Analysis: India’s worst tour of England since 1974

Scyld Berry

 

England are becoming a solid one-day team. Another victory on Sunday, at Lord's against the World Cup holders, and England will have won every one-day series except for two against Australia since their Cultural Revolution of January 2009.

 

Under Alastair Cook, England are finding a way to win games - even if they are also finding a way to look horribly vulnerable against spin, which portends ill for their return series in India next month. They will be glad the Lord's pitch (No 9 on the square) for Sunday's international has not been used yet this season, which will reduce the impact of India's spinners.

 

The Oval pitch had not been used either, before the third international on Friday. But its dampness and softness gave India their first sniff of a victory over England on this tour, when the left-arm spinner Ravi Jadeja and off-spinner Ravi Ashwin exposed the lack of footwork that is still inherent in English - and South African - batsmanship.

 

The way Craig Kieswetter played at his last three balls from Jadeja - in vain - after a brilliant opening sally against India's medium-pacers, has created a rod for England's backs next month. Ashwin opens the bowling in the Indian Premier League, and he can already be inked in to start against Kieswetter, Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott in the five internationals which are sure to be on slow, dry turners. The first 15 overs of England's innings in India could see as much pad-play as Powerplay.

 

It will be instructive if Surrey open their bowling against Somerset next Saturday with a spinner in the CB40 final, also at Lord's. Kieswetter plans to drive up the motorway from Cardiff straight after England's fifth ODI ends on Friday evening, in his attempt to end Somerset's record of losing their last six semi-finals. But at least if Surrey open their bowling with a spinner, Kieswetter may have Marcus Trescothick as an opening partner to slog-sweep him out of the attack.

 

Cook, meanwhile, should have learned from making a mistake at the Oval and still emerging with a 2-0 lead. He ignored James Anderson, who had taken three wickets on a greenish seamer, from the 14th until the 43rd over, and thereby allowed India to rehabilitate from 58 for five to the extent their lower order scored 176 from the last 31 overs.

 

The Book of England's Attacking One-day Captains is shorter than Wisden, if it exists at all; and, worldwide, the only time that any captain in the field seems to attack the batsman is in the batting Power-play, when the field has to be brought in. But next time Cook has the chance to finish off an opposition in bowling conditions, he must not stick to Plan A and damage limitation.

 

So it was partly with England's assistance that India enjoyed their best passage of play this summer, the nearest the tourists have come to getting on top. This is the worst tour of England that India have had since 1974, when again a pop-gun pace attack could not begin to compete with England's; but an end to their recession is in sight because of their young batsmen who cannot only bowl, like Jadeja, but also field.

 

Previous generations of Indian cricketers never dived around, but the new stadiums which their wealthy board have built have included sprinkler-systems that have made diving a far less dusty and injurious pastime. The willingness of young Indian players to throw, and extend, themselves is a sign that India will not drop below mid-table in any format - just as Australia, equally blessed with batsmen and fielders, are now regenerating rapidly in Sri Lanka.

 

England's job over the next two months is to make themselves something more than solid: to unearth some flair in addition to Eoin Morgan's which, in four years' time, can turn semi-finalists into World Cup winners.

 

Ben Stokes has this quality, but his batting against spin has such a long way to go that he can only be a part of England's squad in India, not the 50-over XI. So do two brilliant young batsmen, who can also keep wicket rather less brilliantly: Jos Buttler and Jonathan Bairstow. By the next World Cup, as Kevin Pietersen will have gone by then, England will need one or the other, with or without Kieswetter.