Equal series wins in limited overs in UK

The Indians were expected to easily win the two matches in Ireland, which they did easily. In England, they were facing a team that whitewashed Australia 5-0 in ODI series! The T20I series was first and the Indians pulled off a series win versus the hosts. Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur were tried out as new ball bowlers but the wrist spinners not only undid all their inexperience but also restricted the scoring and took important wickets at the right time.This did not stop India to lose their first ODI series under Kohli.

Image Courtesy: Cricinfo website

India pulled back things with a win in the T20I series to make it level. All over to the test series. Again, the weather has been good, ball is not doing anything in the air, wickets are perfect for batting. If it continues, India will outbat the hosts for a 2-1 series win. Any change in the brittle weather will alter the result. Virat Kohli & Ajinkya Rahane are the two batsmen who have to lead from the front, scoring a couple of centuries if India has to do well!The Indian team, for the last two series has lost the one who has got his name on the Lords Board - Praveen Kumar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The loss of Bhuvi will be more than that of Bumrah. Umesh Yadav and Isant Sharma should take the burden of the seam bowlers while Ashwin and Jadeja will be back. How will Kuldeep fit in is a question mark.Pandya is the all-rounder and the Indians must be feeling very confident to start the test series after the limited overs series!

After Afghan history, India are off to UKI

India finished the historic Afghanistan inaugural match in two days ( with their captain & main keeper injured). Post that, they have embarked on another tour to UK & Ireland ( where they lost badly 1-3, despite winning the first test). Legendary Tendulkar calls this as the most comprehensive bowling attack in years!Virat Kohli averaged less than 15 last time, making Jimmy Anderson take a jibe much before the tour was even planned ( though Anderson himself has not performed that well outside England)!

All in all, the series starts in Ireland with a T20I, followed by limited overs series ( giving time for the players to settle down!) There are reinforcements available from the A team, who are also in the same country playing well so far (Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, Shubnam Gill, Shardul Thakur will fancy their chances in case of an emergency).

With good experience for all players in the team & bright, sunny weather this year, I expect the visitors to win 2-1. The ODI series will be well-fought as the hosts are No.1 in the world and have just white-washed the Aussies! Let us see what happens! Kohli & his men will be keen to show their mettle, after South Africa.

South Africa away tests - India lose to Ngidi

Lungi Ngidi was a debutant against the team ranked No.1 in the world, replacing a legend (Dale Steyn) in the second test of the series.But, he showed no nervousness versus the No.1 test side in the world. The Indians made some shocking team selections in the second test by dropping Bhuvneshwar Kumar to bring in Ishant Sharma. It is not sure what the impact will be on the players morale. Rahane has been sidelined so far in a similar manner, in favor of Rohit Sharma.

This move back-fired and the Indians lost the series with one test to go. Ishant was not a complete failure though - he did trouble the competition and picked wickets when it mattered, on a helpful pitch. Rohit just couldnt get going and clamors for Rahane got bigger from the fans.
While the Proteas were making the right changes and all the positive vibes were with them, the Indian ship seemed to be sinking! Virat Kohli made a majestic 150+ but when required, failed with the bat. Though the pitch was more like a sub-continent type, the Indians were skittled out by Ngidi fairly easily!

Image Courtesy: ESPN Cricinfo website

The match was made famous by the number of run-outs from both teams (Pujara dismissed twice run out was an ultimate disaster!). Ashwin picked up useful wickets that helped his bowling but more was expected in the second innings!While Pandya was great in effecting the runout of his bowling, his own runout was school-boy cricket, as Sunil Gavaskar said on air.

Bangla Home Tests - India beat Bangladesh as expected

India defeated Bangladesh in the first and only test of the series, as expected. The Indian spinners picked wickets but what was more pleasing was the pacers picking a handful.

The Aussies are next and India is on course for a great home season!

Sri Lanka series - ready to start

The Indo-Lankan series is ready to start after a long time. In fact, I did read that the Indian team has not won a series in Lanka for 22 years! It was probably Azhar who won the series with help of Sachin and Kumble in the team (the lone win was well-planned out by Indians). Even Ganguly and MSD could not achieve a win - wonder what the new permanent captain will do.

The Lankans are vulnerable this time after series defeat against Pakistan in multiple formats. The aging Sangakkara will play his last test match in this series and in my view, will hold the biggest challenge for Indians. If they can get him out quickly, the Indians will have a good chance to win the series.

The bowlers have done well in the warm-up match, especially Ishant Sharma. But who will the management pick as part of the playing eleven - Bhuvi and Umesh? Along with the three, two spinners will be picked and my suspicion is that it will be Harbhajan who will miss out.

The batting will be made of Dhawan, KL Rahul, Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane - Pujara seems to be out of favor at the moment with Rohit edging ahead. If Rohit cannot make runs in the first two tests, it will be back to Pujara.

