The Hindu : Sport : Injuries put England on the defensive

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 13, 2006

Sport

Sport

Injuries put England on the defensive

Ted Corbett

LONDON: England's failures in the series against Sri Lanka have passed under the radar created by the World Cup antics and the side, which drew the Tests 1-1 and lost the one-dayers 5-0, has largely escaped censure.

But, as the team begins its first Test against Pakistan on Thursday in the brief pause before the football season once again diverts attention, the focus of fans and media will be on its activities. Failure will not be tolerated.

Sadly, England is still too badly equipped to deal with a strong Test side and the news that Pakistan has sneaked into second place in the world rankings will energise the talented visiting team as much as it adds to the feeling that the tide is running against England.

The injury list has grown due to the freak accident to Matthew Hoggard, nursing a right hand cut in two places, and deprives the team of an essential bowler. England still looks in vain for the rest of this summer for Ashley Giles, Michael Vaughan, Simon Jones and Andrew Flintoff.

Some good news

Flintoff, captain-elect for the tour of Australia beginning in October, has made runs and taken wickets in the two Twenty20 matches he has played for Lancashire and must now be considered a certainty for the second Test, particularly as it is on Old Trafford, his home ground. His infectious energy will surely restore morale.

Perhaps it is as well that Pakistan — pushed to the top of the world ratings in ICC's annual review — also has its own problems. Shoaib Akhtar and Naved-ul-Hasan are injured and may not appear on a tour, which promised to see them add to their stature, on this country's more helpful pitches.

The side has performed well in the warm-up matches although it was bullied by England A for a while; but there will be a feeling of uncertainty as the players step out at Lord's where atmosphere and tradition create a special moment for the visiting players.

As usual there is the interesting side issue of the two coaches, rivals for the England post seven years ago. Bob Woolmer won the series in Pakistan this winter by a wide margin; not just 2-0 on the field but by shrewd thinking before the series.

Duncan Fletcher's role is under the microscope for the first time. Yes, his men won back the Ashes but now that the side is in trouble, his only answer seems to be a quiet admission that life is "very, very difficult."

It is his job to solve those difficulties but as his instinct is to make as few changes as possible, it will be a problem for him to show that he has cured England's ills.

His refusal to entertain the idea of dropping wicket-keeper Geraint Jones for Chris Read, who made a century for England A, is verging on the pig-headed but those of us who admire Read reckon the day will surely come.

Read's critics say he is not popular in the dressing room, but how popular can Jones be if he continues to average seven with the bat and miss chances?

That is just one of the problems Fletcher has to solve. If it proves "very, very difficult," then England may have to look elsewhere for solutions. To Woolmer, perhaps.

The teams: England (from): Andrew Strauss (capt.), Marcus Trescothick, Ian Bell, Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Geraint Jones, Liam Plunkett, Monty Panesar, Steve Harmison, Jon Lewis, Matthew Hoggard, Sajid Mahmood.

Pakistan (from): Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt.), Shoaib Malik, Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Faisal Iqbal, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Kamran Akmal, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Sami, Danish Kaneria, Abdul Razzaq, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif.

Umpires: Steve Bucknor (West Indies), Simon Taufel (Australia). TV umpire: Peter Hartley. Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka).