Lull in proceedings

There seems to be a lull in the cricketing world in the aftermath of the hotly anticipated but ultimately disappointing World Cup. Teams have returned to their own countries and are preparing for the next series in their schedule.

India and Bangladesh have been the first off the mark with a series in Bangladesh. There has talk of this being a revenge series for the Indians and the 2-0 victory by the Indians seem hollow and cannot make up for the one big loss at the WC. That was the main stage with the whole world watching and a prestigious trophy at stake, and this is a side show which is of interest mainly only to the two countries taking part. A win is a win,however, whatever the stage and will do India no harm as a loss would have inflicted yet more criticism on the already wounded team.

The change in coach that has happened within almost every team since the WC, is also one that India faces. A permanent coach needs to be in place as soon as possible so that the rebuilding can start in earnest. The constant speculation does not help the team. One wonders why the BCCI is dragging its heels on this issue of recruiting a new coach. Other countries like Australia and England have acted quickly and planned ahead by grooming the next coach well ahead of time.

England and West Indies prepare for their series which start this Thursday and the build up seems distinctly low key. Both teams will be looking to do well after recent disappointments and it is as if there is a blank sheet, with a new era for both teams, with the scripts yet to be written. It could prove to be a close and interesting series.

As there is not much news on the cricketing field, attention has been diverted to events off the pitch. The main one being the alternative, some say 'breakaway' cricket league in India. There is speculation of recently retired cricket stars such as Warne, McGrath and Lara being tempted to take part. This should benefit both parties as it will no doubt lift the profile of the league and provide a healthy re numeration to the stars taking part. There are definite synergies here with the Packer World series in the late 1970's. It remains to be seen if it will court as much controversy and have as much impact as that one had on the game.

It may take time for momentum to build up again on the cricket field, as new scripts are developed with new contests, rivalries and performances and we will again have much to watch, write and talk about.

Roll on to Lords

The first Test of the summer, between England and West Indies will start next Thursday at Lords. It seems to get earlier each year as England now hosts two teams during the summer in a packed schedule, that there is hardly any time to draw breath.

The Windies arrived in England this week and their arrival seems to have been met by rainfall, which is an unusual occurrence for once at this time of the year. There has been glorious sunshine and instead of the stop start scenario and rained off matches in the County circuit, there have been results and huge scores to boot. The Windies are struggling to get any match practice as their only match before the Test against Somerset in Taunton is likely to be disrupted by the rain.

The Windies dogged by continuing disputes between the board and players, a new captain at the helm in Sarwan, a team without the legend Lara, who has retired and a poor run of form in recent years, have a lot to prove and improve on. England have been the victors by a distance in recent years, unlike the thrashing the once powerful Windies inflicted on them in the 1970's and 1980's. It must be painful for the greats who played in that era and their loyal fans, to witness the decline of a team which seemed invincible, much like the Aussies today.

England must start favourites, thou they also have not had a good winter after loosing the Ashes and a poor World Cup and there are a few injury scares to captain Vaughan and star player Pietersen. There is a new coach, Peter Moores, who has gone about his new task quietly and without much fuss. The Zimbabwean connection continues with Andy Flower as his deputy. They have not had much time to prepare since taking over and it will be interesting to see how this new partnership performs in helping England put recent disappointments behind them and continue the good work started by Duncan Fletcher.

The Lords Test is always a grand affair as befits such a historic venue and the atmosphere and the buzz of anticipation on the first day is always something special to behold. I have been to the ground, on many occasions for a Test, and always cherish the atmosphere, the sumptuous surroundings, the chatter and banter of the fans and of course the play. It is hard to leave at the end of the day and it hardly seems like a whole day has passed. I always leave with memories of the day on my journey home with a big smile on my face. They call Test matches boring, well not from where I am standing.

Roll on to Lords.

Divided we fall

So the apparent rumblings within Team India are coming out slowly at a time when they need to be put to bed and move forward. Nothing can be gained by discussing the details in the public glare. The revelations are not new as disputes between the former coach, guru Greg, and an increasing number of senior players was well documented. He has left now and that should be the end of that.

The apparent factions within the team and particularly among the seniors does need to be sorted out and hopefully it is something Ravi Shastri is working on. I have felt the tension between Dravid and Ganguly since Ganguly was unceremoniously dropped and Dravid took on the reigns. These two have a long history, having made their debuts in 1996 together in England and have therefore played together throughout their careers. It is said that Ganguly helped Dravid keep his place in the one day side by making him keep wickets and Dravid in turn was India's best player during Ganguly's successful tenure as Indian captain. Did Dravid then turn his back on Ganguly when he required some support and his future in the team was in doubt?

Whatever the real reasons and cause for tension within the team, it is clear that it is not good for the team as a whole and the focus should be the team. A divided team is not a happy team and in most cases not successful as a result. You only have to look at Australia, yes them again, to see a team that is happy, playing as a team and winning. Sri lanka also looked like a happy and united team that played well as a team, with credit going to their coach and captain.

The rest would do well to follow the example set by these teams as to be beaten by your opponent is one thing but to be beaten by yourself, completely another.

What can India gain from Bangladesh tour?

The Indian one day team arrived in Bangladesh today keen to play again after their early exit and humiliation at the World Cup. It is ironic that the defeat by Bangladesh in the first round was a prime cause of their exit. This tour has a greater significance than any previous tours and there is more at stake with India having a point to prove.

The hot and sultry conditions will be a test for a side that seems to have had all the stuffing knocked out of it and is sitting at the bottom of the pile after a heady period under Wright and Ganguly, where they were seemingly threatening Australia for the top spot. There now lies a huge gap between these two teams that renders any comparison worthless.

