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England cruises to innings win

Ted Corbett

— Photo: AFP

BUBBLING WITH JOY: The England players celebrate their series win over New Zealand.

NOTTINGHAM: England rushed New Zealand to defeat on the fourth day of the second Test at Trent Bridge by taking the last five wickets in a dozen overs. It won the match by an innings and nine runs as the last five batsmen were out in 40 deliveries for only 35 runs.

The 2-0 series win means it is now third in the world rankings, a fraction behind India and a light year short of Australia. What else is new?

The truth about this series is that it proves nothing. A moderate England side has been unchanged from start to finish yet there must have been times when the selectors were tempted to tinker, even to make wholesale changes.

Not clicking

A wretched New Zealand team, bereft of those who defected to India and its billion rupee cricket economy, those who were injured and those who were not wanted like Stephen Fleming who wished to retire from one-day games but who could have done a marvellous job here, never functioned properly.

Daniel Vettori seemed weighed down by his triple role of captain, leading bowler and No. 8 batsman.

If Fleming had been chosen he could have taught Vettori more about his new role, taught the opening batsmen the art he has displayed for the last 12 years and shown the middle-order hopefuls that when the ball swings as it did here you avoid playing as many balls as possible. But, that was too much for the selectors; they preferred Vettori forgetting Fleming’s dignity for 12 years.

England won; what else is there to say. It will find its true worth when Graeme Smith and that tough bunch of cookies from South Africa start their campaign. I imagine that the trio of fast bowlers — Makhaya Ntini, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel — are licking their lips in anticipation of a gallop against the England middle-order, and possibly against the openers too.

England has won four of its last six Tests but looked vulnerable as much as anything because it seems to have no replacements in sight.

It makes all the optimistic talk of another glorious Ashes series sound like the beat of an empty drum and, as the team carried the trophy round the ground today to show it to the fans it was difficult to imagine when that ceremony would be repeated.

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