such are the times that yuvraj, world cup player of series, will have to sit out.

The England team looks fine with me although Broad will play.
Not too sure about the third Indian seamer? Maybe Sreesanth.

I love the idea of Bresnan But........

azing that that rohit sharma cant get a get either. looks a top player.

This ODI series could well turn out into a shootout between Bresnan and Broad.Dont discount Onions either.If fit he would be my first choice for the third seamer's slot followed by Bresnan,Finn and Dernbach.

Broad shouldnt be anywhere near the test side.His record is appalling and his form atm is so poor that he looked innocous against SL tail enders.
Even when he is in form he is a bit too inconsistent.
In the Ashes 2009 he only really performed well in 2 matches.Obviously we won so it didnt matter.But in a 4 man attack and against a batting line up as strong as that of India we need guys who are fairly reliable.Obviously each bowler is going to experience the odd bad day which is acceptable but Broad is far too inconsistent for 4 man attack.
I am also worried about Swann.I rate him highly.He is by far the best spinner in the world today but can we expect him to effective in a 4 man attack against India?I mean these Indian batsmen have made Warney and Murali in their prime look like schoolboys.Can we really expect Swann to take wickets or even contain them on non turning pitches?It might sound extraordinarily harsh on Swann but I would leave him out of the XI against India unless its a raging turner.Sorry Swanny,you are one of my favourite cricketers in the world.I love you.But I think the Indians are too good against spin.
I would play

Strauss(c)
Cook
Trott
KP
Bell
Morgan
Prior(wk)
Bresnan
Tremlett
Anderson
Onions


With Finn and Dernbach in reserve.

The only spinners to have really troubled India from my memory are Saqlain Mushtaq(who bowled a Doosra),
Saeed Ajmal(in the 3 ODIs that he has played against India he also has a mystery doosra)
Mendis(in his first ever test series when he was a mystery)
All 3 mystery spinners.


I cant think of a single conventional spinner who has troubled a full strength India in at least 3 matches.

There is no doubt that Swann is the best spinner in the world atm.He is certainly a better spinner than Mendis or Ajmal who have troubled India in the past.But when it comes to India I just cant see him troubling them.

England will never field a team without a spinner so Swann is a shoe (barring injury) and deservedly so.

Yes, Swan will play and will be one of the first names down on the sheet.

Broad must surely be under the microscope along with Bresnan. Both will need to show wicket taking ability during this ODI series to be in contention for a place against India.
Their batting prowess does give them an advantage over Onions and Finn but it may not be enough.

Hope
Do you seriously think Swann will trouble India?Indians have made Warne and Murali look very ordinary.If it was a 5 man attack then ok but i dont think we can afford to have a spinner in a 4 man attack against india.

as i have said swann doesnt deserve to be dropped but if we are to win this series we have to be ruthless and make some hard decisions.

Ginger
I ask you the same question.i know Swann will play.He is a quality bowler no doubt.But do you expect him to be effective against a line up which has destroyed the two greatest spinners to have ever played the game?Remember we are playing only 4 bowlers and in a 4 man attack we need all the 4 to take wickets regularly.I am not sure Swann or any spinner for that matter would be able to perform that role against India.If we were playing a 5 man attack then Swann could have given the job of a holding bowler.But i dont think we can afford that in a 4 man attack.

Shanky
Pick your best bowlers, I say.
Yes the Indians can play spin well but every team needs a spinner, IMO.
They can not only get wickets but they offer something different. PLUS, we do have some good seam/swing bowlers but they are not exactly Marshall or Ambrose.

SL are also renowned players of spin but Swann was the second highest wicket taker for England in the test series.

Indian team is filled with right handers.All are outstanding players of spin.I would love to be proven wrong on this one but i honestly cant see Swann doing well.

shanky
I expect Ponting or S Waugh knew Warne may struggle in India as he had in the past but you have to have faith in your best bowlers and they would not have contemplated dropping him.
I'm not comparing Swann to Warne but the same thought process applies.

Ginger
were the aussies successful in India?

Ginger
were the aussies successful in India?

--------------------

Not really but they still wouldn't have been without Warne, IMO.

Unless I'm missing something, this series is not being played in India.

hope
thats my point.In english conditions i expect our seamers to be more effective agiainst India than Swann.

Shanky,
how did india destroy warne and murali?
On the contrary, i would say warne and murali destroyed india in their home series.
Sure, the indians escaped their treatments at their "den" and played the spinners well in the flat indian pitches,although not unexpectedly.
Would australia and srilanka not play warne or murali at home against india saying the indians play the spinners well?

Shanky
But you're saying leave Swann out because the Indian batsmen are better players of spin than seam.
Do this and we may as well waive the white flag now.
No right minded coach/selector or captain will do this and quite rightly.
IF we had Steyn, Anderson, Zaheer and Morkel then you may think about it but we haven't.

Murali has a good record against india in SL.SL pitches turn more than Indian pitches
But Warne has a pathetic record against India in Aus.He averages over 60 which is even higher than his average in India.Thats bcoz Aus pitches dont turn.
If i was aus coach during warne era i wouldnt have played warne against india in aus except at sydney and maybe adelaide.

I would have played Mcgrath,Lee,Gillespie and Clark/Kasprowicz as my 4 pacers.

As far as SL is concerned I would play murali coz SL tracks turn more than india tracks.So murali despite struggling in India has done well in SL.

English pitches(barring Old trafford where no match is scheduled) dont turn much cmpared to their indian counterparts.
So how will swann be effective against India in England when he couldnt deliver on a raging fifth day turner at Chennai in 2008?He also looked innocous against India in the WC even though he dominated other sides for fun.That too me suggests that swann isnt good enough against india.He is the best spinner in the world but not quite good enough against SL.
He is a better bowler now than he was in 2008 but i dont think thats enough.

Ginger
all i am saying is that in english conditions against india onions,bresnan,anderson and tremlett are all better bowlers than swann.So they should play ahead of swann.Maybe if one of them gets injured then we may bring in swann.

But again ,
a spinner should play imo,
even tho if he wont get wicket, atleast hold one end, that way the fast bowlers wont get overworked?
Again i believe swann is too good to be left out.

What about replacing Chris Broad's son with a real wicket-taking fast bowler?

i have already said that broad should be replaced.