IT was the same story at Lord’s. India was once again thrashed on foreign soil. They were the sacrificial lambs that were led all the way to slaughter by the Englishmen. And, like good, obedient sacrificial lambs, the Indians showed little resistance. The only hint of resistance came towards the end of the last innings when the lower order tried to make an impression. But, of course, it was too little, too late. It only delayed the inevitable. Still, England won it by some 170 runs and with hours to go. It was as comfortable a victory as the Englishmen could imagine.
Nasser Hussain must be a mighty pleased man, and deservingly so, because his side was able to register this huge win even though it had taken the field with severely depleted resources. They did not have the services of their frontline and first-choice bowling attack due to injuries to Andrew Caddick, Darren Gough and Alex Tudor.
Besides, their most successful batsman of the last few months, Marcus Trescothik, also had a freak injury days before the game, and now has to sit out the entire series. If this all was not enough, even the first-choice wicket-keeper, James Foster, was out of contention, and Graham Thrope, England’s prime batsman over the last several years, is having a lot of trouble in his personal life, and failed to contribute anything to the team’s effort, except the catch in the slips off Ashish Nehra’s bat that brought England the victory.
It is to the eternal credit of the English side that it never allowed any of these negatives to come in their way. In fact, they converted them into positives of sorts. If Trescothik was out, his replacement John Crawley made the most of the opportunity that came his way. If Foster was not there, Alec Stewart got the chance to become the most capped England player. Even though his contribution with the bat was nothing much to talk about, these bits of history in the making certainly help the overall atmosphere in the camp.
But the biggest positive that came out of England’s forced negatives is the emergence of Simon Jones. He certainly has the looks of a true fast bowler, and appears to be the best thing that has happened to English cricket in a very long time, specially as far as their bowling resources are concerned.
The English County circuit has churned out a lot of trundlers, but has shown little capacity to throw up someone with real pace. Simon seems to be an exception. He has the build, the height, the pace and the intent to bowl fast, and make an impression. Unfortunately, he also picked up an injury during the game, and we, the viewers, were deprived of the opportunity to see him bowl for long and to his full potential. But I have certainly been impressed by the young lad, and will be seriously disappointed if he does not make it big on the international stage in the years to come. The English management must do everything they can to harness this raw talent, and keep him physically fit.
What can one say about the Indians? I am tired of writing again and again about the mental incapacity of the Indians to be tough while playing in alien conditions. While playing abroad, they behave like a bunch of home-sick teenagers on their first day in a hostel, having little clue to what they are supposed to do, and are subjected to all sorts of fun and ridicule by the seniors. Will they ever grow up?
IT was the same story at Lord’s. India was once again thrashed on foreign soil. They were the sacrificial lambs that were led all the way to slaughter by the Englishmen. And, like good, obedient sacrificial lambs, the Indians showed little resistance. The only hint of resistance came towards the end of the last innings when the lower order tried to make an impression. But, of course, it was too little, too late. It only delayed the inevitable. Still, England won it by some 170 runs and with hours to go. It was as comfortable a victory as the Englishmen could imagine.
