The Shorter Wisden 2013 (61 page)
Read The Shorter Wisden 2013 Online
Authors: John Wisden,Co
Controversy was temporarily forgotten, though, as South Africa dipped to 54 for four after choosing to bat on an overcast first morning. Three of them went to Finn, who displayed a Glenn
McGrath-like mastery of the Lord’s slope to defeat Amla, although the wickets of Petersen and Kallis were less classical, both involving leg-side gloves. Petersen’s bottom hand was
probably still in contact with the bat handle when it was hit, but third umpire Rod Tucker’s decision to overrule his on-field colleague Kumar Dharmasena in the case of Kallis looked like a
blooper:
his
bottom hand was indisputably off the handle when Finn’s rib-tickler cannoned into it.
South Africa overcame their indignation, regrouping through gritty contributions from Rudolph and Duminy. A maiden half-century from Philander took them past 300, before he became Prior’s
sixth victim of the innings – and the second for Swann, restored to the side, complete with severe 1950s haircut, in place of Tim Bresnan. There were three wickets for Anderson, but Broad
– in his 50th Test – was a little below his usual pace: England might have wished they had opted instead for Graham Onions, who was released from the squad after the toss, drove up to
Trent Bridge, and took nine for 67 for Durham).
Midway through the second day, England were also 54 for four, before a rescue act of their own. Bairstow had been labelled susceptible to the short ball during the West Indies series, but
survived a thorough examination from Steyn and Morkel. Tall and slender, though wide-shouldered, as if he’d left the coat-hanger in place, Bairstow played his natural attacking game, adding
124 with Bell to calm English nerves. Bell was well caught at third slip ten overs before the close, but Bairstow survived, having mixed in the occasional fierce cut with his signature peachy
on-drives. Next morning, though, he tried one too many after being tied down for 14 balls on 95, and was bowled by the impressive Morkel. England had been closing in on South Africa’s total;
they seemed unlikely to get there when Anderson lobbed a catch to gully at 283. But, to wild applause, the last pair inched them level, then just past: as at Headingley, they led by six.
South Africa were quickly back in front, though initial progress was slow. Smith hit only two fours in his first 61 deliveries before cutting Swann to the rope, then was lbw next ball. Shortly
afterwards came a match-changing moment: Amla flicked at a leg-side delivery from Broad, Prior covered the ground well but almost overshot the ball, which hit him on the base of the left palm and
bounced away. Amla had two at the time and – though Broad was partly mollified when he trapped Petersen in front two deliveries later – he survived to score 119 more.
Batting with the sort of calm, wristy elegance patented by Ranji, Amla did not give another chance. A devout Muslim, he celebrated the festival of Eid with his 16th Test century, and it was a
surprise when, halfway through the fourth day, he was again castled by a superb delivery from Finn which this time went up the hill a little. By then de Villiers had also been dropped – on
eight, when he chipped a simple chance to Anderson at short midwicket off Swann – and the lead was past 250.
De Villiers advanced to 43 before Strauss clasped his 121st Test catch, to pass the England record previously shared by Colin Cowdrey and Ian Botham. Finn also removed Rudolph during a fine
spell of three for 14 in 29 balls. The previous evening he had dismissed Kallis for 31, oddly his highest score in three Tests at Lord’s: it remained a statistical curiosity that, of Test
cricket’s five leading run-scorers, only one (Rahul Dravid in 2011) had scored a century there. Kallis immediately reviewed his lbw decision, but had to walk off, disgusted by the DRS for the
second time in the match (the snickometer, not part of the review process, later raised the possibility of a faint nick). Kallis cheered himself up by holding on to a couple of screamers in the
slips – including one to end the match – and also took his 50th wicket against England to join an exclusive club.
Finn’s spell revived England, but hopes of a swift end – and a more realistic run-chase – were stymied by Philander, who made a forthright 35. Duminy, who survived for 141
minutes, was still there when Anderson, bowling well throughout for little reward, wrapped things up with two late wickets. The first of them was his 50th in Tests at Lord’s: only Ian Botham
(69) and Fred Trueman (63) had more.
The target of 346 soon looked far distant when Cook was struck in front, then Strauss – possibly betraying the effects of an enervating week – let one go which was destined to
flatten middle stump. The overnight 16 for two got worse when Bell was caught, after a juggle, at first slip, and most of the ground groaned when Trott pushed towards wide long-on, but declined a
perfectly feasible fourth run: Taylor, in only his second Test, was stranded – “well stuffed by Trott”, lamented the watching Michael Vaughan.
There seemed no way back after that – and indeed there wasn’t, especially against a side as strong as South Africa, worthy claimants of the ICC Test mace. But England showed enough
fight during a classic match, conducted almost throughout in sizzling temperatures, to show why they had been the previous holders.
Man of the Match:
V. D. Philander.
Attendance:
123,555.
Men of the Series:
England – M. J. Prior; South Africa – H. M. Amla.
Anderson 29–5–76–3; Broad 24–4–69–1; Finn 18–2–75–4; Swann 24.2–6–63–2; Trott
6–1–14–0.
Second innings
—Anderson 25.2–4–73–2; Broad 21–2–85–2; Swann 47–14–94–2; Finn
27–5–74–4; Trott 4–0–11–0.
Morkel 28.3–6–80–4; Philander 24–9–48–2; Steyn 29–4–94–4; Kallis 12–3–29–0; Imran Tahir
14–3–54–0.
Second innings
—Morkel 17–3–58–0; Philander 14.5–4–30–5; Steyn 16–4–61–1; Kallis
11–2–50–1; Imran Tahir 24–3–88–1.