Saha will have all three test matches to prove himself. Especially with his batting, Saha is one who has not contributed much. There are players like Samson, Uthappa are waiting in the wings.

If the rains do not disturb the series, India should edge Sri Lanka. But, it looks like rain will have the last say. My guess is that the series will be shared.

2015 World Cup - India's preparations so far

The Indians finished their preparations for the World Cup with a loss in the final ODI at Perth as well as the teaser for their uniform they will display (on top of the MCG).

There are couple of warm-up matches scheduled before the tournament starts officially, against Australia (8th Feb) and Afghanistan (10th Feb) at Adelaide. These two matches will serve the purpose of testing out the four players who are in doubt for the tournament (fitness issues) - Rohit Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. There are doubts about Ishant but only MSD will know what is real. Mohit Sharma and Dhawal Kulkarni who went for the tri-series are still with the team as per the latest news.

So, where are we in terms of preparations? Let us go through the team and see the plans that the Indian team might have:

1. Shikhar Dhawan - definitely will play the warm-up matches and first two ODIs (Pakistan at Adelaide and South Africa at MCG). Based on his performance, his future will be decided. Dhawan did well at Perth against a decent England bowling attack - a knock that will give him confidence going into the tournament.
2. Rohit Sharma - he will play as the opener whenever he is fit. It will be good to give him a work-out in the warm-up matches but will be key to the current team's fortunes.
3. Ajinkya Rahane - Back-up opener but could also potentially come one-down in case of an early wicket. He is much more technically sound than Rayudu and hence he will be the backup for No.3 slot
4. Virat Kohli - Dhoni seems to like Kohli lower the order in case Jadeja (or Ashwin or Binny) does not play. But, on initial look, it is certain that Kohli will be at No.3 when there is a good partnership at the top. Will he be always at No.3? Probably not (especially when a wicket falls early)
5. Suresh Raina - Raina has done well in recent times though the Tri-series saw just one good knock from him. Raina can be ideal to play in the latter overs and statistics also point that Dhoni is a better bet ahead of Raina. Will Dhoni come in to stabilize the innings while Raina is held back to blast the attack?  
6. Dhoni - The captain has not shown glimpses of his usual form recently. Will be good for him to have a break before he comes back to his own. His impending baby will also clear his mind for good. 
7. Rayudu - If Dhawan has to be dropped, Rahane goes up the order and Rayudu comes in his place. Hence, he will not be in the starting lineup but will be expected to play as soon as he gets an opportunity. Tough luck for the lad!
8. Binny - Stuart Binny has been the biggest bright spot to emerge out of India's performance in the tri-series. It is a no-brainer for Binny to be in the playing eleven. This gives India the luxury of playing two seamers and two spinners with Binny/Raina to bowl the other ten. He can open the bowling and shore the batting.
9. Jadeja/Ashwin - Jadeja has been rusty and hence he will be the biggest beneficiary of the warm-up matches. If he can recover to his prime form, India will have one less headache. Ashwin has gone down in the pecking order, lower than Axar because of his lack  of wickets in the ODI version. Though he is a better batsman than Axar, his fielding is a cause of worry.
10. Axar Patel - Axar bowled well in the Tri-series, showing that his performance on sub-continental pitches was not a fluke. He is a handy player only if he can lift his batting skills
11. Mohd Shami - Easily the best pace bowler on view in the Tri-series, Shami has been enjoying the stint in the shorter version after a mixed test series. He will lead the attack in the absence of Ishant (due to injury) but his performance will reflect on India's fortunes with the ball.
12. Ishant/Bhuvi/Umesh - Bhuvi should partner Shami in the Adelaide match to make use of the new ball but if Ishant is present, he might get the nod. If the pitches are helpful to the faster bowlers, expect Bhuvi and Ishant to be both present. Umesh Yadav has not shown any semblance of form and he is an insurance for the squad at this time.

With this situation, India will go into each match with an open mind and flexible plans to counter any situation. With the cool Dhoni at the helm, let us wish the Indian team all the best!

Do have a look at the 50 ODI victories that redefined Indian cricket.

Australia Tour Tri-series - India bow out winless

On Twitter, Statistician Mohandas Menon posted the series where India finished winless since 2011 World Cup

• 2011 in Eng 
• 2013/14 in SA 
• 2013/14 in NZ 
• 2014/15 in Aus

They escaped a whitewash in the test series and another losing streak in the ODI series (thanks to rain) but that was no consolation to a team that has high hopes on retaining the next World Cup.

At Perth, the Indians started well. Their openers did a decent job to see off the dangerous Anderson and managed to score a 80+ partnership with both taking chances but surviving. Dhawan was back to something that resembled form. Rahane, after the initial jitters, settled down to anchor the innings. It was the failures again of Kohli, Raina that hampered India. The batting collapsed from 83-0 to 165-9 before Shami hit out to get 200 on the board.

