So England have lost yet another test match in the subcontinent. The number one ranked test side have now lost four in a row - unthinkable only a few short months ago. So what's going wrong - and how can things be changed so England can be good again?
Well to start off, it's obvious where the problem lies. England's batting in the subcontinent - against spin in particular, is horrific. While the batsmen were booking in for bed, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and another night against India last summer, there's been none of that determination to remain at the crease in the four tests of this tour. While there are obvious technical flaws in most of the batsmen, much of the issue is mental. How can Rangana Herath, who England destroyed back at home turn from a pie-chucker into a world-beater? Herath is the same bowler as he was 8 months ago, there's very little mystery to him, but England's fragile mental state to spinners in the subcontinent made him look like a cross between Hedley Verity, Jim Laker and Shane Warne. Any issues over facing Herath are solely between the batsmen's ears, which is making their previously adequate techniques fall to mush when a spinner is thrown the ball.
So what can be done? In between trolling Indian fans on Twitter and combing his new hair, Michael Vaughan made a good point about mental baggage. Before 2005 England hadn't won an Ashes series in 18 years, and had been consistently humped by the Aussies, so most of the team that he inherited came into games against Australia expecting to lose. Vaughan then got rid of the players with mental scars about playing Australia, and got in a new brand of Ashes newbies who promptly went on and won. Vaughan's point was that a similar approach may well work here, with seemingly all of England's current side paralysed by fear of spin, and waking up in cold sweats after dreaming of Suraj Randiv's teesra. Basically, Vaughan advocated getting rid of the batsmen and starting again with a fresh bunch, a group who may or may not be as good technically, but at least wouldn't fall into the trap of consistently getting themselves out.
Vaughan's argument does have it's merits, but it would be very difficult to just "bring in a new bunch". To start, who would they be? As strong as the county system is at the moment, it isn't brimming with test-ready players who'll be able to swim when they're thrown in at the deep end. Plus, who do you drop? Cook, Bell, Pietersen and Trott all made double-tons last summer, Prior is the best wicket-keeper batsman in the world, Patel has only just come into the team, and Strauss is the captain. (More on him here). These are all clearly very good batsmen (how else would England have got to that number one ranking?) but seemingly only Jonathan Trott has the mental stability to dig in on the subcontinent. When the players get back to England in a few months, chances are that all of the batsmen will fill their boots and make everyone eat their words.
So what can be done? Well, if teams sometimes play 'horses for courses' bowlers at certain grounds, why not horses for courses batsmen? Monty Panesar is purely playing in these tests because they expect it to spin, so why not a spin-specialist batsman? Having a James Taylor or an Owais Shah to only play if the ball's going to rag square may be quite unorthodox, but why should the batting order be set in stone? Dropping Pietersen for Joe Root for subcontinental games may seem unfair to KP, but isn't Panesar getting picked a little harsh on Steve Finn? As England and India's fluctuating fortunes have proved, cricket is a very different game depending on where in the world it's being played, so surely the smart thing to do is to pick different players depending on the different conditions? It's certainly something worth considering, as while England may well beat the West Indies and South Africa in the summer on green seamers in Durham, the four test series that follows in India could be a very long one for England fans unless something drastic changes.
Showing posts with label Rangana Herath. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rangana Herath. Show all posts
Thursday, 29 March 2012
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Day Five at Lord's
Before play started...: England two down and a few ahead - could declare to set up an interesting finish.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Not really anywhere. They were happy to play for the draw, and they got it.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Restricted the big runs in the morning meaning they had a shorter time to survive, which they did very comfortably.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Played incredibly negatively - delayed the declaration for far too long and shook hands when they were only one wicket away from the tail and a potential collapse. Poor.
Where did it all go right for England?: Another hundred for Cook, runs for KP, and some nice hits by Bell. Plus Trott proved he's a useful enough bowler to turn to as and when required.
Who won each session?: Morning - Just about England (but scored too slowly). Afternoon - Probably even. Evening - Nobody cared.
Who should have won the game?: England. Didn't play well enough today, and let the win slip away. But it would have been interesting had Dilshan and Jayawardene been able to stay on in the evening session on Day 3, as with tired ineffective bowlers, England could have conceded a fairly sizable first innings lead and it could have been a different story...
Shot of the day: Bell's guide down to third man. He was in awesome form. He even prompted me to declare him my favourite ever player (I later downgraded this to my favourite batsman to watch in the current England team. I was caught up in the emotion of the situation).
Ball of the day: "Rangana Herath's Ball of The Century" to KP. Probably the best ball he'll ever bowl - pitching well outside leg, and turning to hit the top of off-stump. Whatever's said about KP's troubles with SLA, I defy anyone to play that ball.
Man of the day: I don't know. Bell? The only England batsman to really understand the situation and bat accordingly.
