The second ODI is slated to start in less than 24 hours at the scenic ground in Bristol. There was nothing scenic about India’s thrashing in the first ODI though. After being brought back to their knees India must be going through a not-too-distant feeling of losing a match when everyone expected them to win. Why is it that they cannot keep up the momentum for too long. The amount of benefits that these so-called demi-gods receive just does not justify the performances that they put-up.

Anyway, getting back to the point, India need to win this one otherwise this series is all but gone for them. If they can’t get some sort of momentum, this will turn out to be a major embarrassment coming after a successful test series win. England on the other hand, have done nothing wrong in the first match. In fact, the performance could not have been any perfect than it was.

The team composition for India will be a major concern and the absence of Tendulkar, Yuvraj, Zaheer, RP Singh and Agarkar is further going to compound Rahul Dravid’s misery. All the five players are supposed to be supposed to be suffering from flu. The stress level for the Indian captain would be sky high at the moment. However, the only positive from the previous match was his own form and Dinesh Karthik’s. Both the batsmen got 40+ scores and if the Indian’s can manage a good start, they should be OK.

The other main concern was the complete lack of penetration by the pace attack. There was hardly any movement, and the fire and spark were completely missing. It seems that both Zaheer and RP Singh may not have been fully fit during the first match itself. Cannot really blame them as they are coming down from a closely-fought duel in the test series.

People say a lot of things about why Agarkar is not a regular member of the Indian playing XI. On the 21st of August, he proved exactly why he is not favored by the selectors. For a person coming fresh, this was not the performance you would have wanted. He hardly had any depth in the bowling and failed to capture even one wicket. Normally, he does manage to snag atleast one wicket in almost every match he plays.

Paul Collingwood would surely be rejoicing at the way his team had struck back from the test series loss. Plenty of positives for England, including the return of Andrew Flintoff with the ball. Here was a man who had spent a long time in injury and was bowling with intent, fire and more importantly, with a plan. It was a fiery spell and the signs are good for everyone, well maybe not for India, but for the game of cricket.

So, can India come back after the first match humiliation? Can the Big 3 make a sizable impact? What will be England’s response after the convincing win? I guess we will soon find that out tonight.




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