16 November 2012 Last updated at 09:58 GMT Help
Friday, 16 November 2012
Grayson targets two new signings
Essex coach Paul Grayson wants to sign two new players after identifying areas that he believes need strengthening. He told BBC Essex : "We'd like to bring an overseas batsman in for the start of the season." "We've got five bowlers but we'd like another one. We're hoping to do a deal with someone by the end of the week." Essex expect to be without Ravi Bopara, Owais Shah and Ryan ten Doeschate at the start of next season because of the Indian Premier League. "We're speaking to a batsman at the moment that doesn't play IPL cricket. He's an international player, it would be nice to do something pretty quickly," Grayson added. Meanwhile, he has backed Essex batsman Alastair Cook to succeed as captain of the England Test side, ahead opf the start of their series in India. Cook has taken over from Andrew Strauss following the latter's retirement and Grayson is confident he can handle the extra burden. "I see it being no problem, his record in the last couple of years has been outstanding in Test cricket. "I think you'll find his career statistics will go from strength to strength for the next few years," he said.
Glos downbeat on Cowan's return
Gloucestershire director of cricket John Bracewell has admitted it is unlikely Ed Cowan will return as their overseas player next season. The club had hoped the 30-year-old Australian would re-sign after enjoying a brief stint at Nevil Road last term. But after hitting a maiden Test century against South Africa in Brisbane, they expect Cowan to be part of next summer's Ashes series in England. "We're obviously thinking about plan B," Bracewell told BBC Gloucestershire. "Him scoring 138 at the Gabba didn't help plan A." Cowan, who made his Test debut last December, appeared in three County Championship matches for Gloucestershire last season, scoring 147 runs as they finished bottom of Division Two. Bracewell had hoped Cowan would become captain following Alex Gidman's decision to step down from the role. But he said: "We think we need a captain consistently though the season. "Having someone miss eight-to-ten weeks of the season would be unfair on the players." Bracewell confirmed negotiations with a replacement had already started and the player would be a "good fit" for the club. "We are working hard to find a solution to that but it's difficult, mainly because of work permits. If you are eligible for a work permit then usually you are involved in international cricket," he added. We have a couple of options up our sleeves, which we are thinking seriously about."
Finn will miss first India Test
Venue: Sardar Patel Stadium, AhmedabadDate: 15-19 November 2012Start: 04:00 GMT Coverage: Listen to Test Match Special's ball-by-ball coverage on BBC 5 live sports extra, Radio 4 long wave and online; text commentary on the BBC Sport website, tablets and mobiles; highlights and analysis podcast after close of play
England paceman Steve Finn has not recovered from a thigh strain in time for Thursday's first Test with India in Ahmedabad.
England paceman Steve Finn has not recovered from a thigh strain in time for Thursday's first Test with India in Ahmedabad.
Finn tested his thigh strain last weekend but will now not be risked having missed Tuesday's net practice.
England captain Alastair Cook confirmed on Wednesday that the bowler would not be ready in time.
Stuart Broad, who recently sustained a bruised heel, was able to bowl at full speed in Tuesday's session.
Finn cast a forlorn and frustrated figure watching from the sidelines as his team-mates continued their preparations in earnest. It would be too much of a gamble to field both Finn and Broad together without them both coming through stringent tests.
The vice-captain practised as scheduled, bowling six overs off his full run in two spells."Broady's pretty good, he always says he only needs 10 overs before a Test so we'll see, he's recovered well, the heel's feeling well so I'm certain he'll be ready and raring to go," England wicketkeeper Matt Prior told BBC Sport.
Yorkshire all-rounder Tim Bresnan is the most likely replacement for Finn, who was injured in the opening match of the tour against India A at the end of last month.
Bresnan is England's leading wicket-taker on the tour thus far, with nine wickets from the two first-class matches.
Stuart Meaker and Graham Onions are other options to join James Anderson in the seam bowling ranks.
Surrey's Meaker was called into the squad as cover and was the more successful of the two in the final warm-up match against Haryana, taking 3-74 in the first innings and 1-19 in the second, while Onions was wicketless in the first innings and took 1-34 in the second.
