Caught and Bowled: The Denness affair

The row between India and the International Cricket Council over the Mike Denness affair looked set to flare up again after the Indian board rejected a panel set up to review the matter.

The three-man Referees Commission was set up by the world governing body as a compromise after India had match referee Denness sacked without ICC permission during their tour of South Africa late last year. 

India were unhappy with some of Denness's decisions and persuaded their South African hosts to sack him. The ICC responded by stripping the third and final match between the sides of its Test status as the row escalated. 

The ICC on Thursday named South African judge A.L. Sachs, former Pakistan skipper Majid Khan and ex-Australia batsman Andrew Hilditch to their panel. 

But Jagmohan Dalmiya, president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, said the ICC had not consulted him as expected but merely informed him of the panel members.

 

Dalmiya told reporters: "We have written a letter to the ICC and requested them to reconsider and reconstitute their panel." 

"It is disappointing the ICC did not have much concern or respect for Indian views. My entire board will feel very disappointed at the way we have been treated by the ICC." 

Dalmiya said that when the ICC originally proposed its panel in December, the BCCI suggested that members from South Africa, India and England (Denness is a former England captain) be excluded, being the parties involved in the controversy. 

The Referee's Commission is due to meet in February and its findings will be considered by the next ICC executive board meeting in Colombo in March. 

The commission will review whether Denness followed the ICC's code of conduct during the second Test at Port Elizabeth, where he sanctioned six Indian players. 

It will also review whether there should be a right of appeal against decisions made by match referees and whether the ICC should set up a specific code of conduct for referees.

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David Lloyd writes...

World problems threatened to spoil England's tour to India but it went ahead. It would be bitterly ironic now if the Test series was cancelled because of a rift within the sport.

I really do fear what will happen if India pick Virender Sehwag, suspended for one match by Test referee Mike Denness in South Africa.

To me, the issue is so straightforward, I can't see why we are in this mess. The ICC are the governing body for cricket and everyone should abide by their decisions. You might not agree with their decision - but you abide by it. And if you disagree strongly enough, you go through the correct channels - not ignore a ruling.

India were wrong to insist they wouldn't play a Test match if Denness was the referee. South Africa were wrong to subsequently agree to play an unofficial match against India. Both countries should be punished in my view.

Nasser Hussain has said exactly the right thing, that the Denness row is absolutely nothing to do with the players and that England will abide by the governing body. In simple terms, if India pick Sehwag - and I think there's a good chance they will - there will be no Test match.

The issue is not whether India agree or disagree with Denness - they should accept it. Personally, I think Test match referees aren't strong enough most of the time. Denness has been strong and look what has happened. He will be disappointed and hurt with the repercussions. I just don't know what Mike's former team-mate Colin Cowdrey would have made of it all.

I  fervently hope common sense prevails. It has to. The game of cricket is above South Africa, India, England or any Test nation. If the ICC make a ruling, you might disagree with it - but tough luck.

What is going to happen next? A batsman wrongly given out refuses to walk and his country's Board support him. It will be anarchy.

This crisis can be stopped by some responsible figure who decides to abide by the ICC decision. Jagmohan Dalmiya, the head of Indian cricket, has to get his act together and quickly.

Cricket is just recovering from the Cronje affair. We don't need Indiagate at all. In my view, there is absolutely nil evidence that Denness or the ICC are biased against India. They should leave Sehwag out of this Test - otherwise the repercussions could be very severe indeed.

Nasser Hussain says the Indian cricket board has been disrespectful in its treatment of the England team.

The tourists' skipper hit out after his players finally trained at Eden Gardens ahead of Saturday's first one-day international following a string of complaints about the standard of practice facilities.

"It's just not good enough," Hussain told Sky Sports News. "It's as simple as that.

"You wouldn't expect this in any other professional sport. You wouldn't expect Manchester United to go and practice at a club ground. It just wouldn't happen.

"The club ground itself has been very accomodating and done as well as it could, but it's just not right. It's not professional and it's not the way to treat an international side with the respect that they deserve."

Graham Thorpe says he is ready to refocus on leading England's batting line-up after taking a break from the game for marital reasons.