The Indians seem to be experimenting with the batting positions and getting some answers. Stuart Binny has made Dhoni realize that he is a handy person to have in the lineup. Jadeja was rusty with bat and ball but Axar has proved that he is a good bowler to have in the middle overs. The batting depth is present on paper but that has to be translated to reality. With Ashwin in the squad, the team management must figure out what is the combination to play in the World Cup. What happens to Umesh and Bhuvi? Are they injured? Dhoni's answers in the press conference seems to suggest.

The Indian batsmen dont have a first (or even second) gear - they seem to bat only at the top gears or perish. This was the fashion few years ago when batsmen used to play defensive and rotate the strike over. But, the new generation tend to be aggressive in any situation - that is causing the problems to the Indian batsmen, like this game. No longer are they happy to score at 3-4 runs per over. They are looking at boundaries every over. This will not work - Kohli, Rahane, Rayudu, Jadeja should be told this. Rahane should have gone on and controlled the innings but could not.

The Indians fared better while bowling thanks to the pitch and an accurate bowling attack (except the comeback man Jadeja). Binny made use of the conditions to his favor and picked up wickets to put England  on the backfoot. But, the Indians could not restrict the winning team. Jadeja and some sloppy fielding (by selected fielders) meant that the Indians could not put enough pressure on the duo of Butler and Taylor. Overall, a tour that ended without a win. It can be termed as a success still if the next tour (with more or less the same players) contains few winning moments. Hopefully, the players remember and implement the lessons learnt.

Australia Tour Tri-series - England crush India

Binny came in for Ashwin and injured Rohit Sharma was replaced by Ambati Rayudu for the match against England at Brisbane. The Indians suffered a rare defeat against England on neutral venues - one of the worst defeats. But, Dhoni would say that the process is more important than the result. Here, the process seemed to be clear once again.

Dhoni is putting his boys through a tough test - putting his team in when he could have easily bowled after winning the toss on a helpful surface. Playing against the accurate English bowling on this surface is probably the best practice that he could get his team. Seeing the team performance, Dhoni must have got an idea of who is capable and who is not. I expect to see strategy changes for the World Cup based on this match.

Stuart Binny shone with the bat and then picked a wicket while opening the bowling. If one goes back to the last World Cup Down Under, the likes of Phil Simmons (probably same speed of Binny) did a great job opening the bowling. Binny and Bhuvi opening the bowling is going to be a good option if they can restrict the scoring with the new ball. Shami and Ishant then could bowl first change and make use of any reverse. With the spinners, Axar seems to have proved that he is as good as Jadeja and Ashwin but not in the similar mould while batting.

With two more matches in the tri-series and then maybe couple of warm-up matches, one should  foresee Dhoni tinker  with  more options even at the loss of few matches. Getting to know the strengths  and weaknesses is  probably the most important test now.

Australian Tour 2014 Final Test - When draw was more enjoyable

The Indians lost 0-4 during their previous tour Down Under. This time it was 0-2 - a reflection of the progress that the team made over four years. The team transitioned on many counts during this tour. The old order moved into retirement while the new generation batsmen came after losing (if not disastrous) campaigns from New Zealand, South Africa and England. The team had come close to winning matches in the first two tours but on the last tour to England, they did win at Lords.

On this tour, there would be no wins but the two draws could be considered as morale boosters for a team that has now moved to a new captain as well during the series. The test team will no longer have a certain Mr. Dhoni. Virat Kohli seems to enjoy his captaincy considering that he has scored three centuries and a forty in his two tests as captain. Let us see how this run continues in the next series overseas.

The positives have been limited on the batting front from the Indian side - Vijay, Rahane and Kohli have been standout performers in all tests. Rahul did well in the Sydney test, showing signs of long-term promise. Shikhar Dhawan and Chet Pujara will be still in the scheme of the Indian cricket - part of a good set of batsmen for the next generation.

It is the bowling that will give the Indian management a big headache. Discipline was missing in all matches and it was very clear that the slow wickets would not help any of them. The fact that the opposition bowlers also struggled meant that the Indian bowlers were not far behind - if that was a consolation factor. Ishant Sharma did well to apply his learnings of many years but it shudders when you think that the others are in the same situation he was few years ago. Umesh Yadav looked full of promise during the last tour Down Under but he has not progressed much. Bhuvi could not do much in the last test due to injury but he needs support from the pitch and conditions to be effective. Can Aaron become more consistent is the question on everyone's lips?

Overall, the Indians lost the series but not disappointed their fans. A win would have been good but I think the next overseas series will be the one where India will start their winning streak.

Australian Tour 2nd Test - India lose Brisbane test, so?

