Showing posts with label India. Show all posts
Showing posts with label India. Show all posts
Saturday, 16 November 2013
Friday, 30 November 2012
So, what do I know?
England's transformation from the bedraggled mob that trudged from the field after the first test to the swashbuckling XI that won the second test by 10 wickets may not signify a complete change in fortunes for the touring team but certainly represents a dramatic step forward.
England
ruthlessly completed a memorable 10-wicket victory over India in the second
Test in Mumbai to level the four-match series. Monty
Panesar and Graeme Swann shared the last three India second-innings wickets in
45 minutes on the fourth morning to bowl the hosts out for 142.
England openers Alastair Cook and Nick Compton then knocked off a target
of 57 with ease before lunch.
It
is only England's second Test win in India in 14 matches since 1985.
England's
spectacular all-round performance was the perfect antidote to their meek
showing in the first Test and ignites the series with
two matches to play.
The
recalled Panesar made a mockery of the decision to leave him out in Ahmedabad
with a Test-best 11 wickets in the match as 19 of the 20 India wickets fell to
spin, while Cook and Kevin Pietersen scored brilliant hundreds to secure a
crucial first-innings lead of 86.
Man
of the match Pietersen's assault on the India bowling on his way to 186 on
Sunday afternoon was particularly important, demoralising the hosts and filling
England with confidence.
Panesar
and Swann, who outbowled India's three spinners throughout, followed up with
seven wickets on the third evening to ensure it was always likely to be a
matter of when, rather than if, England would finish the job on Monday.
Leading
by 31 with only three wickets in hand, India took 10 off the first over of the
day but Harbhajan Singh fell in the next when he gloved Swann to Jonathan Trott
at slip.
Zaheer
Khan top-edged a slog-sweep and was easily taken by Matt Prior to give Panesar
figures of 6-81, before opener Gautam Gambhir was trapped lbw for 65 by Swann,
who finished with 4-43 - and 8-113 in the match.
Fears
of a scenario reminiscent of Abu Dhabi
in January when England collapsed to 72 all out chasing a
modest 145 to beat Pakistan were quickly dispelled as Cook and Compton set
about their
task with relish.
Compton,
playing his second Test, cracked four fours and a six in making 30 not out from
28 balls and Cook posted an unbeaten 18 as the tourists cantered home.
England's
first win in six Tests leaves the series tantalisingly poised going into the
third match in Kolkata starting on 5 December, with the finale in Nagpur to
follow.
England
have not won a series in India since David Gower's side came from behind to seal
a 2-1 triumph in 1985.
Tuesday, 30 October 2012
At last Compton returns...
Dennis Compton (aka The Brylcreem Boy) is poised to make a shock return to the England team on their first tour match of India against India 'A'.
Compton (born 23 May 1918 in Hendon, Middlesex – 23 April 1997 in Windsor, Berkshire) played in 78 tests for England, county cricket for Middlesex and also played football for Arsenal (but nobody should hold that against him). England's decision to call up a deceased player (for only the second time in Test match history - see W.J.K. Wilberforce v Australia 1941) will be greeted with disbelief and derision in some places. However, England coach Andy Flower obviously believes he can still do a job at the top of the order.
(Note to sub-editor: Please check the veracity of this statement before doing anything foolish like posting it on the blog. I mean I know we haven't been that busy recently but we can't just publish any old nonsense) Also best to check the Wilberforce statement as I don't recall the "secret" wartime tests being accorded official Test status. Actually that would make a good article, I'll suggest it to The Ed.
Compton (born 23 May 1918 in Hendon, Middlesex – 23 April 1997 in Windsor, Berkshire) played in 78 tests for England, county cricket for Middlesex and also played football for Arsenal (but nobody should hold that against him). England's decision to call up a deceased player (for only the second time in Test match history - see W.J.K. Wilberforce v Australia 1941) will be greeted with disbelief and derision in some places. However, England coach Andy Flower obviously believes he can still do a job at the top of the order.