"I'll be doing everything I can to show the coach and captain what I can do and prove that I am ready to perform if selected. Winning a series in India is one of the toughest tasks in cricket. To do it we'll need the batsmen to score 500 runs and the bowlers to keep the run rate down, create pressure and take wickets. That is the goal and everyone in the squad believes we can do it." Prior, who has recovered from a debilitating sickness bug suffered during the match against Haryana, said of the first part of the Indian tour, which comprises four Tests and two Twenty20 internationals: "I've put my stall out for this to be a pretty physically exhausting four-and-a-half weeks. "My role in the team to keep everyone going is something I enjoy but it's not just one guy doing it, as a team we've been very good at it, and that's the important thing, that all 11 guys are out there buzzing around and helping the bowlers out." Meanwhile, Cook has praised the attitude of Kevin Pietersen who is back in the team after his much-publicised absence, and the captain says he is pleased to have the batsman back in the fold. "I wanted all of the world-class players that we have to be available for selection," said Cook. "The issues which happened had to be dealt with properly and I think we have got the best solution. We now have a hungry KP who is desperate to put a few things right. "He made a couple of mistakes but he has put his hand up about those and now we have to move on as a side. I think the way he has come back in on this tour has been fantastic and his attitude and work ethic and the way the lads have dealt with it has been really good. "Now it is time to draw a line under it and stop talking about and see what he does best, which is scoring those runs which no-one else can do."
England (from): Alastair Cook (capt), Nick Compton, Joe Root, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior (wk), Jonny Bairstow, Samit Patel, Graeme Swann, Monty Panesar, James Anderson, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Steven Finn, Graham Onions, Stuart Meaker.
India (from): Mahendra Dhoni (capt, wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Cheteshwar Pujara, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Murali Vijay.
England suffer at hands of Sehwag
Virender Sehwag smashed a rapid century as India enjoyed the better of the opening day of the first Test against England in Ahmedabad.
Sehwag made 117 off 117 balls, while Cheteshwar Pujara added an elegant 98 not out as the hosts closed on 323-4.
Off-spinner Graeme Swann single-handedly kept England in contention, claiming all four wickets to fall.
But the tourists were hampered by some poor fielding, with four catches missed.
"It was a good toss to win. I didn't expect England to have a better day than they did as sometimes you might only get two wickets on a day like this. Swann bowled very well. The seamers looked fairly straightforward - I won't say innocuous - but the ball hardly went off the straight."
The most costly came when Pujara, on eight, got a leading edge off Tim Bresnan. James Anderson rushed in from mid-on, only for the ball to loop over his head.That and a tickle down the leg side from Sehwag off Anderson that was dropped by diving wicketkeeper Matt Prior were the only chances England's trio of pace bowlers created on a slow, low pitch that is already taking turn.
Indeed, the signs of deterioration and the fact the impressive Swann got through 32 overs may cause new captain Alastair Cook to rue the decision to leave out left-arm spinner Monty Panesar.
Samit Patel provided England with a second spinning option but, with the Nottinghamshire all-rounder largely ineffective, he will have to justify his selection through weight of runs, particularly with the tourists set to bat last.
