbe looking like lambs
Complain about this postthis is biggest problem one win and guys think job done if iam not wrong all the teams have won the next test match when india takes the lead and leveled the series this is englands best chance
'Those who continue to mock India's away form do it at their peril'.
I don't recall anyone mocking India's away form, just drawing attention to it. England floundered against both Pakistan (in the final test) and Sri Lanka at home last year: their batting is suspect at present; so although India deservedly won the last Test, it doesn't really point to anything significant. Given that England's batsmen can tighten up again, and will do sooner or later; and given the massive potential shown by the home side's bowlers in a losing cause (maybe the Indian batsmen weren't good enough to get an edge), I know which of the two sides my money is on to make the most impact away from home over the next few years.
Complain about this postHope the Indians give back as good as they take even at Oval, even if it means a couple more beamers, this time deliberately and narrowly missing some heads..if sledging is done with the noble intention of mentally disintegrating the opposition..i guess beamers r more effective looking at KPs state!! Both shud be taken with a pinch of salt or jelly depending whether u r indian or english!!
Complain about this postI was at Lords for the first Test and one can equally say that England had the luck of winning the toss since the pitch was super flat on the first day. When it began to swing on the second day the last 6 wickets fell for 30 odd runs. In the second innings, taking away KP's innings, which was on a sun drenched Sunday and where he was lucky not to nick it on at least 7 ocassions, then the rest of the England batsmen played at or below par.
What the series has shown is that the bowlers have in the main been on top, with (Zaheer) Khan and (Chris) Tremlett the outstanding exponents. In particular, the former has been able move the ball AWAY from the batsmen when bowling AROUND the wicket.
Good to see that the pundits' predictions of a bastmen dominated series being proved wrong !
Complain about this postI THINK EVEYONE SHOULD DROP THE WHOLE JELLYBEAN TOPIC--GETON WITH THE GAME! AS FOR SLEDGING, WITHOUT IT THE GAME WOULD BE SOMEWHAT MORE DULL, DON'T YOU THINK? GIVE BACK WHAT YOU GET! BARGING A PLAYER IS VERY RUDE HOWEVER, DON'T LET YOUR EMOTIONS PUT YOU OFF.
Complain about this postJelly Beans or not India might jsut scrape through with a series win. The rain gods too might have a say in that and we forget that both teams are capable of not playing to theor potential.
Complain about this postHaving said all that i sincerely hope that the players turn up and give it theor best for the game of cricket. I remember the old cliche - "it doesnt matter who wins but how the game was played"