The Hindu : Sport : England fritters away the initiative

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jun 08, 2007
ePaper

Sport

Sport

England fritters away the initiative

Ted Corbett

MANCHESTER: When Alistair Cook went to fifty with a cover drive in the final over before lunch with Michael Vaughan 40 and England 112 for one — on the first day of the third Test against West Indies — we sat back and wondered how many runs would come and how quickly. Instead, three wickets fell for 25 runs in the next hour as the West Indies found two bowlers ideally suited to the grey cloud overhead. They have been mocked throughout this tour since they have no-one with lightning pace and yet here were two bowlers who have never sent a ball down the pitch at 80 miles an hour in their lives forcing England's high voltage batsmen onto the defensive.

The day began with another glance at the Vaughan agenda. He had been allowed to deny any malice in his damnation of Admiral Andrew Flintoff as the man whose pedalo incident cause a major fall in England morale, and was responsible for their demise in the World Cup. Vaughan even took Flintoff to lunch and paid.

Few of his admirers in the sell-out Old Trafford cared. Those few booed, the majority applauded when he went out to win the toss and again, three overs later, when he went in to bat. They were clearly indifferent to the contents of a quarrel that has so exercised those of us caught up in the middle of the cricket village. Although Vaughan has clearly stretched the truth well beyond forgivable limits he will escape more than private censure even though the conservative element — a vast majority — want him strung up by the thumbs.

Flintoff's take

Flintoff put his point of view on television and radio at tea. He had been sitting in a hospitality suite, with his left ankle bound up, and a pair of crutches at the ready. He called the row with Vaughan a "storm in a tea cup" and said he had the utmost trust in Vaughan. "I have known him for a long time. We have had a chat about what has happened and put it behind us. As far as I am concerned we have put it behind us and moved on." If Flintoff feels no lasting grief after this unsavoury incident, everyone will have to follow suit. Any regrets, he was asked. "Obviously, it is frustrating not playing," was his cricketer's answer.

Big man, big response to a difficult problem.

After Andrew Strauss had failed again — and perhaps opened up the way for the return of Marcus Trescothick — Vaughan alternated gorgeous shots through the offside with miscues over and through the slips while Cook trotted to his fifty and looked as if vulnerability was for other batsman.

After lunch, Corey Collymore, with his strict control and Darren Sammy, making his debut and giving St. Lucia a place in a West Indies Test side for the first time, looked unplayable. Vaughan stretched forward to Collymore and was bowled through the gap, Kevin Pietersen essayed an airy hook at Collymore and was caught by Dwayne Bravo at deep square leg and then Bravo turned up at gully to catch Cook ankle high. What an enthusiast this man is.

Nowadays England have batting to spare, so it was no surprise when Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell rebuilt the innings methodically until at 166 Collingwood was lbw to Jerome Taylor. At tea they were 167 for five but Bell, as diligent as ever, and the more boisterous Matt Prior made sure that at the close England was secure but far from being in a winning position at 296 for seven.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport