Swann set belongings to see on early wickets

Graeme Swann has already eliminate two of India's best hopes of avoid a 4-0 power series whitewash - and would have bag an even bigger wicket if his team-mates had been on the ball.

Swann was the bowler who to finish shifted Rahul Dravid, after more than seven hours of confrontation with an winning 146 in India's first-innings 300 and then just 13 more out of 129 for three at stumps on Day Four of the fourth Test at The Oval.

He doubles up with the off-spinner's favourite mode of discharge, bowling Virender Sehwag through the gate.

But Sachin Tendulkar survive on 34 - when he would have gone stumped had England had the presence of mind to demand - and will therefore stand in their way again tomorrow, in what force yet prove to be the Little Master's last Test innings in this country.

"What can I say? I'm at the bowler's end, so I can't see," Swann protest. "They've only got about 12 pairs of eyes round the stumps.

"It's not precisely the brains belief who field round there, so it's no revelation nobody picked up on it." Nearest of all was the man who took off the bails, with Tendulkar's foot off the floor.

"I am a bit astonished Matty Prior didn't, because he appeals for everything," added Swann, who however had plenty to smile about.

On a wearing pitch, he previously has five wickets in the match - and could easily be the key to the ending as India try to bat out three sessions, still 162 runs short of making England bat again.

"I look forward to it, having to play a big part in a possible victory for England - that's always thrilling," said Swann.

"It's going to be a hard day, make no bones about that. We've got seven more wickets, and we need to get them fairly sharpish so we don't end up in a circumstance where we might have to bat again.

"We need to crack on in the morning in the same vein we ended tonight, because I thought we bowled actually well in that last session."

He is already pleased to have prized out Dravid, who long-established tonight that he did feel a thin edge on his bat-pad removal from office achieved via DRS.
"The way he's batted this summer has just been outstanding," Swann said of his adversary.

"It is very fulfilling first of all to get him out tonight. His was the one wicket we were in fact gunning for tonight because he approved his bat in the first innings, and has got a hundred in every Test match (of the summer) more or less."
As for Sehwag's exit, Swann said: "Bowling people all the way through the gate only happens three or four times a year, if you're lucky.

"It's always one to savour, especially when it's a player of his repute and standing. "When it comes out of your hand, you know it's in the right place. But when you actually see it go through the gap, it's an amazing feeling.

"I'd previously had one go over the top of leg-stump and I'd said to Straussy 'it's just not my day'. "He said 'stop being so gloomy, Swann'. So good on him."
Swann made it clear too that there will be no slacking tomorrow from the world's number one team, with another victory to push for.

"After five days of cricket, if you're just going to turn up happy with the draw then you're not going to last long in this rule.

"We'll be rotating up tomorrow 100% dedicated to try to win this game. If anyone aired those sort of views in the changing room, they'd be shot down - and rightly so.

"We need to try to get the wickets early - a help if we could get three or four before lunch, and particularly get rid of Tendulkar. We don't want him sticking around too long."

Dravid is not giving up hope that his team-mates can come good with some delayed and telling disobedience tomorrow - and refuses to blame them for India's ills.
"It will be mixed feelings (if India loses)," he said.

"I guess there will definitely be a sense of satisfaction at the way I played, and I'm still hoping that we will be able to draw this Test match.

"Sachin is unmoving batting and is looking good - so who knows? "Evidently when you get a hundred and don't end up winning the Test match it doesn't feel nice all the time.

"The guys have tried, practiced hard ... but clearly this time we haven't clicked as a unit, which has been sad. "It's not trying, because no one is going out there not to try and succeed.

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ECB not troubled over Flower future

England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive David Collier is not worried by the possibility of losing team director Andy Flower to another country.

The Zimbabwean has help turn England into the number one ranked Test side in the world this summer and is a highly rated approximately the world.

Flower turned down a move toward to take over as India coach before they selected Duncan Fletcher and Collier is securing him is committed to England.

"I think Andy made his place very clear when the Indian situation happened," he said on Radio Five Live's Sportsweek programme.

"I think he is very established in England and long may that continue. I think the whole of the backroom team is (very important).

"We've urbanized a arrangement over five to 10 years now that has not only delivered plans but has leapfrogged countries in the world and we want to keep that team together."

Collier exposed the ECB were set to sign a new sponsorship deal.

"We're in final deliberations regarding a long-term relationship with new sponsors," he said. "We will be making an statement in the not too far-away future."

Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden claim England's ascent to the best in the world was down to reliability.

"In my career there was a lot of irregularity (in the England team), both in performance and also selection," he said.

"There were so many players coming in and out of the side it was really a turnstile into the English dressing room, but now it's very dissimilar."

He also had chosen out Ian Bell, who scored 235 in the fourth Test with India at The Oval, for special praise.

"Ian Bell has always been a very technically sound player and he’s now dominating Test cricket simply because technically he's sound, emotionally he's grown up, his physical attribute are very good and he's relishing the hard work."

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My heart unmoving bleed for Pakistan

Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has confess that he is disappearing to play for the national team once again.

Speaking on a show, Afridi also made some scornful remarks on the acceptance of Waqar Younis as Pakistan team coach after the Zimbabwe tour.