(Note to sub-editor: Please check the veracity of this statement before doing anything foolish like posting it on the blog. I mean I know we haven't been that busy recently but we can't just publish any old nonsense) Also best to check the Wilberforce statement as I don't recall the "secret" wartime tests being accorded official Test status. Actually that would make a good article, I'll suggest it to The Ed.
Wednesday, 29 August 2012
Tuesday, 23 August 2011
England are the best test cricket nation in the world - Official!
The ebullient Graeme Swann bowled England to another stunning victory over India to complete a 4-0 series whitewash, as Sachin Tendulkar fell nine runs short of a landmark 100th international century.
Tendulkar and Amit Mishra looked to be batting India towards safety as they frustrated England with a partnership of 144 at The Oval. But Mishra was bowled by Graeme Swann (6-106) for 84 and Tendulkar, who had ridden his luck to reach 91, was out to a marginal lbw decision in the following over.
India's remaining batsmen were skittled in quick succession as England stormed to victory by an innings and eight runs - their seventh innings triumph in 13 Tests - midway through the afternoon session on the final day.
When they finally broke the Mishra-Tendulkar partnership, England were ruthless, claiming India's last seven wickets for 21 runs in 94 balls, with Swann finally making his mark on the series with a spell of four wickets for seven runs.
It was England's first whitewash over India since 1974 and completed a memorable series in which Andrew Strauss's men usurped the visitors as the top-ranked Test side in the world.
"We had to work pretty hard for that," England captain Andrew Strauss told BBC Radio's Test Match Special. "When you enforce the follow-on, you're always asking a lot of the bowlers especially on a flat wicket. They stuck at it. To bowl India out for 300 and 283 on that wicket is quite a performance."
After India resumed their second innings on 129-3 - still 162 runs adrift of England - Tendulkar got his score ticking over with a four off the second ball of the day and reached his 61st Test fifty off 74 balls.
Nightwatchman Mishra, who had served notice of his batting ability with a breezy 43 in the first innings, started to find the boundary with regularity, taking the partnership past fifty with a flick to the midwicket fence.
Tendulkar played and missed twice in a Broad over as he got bogged down in the fifties, but he eventually broke the shackles with a trademark drive through the covers for a boundary.
With Tendulkar edging closer to his hundred, the air of expectancy grew around The Oval, as a vast Indian contingent cheered his every run. But the pressure seemed to weigh heavily on the 38-year-old's shoulders as he offered England a string of chances.
First, Alastair Cook at short leg just failed to hold on to a sharp bat-pad chance off Swann, then Matt Prior dropped a tricky caught-behind chance off the spinner, who also had a close lbw appeal turned down.
Mishra had equalled his highest first-class score with his 10th boundary when he finally succumbed in the 41st over of the day, bowled by a quicker ball from Swann that fizzed past his outside edge.
Tendulkar's show-stopping demise arrived in the following over when he played across a Bresnan delivery and was given out by Rod Tucker, with replays suggesting the ball would have clipped the top of leg stump. With the "Little Master" back in the pavilion, India seemed to lose their stomach for the fight as England's bowlers ruthlessly finished off the match.
Suresh Raina was trapped on the crease by Swann before MS Dhoni and RP Singh were both caught off edges in the same over from Stuart Broad. Gautam Gambhir sliced to backward point and last man Sreesanth was clean bowled after missing a huge leg-side heave off Swann.
After the match, England were presented with the ICC Test Mace to mark their status as the world's number one side.
ICC World rankings
1: England - rating of 125
2: South Africa - 118
3: India - 117
4: Sri Lanka - 108
5: Australia - 100
Tendulkar and Amit Mishra looked to be batting India towards safety as they frustrated England with a partnership of 144 at The Oval. But Mishra was bowled by Graeme Swann (6-106) for 84 and Tendulkar, who had ridden his luck to reach 91, was out to a marginal lbw decision in the following over.
