India v England 2nd Test Ratings

(Scale 1-10)

India

Gambhir - 6.5
Sehwag - 3
Pujara - 8
Tendulkar - 1
Kohli - 2
Yuvraj Singh - 1
Dhoni - 2
Ashwin - 6
Harbhajan Singh - 5
Khan - 4
Ojha - 7

England

Cook - 8.5
Compton - 4
Trott - 1
Pietersen - 9.5
Bairstow - 1
Patel - 4
Prior - 6
Broad - 2
Swann - 7.5
Anderson - 4
Panesar - 9

Would have given Kholi a lower score than Sachin. Two poor shots, whilst Sachin got one beauty and another one that straightened.
Harby 5? what for?

Patel didn't deserve the same mark as Compton, who done a job in both innings.

My ratings for England:

Cook 9 - another excellent innings at the top of the order. His calmness helped Pietersen immeasurably. not a showy innings and one that many will rate below the flash of KP - but equally important. Decent captaincy.

Compton 6 - Helped see England through what could have been a sticky start. confident performance in run chase hopefully will help him come 3rd test.

Trott 3 - All marks gained for taking a couple of good catches. Needs an innings of note soon

Pietersen 9 - Had obviousley been working with Graham Gooch as he put his nightmare performance in 1st test well behind him.

Bairstow 4 - Another batsman who was out early. Excellent fielding throughout with some of the best catches you will see at short leg.

Patel 3 - Most batsmen who managed to get in went on to make a score - Patel did not capitalise on getting his eye in. not needed as a bowler.

Prior 6 - sold short by Broad when batting. Decent glovework.

Broad 1 - Only gets 1pt due to actually being in a winning team. Ran out Prior and bowled like Geoffrey Boycotts mum.

Graham Swann 9 - excellent bowling throughout.

Anderson 6 - Crucial early wicket on day 1. Bowled well but not really needed after that.

Panesar 9 i hate giving half marks, I also hate giving a 10. Panesar was under pressure having been brought in as England's saviour. Not only did he take 5ers in both innings, he bowled with venom, dismissing the Indian figureheads, Sehwag and Sachin, in both innings with excellent deliveries.



Overall - There were key performances form 4 players. Without Cook and Pietersen England would have lost. Without Swann and Panesar England would have lost. For me though MoTM should have gone to Panesar. His bowling on day 1 when conditions were at their best for batting did the most to set up the win.

Broad bowled as well as Anderson I thought overall... Anderson was terrible with the second new ball just when England needed a boost; Broad bowled a couple of hostile overs without luck, he could have had Ashwin a couple of times.

Patel looked at times all over the place.

Bairstow fielded brilliantly, he deserves a couple of extra marks for that; Trott took a couple of catches also.

Harbajhan was awful.

My ratings:

Cook: 9 - captained well, although could/should have tried more to break the Ashwin/Pujara partnership. Batted brilliantly which is becoming a habit. A couple of good saves in the field.

Compton: 5 - will be disappointed to have gotten another start but failed to kick on. However his innings was important in that it helped set England up. Confidence boosting knock in the second dig.

Trott: 2 - poor poor choice of shot. Good at slip.

Pietersen: 10 - enough said. Brilliant, breathtaking, at his best.

Bairstow: 4 - looked competent but will be disappointed with mode of dismissal. Fielded superbly, including a brilliant catch to snare Pujara.

Patel: 3 - looked at sea in amongst some nice touches. For a supposed spin specialist this wasn't all that good. Bowling not needed.

Prior: 5 - his fault for the run-out really. Kept ok in difficult conditions.

Broad: 3 - bowled well without luck. Disappointing with the bat so loses a mark for that.

Swann: 8 - continues to show why he is so highly rated by some. Kept things quiet whilst Panesar made hay, and chipped in with vital wickets. Cleaned up the tail in both innings.

Anderson: 3 - bowled ok without much luck. Missed a chance I think?

Panesar: 9 - back in the side, and removed the much vaunted Indian top-order in both digs. Used the pitch better than anyone.

India:
Gambhir: 6 - failed in the first innings playing accross a straight one. Good fighting knock in the 2nd dig.

Shewag: 3 - threw it away in the first innings having made a start. Started the collapse second time around.

Pujara: 8 - fantastic century on the first day should have set it up for India. Got a good ball which he failed to cover in the 2nd dig.

Tendulkar: 1 - how the mighty have fallen. made a good ball look unplayable, and then did a Trott. Suggestions that he's past it looking stronger every day.

Kohli: 2 - for such a good player those were terrible shots. Good in the field as usual.

Yuvraj: 2 - should have bowled more. Looked all over the place with the bat, and slow in the field.

Dhoni: 2 - lunged at the ball twice with hard hands. Kept very well, but captaincy was decidedly poor.

