WHAT a season the Englishmen are having on the cricket field! I have repeatedly talked of the English side in the last year or so as they made gradual strides towards regaining their lost ground in international cricket, but their performance this season has surprised me as well. The surprise is not as much about the scoreline as it is about the consistency shown by the team. Once a team starts improving on the consistency factor, the results start to reflect in the scoreline. It is but natural. To have won seven Test matches in a row is no small achievement. In fact, it is quite remarkable.
As is the pattern of the game, matches are won mostly by bowlers. A side has to bowl out the opponents twice, which means as many as twenty wickets in a game. The English pace attack is suddenly one of the most potent force in world cricket with the likes of Stephen Harmisson, Simon Jones, Mathew Hoggard and James Anderson making big strides in recent times. That is one of the major reasons behind the English success story.
As if that was not enough, left-arm spinner Ashley Giles has started to feature among the wickets, which is a big bonus for the side. Till not long ago, Giles, at his best, was a stock bowler who could keep one end going for the rest of the bowling battery to refresh themselves. No more. He was among the star performers in the recent series against West Indies, and can look back at his performance with justified pride.
But the most important reason of all, as I see it, is the coming of age of all-rounder Andrew Flintoff. Ever since he started his career, which was quite some time ago, Flintoff has been routinely compared to Ian Botham who was one of the four great all-rounders — Imran Khan, Richard Hadlee and Kapil Dev being the other three — who took the game to newer heights in the last 1970s and through the ‘80s.
The burden of such unwarranted comparisons is huge on anyone just starting his career. General expectations soar higher and higher, and the pressure mounts in multiples on a young lad. Flintoff was no exception and suffered for a long time. It is only after the media and the man on the street stopped comparing the two that Flintoff came into his own and started delivering in some measure. The credit must go the cricketing authorities in England who kept faith in his abilities and gave him a fair run without putting unnecessary pressure on him. Flintoff today is a changed character. He is fit. He is keen. He delivers both with the bat and the bowl. And he is no slouch in the field. He is a complete all-rounder, and as good as they come. While bowlers may win you matches, they obviously need to have a score on the board to bowl against, which brings into the frame the quality and strength of batting that England has right now. Graham Thorpe and Mark Butcher are the veterans, with March Trescothick and Michael Vaughan bringing up the rear. In between lies the sparkling talent and youthful exuberance of Andrew Strauss and Robert Key. There is a lot of substance in the lineup, and things look good for the overall English unit as most of the guys are in their mid to late 20s.
England’s next major assignment is set to come a few months later when they would tour South Africa sometime in December. On paper and on current form, the odds seem to favour England, but it will have to be really focussed to make an impression on the Proteas, specially while playing in the latter’s own backyard. If they do that, they would be ready to take on Australia in their next Ashes assignment. Australia beware!
WHAT a season the Englishmen are having on the cricket field! I have repeatedly talked of the English side in the last year or so as they made gradual strides towards regaining their lost ground in international cricket, but their performance this season has surprised me as well. The surprise is not as much about the scoreline as it is about the consistency shown by the team. Once a team starts improving on the consistency factor, the results start to reflect in the scoreline. It is but natural. To have won seven Test matches in a row is no small achievement. In fact, it is quite remarkable.