Statistician Mohandas Menon has an interesting tweet in the morning today

During this series, India have lost wickets by the dozen

• Adelaide Test
• 77/6 in 22.4 overs
• 73/8 in 18.1 overs
• Brisbane Test
• 87/6 in 24.1 overs
• 148/9 in 38.3 overs

This batting slump has overcome the good start provided by the batsmen like Vijay (again) and Rahane, Kohli failed this test match after his twin centuries while Dhawan came well in the second innings. Rohit Sharma, Chet Pujara and MS Dhoni would do well to introspect further on their game and see where they have to improve for the next test. In fact, I am not so sure if Rohit has to play the next test at all! Rohit has his list of chances but so far, nothing to prove his presence in the playing eleven. 

Murali Vijay played a great knock in the first innings - a knock that would rank high in Indian test cricket in terms of endurance and effectiveness. If only the Indian team could manage Mitchell Johnson better in the second innings, they could have inflicted a record defeat on the Aussies in the test match - look at the Aussie performance while chasing a paltry score. Definitely, another 60-70 runs on the board would have shaken them big time. 

Where the Indians faltered was during the first innings of the Australian innings. After getting the first six wickets, the Indian bowlers tried to repeat the dose that was given to Brad Haddin. Obviously, they couldnt deliver well and what happened was that the last four wickets doubled the score. This meant that the Australian team not only overtook the Indian team but also gained a healthy 97 run lead. Ishant Sharma as the pack leader should have guided his colleagues better. Maybe MSD should have put in a word when the match was slipping away. Maybe Ashwin was a better option to bowl at that time. The match moved away from India so fast that they were caught napping. 

The second innings saw the Indian bowlers grab few wickets and put doubts in the Aussie batsmen. They will try to leverage this for the next test match but the think-tank should definitely look to bringing back Bhuvi for Aaron and Raina for Rohit.

The margins of victory have been narrow than ever before - will the next match see the Indians strike a victory? Let us hope so.

England Tour 2014 - A win at Lords

28 years. That is the time it took India to repeat its World Cup win and now another win at Lords. Lords cricket ground - the Mecca of cricket and MSD chalked out a victory plan that his team could implement. Not that everything went his way though but the fact he was the winner meant a lot to him, his team and the fans.

The Indian team has been one without a lot of earlier superstars but the current team has benefited quite a lot by reduced expectations. They were expected to lose this series after the 8-0 drubbing earlier. Retirements have come and gone but the core of the team has not changed. Except Rohit Sharma's replacement by Stuart Binny, the top five have been consistent and same. Binny's debut was also necessitated by a change in Dhoni's strategy to play 6 batsmen (including himself). Not that Duncan Fletcher's inputs were far behind. Picking six pace (not fast) bowlers for this tour was probably Fletcher's suggestion but he may not get too much credit for this.

The batsmen have been improving and best of all, covering up for one another. Rahane scored in the first innings after the top order had seen off the worst of the track. Vijay and Pujara did the right thing by occupying the crease to an extent that the English bowlers were not only physically tired but mentally worried. Back-to-back test matches are going to test Anderson and Broad. In fact, Anderson might be secretly wishing for a two-test ban so that he can put his feet up. The support bowlers are not stepping up for England just like the new batsmen are.

Vijay has been an enigma for most of the Indian fans - someone who can bash the bowling in T20 shows utmost patience in test matches, leaving the balls outside the off stump with good decision-making ability. Pujara has been solid as well but without the scores (that one expects from him) to back up the stature of his innings. It has been Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan who have not been upto mark so far - Kohli will be given a run for all five tests but MSD will start thinking of Gambhir if Dhawan fails in the next test too.

Stuart Binny was unlucky that in the first innings Dhoni didnt go for the catch of Ballance of his bowling and while batting, he was given a bad decision. He will get another chance, if Dhoni's pattern is to repeat (of not changing a winning team) and that is where he has a good opportunity to perform again.

What can one say of Bhuvaneshwar Kumar! He has scored runs whenever he had a chance to bat, picked wickets mostly (except the last innings) and remains active on the field throughout. One of the most unassuming person on the ground, Bhuvi is a star for the Indian management to preserve. His swing is great and he should not be lost just like the Praveen Kumars and Irfan Pathans. He should be given more chances like the other star of the moment - Ishant Sharma!

Ishant has been getting wickets by the bunch in the last few tests - a sign that he has been less unlucky (a familiar explanation for his high bowling average). But, jokes apart, his forte has been his physical strength (despite a lanky frame), stamina and willingness to go on and on as per his captain's demands. Of course, execution of Dhoni's plan was the key highlight for Ishant - if not, one could have imagined another loss for India (at the hands of Root and Ali). One recalls the match against Australia where Ishant was asked to bowl at a 7-2 field and how he succeeded! The average is looking better already but he has a long way to go before he can fill Zaheer's boots.

Overall, a good victory for India with the master strategists Dhoni and Duncan plotting the rivals fall in detail. From now onward, it is India's series to lose. England seems to be on a downward spiral and the rest of the series can quickly go downhill for them.

