England play for pride at Cuttack by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Event:

England in India 2008/09

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DateLine: 25th November 2008

 

England play for pride at Cuttack With series out of their reach England will be playing for pride at Cuttack.India on the other hand would want to experiment by giving other players a chance.With series in their bag 4-0 it gives an opportunity for Dhoni to test other players and also keep the winning momentum going.England would also want to test new players and their captain would want to win some games ahead of the test series.

India had a blast after their win at Bangalore. The day being Gary Kirsten's birthday the whole team bonded well with each other having fun after a tough couple of days for the captain with regards to leaks and selection issues. The way they fought that and other issues like rain, wet outfield,wet ball and Duck Worth Lewis method, indeed it was a special effort. Dhoni wanted this win very badly so as to come out of that controversial mess and also give reserve players like Irfan a chance so as to prove the selectors wrong.

England on the other hand would want to have one on the score board after suffering four consecutive losses. The batting order looks unsettled. The fact that they are not able to take advantage of powerplays in a 22 over game, showed their grasp of the game in poor light.The inability to have a settled batting order and getting Flintoff to play at number five in an abridged version defied logic.

Pietersen himself has a lot in his plate. He will have to come at number three and set the tone for the innings.He will have to think out of the box so as to defeat the Indian team who are high on confidence. Dhoni is always ahead of the game. England team has a lot of catching up to do, to get a couple of wins under their belt so that they can end the series on a good note.