Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe UPI Editors Krishnadev Calamur and Martin Hutchinson look at the India-England test series ahead of the third test at Headingley Did India miss an opportunity? Advertisement By MARTIN HUTCHINSON In view of India's apparent superiority in talent, as discussed last month, it's worth asking whether the two Test matches so far, one of which England won by 170 runs, while the other was a draw very much in England's favor, represent a huge missed opportunity for India. Of course, England only leads the series 1-0, with two to play, and things can turn around very quickly. Nevertheless, this looked like India's series to lose, and so far it hasn't been. India's primary problem has been the bowling. In four innings, Virender Sehwag has averaged 54, Rahul Dravid 59, Sachin Tendulkar 38, Sourav Ganguly 43 and V.V.S. Laxman 51, with Ajit Agarkar in addition averaging 59, so with the exception of Wasim Jaffer as opening batsman, and maybe an additional "stepping up" by Tendulkar, the Indian batting lineup has performed pretty close to par. To be bowled out at Lords for 221 in the first innings, on a good wicket, was very feeble after England's first innings 487, but in the three subsequent innings the Indian batsmen have performed creditably, particularly in saving the game in the second innings at Trent Bridge. Advertisement The Indian bowlers, on the other hand, did not perform up to expectations, particularly against the England tail-enders. It has been statistically shown that on average the run total in a Test innings at the fall of the fifth wicket is about 65 percent of the run total for the innings as a whole. At Lord's, England were 263 for 5; hence their final total should have been about 405 -- in the end, they made 487. At Trent Bridge, England were 335 for 5; hence their final total should have been 515 -- they actually made 617. Had India's bowlers suppressed England's tail in an averagely effective fashion, they might well have saved the first Test, and even put England under pressure in the last hours of the second. The spinners, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, were not particularly penetrative on pitches that were not in their favor, while the fast bowlers' inexperience showed, with Zaheer Khan being about the best of them. On the England side, Simon Jones (injured for the second Test) and Steve Harmison had decent debuts, without either suggesting they were the second coming of Fred Trueman. Matthew Hoggard was by far the most impressive of the bowlers, with 12 wickets in the two Tests, and has clearly made himself England's leading strike force. With Darren Gough and Andrew Caddick, missing from both Tests, both nearing the age when fast bowlers slow down, his emergence, and the possible emergence of Jones and Harmison, are good signs for England's cricketing future. Advertisement On the batting side, less was learned. Graham Thorpe took himself out of the remainder of the series, so that England will play the last two Tests without either of their two world-class batsmen. However, Michael Vaughan's 197 was encouraging. "Big" hundreds -- over 150 -- are quite rare, so 197 is a much more impressive feat than a simple 100, and it took Vaughan's Test match batting average over the important 40 mark -- though over only 35 innings. Nevertheless, Vaughan is nearly 28, so is probably a solid and useful, rather than dominant Test batsman for the future. Of the other batting successes, Nasser Hussain's hundred was welcome, but told us nothing we didn't know, while Alec Stewart's good scores were a pointer to the past, not the future. Craig White's batting successes, against demoralized bowling, would probably have rendered him a fixture in the England side for the next few matches, even though his bowling is clearly not of Test quality, but fortunately (from an England supporter's viewpoint) he has now succumbed, like so many others, to injury. With two Tests to go, India still has a theoretical chance to win the series, and a real chance to save it. Indian bowling will have to be a lot better than at either Lord's or Trent Bridge, and it is unlikely that English groundsmen at Headingley or the Oval will prepare a dry crumbling spinners' wicket, such as would suit the best of the Indian attack. Hence the odds must be on an England series win. With Marcus Trescothick, and Gough out for the entire Test series, Caddick able to play in at most two Tests, and Thorpe one, it certainly appears that India has missed an excellent opportunity to take a Test series in England, something she has done only once (1986). Advertisement With an Ashes Test series coming up this winter, the last two Tests would be an excellent opportunity for England to blood new batsmen, apart from Robert Key, since the old brigade, never very good, are in several cases nearing the end of their Test careers. Should they do so, England might even be able to reduce by a notch or two the current 5-year gap between the average age of the England team (30) and that of the Indian team (25). In that event, maybe the plague of injuries that perennially attacks England teams could be lessened -- old men are, after all, notoriously subject to aches and pains. Indian bowling must improve By Krishnadev Calamur India takes on England for the third test of the NPower series in Headingley Thurdsay comforted by the notion that its much-vaunted batting line up is firing and it's thus far pathetic bowling display is showing signs of a slight turnaround. First the bowling. India's bowling display in the second test was, simply put, substandard. With exception of Zaheer Khan, who also has the makings of a useful tail-end batsman, the rest of the attack was tame. Ajit Agarkar and Ashish Nehra disappointed and Harbhajan Singh did not deliver on his promise. Advertisement Having said that, however, Harbhajan's seven-wicket haul against Essex last week, is promising. Fresh from a new contract with Lancashire, for whom he will play county cricket next season, the man dubbed the Turbanator will, hopefully for the Indians, deliver at Headingley. India must surely miss the services of Javagal Srinath, its pace spearhead for the much of the past decade. His retirement from the test arena has hit India hard, but hopefully his upcoming county stint with Leicestershire will put him back in the reckoning for the World Cup squad. India's batting is a different story altogether. The big guns -- Sachin Tendulkar, skipper Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid -- are all in excellent form and V.V.S. Laxman has been consistent. But the good news is the tail. Agarkar, Harbhajan and Zaheer have also been great with the bat and the diminutive teenage wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel has shown he can hold his ground. Also S.S. Das' double hundred against Essex will surely place him ahead of Wasim Jaffar before the third test. This is undoubtedly India's best side in a long time but without at least one fast bowler capable of going through the top order of an opposition team in South Africa it is unlikely to come anywhere near winning. Srinath is that man. Advertisement England, on the other hand, must be celebrating its good fortune. Not only has the Indian bowling attack failed to back up its batsman, most of the England top order seem to be in good nick. Their bowling attack will receive a fillip with the knowledge that Andy Caddick is fit to join the team and Andrew Flintoff may play in the third test despite a hernia. England leads the series 1-0 with two matches to play and unless the Indian bowling does a miraculous turnaround that's my prediction of the final outcome. Bookmakers at Bet365 are quoting a Headingley draw at 11/10. Odds for an England victory are 13/8. The odds are 10/3 on an Indian win. Other cricket news The world's top cricketers are locked in a battle against the International Cricket Council over sponsorship ahead of next month's ICC Champions Trophy. The ICC, the game's governing body, wants players taking part in tournaments it organizes to sign contracts that prevents them from being sponsored by rivals of the official sponsors. Most of the world's top cricketers -- including Indian stars Tendulkar, Ganguly and most of the Australian and South African sides -- oppose the ICC plan and risk being left out of their national squads for the tournament in Sri Lanka. Advertisement But the ICC faces a backlash -- will the crowds want to watch a mini World Cup without any of its top stars? Comments to [email protected]
