What a shame we only had two Tests!
This match would have had a different dimension if 1-0 wouldn't have been enough to kill off the series. Nevertheless after the horrors of Mumbai, we've all been treated to some great, competitive cricket.
The result is a deserved win for India by a head. England have plenty of positives to draw upon though.
ENGLAND RATINGS (out of ten)
1. Alistair Cook
121 runs at 30.25 hardly represent disaster, but he will be frustrated that his apparent slide from world class opener to mediocrity seems to be continuing. A revealing statistic is that in his first 18 months, he scored 6 centuries and 5 half-centuries, becoming in the course the youngest player in Test history to get to 6 tons. In his last 18 months, he has only scored one hundred, but 11 fifties. You would expect players' conversion rates to improve in time not to decline.
A player who used to average 50 now rests at a shade above 40. His fielding, which had improved after a slow start, is also looking dodgy. Badly needs to re-find the knack of scoring big if he is to have an impact in the summer.
At Mohali, his fluent 50 was key to getting England back into the game after a terrible start.
RG's rating: 5
Cook in reverse. A player who seemed to have reached his peak in his first year of Test cricket reacted brilliantly to being dropped last winter. He came back with fewer shots but more resolve, and has scored hundreds in each series since. The only England batsman to top 1000 runs in the calendar year (India had four) he is now our mainstay at the top of the order and the only member of the top three currently up for the battle with tough opposition. Always displayed a cool head, allied to some terrific physical stamina in searing conditions. After Gambhir, he was the second highest run scorer in the series with 252 runs at 84. His back-to-back tons at Chennai meant that he was desperately unlucky to end up on the losing side.
His return has greatly strengthened England's slip cordon. With two other specialists in Swann and Flintoff, it slowly starts to look like a great unit again (albeit not quite as good as it would be with Trescothick).
RG's rating: 9
3. Ian R Bell
Ian, Ian, Ian. I'm a tremendous backer of his and really expected him to be prolific in Indian conditions but I am now slowly reaching the inescapable conclusion that he is in need of a Strauss-like kick up the arse. His final average for the series was a shade over 15, and this was doubled by his not out runs today when the game was dead.
He is batting with about as much intensity and conviction as I imagine Bruce Forsyth would bring to playing Lear.
His giant ton against the Saffers aside, throughout 2008 he has looked in great nick but got out for 30 or 40 odd in both forms of the game. Now he looks out of form, devoid of confidence or presence at the crease. Gets a point for his brilliant fielding, but with Michael Vaughan hovering in the wings I expect him to be dropped for the Windies tour. It might be just what he needs- I'd keep him in the ODI side, and let him score buckets of runs for Warks before considering him again. I'd like to seem him come back in a year with a point to prove. He has the game to be great but is running out of time.
RG's rating: 2.5
4. Kevin Pietersen
Deserves a lot of credit for his leadership in bringing England back to play which was the right decision.
This has been the first time in his fledgling captaincy career that he's encountered reverses. Having thrashed South Africa in ODIs, he received an equally emphatic drubbing from the Indians, and was narrowly but clearly the loser in the Tests. As I suggested on his appointment, it will be through his reactions to defeats which will show his mettle.
Although he was almost statesmanlike in taking the team back to India, his behaviour in the series has at times been completely childish. Stirring up Yuvraj was clearly a tactic, but leave it on the pitch. Clearly if anyone's game was affected by the sledging, it was Pietersen's- his suicidal attempt to smash Yuvraj out of the ground from ball one in England's first innings was playing into Dhoni's hands. If he'd got out, England would have lost 2-0.
There were also a lot of times when I felt he didn't really support his bowlers. Some of the fields he set to Panesar were frankly odd, and didn't work. It didn't help that he clearly (understandably) favoured Swann, but I think Panesar might be quite damaged by this tour.
It would be churlish to dwell on the negatives. He has remained positive as skipper throughout and his batting in Mohali was magnificent- toying with the bowling and the fields. If he could bat like that all the time (which he looks like he could) he would be better than anyone else playing the game today. All in all he scored 149 runs at a shade under his career average of 50. England will still (just) be favourites for the tour to the West Indies and it will be an opportunity for KP to build his side. Some tough choices will have to be made, but England look just short of being good enough to beat good sides. Lots of fixtures against the Kiwis and the Windies might give us a decent win percentage but we are clearly short of the top three Test sides in the world. We are probably closer to Australia than the others and KP will have a real opportunity next summer to be a hero. If Vaughan is back, I actually think that can only help his captaincy.
RG's rating: 7.5
5. Paul Collingwood
I'm still unconvinced that he should be a long term fixture in the Test team. He's older than Owais Shah, and a lot older than Ravi Bopara. His ton at Chennai, though initially valuable, ground to a halt and lost England all momentum to give India a sniff at winning (even then it took something special from Sehwag). I can't escape the (probably unfair) impression that ever since he came within a whisker of being dropped in the summer, he has been batting for himself. Overall he, like most England batsmen in recent times, got his average this series.
