Hardly 72 hours have passed since India handed Ricky Ponting’s Aussies a crushing 2-0 defeat and sent them packing to Melbourne. The euphoria of this win coupled with the realization that we would never again see two of the pillars of Indian cricket of the last decade on the field, is yet to sink in for most Indians. It’s in such an atmosphere of mixed emotions that India embarks on an ODI tour of 7games against the visiting Englishmen.
What at first sight looks like just another series most likely to be forgotten amidst the euphoria of the epic victory preceding it, the India-England series actually has the potential of delivering a lot.
KP v/s MSD:
For starters, it’s a battle between two of the youngest skippers on view on the international scene. Dhoni, who will look to carry the momentum of the Aussie tour into this series brings a never-before seen uncomplicated approach to the game. Ganguly did say in his farewell speech that he saw a lot of himself in Dhoni and that augurs really well for India. MSD not only commands respect from the team but also the opponents worldwide. By opting out of the Lankan test tour and by giving his own farewells to both Sourav and Anil, he’s also made it clear that he lives life on his terms.
Kevin Pietersen on the other hand is a charismatic leader. Definitely a superior batsman as compared to the Indian captain, KP after taking over the reigns from Flintoff is yet to settle down in his role completely. One of his crucial tasks would be to instill that no-fear attitude he himself brings to the game, in the Englishmen. Looking at the recent and the not so recent past of English cricket, this task looks easier said than done. England under KP does promise to give us another Ashes series like the one in 2005, but for that to happen the team building should start now. Giving the Indians a run for their money in their homeland can be a superb morale for any team and that’s exactly what Pietersen would look for.
These two youngsters are in charge of equally young teams. While Dhoni leads a team with an average age of 23, KP’s England stand at an average age of 27. This makes it an even more crucial series with many players wanting to make a lasting impression and stand out in the larger scheme of things. It remains to be seen then if the Englishmen decide to take the game to their counterparts and make an otherwise ill-timed series watchable and memorable. It would also be interesting to see whether Freddie manages to keep his emotions and shirt in place, now that his shirt-swinging partner is no more on the scene!!
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2 comments:
I was wandering what was Collingwood doing as captain as the writer of this blog is one the biggest supporter of England in this country said that KP took over from Flintoff ? Well taking about the series, we have two evenly match cricket teams as notably mentioned by the Ashish lead by two the games most charismatic players both are attacking and cool under pressure. KP has shown how composed he is while leading his team in Rajkot today and few days back in Mumbai. He does not know the word humiliation, His team was bowled out was mammoth total of 98 against a third string Mumbai team(This team had players who have never played a Ranji game and I doubt anyone from MCA also know about them)his comments on this majestic batting display of his side was 'This really doesn't matter' if this doesn't matter than what about scoring a superb defeat of 158 runs KP.
How does it matter to get hammered to 387 Runs lead by a man who was totaly out of form?
How does it feel to get bowled out for double nelson?
How does it feel to be a total Shameless Skipper KP?
I hope he will get the answer for this question sooner than later.
It is time to lose shorts brother. Not just KP the entire English team. looks like even if they do everything as right as possible the Gods wont let the English win
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