Ashwin: 4 - very good first innings knock, but then toothless with the ball for large parts. Doesn't get his body through his action enough. For a young player his fielding is attrocious. Don't blame him for attempted counter-attack in the second innings.

Harbajhan: 1 - toothless.

Zaheer: 3 - economical but unthreatening.

Ohja: 6 - the pick of the Indian spinners but that's not saying much. At least he fought.

England:

Cook - 9: superb innings again, has really worked out how to keep things ticking over against the spinners while keeping risks to a minimum. I believe him and KP are now the second-most successful partnership for England of all time behind Hobbs and Sutcliffe. Captaincy was good, could have done more to break the Ashwin/Pujara partnership, but did very well in the second innings in setting attacking fields and not allowing the Indians to rotate the strike (even at the cost of a few boundaries): Dhoni take note.

Compton - 6: another useful start squandered in the first innings, and needs to work out his scoring options against spin (he could take example on Cook here). His second innings knock will hopefully give him a great deal of confidence. Decent in the field, with a sharp catch to remove Kohli on day 1, but also a couple of fumbles.

Trott - 2: poor poor shot. Fielded pretty well at slip with an excellent catch to remove Harbajan. could do with some runs in the next test.

Pietersen - 10: another special, special innings. His third this year (to go with the knocks in SL and against SA). The sort of innings very very few players in the game can play.

Bairstow - 4: looked quite promising, before a poor shot somewhat controversially cost him his wicket. One of the top 3 fielders in the world today, his fantastic catch to dismiss Pujara was a pivotal moment in this test.

Patel - 4: unconvincing, but did make a useful contribution with the bat. Not required with the ball (or hardly), which makes his selection questionable for the next test you feel. Fielding has improved to acceptable levels, maybe a couple of singles he could have prevented by being a bit sharper but did OK.

Prior - 5: a reasonable start thrown away with unnecessary run out. Kept pretty well all things considered in challenging conditions. Smart stumping of Pujara in first innings.

Broad - 2: good first spell where he was unlucky not to get a wicket, but deteriorated alarmingly thereafter. While it's easily forgotten that he was England's best bowler last year, and against the WI this summer, his place appears at threat if Finn comes back fit. No impact with the bat.

Swann - 8: kept a lid on things very nicely in the first innings before wiping out the tail, and with more assistance from the pitch reaped more rewards second-time around with key wicket of Pujara thrown in for good measure. His natural pace less effective on here than Panesar's, but he's such a canny bowler he made it work regardless. Back to his very best.

Anderson - 4: important early wicket of Gambhir with one of about three balls that swung all match, unlucky not to dismiss Sehwag too, but as the pitch flattened he became less effective. Did a valuable job though. Dropped a tough chance.

Panesar - 9: magnificent. His natural pace was perfect for the wicket and he took full toll. Ripped the heart out of India's middle-order in the first innings, and with the pitch offering him increasing help was devastating in the second.

India:

Gambhir - 6: showed in the second innings that runs could be scored on this pitch against quality bowling. Played all around an Anderson inswinger first time around.

Sehwag - 2: careless shot to get out first innings after a decent start, undone by a good ball second time around. dropped difficult chance off Cook late on day 2.

Pujara - 8: fine first innings hundred which should have paved the way for an India win. Got a good ball second time around, though he didn't play it brilliantly. Excellent close fielder.

Tendulkar - 1: "how the mighty have fallen". Poor shots in both innings for two single innings scores, and given India won't dare drop him should probably consider his future after the series if the current rot continues. Average in the field, slow and unathletic.

Kohli - 2: while the first innings dismissal was in part due to a nice bit of dip for Panesar, it was at best careless. The second was simply dreadful. Very good fielder, be it close to the bat or in the ring.

Yuvraj - 1: in the first innings he missed a ball which didn't do much, and his second innings knock was incredibly frenetic, the sign of a man not used to batting on tough pitches with fielders around the bat. Not used much with the ball, but found some turn, though didn't threaten. Looked distinctly poor in the field.

Dhoni - 2: guilty of twice playing with hard hands which allowed the edges to carry, though they were good balls both. Kept well with two excellent catches removing England's two centurions. Captaincy though was rubbish: handed the pitch he wanted, won the toss, had a decent first innings score, but seemed to just sit back and wait for England to gift the game away. muddled selection didn't help, and neither did the bowlers, but still...

Ashwin - 3: very pleasing first innings knock, and is probably the best n°8 in test cricket at the moment. However, he's in the side as a bowler, and he was very poor with the ball. One good ball to dismiss Cook, but that was about it. Needs to stop prattling on about "mystery balls" and get back to basics. Also a very poor fielder.

