India vs England 2012

[Crookbond]

http://www.wisdenindia.com/cricket-news/tendulkar-respect-too-anderson/34687 Not a big fan of Anderson but that's a good attitude coming from a bowler. :hatsoff: On the other hand...you do need to treat certain players differently sometimes.

Tendulkar has reached a point where all other cricketers in the field are in awe of him. Due to that, you can stand on the field and think "What makes this guy special? Wow! Look at his footwork". In that process, you may forget you are trying to take his wicket as a bowler or as a fielder. One has to be really careful as a bowler in that aspect.

[rkt.india]

I find it a bit stupid with the huge emphasis on spin. Let's be honest, Swann is definitely better than many of our options. Actually, he is even more proven than Ashwin who is our best spinner today. And Panesar is just about similar to Ojha. Thus, unlike ourselves where we don't have any genuine quicks and so we do struggle overseas, England do have experise in spin and it's a question of will they be able to adapt to the local conditions. So far, the friendly matches have indicated that they have done well in adaption. It's going to a hard series and really wouldn't surprise where we have one test match just like our worst test match against SA at home.

Swann is moslty dangerous against left handers. Right handers handle him much better.

[Crookbond]

India have more problems with spin than England http://www.wisdenindia.com/cricket-blog/india-problems-spin-england/34616?single_col_view=true

It is entirely possible, however, that India kept their spinners away (except Amit Mishra in the last game) for a different reason altogether. The idea may not have been to hide their strength so much as to ensure they didn’t expose their weakness. The bogey of spin on Indian wickets has been very cleverly created in the minds of the English batsmen, but how much of that is genuine? India have shown their lack of spin focus by picking both Ashwin and Harbhajan for the initial Tests which is unfair on both and on skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. How do you pick a man who has played 98 Tests like Harbhajan has and then confine him to the reserves? On the other hand, what has the incumbent Ashwin done wrong to be pushed out by a bowler who has not done anything distinguished since losing his place in the team? And why should Dhoni be forced to make that choice? If the final decision is the famous Indian compromise, which means playing both, what will that do to the balance of the team?

[Crookbond]

England batsmen have limited shots against spin: Mishra

Alastair Cook Cook is most comfortable playing on the back foot. The ideal thing to do is pick a spot and keep bowling to him with subtle variations. Block the scoring options off the back foot, keep the ball on one spot and encourage him to come forward. Then he goes back to the sweep or comes down the pitch, and you’re in business. Nick Compton He doesn’t strike me as the most skillful player against spin. He’s got to do a lot of work against spin. He’s going to be in for a tough time in the Tests. Jonathan Trott Even he was not comfortable. Trott’s strategy seems to be to come down the pitch or sweep with an aim to get the bowler to feed him what he can play from the back foot. Instead, hold a single line and make him play off the front foot. When he steps out, think of it as a good sign. Kevin Pietersen I agree that he’s an attacking batsman and a very good one, but if you look at the number of times he’s been dismissed by spin, including part-timers such as Yuvraj Singh, you get the feeling he’s not totally comfortable. His strength is that he does not allow the spinner to settle. He’s tall and uses his reach very well. That helps him more than anything else. Ian Bell He does have skill. He waits for the ball and plays late and he is also not afraid to use his feet. He has the right temperament. If any of the English batsmen manage to do well in India – and that will be hard – it will be Bell and KP. Samit Patel I guess England will try and use him as someone who can bowl 10 or 15 overs an innings and contribute. In these conditions the fast bowlers will need proper breaks and he may be used to achieve that.

http://www.wisdenindia.com/cricket-article/england-batsmen-limited-shots-spin-mishra/34683?single_col_view=true

[indiaregulator]

Goodness me, some horrible analysis. Cook's problem with playing spin is that he tries to move to his right so he can off-cut the ball to square far too often and that is his favourite shot. Cook hardly ever sweeps. Trott's problem against spin is that he is far too tentative and waits for the bad balls and gets bogged down and doesn't return the stike. Again, he isn't really a sweeper. The only two sweepers England have are KP and Strauss and one of whom has retired. EDIT- oH and Morgan, who's stock shot is the reverse sweep. But he won't play.

[Old guy]

right now, im worried about how we will bat.. im backing england to do well in first game

[Sidhoni]

[Pagalpanti]

right now, im worried about how we will bat.. im backing england to do well in first game

Given we're slow starters wont be surprised if Eng get on top in 1st test.

[Old guy]

Given we're slow starters wont be surprised if Eng get on top in 1st test.

yes..i can see them piling up runs in first game... also batting is too iffy if sachn does not fire then its upto two rookies to hol batting line up together which is never great thing

[1983-2011]

is this going to be england's line up for first test: cook compton trott pietersen bairstow patel prior bresnan swann onions anderson

[indiaregulator]

Compton Cook Trott Pietersen Bell Patel Prior Broad Swann Anderson Finn

[1983-2011]

Compton Cook Trott Pietersen Bell Patel Prior Broad Swann Anderson Finn

But broad and finn will not be 100% fit while do you think bell is better than bairstow?

[SLICKR392]

^ What makes you think Bairstow is better than Bell? And I don't see them removing Bresnan..he bowled well in the warm ups.