Patel did, however, play his part in tandem with Swann as England managed to apply some pressure in the evening, as India's scoring rate slowed almost to a standstill. Only 73 runs came in the final session, in marked contrast to the morning when Sehwag took advantage of England indiscipline. India batsman Sachin Tendulkar is playing his 191st Test, 23 years to the day since his debut against Pakistan Losing what could prove to be a vital toss in his first match since being appointed Test captain, Cook may not have expected his pace bowlers to extract any movement, but would have been disappointed by their inability to find any consistency of line or length. Too often Sehwag was allowed to flay through the off side, before highlighting the slowness of the track by lofting Bresnan over long-on for six. Dropped by Prior on 80, he completed his first Test century for two years off only 90 balls, the seventh time he has reached three figures in the longest form of the game at better than a run a ball. Gautam Gambhir was nowhere near as fluent, struggling against Swann in particular. He offered a catch and stumping chance to Prior off the same Swann delivery - both were missed - but later that over he was bowled as he tried to force through the off side, ending an opening stand worth 134. "On the evidence of today, England might see a lot more of Pujara in the future. It's been India's day, right from winning the toss. England fought back well in the last session but India will be extremely happy with 323-4 on a wearing wicket." His dismissal brought Pujara to the crease and, except for the chance in Anderson's direction, he and Sehwag compiled a second-wicket partnership of 90 with some ease. Such was their progress, it came as a shock when Sehwag, needlessly attempting to sweep, was bowled, giving Swann his 194th Test wicket and taking him past Jim Laker as England's most successful off-spinner. Shortly after, Sachin Tendulkar fell in similarly rash fashion, caught at deep midwicket minutes before tea. A combination of those wickets and improved England bowling saw India grind to a halt after the interval, with Virat Kohli taking 30 balls to get off the mark. He benefited from a drop off Swann, as replays showed the ball was grounded when Jonathan Trott juggled and fell at slip. Shortly after, Kohli was bowled by one from Swann that turned sharply through the gate as England looked like they might end the day with a flourish. However, Pujara, joined by Yuvraj Singh, stood firm and England will have to make swift inroads with a ball that is only four overs old if they are to avoid being batted out of the match.
Listen to Jonathan Agnew and Geoffrey Boycott's analysis of each day's play on the Test Match Special podcast.England need Panesar, says Dravid
Venue: Sardar Patel Stadium, AhmedabadDate: 15-19 November 2012Start: 04:00 GMT Coverage: Listen to Test Match Special's ball-by-ball coverage on BBC 5 live sports extra, Radio 4 long wave and online; text commentary on the BBC Sport website, tablets and mobiles; highlights and analysis podcast after close of playIndia great Rahul Dravid says England should pick spinner Monty Panesar ahead of Samit Patel to boost their chances of winning the four-Test series. 
England look set to field part-time spinner Patel at number six to balance the side and support Graeme Swann.
But Dravid told BBC Sport: "Bits and pieces cricketers haven't had much of an impact in India.
"Monty has bowled well in India in the past and can keep one end tight so I would like him to play."
Left-arm spinner Panesar has taken 142 wickets from 42 Tests, including 11 in India, and has a first-class bowling average of 30.32.Fellow left-armer Patel averages 38.71 with the ball in first-class cricket and has three wickets from two Tests but can bat at number six to give England the option of fielding an extra bowler.
He has featured in all three of England's warm-up matches on tour, scoring one century and two fifties.
Panesar played two of the matches but was not used in tandem with first-choice spinner Swann, who flew to the United Kingdom last week to visit his sick daughter before returning to India in time for Thursday's series-opener in Ahmedabad.
Dravid, who scored 13,288 runs at an average of 52.31 in 164 Tests for India, added: "I would definitely play the two frontline spinners.
"Indians are extremely good players of spin and they are not going to get out to part-time bowlers.
"I guess England have a problem because they don't have that genuine all-rounder to bat at six like Andrew Flintoff, but if the tracks look like they might turn then I would play both the specialist spinners."
England have not won in India since 1985 and have lost three of their last four series there.
1984-85: India 1-2 England (5 Tests)
1992-93: India 3-0 England (3 Tests)
2001-02: India 1-0 England (3 Tests)
2005-06: India 1-1 England (3 Tests)
2008-09: India 1-0 England (2 Tests)
Their only Test victory in that time came in Mumbai in 2006 when Flintoff's England bowled Dravid's India out for 100 on the final day to draw the series 1-1.England's hero back then was Hampshire off-spinner Shaun Udal, which Dravid says is further evidence of the match-winning potential of spinners on the subcontinent.
"As we saw in Mumbai, the wickets can deteriorate quite appreciably," said Dravid, who will be a BBC Test Match Special summariser during the Test series.
