Andrew Strauss : Captains knowledge inconsistent fortunes

In England terms, this Test is about one man: Andrew Strauss. England's captain has said that he has not considered resigning in spite of England's losing run on the sub continent of four successive Tests and his own middling form which, Tests against Australia apart, has gone on for more than two years. An England victory or an innings to restate his worth is sorely overdue. 

It is no doubt the case that he has not thought of acceptance and neither has England's selectors yet seriously thought of forcing him to stand down. They are all observing a problem and trusting that it will go away. One of Strauss' strengths as a captain is that he is extremely confident about his rightful place at the centre of things. He can be short of runs and chided for what are seen as overly suspicious tactics but even without England's position at the top of the Test rankings, he would understandably be perceived as crucial managerial material. If he threatened to move to the Cayman Islands, it would probably persuade the government to drop the top rate of tax by another 5p. 

Strauss' urgent fate might rest on a hard selection. England need to decide whether pace or spin is their best chance of rescuing their Test credentials. Shane Warne took 11 in his one appearance here while the wicket-taking list is headed by an unsurprising name: Muttiah Muralitharan claimed 52 wickets in nine Tests. England has not played here since Sri Lanka's inaugural Test in 1982 when Derek Underwood and John Emburey combined to take 14 wickets. 

Sri Lanka, by contrast, is experiencing love, second time around, for Mahela Jaywardene. After the retirement of Murali, decline seemed likely. England, comically vulnerable against spin all winter, has fired Sri Lanka's conviction that taking 20 wickets in a Test remains achievable.

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Pakistan increased security: England cricketers on guard

ANDREW STRAUSS and his England players will be secluded by increased security when they play Pakistan in January.

In the wake up of the Pakistan spot-fixing disgrace, the safety of the England team is to be reassessed.

They play three Tests, four one-day internationals and three Twenty20 matches next to Pakistan in the Arabian Desert in January and February.

The matches are organism played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi since Pakistan is out of bounds for cricket tours due to security concern.

Even though the Emirates are not considered an A-level risk destination, England will be taking no chances following the jailing of three Pakistan cricketers and their manager at Southwark Crown Court on Thursday.

Ex-Pakistan captain Salman Butt was sentence to 30 months, while bowler Mohammed Asif was given 12 months.

Teenage bowler Mohammed Amir was sent to a young offender organization for six months. The trio's agent Mazher Majeed was locked up for two years and eight months.

The players have told how they were threatened by criminal world gangsters and illegal bookmakers who run the betting markets in Asia and the Middle East.

England team safety expert Reg Dickason will put in place the needed measures before the team depart for the tour on January 3.

A team insider said: "We trust Reg's decision totally and will follow any suggestion he makes. But there's no doubt emotion is running high.

"It is extraordinary for players to be sent to prison for their participation in match-rigging."

The England players are still offended that, although they were nothing more than blameless bystanders, they were sucked into the argument that destroyed the home series against Pakistan in 2010.

SunSport exposed on Thursday how Captain Strauss will tell his players not to allow residual anger to turn into personal vendetta when England faces Pakistan.

And Strauss is now calling on the ICC's anti-corruption unit to step up its chase of further cheats.

At a dinner at Lord's on Thursday evening, Strauss described the anti-corruption unit as "paper tigers".

Sir Ronnie Flanagan, head of cricket's dishonesty busters, is under huge force to make sure his team brings more cheats to justice.

England legends Ian Botham and Michael Vaughan are among those who consider more fixers are still playing international cricket.

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Andrew Strauss needs calm on jailed trio

England skipper Andrew Strauss is strong-minded to see that his players do not harbor any ill-feeling against Pakistan in the wake of spot-fixing scandal.

Several British players such as Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann have made their resentment public in the background of the spot-fixing scandal, in which three Pakistani cricketers were found guilty and sentence for varied terms.

Off-spinner Swann has exposed in his life story that England players required nothing to do with the Pakistan side (in 2010 tour) and that the situation was "vile."

Twenty20 captain Stuart Broad had said that they felt painful stay in the same hotel as Pakistan during the World Cup.

"Strauss himself has described dishonesty as a "cancer" in cricket, but will try to make sure his players remain listening carefully on beating Pakistan without distractions. He will hold a team conference at the start of the tour in the New Year and spell out the need to avoid any simmering rifts," a media report said.

A team insider said England will try to treat the series as "business as usual", the report in 'Sun' added.

