Positives

• Return to form with the bat of Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell – although they will need to do so against sterner opposition to really prove themselves. Pietersen at 3 and Bell at 5/6 (depending on how many bowlers) is an exciting prospect.
• Graeme Swann – 100 test wickets beckon already in such a short career; hopefully a test century will come soon too.

Negatives

• England gave away at least one day in each test match, meaning they were pushed harder than many thought possible – for a long time now, the English cricket team has had trouble knocking over the tail of the opposition, perhaps they just relax too much, or try too hard to get the last batsmen out?
• Cook’s captaincy, whilst effecting results, was hardly inspirational, but we did at least win.

Another positive is the commitment and skill exhibited by this maturing Bangladesh side; hopefully they will be able to compete on the tougher wickets here in England this summer – I look forward to being entertained at Lords in May.

Graeme Swann, following his meteoric rise to No. 2 in the ICC rankings (perhaps a bit premature, but he has had a huge impact in Test cricket over the last 15 months), was England’s main wicket taker, and he has an outside chance at his third consecutive five wicket haul.

Bangladesh showed promising signs of increased confidence and consistency with a number of batsmen making starts, and some grittiness shown in the lower order. England will have to bat very well to build a sizeable lead on this pitch, and hopefully an interesting contest will ensue.

In a related note, my tickets to the return fixture at Lords in May arrived today, so now all I need to do is work out what wine to bring, and pray for decent weather!

Graeme Swann became the first England off-spinner to take ten wickets in a match since Jim Laker took 19 over 50 years ago, although I still think England would have been better off picking two spinners for this match; poor Swanny had to toil through nearly 80 overs throughout the game, that’s nearly two days of solid bowling. Back in England in the summer though, where turning pitches are less common, he has to be the first choice spinner, and probably first name on the team-sheet. It’s been an amazing start to a test career.

The next match that begins on Saturday will hopefully be a good contest. It would be good to see Bangladesh bat first and to set England a challenging target. England still look as though they have the potential for a top-order collapse with inexperienced batsmen towards the top of the order, and a middle-order slowly working its way into some form.

Meanwhile in the IPL, still no sign of the “mongoose” from Matthew Hayden, but some excellent big-hitting from Dhoni today livened up proceedings somewhat!

This does not sum up the reality of a series in which England’s bowling armoury looks rather fragile in terms of injuries, in which their top batsmen is woefully out of form, and in which Bangladesh should look to make big steps forward in terms of consistency.

Pietersen will not necessarily be relishing this series where the opposition have so many spin-bowling resources, including up to three of his current nemesis, the left arm spinner.

Bangladesh, who in recent months have shown that they can play well enough to compete with any team on their day, now need to put these good sessions and days into consistent performances over a test match, without being fazed by the reputation of the opposition.

The first day today went very much England’s way, and Captain Cook should look to making his maiden double hundred during the first session tomorrow. Pietersen seems to have overcome some of his demons with a flowing 99, but he will be disappointed not to have reached the landmark. England are well set for a total in excess of 550, and only an England win should be possible from here.

One surprise was the inclusion of only one spinner in the England lineup, with Tredwell missing out in place of the young fast bowler, Finn. If the pitch turns as much as many in the subcontinent, Pietersen may find himself doing a fair bit of bowling.

IPL

The IPL starts today, and now that this is a fixture in the cricketing world, much interest from all around the world will be focussed on it. It will be interesting to see how exciting the competition is this year, and how much it matters to the teams. The competition does give an excellent opportunity for the old guard of cricket to extend their careers, and for younger players to emerge into the spotlight, but can it ever match the excitement of a test match. As recent nailbiting results in South Africa have shown, the five-day form of the game is still the pinnacle in terms of skill and entertainment (at least so long as you have some patience!).

It was a shame in this series that the West Indies weren’t entirely committed, and that the authorities thought it necessary to play the games so early in the season, and in the cold weather. That England won in preparation for the Ashes was vital, but they’d have preferred a stiffer test.