India's remaining batsmen were skittled in quick succession as England stormed to victory by an innings and eight runs - their seventh innings triumph in 13 Tests - midway through the afternoon session on the final day.
When they finally broke the Mishra-Tendulkar partnership, England were ruthless, claiming India's last seven wickets for 21 runs in 94 balls, with Swann finally making his mark on the series with a spell of four wickets for seven runs.
It was England's first whitewash over India since 1974 and completed a memorable series in which Andrew Strauss's men usurped the visitors as the top-ranked Test side in the world.
"We had to work pretty hard for that," England captain Andrew Strauss told BBC Radio's Test Match Special. "When you enforce the follow-on, you're always asking a lot of the bowlers especially on a flat wicket. They stuck at it. To bowl India out for 300 and 283 on that wicket is quite a performance."
After India resumed their second innings on 129-3 - still 162 runs adrift of England - Tendulkar got his score ticking over with a four off the second ball of the day and reached his 61st Test fifty off 74 balls.
Nightwatchman Mishra, who had served notice of his batting ability with a breezy 43 in the first innings, started to find the boundary with regularity, taking the partnership past fifty with a flick to the midwicket fence.
Tendulkar played and missed twice in a Broad over as he got bogged down in the fifties, but he eventually broke the shackles with a trademark drive through the covers for a boundary.
With Tendulkar edging closer to his hundred, the air of expectancy grew around The Oval, as a vast Indian contingent cheered his every run. But the pressure seemed to weigh heavily on the 38-year-old's shoulders as he offered England a string of chances.
First, Alastair Cook at short leg just failed to hold on to a sharp bat-pad chance off Swann, then Matt Prior dropped a tricky caught-behind chance off the spinner, who also had a close lbw appeal turned down.
Mishra had equalled his highest first-class score with his 10th boundary when he finally succumbed in the 41st over of the day, bowled by a quicker ball from Swann that fizzed past his outside edge.
Tendulkar's show-stopping demise arrived in the following over when he played across a Bresnan delivery and was given out by Rod Tucker, with replays suggesting the ball would have clipped the top of leg stump. With the "Little Master" back in the pavilion, India seemed to lose their stomach for the fight as England's bowlers ruthlessly finished off the match.
Suresh Raina was trapped on the crease by Swann before MS Dhoni and RP Singh were both caught off edges in the same over from Stuart Broad. Gautam Gambhir sliced to backward point and last man Sreesanth was clean bowled after missing a huge leg-side heave off Swann.
After the match, England were presented with the ICC Test Mace to mark their status as the world's number one side.
ICC World rankings
1: England - rating of 125
2: South Africa - 118
3: India - 117
4: Sri Lanka - 108
5: Australia - 100
Friday, 22 July 2011
Back, back, back...
Sorry about that. We got a bit distracted, where were we?
Oh yes, England marching forward to Test glory. Day 2 of the second Test and KP has just crunched his way to another landmark. 6,000 test runs. As many people will be happy to point out, he now only needs another 9,000 to draw level with The Little Master. However, KP's achievement shouldn't be brushed under the carpet, he is a fine cricketer and there is nothing to stop him becoming England's leading run scorer.
So, as I write Pietersen is a mere 177 not out. not bad for an off-spinner!
Oh yes, England marching forward to Test glory. Day 2 of the second Test and KP has just crunched his way to another landmark. 6,000 test runs. As many people will be happy to point out, he now only needs another 9,000 to draw level with The Little Master. However, KP's achievement shouldn't be brushed under the carpet, he is a fine cricketer and there is nothing to stop him becoming England's leading run scorer.
So, as I write Pietersen is a mere 177 not out. not bad for an off-spinner!
Wednesday, 2 March 2011
CWC 2011 - India v England
England tied a remarkable World Cup game against India in Bangalore thanks in no short measure to a dazzling captain’s knock from Andrew Strauss' brilliant 158.
