Three fully fit speedsters finally did it for India.
The first two sessions of the Nottingham test was a class session on how to utilize the new ball on a seaming wicket.
Sreesanth, probably the most volatile amongst all Indian players, was at his best behaviour and gave vent via his aggressive bowling. Pitched the ball up, allowed it to swing, let the batsmen make their mistakes and earned accolades from not just his teammates but his opponents as well.
Very well supported by Ishant and Praveen Kumar, the bowling was incisive, penetrative and looked like an attack that belonged to the World's No.1 team.
While everything looked hunky dory till tea at 124/8, one detail stood out though. The bowlers were all over the top when wickets start falling one after the another. Like Sidhu says, it resembled a bicycle stand. One falls and takes all of them down with it.
What the bowlers couldn't do was to knock off the last two bicycles. Going at an superfast rate of more than 8 per over, Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann launched an astonishing counter attack that left the bowlers numbed for a while.
It's very easy to cut through when the going is right. What matters is how to confront a counter attack.
That is a time when one has to think differently, try variations and ensure than the runrate doesn't go beyond reach. But, the line was still the same and bowlers kept ploughing on waiting for the batsmen to make a mistake. In the meantime, the pressure eased, the field spread out, runs leaked and all of this allowed the opponents to cross 200 when even 150 wasn't achievable.
Again, there were not many yorkers bowled by India and very few bouncers didn't help the cause either. Also, when you have a left hander at the crease it makes sense for a right hand bowler to try bowling from around the wicker. With the Duke ball swinging away the bowlers increases his chances to get a nick. An inswinger might help him get an inside edge onto the stumps.
Sadly, the bowlers didn't really try these tactics. One can only hope that Eric Simmons has taken note of this and would make a mention during team meetings.
At the end of the day, it was a very heartening performance by the bowlers as compared to the Lord's test. India's marquee batting lineup will go into the second day with their tail up. A good score of 500 plus should ensure that they bat only once as the wolf pack would be back in the hunt.
The first two sessions of the Nottingham test was a class session on how to utilize the new ball on a seaming wicket.
Sreesanth, probably the most volatile amongst all Indian players, was at his best behaviour and gave vent via his aggressive bowling. Pitched the ball up, allowed it to swing, let the batsmen make their mistakes and earned accolades from not just his teammates but his opponents as well.
Very well supported by Ishant and Praveen Kumar, the bowling was incisive, penetrative and looked like an attack that belonged to the World's No.1 team.
While everything looked hunky dory till tea at 124/8, one detail stood out though. The bowlers were all over the top when wickets start falling one after the another. Like Sidhu says, it resembled a bicycle stand. One falls and takes all of them down with it.
What the bowlers couldn't do was to knock off the last two bicycles. Going at an superfast rate of more than 8 per over, Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann launched an astonishing counter attack that left the bowlers numbed for a while.
It's very easy to cut through when the going is right. What matters is how to confront a counter attack.
That is a time when one has to think differently, try variations and ensure than the runrate doesn't go beyond reach. But, the line was still the same and bowlers kept ploughing on waiting for the batsmen to make a mistake. In the meantime, the pressure eased, the field spread out, runs leaked and all of this allowed the opponents to cross 200 when even 150 wasn't achievable.
Again, there were not many yorkers bowled by India and very few bouncers didn't help the cause either. Also, when you have a left hander at the crease it makes sense for a right hand bowler to try bowling from around the wicker. With the Duke ball swinging away the bowlers increases his chances to get a nick. An inswinger might help him get an inside edge onto the stumps.
Sadly, the bowlers didn't really try these tactics. One can only hope that Eric Simmons has taken note of this and would make a mention during team meetings.
At the end of the day, it was a very heartening performance by the bowlers as compared to the Lord's test. India's marquee batting lineup will go into the second day with their tail up. A good score of 500 plus should ensure that they bat only once as the wolf pack would be back in the hunt.
Agree with you on this point. Ability to subdue counter attacks is what distinguishes a killer bowling team from the one we currently have. Harbhajan should have stepped into Kumble's shoes by this time - chipping away steadily from one end. He is ineffective as the fourth bowler, and may be the team should look for alternatives.
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