I suspect he will be kept on at the expense of Bell, but on English pitches he will struggle badly against Lee, Clark and Johnson. Bopara should be a fixture at number five for me- he has a far more multi-faceted game at this level.
RG's rating: 6.5
6. Andrew Flintoff
Terrific bowling througout the series- lion-hearted and constantly in excess of 90mph, he led our attack from first-change. He used his invaluable previous experience of two tours of India. If he stays fit, England compete with (don't necessarily beat) everyone in the world. If we can get three more years out of him that will be a tremendous result.
He played a superb knock at Mohali, and it was disastrous that the nightwatchman (Jimmy Anderson) decided to give him the strike in fading light in the last over of the day. Had he been at the crease when the fog lifted the next morning, England might have had a sniff at levelling the series.
Fully rehabilited in the England side following the Fredalo episode.
RG's rating: 8.5
7. Matthew Prior
A very solid series. Kept tidily but unspectacularly and batted well, scoring 88 runs at 44. One grumble is that he seems unable to change gear when batting with the tail. Consistently alternated between blocking and giving the bulk of the strike to the tailender (including Panesar). Looking at the likes of Sehwag and Yuvraj, in both the ODI and Test series, you'd have to say that England lack enough players who can clear the ropes when needed.
Prior is clearly established as the keeper for the next few series. After the Ashes I'd like to see us blooding young Steven Davies, who should be nearly ready to step up.
RG's rating: 7
8. Graeme Swann
I'm very glad that he finally got his chance (after he was left out of the ODI side I feared we might go with just one spinner) and he didn't disappoint. Joint leading wicket-taker with 8 and bowled more overs than anyone else (100.3). His final stats aren't spectacular but he was consistently turning the ball, attacking batsmen of the highest calibre and refusing to be over-awed. KP clearly saw him and Flintoff as the most dangerous bowlers in all conditions.
Swanny is also a great character and a multi-dimensional cricketer with decent batting and fielding. He's probably done enough to edge Panesar out of the starting eleven for the Windies tour.
RG's rating: 8
9. Stuart Broad
Like Swann his statistics aren't incredible (he only took two wickets from his single Test) but the manner of his bowling was impressive and a notch above Harmison's contribution to the first Test. As he's getting older, he's physically developing and is now bowling consistently at 88-90mph. He's maintaining that pace over long spells.
I think this experience will be good for him- we look a much more balanced side in both forms of the game with him and he should play every Test next year if fit.
RG's rating: 7
RG's rating: 7
10. James Anderson
Another bowler who was better than his stats. However Sehwag took him to the cleaners at Chennai and concerns over his temperament will not go away. Showed character to come back well by bowling consistently good and hostile lines at Mohali but can we afford the luxury of Jimmy? I'd keep him in the side, but be wary over having both him and Harmison in the side at the same time. Both 'daisy' bowlers.
I'm against nightwatchmen but he has developed into a reliable one (clanger in Mohali notwithstanding) and he is an honest, hard-working cricketer.
RG's rating: 6
11. Monty Panesar
The only England bowler who probably got better stats than he deserved (6 wickets at 50). He's going through a prolonged dip in form and may benefit from a break to concentrate on developing his variations of pace. He still has a perfect action but will struggle unless he can add to his armoury. In the mean time, if we're picking one spinner, Swann has made a compelling case for selection.
With Adil Rashid, another multi-faceted cricketer and a better batsman than Swann, waiting in the wings, Monty might find the road back into the side tough.
RG's rating: 4
12. Steve Harmison
With Stuart Broad returning from injury, it is telling that England opted to drop Harmison. Like Anderson he fell apart in the face of Sehwag's onslaught. Again he had moments of hostility, but the pitches and conditions didn't suit him greatly. Pietersen's reluctance to bowl him on the last day at Chennai (when if there was any variable bounce, you'd expect him to find it) was telling.
RG's rating: 4.5
RG'S COMBINED SIDE:
1. G Gambhir (361 runs at 90.25)
2. AJ Strauss (252 runs at 84.00)
3. SR Tendulkar (156 runs at 52.00)
4. KP Pietersen (149 runs at 49.66)
5. Y Singh (212 runs at 70.66)
6. A Flintoff (84 runs at 28.00, 7 wickets at 29.42)
7. MS Dhoni (capt, wkt*) (82 runs at 27.33, 5 catches)
8. H Singh (69 runs at 34.50, 8 wickets at 35.00)
9. GP Swann (8 wickets at 39.50)
10. Z Khan (8 wickets at 21.00)
11. I Sharma (6 wickets at 25.16)
12th man: PD Collingwood
*In ahead of Prior on captaincy.
No comments:
Post a Comment