Conquering the final frontier – England’s tour of India thus far [Part 2]
Continued from Part 1 …
The four-match Test series kicked off with the first game at the Sardar http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Huzefa-Mohammed-Patel-c63657 Stadium in Motera, Ahmedabad, played from November 15 to 19. Having won the toss and chosen to bat first, India’s top-order had England’s bowling attack at a complete loss for
the earlier stages of their first innings. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Yuvraj-Singh-c98364 (74) chipped in with supporting contributions. With a
bevy of fast bowlers and just one specialist spinner in their attack, England were at a loss, and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/GP-Swann-c1501 (51-8-144-5) was the only one who managed to make an impact.
India eventually declared at 521, and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/R-Ashwin-c2228 (27-9-80-3). Following on, England managed a marginally better
performance in the second innings – playing a captain’s knock, Cook anchored the innings at the top with a massive 176, but unfortunately http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MJ-Prior-c1984 (91) was the only one who was able to support him. Once again, Ojha (55-16-120-4) was the wrecker-in-chief,
and with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Z-Khan-c98379 (27.3-5-59-2) chipping in with supporting performances, India’s assault proved too much for England to handle.
The visitors were cut off at 406, all out, and only managed to set their hosts a 77-run target to chase. England’s attack was only able to claim one wicket (Swann dismissed Sehwag), after which Pujara stepped up once again to get the job done. His unbeaten
41 guided the team home, and India asserted their dominant stance as the home team by claiming a massive 9-wicket win in the first Test.
Having received a sound thrashing at the hands of the Indian spinners, England were understandably the underdogs as they went into the second match of the series, played at the Wankhede Stadium in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mumbai-c820. Having learnt their lesson, England employed two
specialist spinners in Swann and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Monty-Panesar-c2024, and the decision ended up making all the difference. Displaying remarkable determination, resilience, and character, England appeared unfazed by their defeat at Ahmedabad, and managed to effectively turn the
tables on their hosts, beating them at their own game – spin.
Having won the toss, India chose to bat first yet again – however, this time around, Swann (34.1-7-70-4) was operating with a partner. Panesar (47-12-129-5) justified his selection with an effective performance, and while Pujara (135) and Ashwin (68) attempted
to keep the hosts on track, they were eventually bowled for a first innings total of 327.
Emboldened by their successful manipulation of the weapon their hosts had hitherto been dangling over their heads, England went into their first innings with gusto. Skipper and opening batsman Cook continued in a remarkable vein, and contributed a solid
122 at the top, but the star was Player of the Match http://www.senore.com/Cricket/KP-Pietersen-c1806, who proved that the ECB’s reintegration programme had been successful, and smashed a massive 186. By the time England were all out, they had managed to reach 413.
However, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013’s spin duo wasn’t satisfied with the havoc they had wreaked during India’s first innings. Panesar (22-3-81-6) and Swann (18.1-6-43-4) joined forces yet again to completely annihilate their hosts, subjecting them to a humiliating spin assault
and triggering an astonishing batting order collapse. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 crumbled at an embarrassing 142, all out.
The subsequent 57-run target posed no difficulties for England, who chased it down successfully without faltering once, securing a massive 10-wicket win. The tourists had not only conquered spin, but learned to use it effectively on sub-continental pitches,
and had managed to equalise what was developing into an intensely entertaining series.
Continued in Part 3 …
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