[carnish]

2 days to go and I still dont have the feeling thats there before a big series ... why does everything feel so wrong this time ... Are we really gonna scuk in India too???

[Crookbond]

Steven Finn likely to miss first Test http://www.espncricinfo.com/india-v-england-2012/content/story/591097.html

[1983-2011]

^ What makes you think Bairstow is better than Bell? And I don't see them removing Bresnan..he bowled well in the warm ups.

theres not much difference between the two and I think bell would struggle against spin in India. Bresnan is included in my post, broad will play aswell so trio of anderson, broad and bresnan plus swann looks a good attack

[Crookbond]

Andrew Strauss' guide on how to handle the heat in India

On winning in India It’s one of the biggest challenges. India’s record at home is outstanding and England haven’t done well there for some time. But I don’t think it’s a challenge that should fill people with trepidation. Some of the batting conditions are better than anywhere in the world and the first innings is a great chance to get a big score. But, if you get ahead of India, you have to be ruthless. On playing spin In my time playing for England we felt we were pretty good players of spin and that’s why what’s happened in the last 12 months has surprised me. I think we made big strides under the coaching of Duncan Fletcher and some of the guys can be regarded as genuinely good players of spin. But it’s a confidence game and as soon as people start talking about fallibility against spin, it almost becomes self-perpetuating. All the players need to do is be very clear on their game plan: don’t hesitate but commit. If they do that, they’re as capable of playing spin as anyone. There is no reason to worry too much about their productivity but what you can’t afford is what we had in the UAE against Pakistan, when all the batsmen had a little fallow period at the same time. If you do that, you ain’t going to win matches. On the sweep shot The sweep was a big part of my game against spin, but the rules of engagement have changed with the Decision Review System and the players must adapt — even when the DRS isn’t in use, as in this series. You have to be very careful sweeping the ball that turns away from you because a lot of them are pitching in line and straightening. During the series in the UAE against Pakistan, when the ball was skidding through flat and low, it was an incredibly high-risk shot, especially if you were getting only one run for it. It is a game of cat and mouse. The bowlers get on top and the batsmen have to adapt — and vice-versa. What you don’t want is to allow the bowlers to get on top of you early in the series because it makes it much harder to come back. If you as a batsman can get runs early in the series, then the pressure’s on the bowler. On finding a batting tempo You have to get used to the fact that, at times on the subcontinent, you’re going to play quite slowly. And if you up the tempo, it’s going to be quite high risk. Against Sri Lanka at Galle in April, Jonathan Trott was great at just ticking away. But everyone’s different. Kevin Pietersen came in at Colombo and just obliterated their bowling, so it just depends on what your best method is. For Trott, it’s slow, steady accumulation. For Alastair Cook it’s similar. Matt Prior generally takes the game to the opposition a bit more. They just have to commit to those game plans. On bowling in India It’s a huge challenge for our bowlers to take wickets. Non-subcontinental spinners have always struggled in India and our seamers must find a way of taking wickets when pitches are flat, whether it’s through reverse swing, genuine swing or cutters. That’s going to be a huge test of their skills. But England’s attack has rightly been touted as one of the best in the world and this is the bowlers’ chance to show that. On Kevin Pietersen For it to work out long term, everyone’s genuinely got to want it to work out. Kevin has to want to be part of the team for a long time and the players need to move on from what happened at Headingley and various other things. Even the likes of Andy Flower genuinely has to want to bridge the gap and move forward. If that is everyone’s attitude, then it can work. If it isn’t, then I think there are going to be challenges. On mutual respect The question of actually liking each other is not an issue. It’s about respect. Not everyone’s going to be best mates. In a dressing-room environment, especially when you’re away from home so much, it becomes your second family. I noticed when I was writing to the players saying I was retiring how emotional I was because I realised how attached I was to them. For that kind of environment to work, everyone has to have huge trust in each other, huge respect for each other and everyone’s got to know that everyone’s working for the same cause. On dysfunctional dressing rooms If people start doubting that, it becomes a dysfunctional dressing room very quickly. I’ve been in good, functional dressing rooms and I’ve been in dysfunctional ones. In a dysfunctional one, it doesn’t matter how good the players are, it never has success consistently. People will always be judged on their actions. Over the next few months — for Kevin and the rest of the guys — it will be apparent whether it’s going to work or not.

[Crookbond]

Buoyant Indians hit the ground running

In the Indian camp, the buzz surrounding the approaching home series is evident. The players, who are all away from home and their families during Diwali, are fully aware that a win in Ahmedabad will go a long way in relieving the tension and set Indian cricket back on the right path.

http://www.wisdenindia.com/cricket-article/buoyant-indians-hit-ground-running/34838?single_col_view=true

[SLICKR392]

theres not much difference between the two and I think bell would struggle against spin in India. Bresnan is included in my post' date= broad will play aswell so trio of anderson, broad and bresnan plus swann looks a good attack

There's that. Bell is horrible playing spin but I don't see them dropping him for the first 2 Tests. Bresnan post was for regulator.

[GautiMaan]

Ishant ill, Dinda named standby http://www.espncricinfo.com/india-v-england-2012/content/current/story/591157.html