England in India

[icyman]

True ,the example you have cited is a good one.
If i were in his place ,yes ,it would have been difficult to tell any one that i'm injured,but he could have taken a break especially when India had the lead 1-0 and were playing against a slightly demoralised English side( no offense ).
Another thing is that he should not have come back when he was not so confident.His stats reflect that 35 was his highest score in the last ten innings.
I feel that,yes,he must be suffering from the pressure and if he were injured before the test,definately,but the biggest factor is that of the demi-god status which has been laid unto him.

 

[SaiSrini]

The problem for india has always been corruption. they never have had the best 11 players on the field at any time in my lifetime. the selectors r bought everytime . They choose the extra(after the top 8) players not on their skill but what can u do for me ? also they r too loyal too players also, if the player is not performing out he go because they r representing the country so they gotta be in top form. if a player is not in in top form then make the guy play domestic cricket and get his confidence back.

Explain too me how VRV Singh doesn't get any playing time in these series?

VRV Singh didnt deserve the cut over Munaf when he was selected for the first test. Munaf picked 10 wickets and deserved it. For first test, VRV wasnt needed. Sreesanth deserved the debut and he bowled very well. Then for second test, Munaf came in for VRV because that was to have been made for the first test itself.

Yes and no. Yes, they shouldn't experiment too much, but blaming it as their downfall isn't the whole story.

The debutants Patel and Sreesanth were the pick of the bowlers, while Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh lacked magic. On the other side of things, I see no trickery to selecting Sehwag and Tendulkar in your best XI, but Wasim Jaffer had a far better series than the two of them put together, while Mohammed Kaif almost scored more runs than either of them in just one innings.

The 6-5 order wasn't working because too many experienced players weren't playing like they're expected. With Sehwag's back and Tendulkar's shoulder, perhaps they shouldn't have been selected in the first place. Both definitely need time out of the game to manage their injuries. I wouldn't for a second consider dropping either of them otherwise.

In short, yes 7-4 is the necessary order, but only because their experienced players are not up to scratch.

With Tendulkar almost out of action for 3 months, you dont need to drop him. I fail to understand why Sehwag is picked for the ODI series? Why not rest him and ask him to fully recuperate. India have the players to succeed in the ODI's like Raina, Kaif, Yuvraj, Venugopal Rao, Munaf Patel, Sreesanth along with Pathan who is more than decent with the ball for the ODI's. India have a very good ODI team and do not rely on Sehwag and Tendulkar for coming out on top!

 

[newzolt]

Youngster's need to be drafted in the ODI Indian side.

 

[SaiSrini]

Youngster's need to be drafted in the ODI Indian side.

The Indian ODI squad is moving ahead in the right direction. It is the test team that needs work to be done!

 

[barmyarmy]

Wow the poms have certainly gone over the top with this one. I'd hate to actually see what the response would've been had they WON the series....perhaps just a second round of OBEs. But then again, the queen probably has a roast in the oven as we speak. LOL!

I think that's a bit unfair. It's a complement to the Indian team that we esteem a win here so highly.

 

[sohum]

I think the decision to field first was not entirely Dravid's doing. This was definitely a decision taken by the team management, with inputs from various sources, including Chappell and senior players in the team.

However, Dravid's captaincy has not really been up to scratch in the last few months. He comes off as an over-aggressive captain at times, and over-defensive at others. But the thing is he is performing with the bat. Perhaps he'll get this sorted out (hopefully he will, since he is the captain till WC07) and keep his form still high. It is not as if he is solely making decisions--the inputs of so many players are taken whilst making any decision.

 

[SaiSrini]

I think that's a bit unfair. It's a complement to the Indian team that we esteem a win here so highly.

Well if its not a compliment, then what? Apart from the sub continental teams, every other team has found beating India in India tough. Now, dont try to say that India winning at home alone is not enough. We are not treading that territory here!

England has beaten Pakistan in 2000-01 and beat Sri Lanka in the same season but when was the last time England beat India in India? 1984 was the last time England won a full series in India! I dont believe in moral victory, and the truth is you have still not won a series in India since 1984. You guys might say you almost won the series at Nagpur. But the reality is you couldnt. Our batsmen played well to bat out a draw. Your captain couldnt time his declaration well enough.