"It will be critical to see how many runs they can score and see if they can give Swann or Panesar a chance in that fourth innings to have a go at some of the young, inexperienced Indian batsmen."
Former England spinner John Emburey disagreed with Dravid, arguing that Patel could be a success on subcontinental pitches.
He cited England's 1-1 draw with Sri Lanka earlier this year, when England's only victory came after Panesar had been dropped.
"Although India has got this reputation for turning pitches, we've never really benefited from playing two spinners on those pitches and neither have many other countries," said Emburey, who claimed eight wickets in five Tests in India between 1980 and 1993.
"When Swann and Panesar played together in Sri Lanka we lost one and drew one and when we played one spinner we ended up winning that match and drawing the series.
"I'll be doing everything I can to show the coach and captain what I can do and prove that I am ready to perform if selected.
Winning a series in India is one of the toughest tasks in cricket. To do it we'll need the batsmen to score 500 runs and the bowlers to keep the run rate down, create pressure and take wickets.
That is the goal and everyone in the squad believes we can do it."
"England are worried about getting runs on the board and I think they will go in with Samit Patel as a second spinner. I think he will be very good in India. He is a good player of spin and scores runs quickly."England whitewashed an India side featuring Dravid 4-0 at home last year to usurp them at number one in the world Test rankings.
But Dravid, who retired from international cricket in March, is playing down talk of revenge.
"I don't think cricket teams should be focusing on trying to get revenge," he said.
"Obviously it was a huge disappointment to lose in England last year. It should have been a great contest and we didn't play particularly well.
"India would like to prove that they are still a formidable side at home. They will back the fact that they have got quality spinners and batsmen especially for these conditions and look to beat England purely on skill."
Dravid believes England's performance in the opener in Ahmedabad could set the tone for the whole series.
"If England can do well in the first one it will set up a great series but if they let India run away with it, then they could be in trouble," he said.
"I think all four Test matches will have results and tip India to win 3-1."
Dravid will be working as a summariser for BBC Test Match Special during the Test series.
England must limit India - Swann
Graeme Swann warned his England team-mates that "we need to keep India below 450" after the hosts made 323-4 on day one of the first Test in Ahmedabad. Virender Sehwag smashed 117 and Cheteshwar Pujara an unbeaten 98 as Swann (4-85) took all four wickets.
"We will need quick wickets in the morning," said off-spinner Swann.
"It's been India's day, right from winning the toss. I thought England fought back well in the last session but India will be extremely happy with 323-4 on a wearing wicket. Pujara will have a bit of a sleepless night on 98 - he'll have the expectation of coming back tomorrow and completing his hundred."
"We will be batting last on this [pitch] - that's what happens when you lose the toss. They have two very good spinners so we will have to bowl well."Opener Sehwag's 117-ball innings made him the the subject of England's lunchtime team talk.
"It was a tough first session, and Sehwag was superb for the first two hours, but after that we bounced back well," said Swann.
"We said that we knew how he [Sehwag] can bat, but that we couldn't let the game drift away.
"I thought we did that by bowling straighter and with more discipline, and I thought we won that [afternoon] session."
In dismissing Sehwag, Swann broke Jim Laker's record of 193 Test wickets to become England's most successful off-spinner.
"It is a proud moment," said the 33-year-old. "I'm always saying I'm not one for stats. But when people told me I was near to Jim Laker, I was genuinely excited.
"When you're growing up, famous names from the game, you never even dream of emulating them - let alone going past their record."
Sehwag's 23rd Test ton, made off just 90 deliveries, was his first for two years but his seventh in the longest form of the game to come at better than a run a ball.
"This one was due," said Sehwag. "I'm very pleased to have scored one after a long time and at the right time, in the first innings of the first Test."
Despite India's strong position, Sehwag warned that the lifeless nature of the pitch will make it hard for the hosts to take 20 England wickets.
"If you try to block, it's difficult to get out," he said. "The wicket is very slow. It's turning, but not sharply."
Listen to Jonathan Agnew and Geoffrey Boycott's analysis of each day's play on the Test Match Special podcast.
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