England is listed to play three-Tests, four ODIs and three Twenty20 matches next to Pakistan in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

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Flower listening carefully on remaining No. 1

Andy Flower on Tuesday allowed a brief moment of approval at a job wonderfully done by England - before they move on to the powerful challenge of staying on top of the world.

England took the last seven India wickets for only 21 runs at The Oval, to complete a 4-0 power Test series loss with an innings victory.

After the general elation had died down - and a sell-out swarm made their way home - Flower and Andrew Strauss' team held their own low-key celebration, transport a box of freezing drinks out to camp just off the square for a few moments to reproduce together on their attainment.

There will be valuable little time for any more of the same before a rush of England limited-over’s assignments begins when Test batsman Eoin Morgan lead his adopt country for the first time next to his native one in Dublin on Thursday.

There is much longer - five months till January when they head to the United Arab Emirates to take on Pakistan - for England to plan how they protect their new world-beating Test status.

While Flower is noted for his confrontation to the smallest amount hint of satisfaction, and can be count on to be thinking already about the way forward in all formats, he adjudicators it only right too that England are given due praise for their rise to the top of the International Cricket Council Test rankings.

"It gives me wonderful fulfillment, but it is the players we have to think about," said the coach. "I look at them in the changing room after the game, and they can rightly feel very proud of themselves.

"They've put in a wonderful amount of hard work to get themselves into a place where they feel very confident and where they are creation good decisions - and then are good sufficient to back them up out in the middle."

England's winning recipe has centered on collective support for one more towards a common aim, but it has also been achieve on the back of a stream of exceptional individual performances.

Ian Bell's creative batting form has been a exposure over the past 12 months; Stuart Broad was named man of the series for his all-round heroics, especially in the second Test on his home ground in Nottingham; and Kevin Petersen is back to somewhere near his substantial best.

There is no one in the team, though, undeserving of special mention. Flower believes success is reproduction success - and insists England's forceful victory should not be devalue by those decry India, for whom only Rahul Dravid has perform in keeping with his status among a clutch of superstars.

"It is nice to see the team like that and see them actually sure and it's nice to see them believing that they will win games of cricket.

"They have conquered a very good side here, and I don't think we should forget that.
"There are some very fine cricketers in that Indian side, and they have been drama at a high level for a very long time.

"They are hugely knowledgeable - so to play like we did and to rule them like we did is a great credit to these England players."

Bell, Petersen and Alastair Cook have each made double-centuries over the past month - a clear response to batting coach Graham Gooch's familiar call to make 'daddy hundreds'.

But as they look towards those supplies which must be met to beat the likes of Pakistan, Sri Lanka and - a winter on - India again away from home, England's batsmen knows more of the same is a must.

Oval man of the match Bell has obviously got the message. He averages more than 118 this calendar year, and has made 950 runs, but will prize major contributions in the sub-Continent even more highly - and is challenging himself and his team-mates to outdo the efforts of several previous generation by making England's first 200-plus individual scores in Asia for almost 30 years.

"I think when we get out to the sub-Continent it's about getting big scores," he said. "I'm not certain when anyone last got a double-hundred out there. That'll be the goal.

"Goochie will be approaching us hard - because with our bowling attack, we know if we get big scores on the board in the first innings we can win Test matches. "We've complete it well here; we've now got to take it abroad, where we've not done it so well in the past," Flower completed.

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Rain prevent England build on hard start

England 75 for 0 (Strauss 38*, Cook 34*) v India

Given the way England have conquered this series it wouldn't be difficult to suggest that the only thing that will stop them accomplishment a whitewash is the weather. Rain wiped out play after lunch on the opening day at The Oval, but during the two hours possible Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook formed a solid platform against a very unsatisfactory India assault as England reached 75 without loss.

This was as weakly as India had bowled all series as they wasted whatever helps was on offer under cloudy skies. There was barely a chance shaped during the session and the whole approach portray by the visitors was of a team low on self-assurance and waiting for the series to finish. Defeat here will leave them third in the world rankings but it's difficult to see them preventive England's in-form batting line-up with a better forecast for Friday.

RP Singh, on his go back to the Test team after a three-year nonappearance for the injured Praveen Kumar, didn't set a good tone with his opening over. The first ball was sprayed down the leg side and the batsmen were offered some gentle leg-stump delivery to open their accounts. He was also about the same pace as Praveen, but with less swing, which wasn't completely astonishing considering he hadn't played first-class cricket since January.

