In my mind India are still better than England at all forms of the game, and the recent series doesn’t really count for much. In terms of the preparation, you have to remember that we only had one three day warm up match, for many players it being their first match for months. It is just not possible to tour a country and go into the first test match only having one 3 day warm up game behind you, and still expect to achieve results. No matter how good you are, you need to be match fit in order to perform. It’s no coincidence that you lost the Ashes 5-0 when you had no significant preparation but followed that by winning 3-1 a few years later when all your players had substantial warm up matches to adjust to the conditions.
When the first test began at Lord’s, not only weren’t we match fit, we weren’t physically fit or mentally prepared either, and you were at the peak of your summer of cricket. Your whole team had a huge amount of cricket behind them apart from Strauss, who then even still managed to get a 100 in the warm up game before India, playing for a rival county team which coincidentally I found a disgrace, but that’s for another day.
Secondly the injury situation we encountered was not just bad luck, it was unprecedented. We played the majority of the opening two test matches with 3 front line bowlers. If you logically think about this, you’ll realize how much of an impossible task that actually was, for 3 bowlers to keep up the intensity and pressure on the batsmen required along with getting 20 wickets.
On the first day at Lord’s you ended at 129-2, and that was with the majority of our front line bowler (Khan) missing. On day 2 we had restricted you to 270-5 with mainly help from our third line bowler Kumar, and I’m almost certain if we were able to rotate the blowers more frequently and had a fit and firing Khan, we would have wrapped up your tail for a lot less than the 474-6 you eventually declared on. The game then on could and would have been totally different, with a draw being the most likely outcome. Even then, we still managed to reduce you to 62-5 and 105-7 in the second innings with Sharma bowling an electrifying spell. The main reason you were able to escape from that hole wasn’t because your tail end were top batsmen, it was due to the fact after Lunch Sharma wasn’t able to bowl because he was too tired for being over bowled, which he wouldn’t have been if we had a full bowling attack to choose from.
In the second match, you were restricted to 88-6 and 124-8 after we had put you into bat, this was due to the help of Sreesanth, a bowler who hadn’t had any competitive cricket for months and still managed to rip your upper order apart. This doesn’t suggest to me that England are a team filled with great batsmen, it tells me that a guy with no match fitness or game time was still able to cut through your team like butter.
In three innings in a row we had you in complete turmoil batting wise, and the main reason you were able to dig yourself out each time was due to our shortcomings, not your ability. When the ball went old we simply didn’t have the resources, energy levels or bowlers to take advantage, which was due to bad work from the administrators, who held the IPL straight after the world cup followed by a tour to West Indies which most our first team couldn’t even attend due to fatigue.
The last two test matches you saw weren’t the Indian team, may have been on paper but there was only going to be one winner from then. We called up RP Singh who hadn’t even played test cricket 2 years, Sehwag who had just a shoulder operation and wasn’t match or physically fit, Gambhir who wasn’t match or physically fit and suffered concussion, the list is endless. We’d have lost to any of the current top five in the test rankings in similar fashion, and it wouldn’t have proved either way that any of those teams were better than us even if they did overtake us in the rankings.
Please don’t confuse this for sour grapes, because it truly is not. But until you beat India in a series where it’s a level playing field, I will never admit or agree that you are a better team than us, never. Until you win on the subcontinent, I will never agree you’re world number one. Until you’ve proven yourself on flat tracks, and all surfaces, you will never be the true number one side, however much your deluded fans or media say it, I just won’t believe it.
English cricket has been in such a sorry state in the last 20 years or so, all you’ve really had to shout about is a few Ashes wins against an aging Australian team, so I don’t expect any less from you, as you all tend to be an arrogant bunch anyway, even when you were utter rubbish. Congrats for winning the series though, wish you all the best for the future.
India are still better than England
posted on 24/8/11
In my mind India are still better than England at all forms of the game,
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Recent Test form suggests not and England are the current T20 Champions
When the first test began at Lord’s, not only weren’t we match fit, we weren’t physically fit or mentally prepared either,
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Who's fault is that? Will lessons be learned? Somehow I doubt so...
Secondly the injury situation we encountered was not just bad luck, it was unprecedented.
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Injuries are part of the game, you simply lack depth (esp in the bowling stocks)
On the first day at Lord’s you ended at 129-2, and that was with the majority of our front line bowler (Khan) missing. On day 2 we had restricted you to 270-5 with mainly help from our third line bowler Kumar, and I’m almost certain if we were able to rotate the blowers more frequently and had a fit and firing Khan, we would have wrapped up your tail for a lot less than the 474-6 you eventually declared on
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On that first morning at Lords conditions were excellent for seam bowling, India with Zaheer should've made more inroads and once conditions became easier to bat in you were found wanting. You also fail to mention how badly you batted in saving the Test.
This doesn’t suggest to me that England are a team filled with great batsmen
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Any batting line-up in world cricket would've struggled on that first day. Fact is England should never have got near 200
In three innings in a row we had you in complete turmoil batting wise, and the main reason you were able to dig yourself out each time was due to our shortcomings, not your ability.