Mug(s) of the day: Strauss's poor captaincy (I'll discuss that in a blog later) is saved by Matt Prior breaking a window. As such, the mug of the day is whoever put out the press releases; the first claiming that a glove bounced off a kit bag and onto a row of bats which smashed the window, and the second was that he tried to balance a bat on the windowsill, but he misbalanced it and shattered the window. Most likely, he just put his fist through it. Pretty much sums up England's day.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Not really anywhere. They were happy to play for the draw, and they got it.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Restricted the big runs in the morning meaning they had a shorter time to survive, which they did very comfortably.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Played incredibly negatively - delayed the declaration for far too long and shook hands when they were only one wicket away from the tail and a potential collapse. Poor.
Where did it all go right for England?: Another hundred for Cook, runs for KP, and some nice hits by Bell. Plus Trott proved he's a useful enough bowler to turn to as and when required.
Who won each session?: Morning - Just about England (but scored too slowly). Afternoon - Probably even. Evening - Nobody cared.
Who should have won the game?: England. Didn't play well enough today, and let the win slip away. But it would have been interesting had Dilshan and Jayawardene been able to stay on in the evening session on Day 3, as with tired ineffective bowlers, England could have conceded a fairly sizable first innings lead and it could have been a different story...
Shot of the day: Bell's guide down to third man. He was in awesome form. He even prompted me to declare him my favourite ever player (I later downgraded this to my favourite batsman to watch in the current England team. I was caught up in the emotion of the situation).
Ball of the day: "Rangana Herath's Ball of The Century" to KP. Probably the best ball he'll ever bowl - pitching well outside leg, and turning to hit the top of off-stump. Whatever's said about KP's troubles with SLA, I defy anyone to play that ball.
Man of the day: I don't know. Bell? The only England batsman to really understand the situation and bat accordingly.
Mug(s) of the day: Strauss's poor captaincy (I'll discuss that in a blog later) is saved by Matt Prior breaking a window. As such, the mug of the day is whoever put out the press releases; the first claiming that a glove bounced off a kit bag and onto a row of bats which smashed the window, and the second was that he tried to balance a bat on the windowsill, but he misbalanced it and shattered the window. Most likely, he just put his fist through it. Pretty much sums up England's day.
Monday, 6 June 2011
Day Four at Lord's
Before play started...: Many runs and a bit of rain. Could go either way, but draw most likely.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Came up short of England's score thanks to a bit of a collapse when they should have had a big lead. Didn't make many inroads into England's batting either.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Haven't let England get away from them, and if a declaration is timed poorly could be in with a sniff.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Another failure for Strauss - how long before his lack of runs becomes worrying?
Where did it all go right for England?: Somehow eked out a lead, and can force the pace of this game with quick runs in the morning. The game is in their hands.
Who won each session?: Afternoon - England. Evening - Probably England.
Who's winning the game?: England. If they score quickly in the first session (or longer if they want) they can set either set Sri Lanka an unrealistic target, or dangle a carrot. After what happened at Cardiff with the scoreboard pressure, England should be favourites, but will do well to force a result.
Shot of the day: Herath's slog-sweep-stumble for six off Swann. Village, but brilliant.
Ball of the day: Swann to Herath. Turned a couple of absolute rippers beyond the outside edge, before forcing the stumping. Off-spin to left-handers at it's best.
Man of the day: Finn bowled well this morning, as did Swann, but Cook's runs means he probably shades it. Decent performance all round for England though.
Mug(s) of the day: Bit harsh, but Strauss. Yet another failure to a left-arm seamer, and it's becoming a real worry. Especially with a certain Zaheer Khan to come over the summer...
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Came up short of England's score thanks to a bit of a collapse when they should have had a big lead. Didn't make many inroads into England's batting either.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Haven't let England get away from them, and if a declaration is timed poorly could be in with a sniff.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Another failure for Strauss - how long before his lack of runs becomes worrying?
Where did it all go right for England?: Somehow eked out a lead, and can force the pace of this game with quick runs in the morning. The game is in their hands.
Who won each session?: Afternoon - England. Evening - Probably England.
Who's winning the game?: England. If they score quickly in the first session (or longer if they want) they can set either set Sri Lanka an unrealistic target, or dangle a carrot. After what happened at Cardiff with the scoreboard pressure, England should be favourites, but will do well to force a result.
Shot of the day: Herath's slog-sweep-stumble for six off Swann. Village, but brilliant.
Ball of the day: Swann to Herath. Turned a couple of absolute rippers beyond the outside edge, before forcing the stumping. Off-spin to left-handers at it's best.
Man of the day: Finn bowled well this morning, as did Swann, but Cook's runs means he probably shades it. Decent performance all round for England though.