England Tour 2014 - First match drawn - sign to come?

The first test match ended in a draw with England not being able to get 20 Indian wickets while the Indian bowlers got 10 in the one innings that they bowled! Not without both teams giving each other a tenth wicket stand of more than 100 runs. It was a mediocre match with the teams putting up performances that were mediocre, at the best. True, Bhuvi scored two fifties and took a fiver but there was nothing much to separate the two teams. That in itself is a sign to come up in this series. Of course, the pitches will be better in the following tests but neither team has shown the right skill and application to step up and grab the mantle.

With both captains being under pressure for different reasons, the match had a number of interesting sidelights but overall tended to be a bit like the dull and drab soap operas that appear on the telly. India will feel good that they did not lose their first test of the tour - something that they have been used to, every tour. The grounds seem to be in favor of the Indians more than the hosts (for commercial reasons - grounds having spent money on getting drainage systems fixed have to earn back the money quickly and for that, they need matches to go for five days)! The weather is also good with less interruptions from cloud or ground. All this means that the Indian team feels more at home on these pitches.

As I had suggested in my previous post, Stuart Binny was picked in the playing eleven as a batting allrounder but his captain was not sure about his bowling talent. He was given 10 overs of a total of 145, not something that he would have hoped for, when given the cap on the opening day. On the final day, his knock with Jadeja showed his temperament and ensured that he will live on for another test for sure. He seemed comfortable at the crease and definitely deserved more with the ball. MSD too mentioned at the end that he wouldn't change his bowling attack - that means there will not be any changes to the playing eleven for Lords test (not a bad idea though).

Murali Vijay and Pujara (in the second innings) continued the good work they had put in on the tours to SAF and NZ while Virat Kohli will try to forget this match quickly. Rahane and Dhawan got starts but could not capitalise much. Vijay was the batting highlight for India and he will do well to remember his good knock for all his moments in future where he will get into trouble. He is one batsman who seems to be comfortable in test matches and T20s, not ODIs. Strange! Rahane looked pretty while on song but could not convert his knocks to a bigger one.

Dhoni and Binny played one innings of significance which augured well for a team that went in with five regular batsmen. MSD has come up with a new plan to counter the swing on this tour and it seems to be working so far. The English bowlers seem to have found a defect in full areas to him - that might be a critical flaw in his game now. The tailenders contributed to the team total which meant that twice this series already, India went past 350. The last tour, they managed to touch 300 once only! Not a bad start for a team that had the batting legend, Rahul Dravid, as the batting consultant before the first test.

The bowlers did well till they met Root, Broad and Anderson. Bhuvi was always expected to do well because of the swing he obtained but Ishant continued the good work from NZ series. Ishant seems to have taken over the mantle left vacant by Zaheer but he needs more wickets under his belt. Shami was a bit disappointing but he is a good bowler who will learn from his mistakes soon. All in all, a good outing for a bowling unit that was not expected to take 20 wickets. They still havent but the hope has been revived in this test. This bodes well for Dhoni and his team for Lords.

Everything to play for in London and the Indian team will be keen to go forward quickly in the series.

SAF Test 1 - even day again

The Indian team after a satisfying day yesterday, started the first half-hour in a circumspect manner - the same way their openers played. So far, so good. But, without the runs showing on the board, the wickets started to fall when Philander started to pitch the ball in the right areas. Ashwin was flattered when he was given fields that were more suited for a Tendulkar or MS Dhoni. He could not rotate the strike efficiently and the one or two balls he left for the other tailenders were good enough to finish the innings.

The Indian bowlers started well but could not strike - luck was going the way of the batsmen when edges were falling short or they were missing the ball completely. Though the Indian fielding has lifted considerably after the newcomers, the catching has been awful. Simple catches were dropped - one of Smith and another of Faf Du Plessis - Ashwin and Rohit Sharma being the culprits. It will be good if more focus and preparation is done by the coaches on this aspect for you cannot afford to drop any catch in international cricket.

Zaheer, Shami and Ishant bowled well and picked wickets in the last session to start a collapse that broke the back of South African innings. For once, Ishant repeated his good performance from the previous match and showed that he can be consistent. Shami continued his good showing from the Windies tests but not much was known from his interactions with Zaheer. One aspect that gladdened the Indian fans was the fitness of the Indian pacers as well as the enthusiasm to hunt in pairs. For a long time, the Indian bowling had come together on overseas soil. Ashwin was a let-down but there was not much encouragement for him from the pitch - hopefully, the fourth innings will be different for him.

The Indian bowlers will have to wrap the tail and gain even a small lead to get psychological edge over their rivals. Once done, the batsmen will have to come out and repeat their first innings heroics once again - in fact, better it to set a target of 300 (not 275, as Rahane mentioned) for the last innings.