Umpires: H. D. P. K. Dharmasena and S. J. A. Taufel. Third umpire: R. J. Tucker.
Series referee: J. J. Crowe.
Test matches (4): India 1, England 2
One-day internationals (5): India 3, England 2
Twenty20 internationals (2): India 1, England 1
England left India celebrating a victory for the history books. And yet, in the aftermath of their nine-wicket defeat in the First Test at Ahmedabad, it had been hard to avoid a
sense of gloomy inevitability. Ranged against them, apparently, were all their old failings – and some recent ones too: scars from the 3–0 defeat in the UAE by Pakistan and their slow
bowlers were still raw. They had not won a series in Asia, Bangladesh excepted, for 12 years; and they had not won in India since 1984-85, when David Gower’s side had become the first –
and, until now, only – visiting team to beat them in a Test series after falling behind.
There were doubts, too, about the spirit within the squad. Kevin Pietersen had only just returned on a short-term central contract, having been omitted from the final Test of the home series
against South Africa and the World Twenty20 squad following revelations about his relationship with his team-mates. And despite Pietersen’s return, itself a feather in the cap for the new
captain, Alastair Cook, there remained selection issues. With the retirement of Andrew Strauss, England had drafted in as opener Nick Compton, an uncapped 29-year-old accustomed to the No. 3 role
in county cricket. The No. 6 slot remained a problem, while an injury in the opening warm-up game to Steven Finn, now a first-choice bowler, especially in these conditions, threatened to disrupt
their plans from the start.
Neither could there be any doubting India’s determination to avenge their humiliating 4–0 defeat in England in 2011. Talk of payback featured heavily, with the Indian players making
it clear England would find life significantly harder in alien conditions. During their three warm-up matches, the tourists were denied exposure to quality opposition. In particular, they faced
very little slow bowling, and none of it high-class, before attracting an avalanche of spin in the Tests.
When Andy Flower, England’s head coach, acknowledged after Ahmedabad that he had erred in omitting Monty Panesar, and asked for judgment on his team to be suspended until the end of the
series, it seemed he was talking more in hope than expectation. Not for the first time, however, Flower was vindicated: by emulating Gower’s side and turning deficit into victory, England
pulled off one of their least expected series wins. For Flower’s opposite number, Duncan Fletcher – who during his time in charge of England had never won a series against India –
it was a particularly unpalatable pill.
In the event, India’s tactics backfired, as Cook guardedly admitted he hoped they might. While England’s top order were warming up almost exclusively against an assortment of seamers
and part-time slow bowlers, they were also spending confidence-boosting time at the crease. India’s captain M. S. Dhoni kept insisting, to the point of obsession, on turning tracks, designed
to capitalise on the two teams’ perceived strengths and weaknesses. But it became clear that – once Panesar had been picked – it was England who had the slow bowlers better
equipped to exploit the conditions. And while India persisted with the theory that England’s batsmen could not play spin, they went into games with poorly balanced attacks, including one
seamer and three spinners at Mumbai, then – in a dreadful miscalculation – one and four at Nagpur.
At both Mumbai and Kolkata, Tests were played on recently used pitches, although Dhoni’s attempts to put pressure on groundsmen to comply with his demands met with mixed results. Certainly
any implied threats from the BCCI about the future of Kolkata’s curator fell on deaf ears: Prabir Mukherjee, a fearless octogenarian, was long past the stage where such intimidation offered
any concern, and provided a fine Test pitch. Only the deathly slow surface at Nagpur proved unsuitable for a format fighting for space in a crowded marketplace.
As Dhoni’s stock fell, despite his face-saving – though not series-salvaging – innings of 99 at Nagpur, Cook’s reputation rocketed. Even amid the rubble of
England’s rout at Ahmedabad, he had sown the seeds of their resurgence with a second-innings century that proved to his colleagues it was possible to prosper against India’s spinners.
In typically undemonstrative fashion, he went on to score centuries in each of the first three Tests, making him the first man to register hundreds in his first five in charge (he had scored one in
each of the two Tests in Bangladesh in 2009-10, when he stood in as captain for the rested Strauss). Cook’s air of calm, whether in adversity or triumph, his pragmatic approach to coaxing the
best out of the eclectic mix of characters under him, and his desire to succeed meant the post-Strauss transition took place more smoothly than anyone could have dreamed.
Where once he had been an accumulator, satisfied with cutting, pulling and nudging, Cook now showed he had developed a range of strokes to prosper in any conditions. He swept judiciously, a
rarity among Englishmen, used his feet precisely, drove sweetly, and demonstrated a willingness to hit over the top. Had umpire Kumar Dharmasena not sawn him off twice at Nagpur – before
apologising – Cook would surely have surpassed Ken Barrington’s 51-year-old England record for the most runs in a series in India (594), although he was gracious enough to admit he had
received the rub of the green a couple of times; he finished instead with 562, though in four Tests to Barrington’s five. And at Kolkata he became the first England player to rack up 23 Test
centuries, and the only man from any nation to pass 7,000 runs before the age of 28. It was monumental stuff.
But Cook’s contribution started long before the team departed for a pre-tour training camp in Dubai. It was partly his determination that helped find a solution to the Pietersen episode
after he was left out of the initial touring party, and it was his alliance with Flower that rammed home a no-excuses mindset. Where previous England teams in India had been daunted by the
conditions, the travel, the food, the weight of history and just about everything else, this one made a point of embracing the culture and the conditions. Almost without exception – and
despite some justification at times – they never breathed a word of complaint. Unsurprisingly, Cook’s presence as a tactician grew too, after a shaky start on the first day of the
series. By contrast, Dhoni looked one-dimensional, and England privately noted his tendency to change the field in response to the previous ball.