"My heart bleeds to play for Pakistan and I am disappearing to play for my country. I even necessary going to Zimbabwe and with any luck at the right time I will make a reply to the team," Afridi said.

The colorful all-rounder announce his departure from all international cricket in objection in late May after the Pakistan board detached him as captain of the national one-day team after a disagreement with Waqar on the West Indies tour which was highly exposed.

Afridi has frequently said that he can make a reply only when better people come into the team organization.

Interestingly some cricket analyst point out that since Afridi's departure the entire team organization of the national side has been distorted and indication are now he will return to the team soon.

Earlier this month, the board detached Intikhab Alam as manager and also changed supporter coaches, Aaqib Javed and Shahid Aslam while Waqar announce his acceptance due to personal and health reasons insist he had no complaint against anyone and his choice was not cricket related. .

But Afridi said that he failed to appreciate that if Waqar had resigned why he was being sent as coach on the Zimbabwe tour.

"I don't know but I feel if he has any problem he should have faced them. He didn't look to have fitness problems to me but now if that has changed I don't know about that," Afridi said.

The all-rounder said he owed a lot to Pakistan and wanted to stand for the country but retire because the surroundings in the team were not friendly.

"They need to bring in more levelheaded and good people into the team organization and if that happens I will think again my decision to retire," he said.

"I have been stimulated by the support shown to me by the people. I owe them a lot."

The former captain said that it was unlucky but the board had not treat players well and didn't have proper communiqué with them that led to lot of troubles in the team.

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Bell and Pietersen pillage India in record stand

England 457 for 3 (Bell 181*, Pietersen 175) v India



Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen piled up twin hundreds in a record triple-century stand as England show India no compassion on day two of the fourth npower Test at The Oval.

England's third-wicket pair conquered India's vulnerable attack in a partnership of 350 as a kind surface and sunny skies made life ever more at ease for the hosts, and desperate for their opponents.

Shantha Sreesanth did his best to make a delusion of competitiveness, with a series of vain attempt to engage Pietersen verbally.

But after the early loss of both Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook for the addition of only two runs between them, there was hardly ever even an approximation of a true challenge between bat and ball in a total of 457 for three, with Bell and Pietersen redistribution England's record stand for any wicket against India.

After an alert start, Bell (181no) and Pietersen (175) duly made the most of easy pickings on their way in that order to and well beyond their 16th and 19th Test centuries.

Bell's was his first on this ground, but fifth in 11 innings of a creative 2011 to date.

Pietersen now has four Test hundreds here, and has moved level with Strauss and Cook's career tallies - to stand joint-third on England's all-time list.

He and Bell were prudent in the hour before lunch, adding 29 after Strauss was second out. But the first 10 overs of the afternoon prove particularly punishing for India as 59 runs were plundered.

Pietersen announce himself first with boundaries off leg-spinner Amit Mishra - and then Bell struck a quarter of fours in five balls off Sreesanth.

After the first, a fierce pull follow next ball, then there were two wonderful cover drives on the up in Sreesanth's next over.

Bell also count several of the 12 fours in his 181-ball hundred from what has become one of his brand shots - the back or late-cut off speed to the habitually careless third-man boundary.

Pietersen, by difference, typically used his single reach and footwork to disturb India's lines - whipping to leg or smearing off-side width among his 27 fours in a 232-ball innings.

He completed his hundred with a loud pull from the first ball after tea from Ishant Sharma - only to offer his only possibility off the very next delivery when he miscued an intended repeat high to mid-on.

But in its place of easing India's pain, Gautam Gambhir unfortunately inflict some more on him when he failed to hold an ill at ease skier and fell backwards on to his head and shoulders.

Pietersen and Bell had bag 170 unbeaten runs from 38 overs in a comprehensive second session as they took England's number of century partnerships in the series to nine.

In the attendance of Primer Minister David Cameron England therefore moved ominously back on course for a match-controlling total, in pursuit of a 4-0 series whitewash to merge their new-found world number one Test status.

That ambition had hit a near urgent setback this morning.

Cook swish his bat in aggravation after following some away swing from Sharma and edging the fifth ball of the day to second slip.

It was an particularly infuriating turn of events for a batsman renowned for his powers of concentration and so fixed during his career-best 294 at Edgbaston just last week.

But had he known what was to come, he need not have been so hard on himself.

The same could be said for Strauss, who took an hour and 32 balls to add just two runs to his overnight 38 before departing after some full-length width from Sreesanth and edging tamely behind.

If India hope were rising, it was just a unkind passing phase.

Bell took 10 balls to get off the mark, and Pietersen had one close call on 18 when a glance at Sharma fell just short of leg-slip from the final ball of the morning.

But other than Gambhir's early-evening mis-calculation, that was as close as they would ever get to interrupt the predictable in a stand which surpass Graham Gooch and Allan Lamb's England best for any wicket against India when it went past 308.

The tourists had just one 'centurion' of their own - thanks to Mishra's bowling figures, which had just yielded the first sixes of the innings to Bell, when Pietersen lastly went caught and bowled to Suresh Raina's off-spin at the other end.

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