The co-hosts set an intimidating 339-run victory target after a superb 120 from Sachin Tendulkar. Strauss and Ian Bell (69) put England in command with a 170-run third-wicket stand before Zaheer Khan dismissed both batsmen in successive balls. The tail set up a grandstand finish but England fell a frustrating one run short of victory after needing 14 from the final over. England wanted 29 from the last 12 balls, having earlier faced a much easier equation of 67 from the last 60, and then two off the final ball but Graeme Swann could only manage a single from Munaf Patel's delivery. The late drama finished off the most enthralling match of the 2011 tournament so far, a game which both teams will feel they should have won.
The much-anticipated, sell-out Group B encounter featured two superbly crafted centuries and a maiden five-wicket limited-overs haul by Tim Bresnan, fast becoming England's most reliable one-day bowler. The tourists' riposte had been constructed around an inspirational individual innings from Strauss, who made the joint-second highest individual score by an England player in a limited-overs international. The England captain, dropped on 22 by Harbhajan Singh, was in imperious form, smashing 13boundaries and a six in a ruthless 145-ball innings, silencing the fiercely partisan crowd inside the capacity M Chinnaswamy Stadium. But Zaheer struck just when England were about to accelerate their run rate after taking the batting powerplay in the 43rd over.
Bell was the first to fall for 69 when he top-edged an off-side scythe to Virat Kohli at extra cover and the very next ball - a brilliant inswinging yorker - trapped Strauss leg before wicket. The double strike deflated England's innings, but late lower-order hitting from Bresnan and Swann, who each struck timely sixes, left England requiring 14 from the final over of the match.
Ajmal Shahzad shifted the odds in England's favour when he struck a six straight back over bowler Munaf Patel's head with the third delivery of the over. A leg-bye, followed by a two from Swann left the same batsman needing two runs from the final delivery of the match - but his off drive could not beat Yusuf Pathan at mid-off, leaving the ninth-wicket pair to run through for the single which tied the match.
The gritty performance against the pre-tournament favourites contrasted vividly with England's uninspired six-wicket victory over the Netherlands on Tuesday. England had only won one of their previous 13 encounters against Sunday's opponents in India - and another defeat looked on the cards when Mahendra Dhoni opted to bat on what appeared to be good wicket, despite the persistent heavy showers which had engulfed Bangalore and the lush green outfield in the previous 48 hours. England made two changes, dropping Ravi Bopara for Michael Yardy while Shahzad was summoned in place of the ill Stuart Broad, and India swapped seamer Sreesanth for leg-spinner Piyush Chawla. The capricious Sehwag (35) gave India a typically ballistic start before an audacious late cut from Bresnan's first over was too close to wicketkeeper Matt Prior, who took an excellent diving one-handed catch to his right in the eighth over at 46-1.
New-man Gautam Gambhir, an astute player of spin, maintained Sehwag's tempo while Tendulkar had been relatively restrained with 24 from 43 deliveries.
But a change of bat in the 17th over soon changed matters and 'The Little Master' thumped the first six of the match before bringing up his 94th half century with yet another imperious maximum off Paul Collingwood. The onslaught was relentless - two successive leg-side sixes off the returning Swann, lofting the first over long-on before dispatching the second with a brutal slog-sweep high over deep midwicket and into the stands as the second-wicket partnership stretched to over 100.
An unplayable Swann delivery from around the wicket accounted for Gambhir (51), pitching on middle before gripping and clipping the edge of the left-hander's off stump. But the dismissal caused minimal disruption to Tendulkar's nerves, bringing up his 47th one-day century with a glance off his hip. To put Tendulkar's career achievements in perspective, the entire England XI have 22 one-day centuries between them - and he soon took his tally of sixes to five with a stand and deliver smear over long-on. The 37-year-old's fine knock came to an end in the 39th over but Yuvraj (58) and Dhoni (31) took India beyond the 300-run mark before the impressive Bresnan cleaned up the lower-middle order as the co-hosts were dismissed for 338.
