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India in England 2011
Sehwag set to join embattled Indian side
Nagraj Gollapudi at Trent Bridge
August 2, 2011
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Players/Officials:
Gautam Gambhir
| Virender Sehwag
Series/Tournaments:
India tour of England
Teams:
India
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Virender Sehwag, who missed the first two Tests of the England tour, has landed in England and is en route to join the Indian team later on Wednesday. Sehwag, who was ruled out for the first fortnight of the England series when the Indian selectors announced the Test squad on July 2, is expected to be available for the last two Tests. The Indians play a two-day tour match against Northants starting this Friday ahead of the third Test which starts in Birmingham next week.
India would be optimistic about opening with their regular pair of Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir in Northampton and then in the third Test at Edgbaston. Gambhir has recovered from the left-shoulder injury he picked while fielding in England's second innings at Lord's. "He is sure for the next Test," MS Dhoni said.
Sehwag's return would definitely be a shot in the arm for India, who have been completely outplayed in the series so far and are 2-0 down. It was in England that he scored his first century as an opener, at Trent Bridge in 2002, though he missed the 2007 tour.
India lost their premier fast bowler Zaheer Khan to a hamstring injury on the first afternoon of the Lord's Test, and England's bowlers have completely dominated their batsmen, most of whom with the exception of Rahul Dravid have struggled to find their touch, form and at times even stand their ground.
Sehwag had opted for a shoulder surgery after playing the IPL in May and was ruled out for at least two months including the tour of West Indies. When the selectors picked the squad, it came with a rider that Sehwag was given an additional two weeks rest to allow him to rest his shoulder. In Taunton, ahead of India's first tour match against Somerset, Indian coach Duncan Fletcher indicated that he was not sure but predicted Sehwag could be back in time for the third Test.
In Sehwag's absence, India fielded three different opening combinations. The Tamil Nadu pair of M Vijay and Abhinav Mukund opened in the three-Test series in the Caribbean that India won 1-0. Gambhir had suffered a shoulder injury during the final round of the IPL, exacerbating an existing injury he claimed he originally picked during the World Cup final in April. Vijay, who was the third-choice opener in the past, struggled and got a tally of 72 runs in the three Tests against West Indies, a series where Abhinav made his debut and impressed scoring 147 runs.
At Lord's, Abhinav joined Gambhir, who was hit on the elbow while fielding in the second innings and batted down the order. Gambhir was then declared unfit to play in the second Test forcing Rahul Dravid to face the new ball in Abhinav's company.
Nagraj Gollapudi is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
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© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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Behavior also matters a lot. If you've noticed the fighting attitude and the tolerance level from Indian bowlers. English bowlers don't show attitude and howl at the Umpire of course and as a result have to be backed off by a team-mate. They have well maintained tolerance level + they know their boundaries. However, I would like to admit that Dhoni, taking the Ian Bell run out decision back was a fine and mature gesture. England, I think is going to own the series by 4-0, as you can already see their success. They only rely on a few players to come and perform, THAT is their weak-point.
Posted byWill Sehwag with his average of 31 against England really make a difference? Will he make Kumar faster? Or the middle order play bouncers better? India have been found out as a bowling side and an unfit unprepared opener is not going to change that. And as for injuries Swann, Trott and Tremlett all went down too. The reason England are a better team is that all 11 players are able to produce MOM performances. India rely on 3 or 4 players. Thats not good enough.
Posted by Shan156 on (August 3, 2011, 21:13 GMT)@NairUSA,
"More true and natural pitches await them when they visit India"
ROTFL. You mean, dustbowls? Another deluded Indian fan who doesn't follow other teams. Just FYI, England beat Australia 3-1, that's right, 3-1 in Australia just 7 months back. Their 3 victories there were completed by an innings and were achieved in Melbourne and the flat beds of Adelaide and Sydney. The previous time they toured there, they were routed 0-5. People were saying the same thing ahead of their last tour and they emerged victorious. You should worry more about your team - once the awesome triumvirate of Rahul, Sachin and Laxman retire, who is going to bat for you in tests? Even bigger problem is with fat Zak. Looking at his belly and his fitness level, he is more likely to retire sooner rather than later. Who is going to take wickets for you then? Even Bangladesh would fancy giving India a game then.
