***Official*** India in England

[SJS]

Wow, went to bed after India's innings. Must have been a crazy finish.

I did the same and then got up to answer nature's call in the night, switched on the telly as Broad just walked in and saw England's valiant last ditch effort.

Great win but terrible terrible fielding by India. It is funny but somehow the fielding is on a steep decline (wouldnt have believed such a thing was possiblewith their low standards anyway) since they have appointed a fielding coach.

Looks like they need someone who will actually make them work at it rather than someone who just goes by a grand title. But then the Indian players never feel comfortable with a coach who actually makes them work.

Agarkar's bowling was another disaster. He really should be dropped. He isnt going to get better. Sreesanth cant do much worse than this and at least he has a future.

Dravid was fabulous. Dhoni looked comic with the bat. Wish he stopped playingthose made-in-Jharkhand shots and got down to hitting the ball with clean big swings of the bat a la Afridi. Even a-la-Zaheer will do. He is getting carried away by his image and unless he changes his battingstyle (not aggression) he will be less and less successful with the bat.

I know this isnt going to be popular with many here but nor was it when I said so long back that as a pure off spinner Powar is a better bowler now than Harbhajan.

While on Powar, his fielding is pathetic. For a Bombay player it is shocking. If he doesnt pull up his socks he may findthat even his fabulous bowling wont save him. He is not a super star and such fielding and such an attitude to his work will see him dropped at the first possible opportunity. If that heppens not many will mourn for him and he should know why. His attitude to his batting at this level is equally disappointing. He should look at Kumble and even Zaheer and ask himself what he is doing wrong not to be able to convert his first class performances to something useful at least SOMETIMES !

 

[Perm]

Can't say I've seen a lot of Ramesh Powar, other than brief glimpses from other games, and most of his spell today. I was really impressed with him as a bowler TBH, he was quite daring and not afraid to toss it up and give the ball some air which was refreshing to see. However, his weight is definately of concern and causes him to be a liability in the field which doesn't bode well for India's ODI outfit, especially as the rest of their team is quite mediocre as fielders. He obviously has potential with the bat (as a FC average of around 30 suggests), but hasn't seemed to apply that to international cricket, which also counts against him. If he does get his batting and fielding up to scratch, then he could well be the ideal #7, given how Irfan Pathan has lost his bowling form.

 

[PhoenixFire]

Pleased for Mascarehnas, getting runs that is. I've said this before, but Broad also has potential with the bat, some really good clean strikes yesterday.

All in all I think India deserved that win, but it was much more evenly matched than the 1st game.

 

[Scaly piscine]

I really think England should have chased down the total, given the circumstances. England's 2-4 in the order killed the chances. 5 let offs between them and all they get is 33, a slow 64 and 25. Collingwood was a shade unlucky, but that'll happen to him every now and then. Flintoff is a complete idiot.

I hope England can cut out all the ridiculous no-balls next game, but they probably won't.

 

[Poker Boy]

One always thought, despite a brave effort, that England were two steps behind once KP was out although its nice to see English bowlers making runs for once and Broad might be a Test No 8 if he gets into the Test XI that is. Mascarenas' 50 would be good news - if only for the fact he's meant to bowl too. Sky commentators said at the Rose Bowl he is a better bowler if the other team is chasing a big total so there's the solution. Only pick him when we bat first then Why we dropped a spinner while India added one is puzzling and one must hope Fred's injury is not serious because if he hadn't played yesterday god knows how many India would have got. As for India all they need to do now IMO is pray Zaheer Khan is fit so they can drop Agakar - and as for Mr Powar he must hope D Fletcher never coaches India because he wouldn't get into a Fletcher team with that weight (I don't think the fact he can bat and bowl would save him) I'm amazed at his weight because while he ain't as big as Dwayne Leverrock Dwayne is not a proifessional sportsman while this guy is meant to be...

 

[PhoenixFire]

I really think England should have chased down the total, given the circumstances. England's 2-4 in the order killed the chances. 5 let offs between them and all they get is 33, a slow 64 and 25. Collingwood was a shade unlucky, but that'll happen to him every now and then. Flintoff is a complete idiot.