Even though a couple of early boundaries came to third man they were played with soft hands by Strauss and Cook. There was a disturbing lack of strength from India, both with the ball and in the field, as they failed to make any use of the cloudy conditions. Sreesanth's first spell was poor with too many deliveries on leg stump which ensure the scoreboard kept ticking over with Cook, for the time being at least, taking his average over 50.

India showed somewhat more energy during the second hour - though all is relative - and Strauss had his most painful moment when he was strike on the helmet by an Ishant Sharma bouncer that took a chunk out of the lid. From that moment Strauss was more unwilling to get forward, but was still able to play a good-looking off drive against Sreesanth.

Ishant remain the pick of the three quicks, inquiring away outside off and finding a touch of worrying bounce, but there were few alarms for the openers. Even with two left-handers at the crease it was a surprise when Suresh Raina's part-time offspin was used ahead of Amit Mishra who detached Strauss at Edgbaston.

Earlier, James Anderson had been approved fit to take his place in the England side as they remain unmovable. A thigh grumble had created doubts about his fitness, but he came through a net on Wednesday so Graham Onions or Steven Finn, who left to play for Middlesex next to Kent, were not necessary. On the proof of the first session, and with the impact of the weather, Anderson might not be wanted until well into the weekend.

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England chase whitewash, India need arrogance

England celebrated accomplishment No. 1 in the world with a good night in Birmingham on Sunday but it was soon backing to the day job and, four days later, they previously face the first test of their new status. The 'dead rubber syndrome' is always a risk when a team has scaled such heights to secure a major goal and Andrew Strauss will be anxious that nothing takes the gloss off the achievement of the last month.

In truth it will take a lot to remove the after-glow of three commanding performance, but this England team is never satisfied. They'll see this final Test at The Oval as a chance to lay down one more markers with a show of hunger and desire. Even the great Australian sides under Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh had issue with keeping strength high when a series was decided. England benefit with a number of one-off Test victories and won't want to offer India a similar opportunity.

It's difficult to see India lively back to save face over the next five days. They have been so far off the pace that this is a series they'll want to relegate to history as quickly as likely. That, although, will be easier said than done with the fall-out well under way back at home and serious questions being asked of the team. Some of those questions are more sensible than others, but a number of players will be heading back with damaged reputation.

The much-vaunted batting line-up has one more chance to live up to their billing having not reached 300 in the series. The wait goes on for Sachin Tendulkar's 100th hundred, while Gautam Gambhir has dissatisfied and VVS Laxman hasn't made the most of some decent form. Then there's the challenge of taking 20 wickets. The pace bowlers have all had their moments but, collectively, have not been able to maintain pressure on England.

Praveen Kumar has been a tireless workhorse and Ishant Sharma has kept running in, but they have suffered from not having an inexpensive spinner to tie up an end. If Oval history is anything to go by they could be in for more hard toil.

England (probable) 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Alastair Cook, 3 Ian Bell, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Ravi Bopara, 7 Matt Prior (wk), 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Graeme Swann, 11 James Anderson

India (possible) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Gautam Gambhir, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 VVS Laxman, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (c) (wk), 8 Amit Mishra, 9 Praveen Kumar/RP Singh, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Sreesanth

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England be obliged it to Flower, Strauss

ECB's managing director, Hugh Morris, believes England's presentation against India is a result of Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss' "exceptional leadership".

Leading 2-0 in the series, England can topple India from the top mark if they win the Edgbaston Test, starting August 10.

"One of the most significant reasons is we have excellent leadership in Flower and Strauss. They've shown a clear direction and vision to the players and organization," Morris told BBC Radio 5 live's Sportsweek' programme.

"A lot of hard work has gone in over the last few years to get us to this position. The short-term goal is to win at Edgbaston and what we've got to try and do is sustain it over a period of time," he added.

Morris said both Flower and Strauss would be significant for the development of English cricket in the coming years.

"Very recently, Andy dedicated his future to England cricket. We always said that after the Ashes and World Cup we would sit down and begin to plot a plan over the next period of time," Morris said.

"He's on a staff-employment agreement, he's got a long-term notice period to that contract and he's very dedicated to the post," he added.

