India England Test Series 2011

Sachin

Time has come for the most eagerly awaited series of all and it’s the Lord’s which will treat the millions of cricket fans all over the world with absolute thrill and excitement. India and England, the two most celebrated sides of world cricket at present will be the contestants of the 2000^th Test match.

India are the World Champions in the 50 over format and also are the number 1 Test side in the world. In the last decade India’s ascend to the top has been great and since 1996 their tour to England has been fruitful. The Natwest series final of 2002 launched the story of the “New India” under Sourav Ganguly which has been taken to new heights by the charismatic Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

India toured England in 2007 and registered a 1-0 series win after 21 years despite the lucky escape at Lord’s. And since then India have climbed to the top. In the past India were known to be poor travelers but time has changed and they are strong contenders on foreign soil. Their batsmen bat with style and aggression, their bowlers hunt for the batsmen and as a whole the team generates electrifying atmosphere to script simmering contests.

The Indian team is bolstered by the likes of Tendulkar, Gambhir, Dhoni, Dravid, Laxman, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer with plenty of promising cricketers being groomed under them. The absence of Sehwag is thought to be felt but the team has such quality players that the gap of Viru might not be felt. The rise of Praveen Kumar in the West Indies is a huge bonus for India as his gentle but venomous medium pace will be deadly in the seaming English conditions. At the other end the tall lanky Isant Sharma will provide the perfect foil for Zaheer while Amit Mishra might be the ideal person to aid the fast men rather than the offspinner Harbhajan Singh as history suggests of English weakness against legspinners.

Batting is perhaps not a worry for India but in the warm up game against Somerset the Indian batsmen struggled except Raina along with the bowlers but practice matches never gives the true picture. Great performers perform on the biggest stage. And the stage is set for the number 1 team to exhibit the cricket which cricket lovers love to watch.

England, at the other hand are upbeat and confident. After victory in both the Test and ODI series against Sri lanka the Ashes winning English team under Andrew Strauss is aiming to go for the kill against the well balanced Indian side. They have some well composed players in their side. Alastair Cook is perhaps in the form of his life as he is making his bat talk and Jonathan Trott’s Kallis like batting is proving handy for the opposition in course of time. In the middle-order Ian Bell has been stupendous and these days he is an innings grafter who resuscitate the tattered innings with astute authority.

Andrew Strauss has been found wanting against left-arm seamers but against India in the warm-up match that ghost has been found lost as he scored a hundred against Zaheer’s pace. Eoin Morgan is almost like the Rock n Roll music simply irresistible when on song and if KP gets on mood then Indian bowlers are to face a tough task. The wicket-keeper Prior gives solidity in the lower order while the bottom half too contribute with guts when needed.

James Anderson seem to have got back his rhythm and Tim Bresnan and Broad are there to partner him as the wily Graeme Swann is licking his fingers to have a go at the Indian batsmen who are well known to murder the spinners. Time for Swann to prove his worth against the world’s best batting lineup.

Both the teams play a four match Test series. And the Test match at Lord’s will be the 2000^th Test match. And the cricket fans all over the world are eagerly waiting for the 100^th 100 of the little master Sachin Tendulkar. But above all these milestones the most important thing is that Test cricket is still widely celebrated.

Both he teams have the quality players and the positive attitude to bring the best cricket of the day. It is expected that Test cricket will get a new dimension through both the teams.

India to start as favourites but England are going to sit idle. A cracking series is expected.
Schedule
1st Test: England v India at Lord's
Jul 21-25, 2011 (11:00 local | 10:00 GMT | 16:00 BDT)
2nd Test: England v India at Nottingham
Jul 29-Aug 2, 2011 (11:00 local | 10:00 GMT | 16:00 BDT)
3rd Test: England v India at Birmingham
Aug 10-14, 2011 (11:00 local | 10:00 GMT | 16:00 BDT)
4th Test: England v India at The Oval
Aug 18-22, 2011 (11:00 local | 10:00 GMT | 16:00 BDT)