And also had we lost in Nagpur, you cant exactly say the events at Mohali and Mumbai would have panned out the way it did. Dravid would not have fielded first at Mumbai with the series 1-1. So instead of clinging on to excuses, its better to bask in the glory of a single test win that England has got. But they still have to wait for some more years before they get another chance to crack the "India in India" puzzle.

 

[barmyarmy]

Well if its not a compliment, then what? Apart from the sub continental teams, every other team has found beating India in India tough. Now, dont try to say that India winning at home alone is not enough. We are not treading that territory here!

England has beaten Pakistan in 2000-01 and beat Sri Lanka in the same season but when was the last time England beat India in India? 1984 was the last time England won a full series in India! I dont believe in moral victory, and the truth is you have still not won a series in India since 1984. You guys might say you almost won the series at Nagpur. But the reality is you couldnt. Our batsmen played well to bat out a draw. Your captain couldnt time his declaration well enough.

And also had we lost in Nagpur, you cant exactly say the events at Mohali and Mumbai would have panned out the way it did. Dravid would not have fielded first at Mumbai with the series 1-1. So instead of clinging on to excuses, its better to bask in the glory of a single test win that England has got. But they still have to wait for some more years before they get another chance to crack the "India in India" puzzle.

I agree with a lot of that. Winning in India would be a massive achievement. 1984 was a 5 test series and, for me, 3 test series make it much harder. As I said before, had the Ashes been a 3 test series Aus would have retained them.

 

[icyman]

I fail to understand why Sehwag is picked for the ODI series? Why not rest him and ask him to fully recuperate.
India have a very good ODI team and do not rely on Sehwag and Tendulkar for coming out on top!

Yes he should have been rested.But he has been selected for the same reason as has been Harbhajan.
Kumble need not have been given a break in the ODI's .
The Indian selectors have made sure that Kumble and Laxman remain confined to the Test squad only.
Yuo may say that i'm gunning for Ganguly,but with Tendulakr and Sehwag out of flow ,he needs to be back. :cool:

 

[sohum]

I agree with a lot of that. Winning in India would be a massive achievement. 1984 was a 5 test series and, for me, 3 test series make it much harder. As I said before, had the Ashes been a 3 test series Aus would have retained them.

And with the ICC's new Future Tours Programme, it doesn't look like that's set to change anytime soon. 5-test matches are currently limited to the Ashes. 4-test series were held between India and Australia, but it seems like that will probably become 3, too, to allow that extra week, which could pack in an extra test match against another country as per the requirements of the FTP.

 

[m_vaughan]

I guess 6 day test matches in the subcontinent alteast could see a lot fewer drawn games.

Wow the poms have certainly gone over the top with this one. I'd hate to actually see what the response would've been had they WON the series....perhaps just a second round of OBEs. But then again, the queen probably has a roast in the oven as we speak. LOL!

I am sure the feeling would be the same if India had drawn a test series overseas without the likes of Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Yuvraj Singh and Irfan Pathan in the team.

And the way you have degraded the value of the OBEs, only shows how big a fool you are.

 

[andrew_nixon]

And the way you have degraded the value of the OBEs, only shows how big a fool you are.

I wouldn't say that. They have no real value these days anyway. They're an anachronism.

 

[tsyrmas]

Why was (i think this is how u spell it) Owais Shah (who is once again, not born in England) using the now illegal Kookaburra Bats... as far as i am concerned, they were banned as of March 12

 

[Sureshot]

There's another thread on it were it's explained.

And tsyrmas, coming from an Australian you can't moan about players being born in another country, so flipping hypocritical.

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Doing some work on ICC.com with the predictor and worked out that England need to win 3 ODIs to retain 108 points in The ODI table.

 

[gaurav_indian]

Why was (i think this is how u spell it) Owais Shas (who is once again, not born in England) using the now illegal Kookaburra Bats... as far as i am concerned, they were banned as of March 12

Mate I dont' know why you have mentioned Owais Shah name with that comment that he is not born in England.