India, England fight for Test supremacy
LONDON: The bragging rights of Test cricket supremacy are at stake and where better to see this battle unfold and watch blow-by-blow action than at the birth place of the gentleman's game.
India and England will battle it out in a four-match Test series, the first of which begins at the iconic Lord's cricket ground on Thursday. It also happens to be the 100th Test between the two sides and the 2000th in the history of the game.
While India have been playing the box-office brand of cricket which has seen the BCCI's cash registers ringing like a seven-piece orchestra, England have taken up the effective way, grinding out results throughout the five days with disciplined and strict batting and tireless displays of bowling.
The hosts sent off the perfect warning signal by taking out a consistent Sri-Lankan side and in turn help Chris Tremlett and James Anderson emerge as better bowlers at the end of the series, which England won 1-0.
What has been an integral part of England's progress is the ability to pick 20 wickets in a game, something which was left wanting for a long time. In captain Andrew Strauss, Jonathan Trott and run-machine Alastair Cook, England have a solid,reliable top three which can be a pain in the backside for any bowling side.
As far as the Number 1 Test side in the world, India are confident, buoyant and have proved their worth by sending a second-string team to the Caribbean and winning both ODI and Test honours for the first time in their history.
Under Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership, the sky is the limit for this Indian team which has infused youthfulness and enthusiasm even in seasoned veterans like VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid.
And add to that the return of match-winners like Zaheer Khan, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar and its impossible to look away from the visitors' team-sheet without drooling over it. If ever Test cricket wanted an advertisement to boost its reputation, this series would serve as the perfect pay-per view.
In the event that England beats India by a margin of two tests they will leapfrog South Africa to go top of the ICC world rankings for the first time. What will work in the favour of Strauss' team will be the fact that they are unbeaten in their last eight series and have won the last five.
News Posted: 20 July, 2011
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