Champions Trophy 2013 - India are champions

India were the 2011 World Cup Champions. Now, they are 2013 Champions Trophy Champs as well. They did well to emulate the Australian team to do a repeat of the World Cup-Champions Trophy. MS Dhoni became the first captain to lead teams to victories at all the ICC championships - T20 World Cup included.

Image Courtesy: http://www.icc-cricket.com

The Indians won and celebrated hard on the field. The off-field celebrations must have been even wilder. But, this team deserves it. They did all the right things on the field after coming off an IPL that had controversies galore.

The match was reduced to a twenty-over bash - one might gasp at the audacity of such a possibility but this is much better than the SuperOver that was suggested if a match was tied (during the knockout stage). Yes, there was no reserved day but surely the twenty over version was good. Only one complaint though (nothing is perfect for us supporters, right?) The Indian innings was continuously interrupted by rain breaks which meant that the batsmen's concentration was disturbed. Nothing of this sort happened during the second innings. Though the number of overs were not reduced, the interruptions had a say with the score that the batting team put up - will the D/L method work here? Will there be an adjustment to the total just because the batsman had to do a stop-start procedure to their innings many a time.

The Indians continued to do all the right things on the field though. In a repeat of the match against South Africa, Ravindra Jadeja hit a cameo at the end to spur the total to an eventual match-winning score after Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli had given impetus early on. When it was the turn of the bowlers, Ashwin and Jadeja were all over the English batsmen. It was expected that the spinners will rule the roost especially looking at the cracks on the pitch. But, Ishant repaid his captain's faith in him by picking up two in two to restrain the English team.

All in all, an effort that had all the players contributing their 110% to the team's cause. The result was that the Indians were victors in a championship that was supposedly the brain-child of another Indian.

Champions Trophy 2013 - India through to the final

There is news going around in the social networking sites that India won the 1985 World Championship, two years after their 1983 World Cup win by a dominating performance led by the individual skills of a left-arm bowler by name Ravi. From India's 2011 World Cup win, it has been two years - will history repeat once again?

We need to wait one more match to know whether it will come true. But, India has been repeating the same dominance that was shown by Sunil Gavaskar's 1985 outfit. The semifinal match was no different - the scorecard reflects the superiority of the Indians on a day when luck favoured them as well. But, as they say, luck favours those who try hard.

The bowlers came to the party in the morning led by the accuracy of the tireless Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. Ishant Sharma put in a performance that was good to watch (after a long time) - in this tournament, India has been lucky that two of their enigmatic performers (Rohit and Ishant) have shown their potential in matches more than one. Umesh Yadav dealt the body blow that made Dilshan hobble around and reduced the Lankan line-up to a limp! MS Dhoni thought that he would bowl a few overs so that he can have his faster bowlers for the slog but the spinners were not to be denied. Jadeja and Ashwin picked up wickets that meant there was no productive partnership for the Lankans.

Sri Lanka could have put more pressure on the Indian batsmen had Dhawan's catches taken. Four dropped ones in the semifinal does not help anyone's cause. Shikhar Dhawan was not complaining though on his way to a fourth 50+ score in this tournament, he took India to the brink of victory. The lad has been amazing - ensuring that India doesnt miss the swagger of Sehwag at the top. Kohli came up with a fifty showing that his form against Lanka cannot be taken for granted.

Overall, a great performance all-round for the Indians who will try to exact revenge on the English team (for all their losses during their last sojourn) during the final. Will the finals see Dhoni repeat his trick with the toss as well as the form that his team has showed throughout? You bet there will be no dip in the intensity though.

India start as favourites against England

India will start the return series against England as the favourite, waiting to take 'revenge' (despite their statements on the contrary) on the team that inflicted a 4-0 defeat overseas.

The English team have played three warm-up matches on their tour but have showed enough glimpses of weakness against whatever little spin they have encountered. The Indian think-tank have made sure that not much of top-draw spin was visible to the visiting batsmen. How this strategy will help the Indian tweakers remains to be seen?

The Indians have many problems on their side too. The opening batsmen (Sehwag and Gambhir) are not in their best form - Sehwag scored a century in his last first-class innings though. Pujara also did well against the English bowlers in his outing as a special invitee for Mumbai 'A'. Tendulkar scored a hundred for Mumbai while Yuvraj showed his form against the visitors both with the bat and ball. Dhoni is the only person who did not play any cricket in the last few days.

Ashwin also did not benefit much because of the weather that affected Tamil Nadu's first match in Ranji. Zaheer's fitness is another concern that the team management will have while Umesh Yadav's top form in his match would have made the Team Management hopeful. Ishant Sharma will warm the bench mostly while Ojha has done a lot of bowling in his match (not with great success).

Kevin Pietersen is the one player that the Indians will have to look out for. The rest are not ones that will take away the sleep of Dhoni and Fletcher (no ill-will to the others please)!

