by It was a corking Monday in Dharamsala, bright sunlight reflecting the snow-capped Himalayan peaks, the air crisp, and the streets of McLeod Ganj bustling not only with locals, Buddhist monks and tourists seeking spiritual enlightenment, but also the early arrival for the fifth. Test between India and England, which will be set up on Thursday.
England cricketers were also among them, although not by design. Although they are a team that likes to kick back between games – their first tour break was spent in Abu Dhabi, the second split between golf in Bengaluru and a resort hotel in Chandigarh – heavy rain over the weekend left the facilities at HPCA Stadium. unsuitable for outdoor practice.
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There is no concern for the game at this stage, and instead a group of players and coaches led by Ben Stokes went for a run in the mountains this morning before some went for a cooling dip in one of the nearby waterfalls – recovery, as elite athletes to thank him. Jimmy Anderson was among them, too, in a positive sign regarding the 41-year-old’s personal shot at history this week.
Anderson left the fourth Test in Ranchi with a strained quad muscle and was still two wickets short of becoming the third man – and the first seam bowler – to reach the 700 mark. Provided the weather plays ball – forecasts, like prices in local shops, seem to be a starting point for negotiations – it could hardly be wished for a more photogenic location to reach the particular summit this, the same Jonny Bairstow playing his 100th Test Match.
But then every member of the 14 remaining squads on the tour should be desperate, and not just tell any future grandchildren that they played a Test match at the Dalai Lama’s house. The series may be gone, and their second-last place in the Ladder Test World Championship looks unrecoverable, but a 4-1 finish would only add to the regret for the England’s moments in this series.
Part of the current Indian contingent knows about this; a 4-1 win in England in 2018 which does not fully reflect the cricket they played. That said, Virat Kohli boosted his ego to some extent (his words), respecting local conditions, overcoming Anderson’s threat, and plundering 593 runs.
Truth be told, despite competing hard and seeing their rookie spinners exceed expectations in India, none of England’s batsmen can say the same. Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett have provided some consistent starts at the top of the order, where the front seamers provide scoring opportunities. But amid an overall middle-order struggle – despite smoother pitches than expected – the openers are the only ones to have scored more than 300 runs for the tourists.
Perhaps disappointingly in this regard – longer than Joe Root but only just returned to form through last week’s unbeaten 122 – Ollie Pope’s total of 285 runs, including that his tour began with that sublime 196 in Hyderabad. Although it was a high-wire act in a risky manner, it prompted Rahul Dravid, India’s head coach, to say that he had not seen “a better display of reverse sweep”. Root set a new benchmark for visiting players in India.
Aside from the innings – indeed, including the innings – the Pope has a trip that was mostly one of the skittish starters when he came to the crease. This trend was capped in Ranchi last week when Ravichandran Ashwin was caught first ball lbw by a brilliant slide which ended his first pair in Test cricket. Since the Pope comes in at No. 3, this is a concern.
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“Kevin Pietersen, Ricky Ponting, such frenetic men at the start,” said Brendon McCullum, the England head coach, when asked about this trait during the break. “He wants to be as calm as possible when he goes out there and there is a period when he has to learn from the wicket and get the rhythm of the game.
“The key for him is not to play his gut before he goes out there; but to be nice and calm, relaxed, to be able to support himself in that situation. He’s aware of that – it’s ultimately what everyone wants to do when they go out and play.”
As McCullum pointed out, Pope is not the type to let this eat him, as he was an enthusiastic sounding board for Stokes as vice-captain and remained an athletic, sticky presence under the helmet while on his short legs. Perhaps, along with providing the perfect backdrop for Anderson, Dharamsala can help the battered Pope find inner peace.
