By Nasser Hussain
India have only themselves to blame for not coming to the party fit and rearing to go. From having England on the mat at 124 for 8 in the first innings at Trent Bridge, and taking a first innings lead, to losing the test by a massive 319 runs shows the difference between the two sides. England is playing top class cricket as a team, whereas the Indians are struggling to cope with their demons on and off the field.
England delivered a faultless performance once again in all departments. Anderson, Broad, Bresnan and Swann once again restricted what has arguably been rated as the world’s best batting side to under 300 runs in the first innings and then routing them for 158 in the second innings. And despite no great opening partnership, England’s batting has been in the safe hands of Pietersen, Bell, Morgan and Prior; and Broad, Bresnan and Prior have played a significant role as allrounders. Broad’s knock of 64 to bring some sanctity to the England first innings total could well be the turning point of the test.
India on the other hand, have relied more on individual performances while the team as a whole has struggled with injuries and an overall lack of preparation for this tour. While Dravid has batted like a champion, and Laxman and Tendulkar have bolstered the Indian batting somewhat, its bowlers have a done a marvelous job. The injury to Harbhajan Singh creates another fitness problem for India at Edgbaston.
Its evident that some of India’s players are suffering from exhaustion from having played non-stop cricket for many months whilst others have become unfit despite having been rested before the series. This has created a huge problem for skipper Dhoni, who is fast running out of quality replacements. And Dhoni himself is in his worst form with bat and gloves since he started playing at this level. So India are not exactly in a good spot right now. England will do well to keep the pressure on Dhoni for the remaining tests as keeping the opposing captain down is winning half the battle.
Having said that, I have tremendous respect for Dhoni the leader. His decision to bring back Bell was a fantastic sporting gesture, great for the spirit of the game. Not many would have taken such a bold step when wickets was the need of the hour. But I do not see that decision having any impact on the outcome of the test; England were the superior side at both Lords and Trent Bridge.
So is it all doom and gloom for India?
Well, that depends entirely on the Indian players. Test cricket, unlike one dayers and T20, does not allow an underprepared team down 0-2 to bounce back, especially when there is hardly a break between matches. But India has fantastic players and someone needs to rise and inspire the team to make a comeback, and things can change for them. But the English are in no mood to let up. This English side is hungry for the ICC’s No 1 ranking, and frankly its up to India to defend its position.
I strongly feel that sides which attain the No 1 rank should strive harder and prepare better than ever in order to increase the gap between themselves and the sides ranked lower. This is what the West Indies did in the 80’s and the Australians did in the 90’s. The Indians have not come with any plan in this direction, and will be hard pressed to retain their ranking.