Overall, the hosts have shrugged off their rustiness in the outings they have got and hence the build-up to the test match seems to be quite even. If the pitches play to form and the Indians capitalize it well, the series will be over from the English perspective quite fast.

Boxing Day test - Bowlers rule the MCG

It was a fascinating battle at the MCG where the bowlers from either side held the upper hand. Only the veteran pair of Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey managed to survive the carnage to put up a well-paced and crucial partnership in the second innings for Australia.

The day started with India in a good position to use the momentum of the partnership between Sachin and Dravid to score further and possibly take a handy lead. Hilfenhaus thought otherwise. Pitching the ball up and generating just enough movement to beat the batsmen and remind them of their old weaknesses, Hilfenhaus had the Indians play to the hands of the cordon behind the stumps. Dravid was bowled by a peach of a delivery while Kohli continued his overseas test match form by nicking to the keeper. Laxman was cleaned up by Siddle's well-pitched delivery while Dhoni continued his miserable run in test matches by edging to gully. All this while, Ishant was patient enough to continue his stint as a night-watchman but not for long. Ashwin showed what the top-order batsmen could have done by adding runs to the total and thereby reducing the deficit to a better-looking 51.

Australia's recent record has not been so great in the second innings - remember 47 vs South Africa as well as the recent debacle vs Black Caps in Hobart! There was a danger of a repeat performance when four batsmen perished to the bowling of Umesh and Ishant. Zaheer was bowling well and maintaining the pressure from the other end while the batsmen were getting out to the other bowlers. It needed the experience of Ponting and Hussey to stop the rut and keep the scoreboard ticking. Ponting looked more relaxed compared to the first innings while Hussey was on a mission to show his worth to a squad that cannot afford to miss him. Zaheer came back with late strikes but Hussey's miss by Dravid might prove to be costly.

Overall, a close dashboard for the test match with the Indians having a slight edge over Australia. The only difference will be the runs on the board that India will have to chase down. If the last 2 wickets are dismissed quite early tomorrow, India will expect their famed lineup to come to the party the second time.

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Eng-Ind series - When India had a chance

Though England have won the series against India convincingly, there were incidents when everyone involved felt that the Indian team had a fair chance of matching the English, at least in the first two test matches


First test at Lords

Zaheer Khan walks out of the attack after bowling a little more than 13 overs, reducing the Indian attack to a three-bowler (including an off-color Harbhajan). From a total of 62-2, England launch a score of 474-8 before declaring their innings. MS Dhoni is forced to exchange his gloves for the ball and comes close to taking Pietersen's wicket (denied by the DRS)

Dravid and VVS Laxman are going good at 182-3 when VVS gifts his wicket away. The Indians fold up for 286, barely avoiding the follow-on. 

Ishant Sharma puts his best in an inspired piece of bowling to reduce England to 62-5. He does not return after lunch, giving Morgan and Prior enough time to break away and eventually Broad decides to cut loose against the tired bowling (162 runs in 28 overs). England set India a target of 458. 

Gambhir gets hit on the elbow in the 2nd innings, ruling him out of the opening slot in the crucial final innings of the test next as well as the test match. 

Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni take tea on the final day at 218-5 in 81 overs. With one more session to follow, all hopes are on these two to take India to safety. Dhoni had been there and done the rescue act during the Lords test on the previous tour. This time, he edges behind to start the procession of the Indians to end at 261 in the 97th over.

2nd Test at Nottingham. India were supposed to be the comeback Kings.  

• They did start on the right note by reducing England 124-8. Broad and Swann came together to take the total to 221 (adding 97 runs in a little more than 18 overs).
• Rahul Dravid (again) and Yuvraj Singh were going great guns at 267-4 when Yuvraj poked to one outside off against Broad. Result was that India folded out to 288 (just 67 runs lead!)
• Harbhajan Singh picked up an injury, once again reducing the Indian attack to a three-member show. Yuvraj and Raina bowled the additional overs to spare MSD the plight of bowling.
• England were 24-1 by end of 2nd days play and quickly went to 57-2 before the Ian Bell show started. KP, Morgan, Prior and then Bresnan and Broad dismantled the Indian bowling to such an extent that the team was demoralized. The team must have lost their confidence during this innings - so much that their intensity got lower and lower after this mark. There was no way the Indians were going to extend the match to the final day. The humiliation was complete when the team was reduced to 55-6. After taking a 67-run lead, the match was lost by a whopping 319 runs - unbelievable.

After these two test matches, India were always playing catch-up. If only some of these chances were taken, the outcome of the series would have been different. Do you agree?

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Eng-Ind - 2nd test preview

While the English press is already celebrating the win in the Lords test by saying that the team is a step away from being No.1, the Indian media is talking about the typical attitude shown by Indian teams in coming back from such situations. While both are partially true, the players must be quietly planning their own battles for the next test match with the hope that there will be enough support for their style of cricket.

