India play fifth Test to salvage pride, series
15 Aug 2014 5:53 AM IST
India go into the fifth and final Test at the Oval Friday determined to salvage some pride and the draw the five-match series against England.
India were humiliated in Manchester, losing the fourth Test by an innings and 54 runs inside three days. The win helped England take a 2-1 lead and also save skipper Alastair Cook’s job.
India’s ‘spineless’ performance was shocking, to put it mildly. It is hard to believe that the same Indian team scored more than 800 runs in the first drawn Test and won the the second Test by 95 runs at Lord’s to go one-up in the series.
But as the series progressed, India gradually disintegrated and lost the Rose Bowl Test by 266 runs and the winning margin just got bigger for England in the fourth Test, which they wrapped up in less than three days at Old Trafford. The two extra days after the Manchester Test might have helped India rejuvenate for the fifth and the series decider here at The Rose Bowl. But skipper MS Dhoni chose to keep off training here Wednesday. He instead spent time at a shooting range. Guns and bikes are his passion outside cricket field.
The talking point here is whether India’s premier fast bowler Ishant Sharma, who missed the last two Tests with an ankle injury, would be fit to play in the last Test. In the absence of Ishant, the Indian attack lacked teeth.
Ishant appears to have recovered sufficiently enough from the injury and was at the nets. The question is whether he will be able to handle the load over five days and the trainer will have to take the final call before the start of the Test.
If Ishant plays, he will be replacing Pankaj Singh while Varun Aaron, who bowled with raw pace in Manchester, is sure to retain his place in the side.
India were humiliated in Manchester, losing the fourth Test by an innings and 54 runs inside three days. The win helped England take a 2-1 lead and also save skipper Alastair Cook’s job.
India’s ‘spineless’ performance was shocking, to put it mildly. It is hard to believe that the same Indian team scored more than 800 runs in the first drawn Test and won the the second Test by 95 runs at Lord’s to go one-up in the series.
But as the series progressed, India gradually disintegrated and lost the Rose Bowl Test by 266 runs and the winning margin just got bigger for England in the fourth Test, which they wrapped up in less than three days at Old Trafford. The two extra days after the Manchester Test might have helped India rejuvenate for the fifth and the series decider here at The Rose Bowl. But skipper MS Dhoni chose to keep off training here Wednesday. He instead spent time at a shooting range. Guns and bikes are his passion outside cricket field.
The talking point here is whether India’s premier fast bowler Ishant Sharma, who missed the last two Tests with an ankle injury, would be fit to play in the last Test. In the absence of Ishant, the Indian attack lacked teeth.
Ishant appears to have recovered sufficiently enough from the injury and was at the nets. The question is whether he will be able to handle the load over five days and the trainer will have to take the final call before the start of the Test.
If Ishant plays, he will be replacing Pankaj Singh while Varun Aaron, who bowled with raw pace in Manchester, is sure to retain his place in the side.
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