So who will turn out for England in the Ashes – assuming Flintoff is fit, here would be my selection, which is not too controversial:

1. Strauss
2. Cook
3. Bopara
4. Pietersen
5. Collingwood
6. Prior
7. Flintoff
8. Broad
9. Swann
10. Anderson
11. Panesar

The reason I include Monty is that the Australians are now without any world-class spinner, and if we have turning pitches, then England now have the spin armoury to really attack Australia with spin. Swann is surely now first choice spinner, and is an excellent batsmen to appear at 9 in the batting order. Broad’s seam and Anderson’s mastery of the swinging ball provide a perfect opening pair, with Flintoff the go-to bowler at any time of need. And if one of Panesar or Swann is stuggling, there is always Pietersen’s off-spinners for a change.

Prior should now naturally bat above Flintoff, since the latter’s batting is no-where near the force it once was, and Broad should look to become a competent no. 7 in the future – a test century should be his for the taking in the next couple of years. Swann is also capable of making a test century and England have the longest batting line up in a very long time.

We’ll see what happens in the coming 7 weeks!

This potentially interesting fact, led me to email the commentators on www.cricinfo.com for the first time, asking whether this was a first (no answer), but they posted my comment, including a comment of their own about the “tremendous quantities of geekery”. Finally my reward, and a proud moment. It’s in the 80th over of the first day’s full commentary.

Otherwise, not much to talk about – Alastair Cook continues to score runs, despite looking a little out of touch still, but if he can do so, then all credit; he needs to push on to a really big score tomorrow – his current best of 139* isn’t quite good enough. England will need to aim for 500, and hope the pitch deteriorates, otherwise a boring draw is on the cards.

An excellent day’s work from England’s new no. 3 Bopara – some might suggest that Bell’s weight of runs in County Cricket so far, or Vaughan’s reputation should have secured one of them the slot, and I for one would have liked Vaughan to have a final chance to demonstrate his undoubted talent, but Bopara has silenced the critics today, albeit with the help of some hopeless catching. Hopefully he can press on with the tail tomorrow.

At the top of the order, Cook again did the hard work and then failed, and will need to convert at least one start in this series if he is to be a serious contender in the Ashes – although I suspect he’ll play anyway, in the absence of anyone else good enough. The in-form batsman, Strauss didn’t really get going, and KP didn’t get a chance.

Lower down, Broad continues to impress with the bat, and a test century is only a matter of time away. Swann, a man with a first-class best of 183, is a very able no.9, and England for once have an impressively long batting line up.

West Indies, despite being let down by their catching, will be fairly happy with the scoreline at the end of the day, and if Edwards can complete his 5-wicket haul early on the Second Day, they will think themselves in an excellent position.

New Zealand themselves may feel robbed by the 19th over abandonment (20 are needed to make a match in an ODI), but they would have needed 7 runs off that 20th over without the loss of a wicket – not easy in the pouring rain, so really it was still anybody’s match. The fact that they were playing the final overs in almost blackness and in that rain is the issue here. The rules at the time state that the innings-interval should be 30 minutes, even in a rain-shortened match (the teams had already had lunch long before play began). This interval actually occupied the best weather and light of the match, and with a forecast of worsening weather would have been very frustrating.

At least the laws have now been changed so that umpires and captains can agree to shorten the interval (to last between 10 and 30 minutes) if they so wish, with the ICC match referee being the final arbiter in case of a disagreement. This is in the best interests of cricket (like allowing the reverse sweep). Well done to the lawmakers – twice in a week!

The MCC are meeting today to discuss the matter. The central point to the argument for disallowing shots such as this is that if the bowler has to tell the batsmen if he is switching hands, then shouldn’t the batsman have to do the same? And also, if the batsman is switching hands, how will this affect interpretation of LBW and wide laws?

The main crux of the matter seems to be this – surely a batsman is entitled to play a shot in any way possible – if he is quick enough to interchange his hands, and to bring his back leg through in front of him, that is surely his prerogative. The bowler may not be allowed to change his delivery hand without informing umpires and batsman, but he is allowed to do anything he likes to the grip, the direction of the spin etc. Similarly, the batsman shouldn’t be allowed to alter his actual direction of stance (although it’s pretty obvious), but surely changing his grip. and twisting in a shot must be allowed…

We will wait and see what the law-makers decide.