Now, what should be the Indian approach in the next match to equalize the series? A number of small steps:

1. The famed batting lineup should come to the party. Rahul Dravid will most likely open the batting and he has to take this in the right spirit (and not just do it for the sake of the team).
2. Sachin Tendulkar has to forget the fact that he is one-century short of a landmark milestone. He cannot get bogged down by statistics and even though he will create history eventually, he has to free up his mind.
3. VVS Laxman has to blame himself for both his dismissals at Lords. If not, he has shown that he can correct his record in England. Will it start from this test? MSD will hope so.
4. Yuvraj Singh will be the player to take over from Gambhir and must ensure that his pie-chucking skills get Kevin Pietersen out quickly.
5. The Indian team should kindle Sreesanth in such a way that he performs with the ball and not lip-service.
6. Hope Ishant Sharma and Praveen Kumar have been kept in cotton-wool for the last 3 days. 
7. Harbhajan Singh should start flighting and turning the ball now. It has been high time he has led the attack and he should realize that his bag of wickets is not justifying his performance on the ground.

Yes, a long list of tasks but not impossible for the Indian team.

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Eng-Ind - England go up 1-0

The 100th test match between India and England went the way of the hosts in a match that, though affected by rain, was played in bright sunlight most of the days. Though one can point their fingers towards the bowling, the famed batting of the No.1 test team in the world did not come to the ground. Agreed that the absence of Zaheer Khan helped England's cause but it was the clinical efficiency of the English team was visibly evident in the performances. The winning margin was almost the deficit that India had after both the first innings was completed - this meant that the match was lost then and there.

A look at the Indian eleven reveals the pluses and minuses from the test match:

• Praveen Kumar. There was a question mark on his presence in the playing eleven. This match yet again, proved his worth to the team especially in such conditions. He was also a willing work-horse on whom MSD could go back repeatedly for an extended spell. Hope his fitness continues to be in the prime condition. His batting in the first innings showed how much Sehwag was missed by this team - the minute he started attacking the bowlers, the English were a bit disturbed.
• Rahul Dravid. Hope no one raises the talk about his retirement plans once again. Rahul showed in the first innings why he is such a vital cog in India's batting wheel. His technique has changed a bit but it has helped him overcome the mistakes he was doing in recent times. It was a real surprise that he could not continue further in the second innings. He kept wickets, opened the innings and caught some tough catches - what more can the man do?
• Suresh Raina. A dodgy decision in the first innings cut his knock short but in the second stint, he was the fulcrum of the Indian innings. He has showed in both the tours so far that he has worked hard on his shortcomings against the short ball and how. He was in no problems against the English bowlers during the innings - another attestation of Greg Chappell's prediction that he was a talent to watch out for.
• Ishant Sharma. If he had listened to Zaheer Khan in the first innings, the Indian team would have been in a much better position in the test match. He was listless in the absence of Zaheer but produced a dream spell in the second. If he can repeat such spells in the forthcoming test matches, India has a good chance to equalize the series quickly.
• VVS Laxman. His batting was in sync with his record of poor scores in the first test of a series (reflection of India's fortunes as well). He did well in the second innings but fell in both stints to his knack of pulling the ball in air. 
• Abhinav Mukund. His temperament was good in both innings and impressed all the greats in the commentary box. If he reaches out to Sunil Gavaskar before the second test, he will have better options to tackle the weakness of reaching out to wide balls. A good back-up for the combination of Sehwag and Gambhir.
• Zaheer Khan. Had dismissed both the openers on the first day before he walked out of the match. Has continued a knack of not playing all the test matches in an overseas series. The sooner he can make a reappearance in the eleven, the better the chances of India in the series.
• MS Dhoni. His batting seems to be still in B-mode while his captaincy was decent enough with all the issues going around in the team. The team was down to 8 fit men in the second innings and the captain did everything in his capacity to reduce the final target. It was a good move by him not to tax Ishant after the lunch on the fourth day, despite all criticism he received - remember the likes of Srinath and Prasad being overworked by Sachin Tendulkar leading them to severe injuries.
• Harbhajan Singh. There is no reason why Harbhajan is in the squad - maybe the team management think that it is not right to drop a bowler with 400 wickets. His outcome in this test (though Dhoni did support him) was the same as Suresh Raina - not to belittle either of them. He was clearly outperformed by Swann. The English bowlers knew the exact lengths to bowl to him also - making him ineffective with the bat as well.
• Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir has to get into his groove as early as possible. Obviously, his elbow will be in focus over the next three days. If Gautam can get going, the Indian team can seize the advantage over the bowlers quickly. Without Sehwag, India depends on GG to get going.
• Sachin Tendulkar. The legend was bogged down by a viral infection as well as the hype surrounding his 100th century. He is probably putting additional pressure on him to score the next century (also, getting one in Lords was worrying him also). Hope to see him back in his groove in the next test.

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