Although the current Sri Lanka vs England contest is interesting, I would like to look forward to the real match of the Summer involving India and England. The Indian side will once again contain many of the finest batsmen in the world namely Tendulkar, Ghambir, Sehwag, Singh, the list seems endless. The England top order is also impressive but comes up just short in comparison to the Indian offering. Alastair Cook will need to lead from the front and continue to cement his reputation as the most consistent Test opener in World cricket. I think Andrew Strauss's position is in question. The successful England Captain looked tentative against Sri Lanka and will know the pressure is on to cement his place as a genuine run scorer rather than as a by product of his captaincy. Kevin Pietersen has shown glimpses of his great talent in recent weeks but he will have to return to his free flowing, unhindered style if England are to win this series. In many ways the key to England's success will be Jonathon Trott. The ever dependable Trott will have to continue grinding out measured, frustrating and workman like innings to bolster the England totals.
We saw at the most recent Ashes series that England now have a credible pace attack, that can cause any team problems. The aggressive displays of Chris Tremlett have added a much needed dose of pace, bounce and guile to the England side. James Anderson is as good a swing bowler as any at the minute and Stuart Broad has grown into an accurate exponent of away swing as well. Graeme Swann will be required to take key wickets and frustrate the Indian stars with containing accuracy and concentration hindering variety.
The issues which will decide this test will be the effectiveness of the Indian bowling and the performance of England's batting line up. In Terms of batting the sides are fairly evenly matched with India holding a slight advantage. In terms of bowling and fielding I believe England are in the ascendency. Much will depend on the world's best left arm Seamer, Zaheer Khan who is able to swing the ball both ways and tie down batsmen with his consistent ability to sustain his line and length. Harbhajan Singh will look to generate turn in the latter days of tests and Ishant Sharma will bring the pace and bounce he displayed at the Indian Premier League. The Indian side is to be announced on July 2nd so I am speculating a little bit. Munaf Patel, R.P. Singh and Sreesanth are also credible possible selections.
One thing is certain, this match is going to be outstanding. My Tip? I will wait for both official sides to be announced before I commit myself!
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