England wrapped up a 2-0 series victory on the 4th morning of the 3rd Test, with Ryan Sidebottom being the main destroyer in New Zealand’s 2nd innings. This completed an excellent match for England with victory being by the sizable margin of an Innings and 9 runs.

The bowlers can be very proud of their efforts in this match, with both Sidebottom and Anderson taking excellent hauls, and Broad chipping in with vital wickets, and his test-best 64 runs in England’s innings. The batsmen, however, should be less happy with their performances in this match, and the series as a whole. Cook, Bell and Collingwood all failed in England’s only innings, Strauss got himself out when well set (although he has had an excellent series), and Vaughan continues to be an enigma in England’s upper order: He looks in sublime touch, but then misses a straight ball attempting a flourishing drive. In this match, only Pietersen and Ambrose stood up to be counted, forming a vital partnership when all around them were getting out.

Series Ratings

With the whole series over, how did England’s XI perform? – In batting order:

Alastair Cook: 5

Formed an excellent 100 partnership with Strauss at Lord’s, but is still weak around his off-stump. Needs a big score urgently.

Andrew Strauss: 8

Excellent series overall. Superb 100 in the difficult chase at Old Trafford, and consistent scores throughout the series. Looks a different man from 12 months ago.

Michael Vaughan: 7

Good 100 at Lords, and vital contribution at Old Trafford. Still has a habit of getting out when looking well-set. Good captaincy in general.

Kevin Pietersen: 7.5

Not at his most consistent with the bat, but crucial runs at Trent Bridge when no-one else seemed to be able to get anything to hit the middle of the bat. Needs to re-exert his personality on proceedings, but signs of that are returning.

Ian Bell: 2

Where are his next runs coming from? Scratched around with Collingwood to eke England over the line in Manchester, but is back to his timid worst at the moment.

Paul Collingwood: 2.5

Another man who can’t buy a run. His fielding was excellent though, and that gains him his 0.5 point on Bell.

Tim Ambrose: 6

Excellent keeping throughout the series, on difficult pitches – a big turner at Manchester, and the seaming, swinging wicket in Nottingham. Looked fragile with the bat early on, but a match-turning partnership with Pietersen at Trent Bridge shows his potential.

Stuart Broad: 8

The new Ashley Giles of England’s batting line-up, but with more potential and an even-better technique. Contributions all through the series rounded off with a beautifully crafted test-best of 64 at Nottingham. Will be disapointed with his return of only 7 wickets, but they came at crucial times.

Ryan Sidebottom: 8

Another excellent series from the bowling perspective: 17 wickets at 20.5. England’s leading bowler now takes wickets on reputation as well as from his skill – a useful attribute meaning that even when not as his best he is still a danger to the opposition.

James Anderson: 9

The leading wicket taker in the series with 19 wickets at 19.3. Promoted to the heady heights of number 9 in the 3rd test following Sidebottom’s back spasm, and rewarded his captain’s faith with a pleasing test best of 28.

Monty Panesar: 8

Monty’s batting seems to have plumbed new depths managing 1 run in three innings, but his bowling is as good as ever. Didn’t have a role in the final test with the seamers going so well, but turned the series with his test best 6-37 in Manchester.

Looking ahead to South Africa

Assuming Collingwood and Bell get some runs in the One-day series ahead, and the Flintoff regains match fitness, how will England shape up against South Africa – it is a very difficult choice as to which seamer you might drop to fit Flintoff into the side, but his batting is not of the standard it used to be. I would put Stuart Broad ahead of him in a current batting line up. For the 1st test against South Africa I would like to see:

Cook
Strauss
Vaughan
Pietersen
Collingwood
Prior
Broad
Flintoff
Sidebottom
Anderson
Panesar

There is a big case for the inclusion of Matt Prior (currently the 2nd highest run-getting in County Championship Division 1) instead of Ambrose if England go for the 5-man attack option, although I can understand why the selectors would keep faith with Ambrose.