Harbajan - 1: never looked like getting a wicket until he grabbed a couple of tail-enders. Shouldn't really have been playing, looks a long way short of international class at the moment. Pretty poor in the field too, though why he found himself at short mid-wicket to Ashwin at one point is a mystery.

Zaheer - 4: under-used by Dhoni, but didn't really threaten, although he was accurate and kept the runs down. Disappointing second innings slog, but shouldn't be held against him.

Ohja - 7: the best of the Indian bowlers by a mile. Tried hard, and found a bit of purchase, though probably a bit slow at times through the air to get the most out of the pitch. Cook and Pietersen handled him with ease, but showed commendable spirit to pick up another 5-for.

ENGLAND

Cook-10
Compton-4
Trott-3
KP-10
Bairstow-5
Patel-4
Prior-5
Swann-7
Broad-3
Anderson-6
Panesar-10 MY MAN OF THE MATCH

INDIA

Gambhir-6
Sehwag-2
Pujara-8
Tendulkar-4
Kohli-2
Yuvraj-5
Dhoni-6
Ashwin-3
Harbajhan-3
Zaheer-6
Ojha-10

I think your being a bit harsh on Compton, CF. He saw off the early threat in the first innings and then was unbeaten second time round - a 7 for me. Otherwise I'm largely in agreement with your England marks.

A 10 is a little OTT for Ojha, although he did bowl well - probably an 8 and maybe a 9 for me. Also, what did SRT do to get more marks than Kohli other than being Sachin Tendulkar?

For me Gambhir loses points for that incredibly selfish knock in the 2nd innings. What began as a fighting resistance ended in an average enhancing exercise where he failed to marshal the tail, would not play a shot in anger when it was clear that his partners were fast running out and his side needed an extra 50 runs or so to actually apply some pressure.

He got his comeuppance when he was wrongly given out lbw. A horribly selfish performance and he should hang his head in shame.

I hate doing this BUT:

England

Cook - 9
Compton - 6
Trott - 2
Pietersen - 9.5
Bairstow - 3
Patel - 3.5
Prior - 6
Broad - 2
Swann - 7.5
Anderson - 4
Paneser - 9.5

India
Sehwag - 3
Gambhir - 4
Chet - 8
Tendulkar - 3.5
Kohli - 2
Yuvraj - 3
Dhoni - 2
Ashwin - 7
Harby - 2.5
Zaheer - 4
Ohja - 8

Fists of Fury wrote:For me Gambhir loses points for that incredibly selfish knock in the 2nd innings. What began as a fighting resistance ended in an average enhancing exercise where he failed to marshal the tail, would not play a shot in anger when it was clear that his partners were fast running out and his side needed an extra 50 runs or so to actually apply some pressure.

He got his comeuppance when he was wrongly given out lbw. A horribly selfish performance and he should hang his head in shame.

Thoughtful input as always, CF, glad to see you've grown up...

You'll see that David Hopps at Cricinfo said something very similar...it was an atrocious performance from Gambhir. Disgustingly selfish when his country needed those additional runs.

Stella, just wondering, why 8 for Ojha as opposed to 7.5 for Swann, when Swann bowled a lot better, for more wickets? Perhaps you're rating with contrast to each individual team, rather than for the match overall.

Cook - 9. Played very well on a spinning wicket.
Compton - 5. Played well, but didn't kick on.
Trott - 2. No longer the stubborn mule he used to be.
KP - 10. Dare I say, his greatest innings?
Bairstow - 4. Looked decent at the crease until the controversial dismissal.
Patel - 5. Didn't kick on, as was the fault with many batsmen.
Prior - 7. Kept very well on a spinning pitch, looked good until the runout.
Broad - 1. Did nothing the whole match.
Swann - 9. Bowled very well.
Anderson - 4. Did better than any other fast bowler on this pitch. However, not enough!
Panesar - 10. Bowled his heart out on a pitch custom made for him by Dhoni.


Gambhir - 6. Batted well in the second innings, but could have done more.
Sehwag - 5. Could have done better.
Pujara - 8. India's standout player by far. Shame he got out early in the second innings.
Tendulkar - 2. Time for him to go?
Kohli - 2. Horrible shot in the second innings.
Y Singh - 2. Didn't really do much.
Dhoni - 5. Gets an extra mark for custom making a pitch for Monty.
Ashwin - 5. Gets a mark for his first innings, then loses it for his bowling.
H Singh - 3. Ineffective.
Khan - 1. Very ineffective.
Ojha - 8. India's best bowler by far, but didn't look like troubling Cook or KP.

people are being generos on Yuvraj for me: I see Stella gave him a 3, and CF rather inexplicably gave him a 5. What exactly did he do to earn that? awful defensive shot in the first innings, and a nerve wreck of a second innings (admittedly in tough conditions). I just about accept Makrish's 2 (though not sure he did anymore than Broad?), but don't see how he rates any higher than that...

also, like Makrish think Swann is getting a bit of a raw deal: he bowled very well, nearly as well as Monty on a pitch which didn't suit him as much, and certainly better than Ohja. Deserves an 8 at least for me...

