A 4-0 Whitewash

“We’ve got the best team in the world, we’ve got the best team in the world…!”

So rang out the chant of the Barmy Army as England secured another resounding victory, wrapping up the series 4-0 and securing their place at the top of the world Test rankings. This being the first time, since the ICC’s official Test ranking came into existence in 2003, that England have been ranked number one. A massive achievement in itself, yesterday also marked another milestone; a 4-0 whitewash. At the beginning of the series many thought the result would be a draw and while CicketChicks predicted an England victory, we (along with everyone else), never dreamt England would win 4-0 and, more importantly, by the margins they have. Yesterday saw another innings victory for England, the second of the series.

The question then, is have England really been that good or have India been that bad?

The answer is probably a combination of both. India came into this series ‘undercooked’, unprepared and unfit. Some of their key players had not played a Test Match since January, opting to miss a tour of the West Indies (surely it can be no coincidence that Rahul Dravid, the Indian ‘Man of the Series’, did play) and looking somewhat more rotund than usual. When you combine this with the ageing nature of the current Indian team and some injury problems, the result was never likely to be the competitive series we had all hoped for. Nothing, however, should be taken away from the England team. They were simply outstanding. Being fitter, stronger and more drilled then their Indian counterparts. While the Indian bowling attack was at best mediocre, the England batsman could only play what was in front of them; and play them they certainly did. Consistently making big runs (over 700 at Edgbaston and 591 at the Oval) and with a number of the England players contributing with much lauded “daddy hundreds” (Kevin Pietersen, Alastair Cook and Ian Bell all made scores in excess of 200), their batting was relentless. With the inclusion of Tim Bresnan (after the injury to Chris Tremlett) England batted all the way down to number ten. The bowling was equally superb. Taller, faster and more skilled than the Indian bowlers, England’s attack (led brilliantly by Jimmy Anderson) never allowed the Indian batsman to find any sort of form. As equally relentless as the batsman, they complemented each other perfectly and exerted the sort of pressure which resulted in the Indian team only reaching 300 once in eight innings. Indeed, it is testament to the way England bowled that Sachin Tendulkar never managed to reach the illusive milestone of his 100^th international century. This being the first time since 2008 that the ‘Little Master’ has not reached three figures at least once in a Test series. This is undoubtedly one of the best bowling attacks he, and his other superstar batsmen, have had to face in a very long time. After all, this same line-up, managed to make runs against South Africa late last year.

The Indian team, though, could have been a little tougher. As Dravid showed, runs could have been made. It would be difficult but not impossible. Unfortunately for Dravid, who ‘carried his bat’ at the Oval and was one of India’s only shinning lights (Praveen Kumar perhaps the other), many of his counterparts lacked such courage and resilience. The attitude of Virender Sehwag in the filed and the antics of Suresh Raina and Gautam Gambhir, are three of the most blatant examples of a questionable attitude. A criticism which can be aimed higher than at just the players themselves. One has to wonder what the BCCI were thinking, delaying Sehwag’s shoulder surgery so as he could play a full season of the IPL. Moreover, what were they thinking when they decided to recall RP Singh (someone who hasn’t played Test Cricket for three years)? Is too much emphasise on the shorter format of the game hampering India’s Test Match potential? It is interesting to note that England have the fewest number of IPL players. As the number one Test team in the world and, facing a huge series against your biggest aspiring rivals, India should have been primed and pumped for this series. Unfortunately, they were anything but.

So, what now for England?

Totally focused and utterly ruthless, England, under Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower, have all the makings of a truly great team. With this current eleven having an average age of just 28, they have the potential to dominate for years to come. Moreover, as has been proven in this series, they posses the strength in depth needed to sustain that higher level. Two away series in the subcontinent will be England’s next big challenge. But we wouldn’t bet against them succeeding there as well.