India England Cricket News 2008

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India vs England 2008-09 Cricket Series
IND v ENG, 1st ODI, Rajkot: England faces tough challenge against India
Nov 14, 2008
England's record of winning all its one-day internationals under new captain Kevin Pietersen will be severely tested as the tourists fight poor form and injury concerns going into Friday's opener of a seven-game series against India.
Arriving in India after an embarrassing 10-wicket defeat by the West Indies-based Stanford Superstars in a one-off C$24.6 million Twenty20 match, England was bowled out for just 98 runs in its tour warm-up game Tuesday against a Mumbai XI. Pietersen, who led England to wins in all four one-dayers since taking over the captaincy, says his batsmen need to greater focus for the coming games, and must learn from the tour match debacle.
England is also seeking an effective bowling combination, including paceman Jimmy Andersen and lone spinner Samit Patel in the lineup for the first one-dayer. Paceman Stuart Broad passed a fitness test and was included, after fast bowler Ryan Sidebottom was ruled unfit.
England is ranked third in the one-day rankings and India is placed fifth, but India has been buoyed and hardened by a just-completed series win over Australia while England was relatively short of competitive cricket.
England last won a limited-overs series in India in 1984-85 when it prevailed 4-1. It drew limited-overs series in 1992-93 and 2001-02 but was hammered 5-1 when it last toured India in 2006. Rejuvenated after new skipper Mahendra Dhoni took over India's one-day captaincy last year, the hosts will be looking to avenge a 4-3 series defeat in one-dayers when it toured England last year.
Dhoni lost his first one-day series to Australia at home last year, but went on to lead India to a tri-series triumph in Australia this year, followed by another win in Sri Lanka. India goes into the contest against England fresh from a 2-0 Test series victory over Australia, but Dhoni said switching to the one-day format so quickly would be difficult.
India team (from): M.S. Dhoni (captain), Virender Sehwag (vice-captain), Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, M. Vijay, Yusuf Pathan, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, R.P. Singh, Munaf Patel, Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha.
England team (from): Kevin Pietersen (captain), Ian Bell, Matt Prior (wicket-keeper), Ravi Bopara, Owais Shah, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff, Samit Patel, Stuart Broad, Steve Harmison, James Anderson, Alastair Cook, Graeme Swann, Tim Ambrose, Ryan Sidebottom and Luke Wright.

* India v England, First ODI at Rajkot
* India vs England 2008-09 Cricket Series

ENG v MCA XI, Warm-up Match: England humiliated in Mumbai
Nov 11, 2008
England's build-up for the one-day series against India was left in disarray on Tuesday after they slumped to a humiliating warm-up defeat against Mumbai.
Just three days before the opener to the seven-match series in Rajkot, the tourists were dismissed for a lowly 98 in reply to Mumbai's 222 for seven. Facing a team made up mostly of club professionals, England never recovered from losing their first five batsmen inside the first 12 overs - with seamer Khsemal Waingankar, who has played only one first-class match in his career, claiming five wickets.
It follows a similarly shambolic effort in Antigua in the Stanford showdown when they were dismissed for just 99, and leaves the tourists facing an intensive few days of practice before they face India on Friday. England restricted Mumbai to a modest total, after deciding to bowl first, with Samit Patel and Steve Harmison claiming two wickets each.
It took a determined 65 from left-hander Sushant Marathe and a quickfire 37 off 35 balls, which included three sixes and a four, from Shaoib Shaikh to guide Mumbai even to that respectable total. But having performing impressively against more modest opposition on Sunday, England's brittle batting was exposed against the new ball - and they failed to recover from their dismal start.
ENG v MCA XI, Warm-up Match: MCA XI 222 for five (50 overs) beat England 98 (25 overs) by 124 runs

* India vs England 2008-09 Cricket Series

England focused on India challenge: Pietersen
Nov 07, 2008
England will try to make a fresh start during their tough one-day series in India following their disappointing Stanford defeat, captain Kevin Pietersen said Friday.
England slumped to a humiliating 10-wicket defeat in the winners-take-all 20 million dollar Twenty20 Stanford Superseries in Antigua last week, prompting widespread condemnation from fans and critics. They are now set to play seven one-day internationals against the hosts, starting on November 14 in Rajkot, followed by a two-Test series.

* India vs England 2008-09 Cricket Series

Tendulkar will be rested for part of cricket series against England
Nov 05, 2008
Sachin Tendulkar will be rested for the opening three matches of the seven-game one-day cricket series against England starting next week after India named a 15-man squad Wednesday.
Tendulkar has not played in the one-day international side since the tri-series victory over Australia in March, but the selectors granted his wish for a break.
"Considering the hectic schedule ahead and the amount of cricket he has already played this season, Sachin Tendulkar requested that he be rested for the first three ODIs," Indian board secretary N. Srinivasan said in a statement. "The selectors accepted his request." A groin injury ruled Tendulkar out of the series in Bangladesh and Pakistan earlier in the year and he suffered a left elbow problem during the Test campaign against Sri Lanka in August, preventing him from taking part in the one-day matches.

India ODI team: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Rudra Pratap Singh, Virat Kohli, Murali Vijay.

* India vs England 2008-09 Cricket Series

India team for England series to be named Nov 5
Nov 03, 2008
The senior selection committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will meet in Nagpur on November five to select the One-Day team for the seven-match series against England starting at Rajkot on November 14.
"The selectors will meet at Hotel Pride in Nagpur to pick the 14-member team for the One-Day series against England on November five," BCCI secretary N Srinivasan said on Monday.
The touring England team will play seven One-Dayers and two Test matches during their 40-day tour of India. Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten would attend the meeting chaired by former Indian opener and chief selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth.

* India vs England 2008-09 Cricket Series

England ODI in Guwahati is on, assures BCCI
Oct 31, 2008
The serial blasts that rocked the state of Assam may have cast a shadow on the India-England ODI match that is slated to be played in Guwahati on November 29. But the BCCI is confident that the high-profile match will be played there as scheduled.
Speaking to 'The Indian Express', BCCI president Shashank Manohar asserted that the one-dayer will be played at Guwahati’s Nehru Stadium as scheduled. “The India-England match in Guwahati is very much on as scheduled, that’s clear enough,” the Board president categorically said later this evening from Nagpur.
However, even as the BCCI is trying to allay fears that today’s turn of events could have an impact on the ODI match in the troubled Assamese capital city of Guwahati, the final call is eventually expected to come from the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
In the past, the English Board had often expressed concerns over venues which they didn’t find satisfactory on the security front. And despite the BCCI’s full assurances that the arrangements would be foolproof for the November 29 one-dayer at the Nehru Stadium, there’s every likelihood that the ECB could ask some niggling questions in the coming days over the safety of Guwahati hosting the match.

Source: india-england.cricket.deepthi.com