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Match 1
Weather
Sunny and dry
Temperature 32°C |
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Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni have been the key architects of India recent one-day success
© Getty Images |
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India ready to avenge Mumbai defeat
England occupy the moral high ground after winning the Mumbai Test to draw
the Test series, but during the next fortnight they will be up against an
Indian outfit that has been a revelation in one-dayers. Since the tri-series against Zimbabwe and New Zealand in August 2005, India
have won 15 of their last 21 games. They thrashed a decent Sri Lankan outfit
6-1, held South Africa to a 2-2 draw at home and humiliated Pakistan 4-1 in
Pakistan. While Greg Chappell's mantra of flexibility might not have worked
in Tests, in ODIs it has given India an extra dimension, who have made
several changes to their squad.
Sachin Tendulkar will miss the series due to
impending shoulder surgery and Venugopal Rao has been recalled, although it
is unlikely he will play. Munaf Patel's inclusion means that India will have
to choose between him, Sreesanth and Rudra Pratap Singh to partner Irfan
Pathan. It remains to be seen whether they will persist with Harbhajan
Singh, who has been extremely off colour, or play Ramesh Powar, who
impressed with restrictive bowling in the final ODI against Pakistan. With
Mohammad Kaif and Suresh Raina in the side, India's fielding will most
certainly be much improved.
Full England in India coverage |
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India squad
Virender Sehwag,
Gautam Gambhir,
Rahul Dravid (capt),
Yuvraj Singh,
Mohammad Kaif,
Suresh Raina,
MS Dhoni (wkt),
Irfan Pathan,
Venugopal Rao,
Munaf Patel,
Sreesanth,
Harbhajan Singh,
Ajit Agarkar,
Ramesh Powar,
Rudra Pratap Singh
England squad
Andrew Flintoff (capt),
Kabir Ali,
James Anderson,
Gareth Batty,
Ian Bell,
Ian Blackwell,
Paul Collingwood,
Matthew Hoggard,
Geraint Jones (wkt),
Sajid Mahmood,
Kevin Pietersen,
Liam Plunkett,
Matt Prior,
Owais Shah,
Vikram Solanki,
Andrew Strauss
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| In and Out - The Cricinfo form guide |
| Your guide to who's hot and who's not ahead of the ODI series |
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 Matthew Hoggard After bowling his heart out during the three Tests, Hoggard was all set for
a relaxing break in Goa before heading back to England. But, as with last
winter in South Africa, he has received an eleventh hour SOS to the one-day
team, so now has the not-so-relaxing experience of bowling to Sehwag, Dravid
and Co. in the coloured clothing. He has never settled in the one-day team,
but is in such a rich vein of form that now is a perfect chance to have
another crack.
Yuvraj Singh
He is evolving into an Indian Michael Bevan but with oodles of flair and aggression. An average of 110.6 in the last two series against Sri Lanka and South Africa speaks for itself but what's most impressive is the responsibility he has shouldered and the ease with which he has handled chasing under pressure. If Yuvraj can remain as consistent and his partner in crime Mahendra Dhoni as destructive, India should have few problems in winning the series.
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 Virender Sehwag
With Tendulkar missing, Sehwag will have to bear much of the responsibility
to get India off to a good start. Sehwag's problem in ODIs has been rather
curious. He invariably gets good starts but he almost always doesn't convert
them. In his last 15 ODIs, Sehwag has reached 20 on 12 occasions but only
twice has he gone on to post a fifty. Of late, he has been troubled by a
back injury and has struggled against the steepling short balls that England
peppered him with.
Ian Bell After the success of England's newcomers during the Tests, Bell is now the
player nervously looking over his shoulder. He has yet to establish a firm
place in the one-day line-up, having suffered from being shunted around most
positions from No. 1 to No. 7. Seven matches means he will be given an
opportunity and he needs to perform to rescue his tour of India, which has
undone many of the positives achieved in Pakistan.
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Munaf Patel
Munaf forced himself into the Test side with a searing display of reverse
swing that claimed ten England wickets in the tour match at Vadodara. What
impressed most was his ability to reverse swing the ball and find the
blockhole consistently, two qualities that will be superb assests in the
one-day format. Munaf made his case for ODI selection irresistible when he
took 7 for 97, the best figures by an Indian fast bowler on debut, and
bowled India to victory in the second Test at Mohali.
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Series schedule
Match 1 - March 28, Delhi
Match 2 - March 31, Faridabad
Match 3 - April 3, Goa
Match 4 - April 6, Cochin
Match 5 - April 9, Guwahati
Match 6 - April 12, Jamshedpur
Match 7 - April 15, Indore
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