England in India

[newzolt]

I dont see how the Indian pace attacks limitations have been exposed in comparison to the english attack

with England tail enders scoring against the home team pace attack i think the indian pacers will have to redefine their strategy against the tail as this has been their problem for quiet some time and in my opinion this is a limitation at present.

 

[cricket_lover]

I agree. It is something they need to work on, change their tactics.
Bad news...play is expected to start late tomorrow..due to over-night rain.
hmm..chances of draw? may be...

 

[sohum]

With regards to India getting a 200 run lead, I think if they are going for it, they won't sit around waiting for the runs to come. International teams know how to strategize properly, unlike some people on this forum. From this point on, India is probably looking to bat only once (that is always the goal of the first innings, in test cricket) and that means getting a big lead. With blasters like Dhoni to come, we shouldn't have too much problem racking up about 5-6 runs an over in a session, if he gets going.

The pitch is definitely going to aid the spinners, and if India can get about 3-4 sessions to bowl out England in the second innings, I think they could take this match.

 

[barmyarmy]

I'd like to think that if India bat all of tomorrow and the first session on day 4, England could survive the last 5 sessions even on a wearing pitch.
Incidentally I'm going to plug an idea I had for a c2k5 download. Play the next days play after the close with c2k5. Accurate scorecards and figures etc. Get it here.

 

[nightprowler10]

c

he`ll never come even close to Imran!
Imran is a legend of the game.

Oh, no arguments there. He was one of the best all rounders we have ever seen. I was just saying that Akhtar should improve on his batting while he is waiting for his injury to heal. After all, that is how Imran became a good batsman. I watched him defend against Harmison in the third test at Lahore, he amazed me a couple of times. There were some deliveries that would've troubled even Inzi, but Akhtar did a good job defending them.

 

[newzolt]

even if there will be slightest of the chances of a victory Dravid & co. wil go for it as he is quiet assertive captain and lots of positives have already come out of the Dravid-Chappell combination.
now the latest news of the overnight rain will give the England pacers a ray of hope in the 1st session of day2 play.hope the indians play it out sensibly.

 

[gaurav_indian]

Good cricket was played both by England and India.Hope rain doesn't spoils it.

edited

 

[SaiSrini]

India should now try not to lose many wkt till the close of play, Colly and tail have really snatch the match away from India in a very dramatic manner.

Well India have done that so far till close of Day 2..

Indian team going great guns, this Indian team is too strong for English team.If India is able to get a 150-200 runs lead then they will be in a good position to win the match.

Hopefully India will win the first match of the series.

150-200 runs lead might make this match meander to a boring draw.... a 100 run lead would do good for team. importantly india should look to bat till first session of day 4. and get a 100 run lead by that and declare if they have wickets in hand or try to hit quick runs and get out in the process.. day 4 is going to help the spinners a lot and if india can get a 100 run lead, they will look to bowl england out by 200 or 250 so that a target of 100 to 150 would be chasable for them on the final day

 

[JamesyJames3]

Well India have done that so far till close of Day 2..



150-200 runs lead might make this match meander to a boring draw.... a 100 run lead would do good for team. importantly india should look to bat till first session of day 4. and get a 100 run lead by that and declare if they have wickets in hand or try to hit quick runs and get out in the process.. day 4 is going to help the spinners a lot and if india can get a 100 run lead, they will look to bowl england out by 200 or 250 so that a target of 100 to 150 would be chasable for them on the final day

You make much more sense than others. So don't take this as criticism your way. I am just using your post as an outline!

India are 260 runs behind. That is a days play. You may say, no no no. Not with dhoni, etc. But, it doesn't matter about the batsmen, on this pitch it is slow and not exactly a piece of cake to score runs. If you bat all tomorrow, I suspect India will be around level or under 50 ahead.

That means day 4, 1st session India will look to go 100 ahead, as you said! Baring in mind, they would still have to have wickets in hand.

Im going to make a bold prediction that India;s first innings will be under 100 ahead.

 

[SaiSrini]

Chappell loves baiting the media, doesn't he? I like him though. We need a tough guy like him in Indian cricket to keep the big boys down...

Definitely! May be what he is saying is right. C'mon guys! He has been facing lot of flak from various quarters of the Indian media who are Ganguly's sidekicks. Ganguly still has lot of sympathesizers and those guys are trying to create more sound and cry! So sometime or the other Chappell has to come out with his version because how long can he keep it all within himself?

But the midst of the series did not prove to be the right timing! Still I feel Chappell is not wrong in doing what he did!

today Dravid and Jaffer joined hands to steady the Indian reply with some cautious batting after collingwood turned the tide on indians.
so far this game has exposed the limitations of indian pace attack comprising of medium fast bowlers compared to the 140+brigade of harmison and hoggard.the spin departments of neither team was impressive.should munaf patel have been included in the squad after his recent performance against the visiting team?

Great batting by Jaffer! He looks totally composed and cool at the crease! No wonder why he has been praised a lot for his domestic performances! Looks like he is going to turn this over in his career!

I still dont rule out Gambhir! Even though Sehwag has has success as opener, he is not a specialist opener. If Gambhir can improve his game and correct flaws like falling over his crease, he can come back to partner Wasim Jaffer. That would make it a fantastic opening combination. Gambhir the aggressor and Jaffer the accumulator. Importantly, we have two specialist openers

Three sessions coming up, i would expect Indians to score about 4 an over, once they see of the first 10-15 overs, they can score at a faster rate. This will take them beyond England's score.
This will be a close match from now on, for now India has the slight advantage.

Its tough to bat on this pitch already cricket_lover... The ball is swinging with reverse swing too! So its not easy to clobber the bowling attack! I also hope India score at 4 an over and score at least 340 runs tomorrow but I dont have high hopes on that.

I agree. It is something they need to work on, change their tactics.
Bad news...play is expected to start late tomorrow..due to over-night rain.
hmm..chances of draw? may be...

Oh yuck! Thats sick! I hope the rain keeps away from a fairly engrossing test match!

Good cricket was played both by England and India.Hope rain doesn't spoils it.

edited

definitely! rain should not spoil the fun that has been given to us so far!

 

[sohum]

I think the Indian batting line-up, despite the nature of the pitch, should be able to score at higher than 3 runs an over in a day's play. Our batting line-up is chockful of strokemakers who don't really enjoy hanging about. I'm sure that if India try to force the run rate up and lose a wicket or two in the process, they'll settle back down into a steady rhythm. But unless the day is cut short due to rain, I certainly hope India will manage to score at least 300 runs tomorrow.

 

[ZoraxDoom]

I'd like to think that if India bat all of tomorrow and the first session on day 4, England could survive the last 5 sessions even on a wearing pitch.
Incidentally I'm going to plug an idea I had for a c2k5 download. Play the next days play after the close with c2k5. Accurate scorecards and figures etc. Get it here.

Cool! Could you do one for C2K4 please? :help :upray

 

[newzolt]

a draw?

 

[cricket_lover]

Scoring quick runs shouldn't be a problem. England did! yesterday!
They scored at 4+, with the old and new ball as well. It depends on the attitude/strategy of the team.
I'm sure Indians want a win and will play positively.

 

[paddythegreek]

Within the lumber yard that is the Indian middle-order Tendulkar, Kaif, Laxman and Dhoni, their is the potential to score quickly, but their strike rates are average (42-50) Only Dhoni (s/r 80) has an agressive rate, but then he has only played a handful of games. It's nicely poised.
My prediction is a draw. India to have a small first dig lead, but take too long to accumulate it, and England to hold out.