Facing a required run-rate of 6.78, England openers Strauss and Kevin Pietersen took full advantage of some bizarre field placements by Dhoni, smashing nine boundaries in an exhilarating start. Strauss, given an early lifeline by Harbhajan when he misjudged a tough chance at mid-on, was in particularly belligerent mood square of the wicket. A huge slice of fortune accounted for Pietersen, whose ferocious drive straight at Patel's head was parried in the air before the fast bowler completed a simple one-handed catch while sitting on the ground.
With his fast bowlers unable to exert any control, Dhoni turned to spinners Harbhajan and Piyush Chawla to apply the brakes as Strauss notched a run-a-ball 50.
Bell looked at ease alongside Strauss at the wicket, although the number four was fortunate to survive a close lbw call turned down by umpire Billy Bowden at 163-2. India immediately referred the decision and the ball-tracking device available to the third umpire suggested the ball had made contact with Bell's front pad in line with the stumps - but more than 2.5m down the wicket, which saved Bell's wicket even though the ball was predicted to hit middle.
That let-off allowed Bell to play an excellent foil as Strauss scored a quite brilliant century from only 99 deliveries, his sixth one-day international three-figure score. Bell launched a laconic sweep over deep midwicket for six to bring up his half century from just 45 deliveries as England dominated. But the match turned in the 43rd over as Zaheer hit back. Collingwood, Sussex’s Prior and Yardy soon followed as England's run chase looked to have faltered, but lusty sixes from the lower-order batsmen ensured England were in contention through the final over. They just could not find that extra run which would have sealed a quite remarkable victory.
The Jardine Report: The pre-tournament favourites India put in a big effort but still couldn’t shrug off a gutsy England team. Sachin Tendulkar showed what a quality player he is and Andrew Strauss demonstrated his own steely determination to leave a positive mark on this tournament. A fantastic game and a performance that will hearten every English supporter and also convince the nay-sayers that the 50 Over version of the game can still produce a high level of quality and drama to rival its shorter 20/20 version.
The co-hosts set an intimidating 339-run victory target after a superb 120 from Sachin Tendulkar. Strauss and Ian Bell (69) put England in command with a 170-run third-wicket stand before Zaheer Khan dismissed both batsmen in successive balls. The tail set up a grandstand finish but England fell a frustrating one run short of victory after needing 14 from the final over. England wanted 29 from the last 12 balls, having earlier faced a much easier equation of 67 from the last 60, and then two off the final ball but Graeme Swann could only manage a single from Munaf Patel's delivery. The late drama finished off the most enthralling match of the 2011 tournament so far, a game which both teams will feel they should have won.
The much-anticipated, sell-out Group B encounter featured two superbly crafted centuries and a maiden five-wicket limited-overs haul by Tim Bresnan, fast becoming England's most reliable one-day bowler. The tourists' riposte had been constructed around an inspirational individual innings from Strauss, who made the joint-second highest individual score by an England player in a limited-overs international. The England captain, dropped on 22 by Harbhajan Singh, was in imperious form, smashing 13boundaries and a six in a ruthless 145-ball innings, silencing the fiercely partisan crowd inside the capacity M Chinnaswamy Stadium. But Zaheer struck just when England were about to accelerate their run rate after taking the batting powerplay in the 43rd over.
Bell was the first to fall for 69 when he top-edged an off-side scythe to Virat Kohli at extra cover and the very next ball - a brilliant inswinging yorker - trapped Strauss leg before wicket. The double strike deflated England's innings, but late lower-order hitting from Bresnan and Swann, who each struck timely sixes, left England requiring 14 from the final over of the match.
Ajmal Shahzad shifted the odds in England's favour when he struck a six straight back over bowler Munaf Patel's head with the third delivery of the over. A leg-bye, followed by a two from Swann left the same batsman needing two runs from the final delivery of the match - but his off drive could not beat Yusuf Pathan at mid-off, leaving the ninth-wicket pair to run through for the single which tied the match.
