Eng set for final tour game
8 Nov 2012 5:41 AM IST
England batsmen will look to tie up all the loose ends as far as playing spin bowling is concerned when they meet Haryana in their third and final four-day warm-up match starting Thursday ahead of the four-Test series against India. England go into the match having drawn the first two matches, against India A and Mumbai A.
The visitors were, however, deprived of opportunities to test themselves against quality spin bowling as the hosts did not include any top-grade tweakers in the playing XI for the practice matches. The pitch here has a fairly thick cover of grass over, something the visiting side is not expected to see while on tours of the sub-continent. While the first Test will be held at the main ground, Thursday’s game will be played at Motera B ground.
With India including three frontline spinners in Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha besides Yuvraj Singh and Virat Kohli, England middle-order comprising Ian Bell, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Eoin Morgan and Matt Prior, will be keen to utilise the game to the hilt, spending as much time as possible in the middle.
That they are used to playing Graeme Swann, Monty Panesar and Samit Patel at home will be of some help, but tackling the conditions here is a different ball game altogether. England will hope their openers get decent hits over the next four days. Also looking to get some practice will be number one down batsman Jonathan Trott, who has not been in the best of form in 2012.
Steven Finn, who couldn’t play in the the first two warm-up games because of injury, too would be eager to have a bowl before the big game starts.
Stuart Broad’s left heel was also a cause for concern for the visitors. Broad, who was stand-in captain in the match against Mumbai A, was taken for a scan after he complained of discomfort during the second tour game. He could be rested on Thursday.
For Haryana, playing against a top international side like England, is a huge opportunity. ‘We can definitely push England. They know nothing about us while we have videos of all the English players. We can surprise them,’ said coach Ashwini Kumar.
ENGLAND PREPARING WELL: JONATHAN TROTT
England middle order batsman Jonathan Trott told mediapersons that the visitors are preparing well for the upcoming series. ‘You can never be over-prepared for such a big tour as this one. We went to Dubai for a few days and trained really well there in what would be sub-continental conditions. The pitches we have played on here are pretty typical of what you would find here. So, it has been very good preparation,’ Trott said.
Fellow batsman Ian Bell said England had come armed with a versatile bowling attack. ‘The bowlers were fantastic in Dubai and Abu Dhabi last year. If the batters can get runs on the board, we have an attack that can certainly take wickets,’ said the middle order batsman.
The visitors were, however, deprived of opportunities to test themselves against quality spin bowling as the hosts did not include any top-grade tweakers in the playing XI for the practice matches. The pitch here has a fairly thick cover of grass over, something the visiting side is not expected to see while on tours of the sub-continent. While the first Test will be held at the main ground, Thursday’s game will be played at Motera B ground.
With India including three frontline spinners in Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha besides Yuvraj Singh and Virat Kohli, England middle-order comprising Ian Bell, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Eoin Morgan and Matt Prior, will be keen to utilise the game to the hilt, spending as much time as possible in the middle.
That they are used to playing Graeme Swann, Monty Panesar and Samit Patel at home will be of some help, but tackling the conditions here is a different ball game altogether. England will hope their openers get decent hits over the next four days. Also looking to get some practice will be number one down batsman Jonathan Trott, who has not been in the best of form in 2012.
Steven Finn, who couldn’t play in the the first two warm-up games because of injury, too would be eager to have a bowl before the big game starts.
Stuart Broad’s left heel was also a cause for concern for the visitors. Broad, who was stand-in captain in the match against Mumbai A, was taken for a scan after he complained of discomfort during the second tour game. He could be rested on Thursday.
For Haryana, playing against a top international side like England, is a huge opportunity. ‘We can definitely push England. They know nothing about us while we have videos of all the English players. We can surprise them,’ said coach Ashwini Kumar.
ENGLAND PREPARING WELL: JONATHAN TROTT
England middle order batsman Jonathan Trott told mediapersons that the visitors are preparing well for the upcoming series. ‘You can never be over-prepared for such a big tour as this one. We went to Dubai for a few days and trained really well there in what would be sub-continental conditions. The pitches we have played on here are pretty typical of what you would find here. So, it has been very good preparation,’ Trott said.
Fellow batsman Ian Bell said England had come armed with a versatile bowling attack. ‘The bowlers were fantastic in Dubai and Abu Dhabi last year. If the batters can get runs on the board, we have an attack that can certainly take wickets,’ said the middle order batsman.
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