Leeds, Sept 4:
Series already in their pocket, a rampaging India would look to keep the foot on the pedal and press for a clean sweep when they take on England in the fifth and final cricket one-dayer here tomorrow.
In a remarkable turnaround following their humiliation in the preceding Test series, India have called the shots in the ODI series, in which England have struggled to match the visitors be it batting, bowling or fielding.
After the first game was washed out, world champions India have asserted their supremacy in the ODI format by taking 3-0 lead to pocket the five-match series, which is their first in England since 2002, if the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy is neglected on account of a multi-team tournament.
In fact that 2002 win was a tri-series win as well with Sri Lanka as third participants. You have to go back all the way to 1990 for a bilateral ODI series win by India in England, when they took the Texaco Trophy 2-0.
The common thread between that series win and the current one is Ravi Shastri. He was still playing for India in 1990 while this time around he has been involved as the director of cricket.
The other vital point being that Mohammad Azharuddin was captain of the Indian team back then. And Mahendra Singh Dhoni has just gone past his record for the maximum ODI wins as Indian captain.
Both Shastri and Dhoni will look to end this series on a winning note then. And they should be successful in their bid because England haven’t really put up a worthy challenge in any of the matches. So much so that the hosts’ 2015 ODI World Cup plans lie in tatters.
To make matters worse, their captain Alastair Cook doesn’t want to accept that selection or strategy is at fault in this defeat. This claim is despite the fact that they have been very reluctant to play both Moeen Ali and James Tredwell together in the same eleven. (PTI)
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