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Dhoni's move ought to set an example - Strauss

Andrew Strauss hopes that MS Dhoni's sign to allow Ian Bell to recommence his innings following the contentious run-out, at tea on the third day at Trent Bridge, will prompt other captains to support the spirit of cricket.

The series rare to descend into acrimony when Bell was given out the last ball before the interval, when he started to walk off the field before 'over' was called having thought he'd scored a boundary. He admitted to being naive and stupid, but India themselves had concerns about the situation as they met in the dressing room and were in deep discussion before Strauss and Andy Flower asked them to reconsider.

"It was very admirable that they distorted their mind and took back the appeal," Strauss said. "It's one of those situations where there are always shades of grey but I think it was good for the game of cricket. In years to come it will be looked upon as a step in the right direction for the game of cricket and hopefully other people will follow those decisions.

"I think one of the things that have set the game of cricket slightly apart from other sports is that you have the chance to show some spirit. It's good for the game of cricket going forward and therefore the game of cricket is the better for it."

Strauss has been concerned in recall a batsman to the crease when he allowed Angelo Mathews to resume after he was given run-out following a collision during a Champions Trophy match in 2009. He agreed that, by the Laws, Bell was run-out although he felt that the fact that he wasn't trying to take another run was a factor in his defenses.

"When it first happen there was a lot of perplexity, and myself and Andy went down to the umpire's room as we just wanted to clarify the circumstances as regards to the Laws of the game," Strauss said. "We were entirely at ease that in the strict rules of the game Ian was out. [But] we felt that it was pretty obvious that he was just walking off for tea and wasn't attempting a run and so we asked India to think again their appeal and then left it at that."

Dhoni confirmed that the Indians had doubts about the dismissal which "didn't feel right" and took the chance to say that more could be done by the game as a whole to support the spirit of cricket which he felt wasn't being applied every time.

"We weren't feeling good at heart," he said. "A similar kind of incident happens in West Indies when VVS Laxman got stumped. After we took the conclusion we were really satisfied. There are a lot of things where spirit of cricket should be follow. It needs to be equal but it's about what we feel as a team is significant.

"If a fielder takes a one-bounce catch he's called deceive but if a batsman stands after nicking it he isn't," Dhoni added. "Going up to a batsman and swear words isn't in the spirit of cricket. We've seen quite a few things happen. If you want to follow you should follow it 100%."

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Steven Finn get Trent Bridge call

Steven Finn has been call up to England's squad for the second npower Test against India, starting Friday.

The 22-year-old Middlesex player joins the squad due to misgivings over Chris Tremlett's fitness.

Tremlett experienced his hamstring "niggle" for a second time during England's net session on Thursday afternoon; although Captain Andrew Strauss appears hopeful the Surrey man will figure at Trent Bridge.

Strauss said: "We are very sure he should be fine.

"But like all these things, because there is such a short rotate between the two Test matches, we've almost got to wait until Friday morning before we're 100% sure one way or another.

"We'll only choose him if we're 100% he'll get through the game."

Finn, who took 5-33 in a CB40 clash with Derbyshire on Thursday, will compete with Yorkshire all-rounder Tim Bresnan for a place in the XI should Tremlett miss out.

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"Feels extraordinary to be back in England"

India coach Duncan Fletcher told it feels odd to return to England with the blame to plot their downfall.

Fletcher was caoch of England from 1999 to 2007 and was chosen the Indian coach earlier this year.

"It's odd for me. I never consideration I'd be back in this role. When I left England I thought I wouldn't get (back) concerned with cricket. But having worked (as a consultant) with South Africa, New Zealand a bit and Hampshire to some degree - I sort of got the bug again," Fletcher was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

"It does seem a little bit odd coming over here. But I have enjoyed working with India, who I think had quite a good tour of West Indies. It's going to be a thrilling series. To be concerned with a top side and in a thrilling series is quite a challenge," he said.

During his term as the England coach, Fletcher had worked with some of the members of the current crop, particularly captain Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen and pace spearhead James Anderson.

"The team has distorted quite a lot. There is a pair of senior players that I know something about but the rest of the team has changed. We'll have to look at the tapes, look at the technique that certain players have got, we'll have to assess that over the next couple of days," he said.

Asked if he thought England is a better side now, Fletcher said: "It's difficult to assess what is a better side - or (what is) the best side in the world. If you want to look at the statistics, then you'd have to say India is (the best side in the world). England has absolutely improved under Straussy and Andy Flower. They have done a really good job receiving that side back on track."

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