I hope England can cut out all the ridiculous no-balls next game, but they probably won't.

Collingwood wasn't really unlucky, he played all around that Googly, good bowling and mediocre batting.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Collingwood wasn't really unlucky, he played all around that Googly, good bowling and mediocre batting.

He was a little bit unlucky because it hit/flicked his pad and went onto his stumps. A lot of times he'd have gotten away with that.

 

[Swervy]

He was a little bit unlucky because it hit/flicked his pad and went onto his stumps. A lot of times he'd have gotten away with that.

he would have been stumped (even by MSD) anyway.

 

[Scaly piscine]

he would have been stumped (even by MSD) anyway.

Even if it went nicely to him it would hardly be a 100%er given what Dhoni is like.

 

[Perm]

Collingwood was hardly unlucky, yeah the ball just nudged his pad but was hardly a big defection onto the stumps. Would've hit them anyway IMO. I suppose it's just because he's from Durham.

 

[silentstriker]

Even if it went nicely to him it would hardly be a 100%er given what Dhoni is like.

To be fair, Dhoni rarely misses chances when keeping against spinners. He has a lot more trouble with the faster men, due to his footwork.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Collingwood was hardly unlucky, yeah the ball just nudged his pad but was hardly a big defection onto the stumps. Would've hit them anyway IMO. I suppose it's just because he's from Durham.

Hard work repeating the "little bit unlucky" at each post because of those like yourself being incapable of judging things objectively.

 

[pietersenrocks]

Oh!Cmon.....then we can find many players,being unlucky like this.I don't think,he was that much unlucky.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Oh!Cmon.....then we can find many players,being unlucky like this.I don't think,he was that much unlucky.

Terrific, someone else who doesn't read the "shade unlucky" or "little bit unlucky". And no there weren't many unlucky English batsmen last night. KP was dropped twice in an over, Bell gave a dolly to third man and it was dropped, Prior was dropped and caught off a no-ball. Flintoff simply hoisted the ball straight to a fielder in the deep as he usually does. Bopara missed a straight delivery.

 

[Turbinator]

Haha, Raghav, enjoy your humiliation.

"What is humiliation? India is humiliation. There bowlers is humiliation. So you should be the one humiliated. Because England bowlers won. Humiliation is India. "

 

[PhoenixFire]

Terrific, someone else who doesn't read the "shade unlucky" or "little bit unlucky". And no there weren't many unlucky English batsmen last night. KP was dropped twice in an over, Bell gave a dolly to third man and it was dropped, Prior was dropped and caught off a no-ball. Flintoff simply hoisted the ball straight to a fielder in the deep as he usually does. Bopara missed a straight delivery.

Agree with most of that, didn't see the Flintoff dismissal, but the rest of the batsmen led a pretty charmed life.

 

[Scaly piscine]

Flintoff's dismissal was just horrible, shortish nothing delivery on his pads which he just hoicked high into the air to forward square leg on the boundary.

I wish someone would get it into his thick head to hit the ball along the floor, he just has no batting brain at all.

 

[adharcric]

He was a little bit unlucky because it hit/flicked his pad and went onto his stumps. A lot of times he'd have gotten away with that.

Even if it went nicely to him it would hardly be a 100%er given what Dhoni is like.

Flintoff's dismissal was just horrible, shortish nothing delivery on his pads which he just hoicked high into the air to forward square leg on the boundary.

Isn't that exactly when you would play that shot, if at all?

 

[Scaly piscine]

Isn't that exactly when you would play that shot, if at all?

Given the number of balls he'd faced and the situation of the game... no. Seeing the ball again it was full rather than shortish, he could have really smashed it anywhere but he just played a horrible hoik.

 

[adharcric]

Given the number of balls he'd faced and the situation of the game... no. Seeing the ball again it was full rather than shortish, he could have really smashed it anywhere but he just played a horrible hoik.

Fair enough. Didn't quite understand the "shortish nothing delivery on his pads" part, that's all.