There does not appear to be unity within the camp, with the Board and players at loggerheads about contracts or the withdrawal of them, amount of payments to the team, restrictions on endorsements and the apparent 'resting' of Tendulkar and Ganguly. The BCCI are acting like strict fathers who are punishing their children for not performing well and attributing all the blame to them. Can such a heavy handed approach lead to harmony within the team or cause greater distance and dissatisfaction in Team India?

All the talk is of putting the World Cup debacle behind them and looking to the future and a plea to the media and fans to be more patient. This is easier said than done, when all the focus for the last 4 years has been on the World Cup and elevated expectations of how well India were going to perform. The entire planning for the team including the selection of coach was based on this event so it is not a scar that is easily healed.

The team has little option but to look ahead and begin to rebuild by playing and winning well. They indeed have a point to prove against Bangladesh but if they win and win well, that will only be expected, as they are still the more established and better side, on paper at least. There will be no great celebrations or praise heaped on them. If they win by a narrow margin or worse still loose, the criticism will continue. Once the standards and expectations are raised of being world beaters, there is a long way to go before you can satisfy those expectations again.

Bangladesh on the other hand are on a high, with unity and great team spirit, which was so evident in the World Cup, where they lost the tag of minnows and proved that they are a force to contend with, at least in the one day game. They will know that India are at low ebb and will use this to their benefit along with the fact they have home advantage. They can only gain from the series, as a defeat will not hurt them too much but a close contest or a win will further enhance their growing reputation.

This is probably India's most important tour to Bangladesh,and whatever the result, they have a long road ahead of them before they can finally repair the damage inflicted by a disappointing World Cup and regain the confidence of their passionate fans.

Fragile Vaughan

Michael Vaughan's injury nightmare continues with a fresh injury, a broken finger, which could put him out of action for the first Test and even the second at his home ground at Headingley. He has shown good form at the beginning of the season and at the back end of the World Cup, but this is another blow for the injury prone England captain.

Vaughan needed a good start to the season and have a run of good form to establish his place back into the side. It raises fears of whether he can ever do that again, with his heavily operated knees always likely to let him down. Ever since his return to the side, he has seemed susceptible to picking up an injury simply by chasing a ball to the boundary or running hard between the wickets. He was struggling in his one long innings at the crease against the West Indies in England's final match at the World Cup and that was evidence that he is far from being match fit.

It poses a problem that England have had many times in the recent 18 months of who should captain the side. My vote would go to Andrew Strauss as he impressed me when he led the side well against Pakistan last summer and his batting didn't crumble under the added responsibility. The same cannot be said for Andrew Flintoff, who needs to work on his whole game and aim to reach the form he produced in the classic 2005 Ashes series, without the burden of captaincy. The odds should be on Strauss this time after Flintoff was stripped off the vice captaincy for his drinking exploits in the Caribbean.

Few more men but no dogs

I visited sunny Northampton yesterday and dropped in briefly to watch a Championship match between Northampton and Essex. There were a few more men but no sign of any dogs.

The ground was bathed in sunshine and players and fans alike were taking tea. I walked round this quaint little ground and took in that low key atmosphere. The fans were mainly members and old age pensioners who had come in with their sandwiches and flasks of tea. There was no ICC to impose a strict policy on food and no search of all your belongings as you entered the ground, just friendly and helpful staff with warm greetings. What a refreshing change that made.

There was a splattering of international players on show. The crowd favourite, Monty Panesar, was batting in the middle with his unique style and helping Northampton to stage a recovery after a batting collapsing earlier. Essex had the South African, Andre Nel and England’s rising star, Ravi Bopara bowling. As usual with Nel, there was a lot being said out in the middle with Monty honing his batting skills and holding his own.

The touring Indian team is playing a one day match in August against England A, when no doubt the ground will be full. There is a large Indian community in these parts and they will no doubt come out in force to support their team, and create a special atmosphere. For the Indians, recent tours to England have seemed like playing at home, with their fans in the majority, and with the dry conditions this year, even the playing conditions will suit their style of play. It should make for an exciting series, but first they have a point to prove against Bangladesh.

I left the ground with a smile on my face, having thoroughly enjoyed my short interlude at this friendly ground.

English County season bathed in sunshine

The World Cup has ended, followed by the inevitable post mortem on its success or in this case, reasons for its lack of success, which will no doubt continue for a while. Teams return home for a well deserved rest and reflection on their individual performance. It is a time to regroup and start afresh for most teams, with many changes in personnel, heralding a new way forward and planning for the next four years.

The focus in England is on the new domestic county season. This is usually a damp and cold affair, with hardly any play due to the weather and one man and his loyal dog in attendance in a mid week championship game. The football season also overshadows it as it is reaching its climax, with titles and crucial relegation and promotion issues to be decided. Cricket has always been a poor relative to football and only emerges out of the shadow when the sun finally comes out in mid summer and football is having its annual summer break.

This year there has been glorious sunshine to herald the start of the cricket season and this always adds that extra buzz and excitement to events. Large crowds have been in attendance at the weekends to make the most of the weather. Many have been enjoying those delicious cream teas renowned in this part of the world.

The players are also raring to go after a long winter break for many and there is the usual change in personnel in each team which takes time to settle. There are as usual, a host of overseas international players in the county circuit, at least two in each team, to add to the attraction. Many hope to gain valuable experience playing in these conditions and improve their game.

I am hoping to catch some games away from the international stage and take in the beautiful English countryside at the same time. It is a pleasant change from the hustle and bustle of the international stage, especially the recent World Cup, which has not been a good advertisment for the game, where the focus was on revenue generation, with the game of cricket coming a very sorry second. Hopefully watching the game in its more pure form, away from those greedy men in suits, will reinforce and renew my love for the game.