Spirits Cricket

The test and ODI captain of England cricket team, Alastair Cook, has said that the England team is capable enough to beat India in the upcoming test series even in the absence of Kevin Pietersen. The record of the England team in India is not that good. In the last 17 years, England has won only one test match on the Indian soil. But, the England captain believes that the team will do much better in India this time around.

When asked about the India tour, Cook said, “Beating the Indian team on their home soil is not going to be easy for sure. But, it’s not impossible. I don’t want my team to go into that series with a negative mind set. We should go out there thinking that we can win.”

“We had done pretty well on the tour of Sri Lanka earlier this year. The conditions in Sri Lanka were pretty much like India. So, if we can win a test match in Sri Lanka, we can do the same in India as well.”

Cook has been appointed as the captain of the test team after the retirement of Andrew Strauss. Strauss had announced his retirement from test cricket after the series defeat against South Africa. When asked whether the team is going to miss Strauss in India, Cook said, “Yes, definitely, we are going to miss him on India tour. He was a great opening batsman and a very good player of slow bowling. He could have been quite handy in India. But, the youngster who has been selected on his place is quite talented and I am confident that he will play well in his debut series.”

When asked about the exclusion of Kevin Pietersen from the test squad, Cook said, “Any captain in the world would want Kevin Pietersen in his side, but, according to the current situation, he can’t be included in the team due to some issues. Hopefully, he would be back soon.”

Video Rating: 4 / 5

The top order batsman of the England cricket team, Jonathan Trott, would not be able to play cricket for the next three or four weeks due to the finger injury. Trott was hit on his hand while trying to play a quick short of a length delivery from Dale Steyn in the fourth ODI at Lord’s. Due to the injury, he wasn’t able to play in the fifth ODI against South Africa at Trent Bridge.

Earlier, the coach of Andy Flower had said that Trott’s finger hadn’t fractured. But, the medical reports have confirmed that Trott’s finger has been broken and he would not be able to bat for quite a few days. However, Trott is supposed to get fit before the test series against India in November.

Trott is a key member of the England ODI side. His performance was up to the mark in the recently played ODI series against South Africa. He scored 142 runs in 4 matches that he played at an average of 47.33. He built a match winning 100-run partnership with Ian Bell for the second wicket in the 4^th ODI.

The England team missed him a lot in the fifth ODI. Bopara who batted at no. 3 in the absence of Trott in the fifth ODI didn’t manage to open his account and got out on duck after facing just two deliveries. After the fifth ODI, the English skipper, Alistair Cook had admitted that Trott’s presence in the team might have made a difference.

Trott’s injury is a huge blow for his county Warwickshire. Trott was expected to play for Warwickshire in the Clydesdale Bank 40 final against Hampshire. But, now, he would not be able to serve his county in that all important final which is going to be played on 15^th of September.

Movie Score: four / five

Video clip Rating: five / five

The second test match between South Africa and England seems to be going towards a draw. The rain stopped the fourth day’s play when the score of South Africa was 39 for 0. Earlier in the day, the England team was all out on 425. South Africa made a very good start to the day’s play. Morne Morkel didn’t let Pietersen add even a single run to his overnight score of 149 and trapped him in front of the wicket. That was a big blow for England. Tim Bresnan came to bat after the fall of Pietersen’s wicket and he put up a brief partnership of 45 runs with Prior for the 7^th wicket, but, when the score was 396, Bresnan edged an out swinging delivery from Philander and Graeme Smith didn’t make any mistake  at the position of first slip.

Stuart Broad fell early. He tried to sweep a delivery from Imran Tahir and miscued it. The ball went up in the air and Faf Du Plessis, who was on the field as a substitute fielder, took an easy catch at midwicket. Matt Prior completed his half century in the meantime, but, he wasn’t able to convert it into a hundred. He also tried to sweep a delivery from Imran Tahir which was outside the leg stump and had a bit of bounce. The ball took the top edge of the bat and went straight into the hands of the fielder standing at long leg. The last wicket of England fell in the form of James Anderson who was knocked over by Imran Tahir.

Due to the hamstring injury of Alviro Petersen, Jack Rudolph came to open the second innings of South Africa along with the skipper Graeme Smith. The opening pair started well, but, when the score was 39 for no loss, the umpires stopped the play due to rain.