A Test Match Showcase

Has everyone calmed down yet?

It’s been a couple of days since the 2000^th Test Match in the History of the game and the 100^th between England and India came to an end. A capacity crowd on all five days, lengthy queues, extra security (mainly for Sachin Tendulkar) and a parade of old players - the first Test in the current series certainly lived up to the hype, while the cricket wasn’t bad either. A great advert for the longer format of the game, the match had a number of ebbs and flows; though, in the end, the tide of England proved too strong for an out of form India (some of their key players including Tendulkar himself, as well as Zaheer Khan, have only played one Test match since January). To add to the fact that India are notoriously ‘slow starters’, they also suffered a couple of injuries (most notably to Zaheer Khan who failed to bowl a single ball after the first days play), while the ‘little master’ was struck down with a virus. While India’s Captain, MS Dohni, was quick to point out all these unfortunate events, nothing should detract from that fact that England played exceptionally well.

Put in to bat on a damp, overcast morning, India surely had designs on having England at least four or five down by lunch. While they claimed England’s openers fairly cheaply, they hadn’t banked on the resolve of Jonathon Trott and Kevin Pietersen. OK, so the fact that Trott dug-in in the face of adversity may not have been a total shock, but the way KP played out his innings was a total revelation. Often lambasted (mainly by CricketChicks) for giving his wicket away and playing exciting but lose shots, Pietersen’s double hundred showed a mark of maturity and an understanding of his responsibility within the team. Cautious, watchful and measured are words which seem to juxtapose with the image of ‘Kevin Pietersen the batsman’, but they are surely central to the formation of ‘Kevin Pietersen, one of the greatest batsman of all time.’ While this may seem a total exaggeration, when KP first burst onto the International scene in 2005, that’s exactly what people were saying he had the potential to become - an all time great. In the past few years he has seemed anything but. Yet, if he can consistently put in innings, not only of flare and skill but also substance, there is no reason why he cant achieve such grandeur.

Another player much lauded in their early career but suffering for form of late, is Stuart Broad. Not guaranteed of playing in the starting eleven (the return to full fitness of Tim Bresnan putting serious pressure on his Test place), Broad finally managed, with devastating effect, to find the right, fuller length. Claiming four wickets in the first innings and at times looking virtually unplayable, Broad made all those who had doubted his selection look incredibly stupid. Not only was he brilliant with the ball, but he also contributed an excellent seventy runs to help England set up their declaration and assisted the magnificent Matt Prior in reaching another hundred.

Indeed, one of the key features of this Test Match has been how well the England team have gelled as a unit. Confident in each others abilities, the batsman know the next man in can get the runs, while the bowling unit consist of an effective and varied attack. The swing of James Anderson, the bounce of Chris Tremlett, a combination of the two from Broad and then the spin of Graeme Swann, must be one of, if not the best, bowling line-ups in world cricket.