The gritty performance against the pre-tournament favourites contrasted vividly with England's uninspired six-wicket victory over the Netherlands on Tuesday. England had only won one of their previous 13 encounters against Sunday's opponents in India - and another defeat looked on the cards when Mahendra Dhoni opted to bat on what appeared to be good wicket, despite the persistent heavy showers which had engulfed Bangalore and the lush green outfield in the previous 48 hours. England made two changes, dropping Ravi Bopara for Michael Yardy while Shahzad was summoned in place of the ill Stuart Broad, and India swapped seamer Sreesanth for leg-spinner Piyush Chawla. The capricious Sehwag (35) gave India a typically ballistic start before an audacious late cut from Bresnan's first over was too close to wicketkeeper Matt Prior, who took an excellent diving one-handed catch to his right in the eighth over at 46-1.
New-man Gautam Gambhir, an astute player of spin, maintained Sehwag's tempo while Tendulkar had been relatively restrained with 24 from 43 deliveries.
But a change of bat in the 17th over soon changed matters and 'The Little Master' thumped the first six of the match before bringing up his 94th half century with yet another imperious maximum off Paul Collingwood. The onslaught was relentless - two successive leg-side sixes off the returning Swann, lofting the first over long-on before dispatching the second with a brutal slog-sweep high over deep midwicket and into the stands as the second-wicket partnership stretched to over 100.
An unplayable Swann delivery from around the wicket accounted for Gambhir (51), pitching on middle before gripping and clipping the edge of the left-hander's off stump. But the dismissal caused minimal disruption to Tendulkar's nerves, bringing up his 47th one-day century with a glance off his hip. To put Tendulkar's career achievements in perspective, the entire England XI have 22 one-day centuries between them - and he soon took his tally of sixes to five with a stand and deliver smear over long-on. The 37-year-old's fine knock came to an end in the 39th over but Yuvraj (58) and Dhoni (31) took India beyond the 300-run mark before the impressive Bresnan cleaned up the lower-middle order as the co-hosts were dismissed for 338.
Facing a required run-rate of 6.78, England openers Strauss and Kevin Pietersen took full advantage of some bizarre field placements by Dhoni, smashing nine boundaries in an exhilarating start. Strauss, given an early lifeline by Harbhajan when he misjudged a tough chance at mid-on, was in particularly belligerent mood square of the wicket. A huge slice of fortune accounted for Pietersen, whose ferocious drive straight at Patel's head was parried in the air before the fast bowler completed a simple one-handed catch while sitting on the ground.
With his fast bowlers unable to exert any control, Dhoni turned to spinners Harbhajan and Piyush Chawla to apply the brakes as Strauss notched a run-a-ball 50.
Bell looked at ease alongside Strauss at the wicket, although the number four was fortunate to survive a close lbw call turned down by umpire Billy Bowden at 163-2. India immediately referred the decision and the ball-tracking device available to the third umpire suggested the ball had made contact with Bell's front pad in line with the stumps - but more than 2.5m down the wicket, which saved Bell's wicket even though the ball was predicted to hit middle.
That let-off allowed Bell to play an excellent foil as Strauss scored a quite brilliant century from only 99 deliveries, his sixth one-day international three-figure score. Bell launched a laconic sweep over deep midwicket for six to bring up his half century from just 45 deliveries as England dominated. But the match turned in the 43rd over as Zaheer hit back. Collingwood, Sussex’s Prior and Yardy soon followed as England's run chase looked to have faltered, but lusty sixes from the lower-order batsmen ensured England were in contention through the final over. They just could not find that extra run which would have sealed a quite remarkable victory.
The Jardine Report: The pre-tournament favourites India put in a big effort but still couldn’t shrug off a gutsy England team. Sachin Tendulkar showed what a quality player he is and Andrew Strauss demonstrated his own steely determination to leave a positive mark on this tournament. A fantastic game and a performance that will hearten every English supporter and also convince the nay-sayers that the 50 Over version of the game can still produce a high level of quality and drama to rival its shorter 20/20 version.
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