Mug(s) of the day: Bit harsh, but Strauss. Yet another failure to a left-arm seamer, and it's becoming a real worry. Especially with a certain Zaheer Khan to come over the summer...
Friday, 3 June 2011
Day One At Lord's
Before play started...: Four days of rain were followed by two hours of madness as England stole it at Cardiff.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Didn't press home the advantage after an excellent first hour.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Got Trott out cheaply, proving it is humanly possible. Further seeds of doubt sewn in KP's mind too.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: If I was nit-picking it would be that nobody made a hundred (carried on to make a daddy). Poor start too wasn't great.
Where did it all go right for England?: A lot of strength down the order - didn't panic when wickets fell. Ended the day in the ascendancy.
Who won each session?: Morning - Sri Lanka. Afternoon - England. Evening - Just about England.
Who's winning the game?: In that England are on 342-6 after being sent in, England.
Shot of the day: Morgan smashing Herath into the pavilion for 6. He was only on about 5 at the time.
Ball of the day: Lakmal bowled an absolute jaffa to Bell when he was new at the crease - big swing and somehow beat the edge.
Man of the day: Alastair Cook - missed out on another hundred but an important innings in the context of the match.
Mug of the day: KP. How much longer can past glories justify his test position?
Short Midwicket Name Drops of the Day: Had drinks with former Middlesex wicketkeeper David Nash. Saw Richie Benaud from across the Coronation Garden. Somebody gave me a package addressed to Jimmy Anderson thinking I was him. Saw Alastair Cook shirtless about to have a shower through an open window. (As soon as Cook saw me, he closed the window).
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Didn't press home the advantage after an excellent first hour.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Got Trott out cheaply, proving it is humanly possible. Further seeds of doubt sewn in KP's mind too.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: If I was nit-picking it would be that nobody made a hundred (carried on to make a daddy). Poor start too wasn't great.
Where did it all go right for England?: A lot of strength down the order - didn't panic when wickets fell. Ended the day in the ascendancy.
Who won each session?: Morning - Sri Lanka. Afternoon - England. Evening - Just about England.
Who's winning the game?: In that England are on 342-6 after being sent in, England.
Shot of the day: Morgan smashing Herath into the pavilion for 6. He was only on about 5 at the time.
Ball of the day: Lakmal bowled an absolute jaffa to Bell when he was new at the crease - big swing and somehow beat the edge.
Man of the day: Alastair Cook - missed out on another hundred but an important innings in the context of the match.
Mug of the day: KP. How much longer can past glories justify his test position?
Short Midwicket Name Drops of the Day: Had drinks with former Middlesex wicketkeeper David Nash. Saw Richie Benaud from across the Coronation Garden. Somebody gave me a package addressed to Jimmy Anderson thinking I was him. Saw Alastair Cook shirtless about to have a shower through an open window. (As soon as Cook saw me, he closed the window).
Sunday, 29 May 2011
Day Four at Cardiff
Before play started...: A lot of rain. An inevitable draw. Hundreds for Cook and Trott after Sri Lanka made 400.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Their attack still looked toothless
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: They got KP out cheaply to a left-arm spinner, meaning the Pietersen vicious cycle of left-arm spin will guarantee Herath Pietersen's wicket every innings for the rest of the series.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: They're not far enough ahead to make this game interesting.
Where did it all go right for England?: Trott's double ton. Bell's near-as-dammit ton. A handy lead. They can't lose from here.
Who won each session?: Afternoon and evening - England.
Who's winning the game?: If it was a timeless test, England would win. As it is, it has to finish tomorrow, and with more rain about, the draw is 99.999999999999999% likely.
Shot of the day: Bell lobbing Herath over his head for aDLF Maximum six.
Ball of the day: Herath bowled a corker to Trott that turned miles. But Trott still blocked it.
Man of the day: Jonny Trott.
Mug of the day: KP, mainly for fuelling the poison pens by getting out to yet another left-arm spinner.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Their attack still looked toothless
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: They got KP out cheaply to a left-arm spinner, meaning the Pietersen vicious cycle of left-arm spin will guarantee Herath Pietersen's wicket every innings for the rest of the series.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: They're not far enough ahead to make this game interesting.
Where did it all go right for England?: Trott's double ton. Bell's near-as-dammit ton. A handy lead. They can't lose from here.
Who won each session?: Afternoon and evening - England.
Who's winning the game?: If it was a timeless test, England would win. As it is, it has to finish tomorrow, and with more rain about, the draw is 99.999999999999999% likely.
Shot of the day: Bell lobbing Herath over his head for a
Ball of the day: Herath bowled a corker to Trott that turned miles. But Trott still blocked it.
Man of the day: Jonny Trott.
Mug of the day: KP, mainly for fuelling the poison pens by getting out to yet another left-arm spinner.
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