Swann did pick up a couple of easy wickets and Ashwin did score runs, although I admit, I was a little generous towards Ashwin.

There has to be for me, for any player to be awarded a 10, a truly remarkable performance with either bat or ball. In this case, fantastic as Panesar was, the pitch helped him out and assisted his figures as it did with Swann and Ohja. The match changing performance, for me came from KP, {who regulars of late would know, as a person, i am not his biggest fan} it was astonishing, the way he made this difficult pitch look easy to score on at will and destroy the confidence of the Indian players. A 10 rightly deserved.

One quick note, not one Indian player has praised KP's performance as much as they have Panesar's

skyeman, I think part of the reason is the Indians have been on the receiving end of a few KP specials before, and know what he's capable of. I fancy they underestimated Monty, who's much improved from when he last bowled to the Indians (against whom he hasn't had an impact before this test really). They thought he'd be easy pickings...

Mad for Chelsea wrote:skyeman, I think part of the reason is the Indians have been on the receiving end of a few KP specials before, and know what he's capable of. I fancy they underestimated Monty, who's much improved from when he last bowled to the Indians (against whom he hasn't had an impact before this test really). They thought he'd be easy pickings...

Aye good point MfC, or they just want to forget it

India utter miserable, hate to rate them here

Gambhir - 4 [just coz of 2nd innings resistance
Sehwag - 2
Pujara - 7 [deserve slightly more but 2nd innings was poor when too much was expected out of him]
Tendulkar - 1 [could have well given 0, but he didn't get ducks and hence 1]
Kohli - 1 [seriously deserve negative marks here considering how much expected of him]
Yuvraj Singh - 1 [ no comments, just don't deserve his place if he gonna continue this way]
Dhoni - 1 [ Exactly opposite to what he was in the 1st match]
Ashwin - 4 [Got points for trying hard]
Harbhajan Singh - 2 [ Simply don't deserve a place and in my view was rushed into the team for no reason]
Khan - 3 [ Lost his venom, once the most feared bowler of test cricket is mere a shadow now]
Ojha - 5 [Again got points for trying hard]

England

Cook - 9 [ Brave captaincy and lead the team well both in defeat and win]
Compton - 3
Trott - 1 [Over hyped before series, no performance so far]
Pietersen - 10 [Proved his worth and doubters]
Bairstow - 1
Patel - 2 [Another one in the team for no reason]
Prior - 5
Broad - 2
Swann - 7 [Good performance backed Monty well by claiming all leftovers and the tail]
Anderson - 4 [bowled the heart out even though not successful, got points for trying hard]
Panesar - 10 [ Clearly a Man proved his worth and material, was dropped in the 1st Test for no reason , came back made the team selectors feel ashamed for dropping him in the 1st test, awesome achievement considering he bowled the lions out in their den. ]

Harsh for Compton to only gain one more point than Broad! I thought he did a decent job in both innings.

Yep, a lot of harshness on Compton.

He put us in a good position in the first innings, and took us over the line in the second dig.

Similarly, he put us in good shape in the first innings at Ahmedabad.

Not always about pure number of runs.

I missed the entire 2nd test barring the first day as I have been travelling.
But Terrific to see Kevin Pietersen play the kind of innings only the likes of him could do, although I would have been happier had he done it against NZ or Australia later in the season.
Terrific again from Cook, he really is a master of these conditions. Panesar proved his selection right with a fine performance and Swann as usual, has been pretty good.
Disappointing from India altogether, Gambhir scored a few 2nd innings runs and I hope he'll come good now in the rest of the series as a bait of the pressure would be gone. Tendulkar needs to score big soon and I just hope he turns it all around soon, although admitedly, at the age of 39 it won't be easy. Yuvraj has to take his last shot at test cricket, this absolutely has to be the last chance for him. Think Dhoni should use him more with the ball. Kohli has to show greater discipline, Dhoni should contribute more with the bat in these conditions, and Ashwin should stay focused. Ojha and Pujara performed well, but the support acts have been pretty poor.

CF wrote:

Fists of Fury wrote:For me Gambhir loses points for that incredibly selfish knock in the 2nd innings. What began as a fighting resistance ended in an average enhancing exercise where he failed to marshal the tail, would not play a shot in anger when it was clear that his partners were fast running out and his side needed an extra 50 runs or so to actually apply some pressure.

He got his comeuppance when he was wrongly given out lbw. A horribly selfish performance and he should hang his head in shame.

I fail to see whats wrong in Fists' post.