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Yes, India's shortcomings in having the ability to be ruthless
The last two test matches you saw weren’t the Indian team, may have been on paper but there was only going to be one winner from then.
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England had similar problems out in Oz but coped admirably, it goes back to a lack of genuine quality in depth (again esp in the bowling stocks)
Please don’t confuse this for sour grapes
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Nope, its something more worrying.
Congrats for winning the series though, wish you all the best for the future.
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Much appreciated.
Sirloin Steak for tea.
posted on 24/8/11
On the first day at Lord’s you ended at 129-2, and that was with the majority of our front line bowler (Khan) missing. On day 2 we had restricted you to 270-5 with mainly help from our third line bowler Kumar, and I’m almost certain if we were able to rotate the blowers more frequently and had a fit and firing Khan, we would have wrapped up your tail for a lot less than the 474-6 you eventually declared on.
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are there any straws left ?
posted on 24/8/11
Sour.
Grapes
posted on 24/8/11
you are joking aren't you
posted on 25/8/11
That had to be the biggest waste of time and effort in penning such deluded nonsense.
BTW, Neon, i thought Denial was in Egypt? May be wrong, but VDV appears to be residing quite amiably in down town Cairo to me?
BTW#2, VDV, Van De Vaart? Seems quite an apt moniker considering his selfish and mindless efforts against Man U on Monday, and your attempt at a balanced hatchet job regarding this series.
To be honest, i couldnt be ar5ed reading through your essay, but one thing springs to mind: India's batting averages.
Take out your champion Dravid and it makes quite painful reading:
Tendulkar - 33.22
Dhoni - 27.75
Raina - 26.77
VVVVVSSSSSVSSVS Laxman - 25.66
Fattie Singh - 23.33
Gambhir - 22.12
Sehwag - 9.80 and he couldnt be bothered to stick with his team mates at the end of the oval match
posted on 25/8/11
When the ball went old we simply didn’t have the resources, energy levels or bowlers to take advantage, which was due to bad work from the administrators, who held the IPL straight after the world cup followed by a tour to West Indies which most our first team couldn’t even attend due to fatigue.
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Fatigue, ha! More like stuffing their fat faces with anything they could get their hands on.
Khan, RIP Singh, Fattie Yuvraj too.
Really, for professional athletes their sense of personal pride and being fit for purpose was disrespectful to their supports bordering on embarrassing.
posted on 25/8/11
RIP Singh? a mistake surely? unless hes been put down ?.. He needed to be after oval test..
posted on 25/8/11
India is better than even the great West Indies side of the 80s and Aussie side of the 2000s.
Praveen Kumar,Sreesanth and RP Singh are better than Marshall,Holding,Garner,Amby,Walsh,Roberts,Mcgrath,Gillespie.
Harby is miles better than Warnie.
Laxman is better than Lara and Viv.
Sehwag has a great record outside the subcontinnent.He makes Bradman look ordinary.
Raina is one of the best batsmen to ever play Test Cricket.I know one bowler who contemplated quittting international cricket just because he had to bowl to the great man.
Sachin,Dravid,,Zaheer,Ishant and Gambhir are ordinary.
You should replace them by Rohit Sharma,Saurabh Tiwary,Murali Vijay,Munaf Patel and Amit Mishra and this side would become invincible.
posted on 25/8/11
In my mind India are still better than England at all forms of the game, and the recent series doesn’t really count for much.
“we only had one three day warm up match”
That’s India’s fault. By the time of the 4th test, India had played 5 games, and still got thrashed.
“we weren’t physically fit or mentally prepared either”
India’s fault.
“Strauss…in the warm up game before India, playing for a rival county team which …I found a disgrace”
That’s what’s been happening for 110 years in all countries, get over it.
"the injury situation we encountered was…unprecedented.”
It happens to all countries and is not unprecedented.
“I’m almost certain if we were able to rotate the blowers more frequently and had a fit and firing Khan, we would have wrapped up your tail for a lot less than the 474-6.”
If if if. If England hadn’t had so many injuries over the last decade, we’d have been no 1 early.
“we still managed to reduce you to 62-5 and 105-7 in the second innings”
“In the second match, you were restricted to 88-6 and 124-8 after we had put you into bat”
“In three innings in a row we had you in complete turmoil batting wise”
What the score was half way through is not the result. I’m sure I cluld find ‘results’ where India had similar score but went on to win.
“The last two test matches you saw weren’t the Indian team”
Yes it was.
“I will never admit or agree that you are a better team than us, never. Until you win on the subcontinent,”
That shows your bias. Why does the subcontinent count for more than England?
“English cricket has been in such a sorry state in the last 20 years or so, all you’ve really had to shout about is a few Ashes wins against an aging Australian team”
We have won 8 out of the last 9 test series. That is why we are no. 1.
posted on 25/8/11
The author isn't convinced that England is a better team,
the series needs to be re-played. :S