Posted by BravoBravo on (August 3, 2011, 19:22 GMT)I doubt that Sehwag will be able to play longer innings which is essential for Test matches. I do not think he is going there to stay long on English pitches. Look at his recent records in WC2011, the only time he played more than 9 overs, was in the inaugural mtach (WC2011) IND vs BD in Bangladesh. He almost lost his touch except when he is playing against SL in India.
Posted by saad_inm_ind_umn on (August 3, 2011, 18:53 GMT)guyz u too r thinking dat india is not fit be no 1....no ur extremely wrong.....the indian team is without zaheer(the spearhead bowler) sehwag(the bomber) gautham gambhir(the secret weapon).....its difficult to play without ur 3 best players against a tough side in a big series.....n we r going to get dem back in da 3rd test...now lets hop 4 da best...
Posted by Andhravala on (August 3, 2011, 18:52 GMT)Game is all about domination, first day in Lord's Zaheer dominated and he was like a bowling coach.. when we last him all the things started to mess up, bowlers loosed their motivation and loose their game plan.. As out bowlers are not experienced and don't stick to the game plan.. they kept loosing the grip.. When coming to the batting, there is lot of pressure to score runs and England bowlers are good at their game plan.. Atleast for the next 2 tests.. we need a perfect game plan for the bowlers. Work on the england batsmen weakness.. bowl to the field accordingly.. Sehwag's inclusion to the team will be a great addition.. as he tries to dominate the bowlers and if he stays at crease for more than 1 hour.. we can expect wonders.. but it will be a definite boost to the indian team.. Come on India.. we are all with you
Posted by Nampally on (August 3, 2011, 18:22 GMT)Sehwag joining the team should be a big boost for the Indian team. If he gets going he will be a handful for the England bowlers. Gambhir's return will restore the regular openers for the Indian team. Psychologically and morally, the middle order batsmen will once again will be relieved for distributed responsibility. Can the openers give India their typical start of 50 + runs and leave the new ball bowlers demoralized, as they always do remains to be seen. They are both completely rusty and will play their first match together in the 2 day game. Hopefully India will win the toss and bat first. Sehwag especially needs to bat under English conditions after a 4 month layoff & no physical activity due to his shoulder surgery. If Sehwag is on we have a match On. He is the catalyst for the Indian batting and has smashed all bowlers. His shoulder & pyche is still of unknown nature. But India needs Sehwag now more than at any other time to bolster the sagging spirits..
Posted by Flash007 on (August 3, 2011, 18:21 GMT)Now the interesting thing to see would be how soon Sehwag would be able to get back in the groove. It won't be an easy job given the form of English bowlers, with their accuracy, swing and bounce posing questions to everyone. If he can make a decent impact in at least one innings of each of the Test matches, it would be job done. Fingers crossed and Wishing him All the Luck!
Posted by Joby_George on (August 3, 2011, 17:53 GMT)Sehwag is back in side. There will be a big difference in now, Mukund used to play 30 balls, score 5 runs and get out, sehwag will play only 2 balls, scores 5 runs and goes out...wont waste time..
Posted by vinodnevgi on (August 3, 2011, 17:43 GMT)its real funny .....the younger generation wants test caps handed to them ..with out even knowing the importance of it ...the basic principle in Test Cricket is knowing where your off stump & learn to leave the balls .... India's young brigade thinks they can play like sehwag...in simple words "give the bowler an hour & then dictate terms for the next 5 hours as a batsmen "no one understands that its all about patients more the skill a times considering the conditions ....its all about learning & learning quick & fast ...