The Surrey left-hander, who missed the last two Tests against India before Christmas, says it is now time to let his bat do the talking.

"It has obviously been a difficult period of my life," Thorpe told Sky Sports News. "But it has happened and I've tried to deal with it in the right way.

"Now I want to get back on doing my job and try to take some positive strides in that."

Physically Thorpe is not in good shape after struggling with a stomach bug, but mentally he is in the right frame of mind.

"I've got a lot to offer, but also I still feel I've got to get back to a certain level. I've had injuries during the English summer and two tours that haven't exactly worked out well."

The 32-year-old has been chasing quality practice time because before joining the squad he had not picked  up a bat since mid-December. Even so he is looking forward to the challenge.

"It is going to be a great atmosphere out here, but England have a lot to prove in their one-day cricket still. We made strides in Zimbabwe, but playing India in India is going to be a massive test for us."

CAUGHT & BOWLED WITH WILLIS & LLOYD
Posted Tuesday, January 15

As David prepares to jet off for England's one-day series against India - which begins on Sky Sports 2 on Saturday - he and Bob assess the tourists' chances and measure the impact of Muttiah Muralitharan's 400th Test wicket and back-to-back defeats for Australia in the VB Series.

Bob Willis writes...
England's bid to win the World Cup - the 2007 competition that is - starts here.

Coach Duncan Fletcher feels he's identified some young talent capable of achieving success, but it would be unrealistic to expect a side including those players to win a World Cup as early as 2003.

India will be tough to beat on their own patch, but will show the tourists how much they must improve to catch up with Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Pakistan. England's one-day form overall has been woeful for years - but don't expect a whitewash.

David Lloyd writes...
England have been complaining about the standard of their practice facilities in India. In 1998, we went to practice at St Vincent, in the West Indies. If you hit the ball straight there it went into the airport, but if you left it the ball went into the sea.

The bottom-line is that you just have to get on with the facilities you are given. England know they are still playing catch-up in the one-day game, but the underdog can win. To have a chance against India, England must spoil their party, upset their rhythm and believe as a team that they can win.

Marcus Trescothick is a doubt for England's opening one-day international with India in Calcutta on Saturday.

The Somerset opener was sent back to the team hotel with influenza after keeping wicket in the warm-up match with Bengal.

Bowler Paul Collingwood, who took 3-18 in the low-key affair, is also suffering but it is Trescothick who is giving the England selectors the most concern.

Coach Duncan Fletcher told Sky Sports News: "He was pretty bad today after that exercise where he kept wicket and exerted himself. We had to send him back to the hotel, but hopefully he'll be ready for the first one-dayer."

Trescothick claimed a stumping and a catch in his new role behind the stumps, but although he was impressed with his performance, Fletcher admitted he would only be used in competitive cricket in an emergency.

He said: "We're not going to see Marcus Trescothick keep wicket at all. We just know in case of an emergency that he is capable of taking over from Foster if he had to pull out before a game.

"I thought he kept well. We wanted to give him a go and I thought it was nice the way he took the ball - he looked a natural behind the stumps having not kept wicket for some time.

"We wanted to use him in case anything happened to Foster on the morning of a match and we would feel pretty confident now of putting him in for a game."

India 281-8 beat England 259 by 22 runs
1st ODI, Eden Gardens

India go 1-0 up in the Series

Oli Burley reports

Marcus Trescothick blasted his way to the fastest ever one-day ton by an Englishman but could not spur the tourists to a famous victory in front of a vociferous 100,000 strong crowd at Eden Gardens.

The Somerset opener - ill with flu in the build-up to the match - reached his century off just 80 balls before falling to Javagal Srinath for a magnificent 121.

His downfall, leg before to a ball that pitched outside leg stump, prompted a predictable England slump that saw six wickets tumble for just 35 runs to hand India a one-nil lead in the six-match series.

Earlier, England lost the toss after losing Graham Thorpe to sickness - and India took full toll on a flat pitch.

The home side sprinted to 78-0 in just 15 overs as captain Sourav Ganguly (42) and Sachin Tendulkar (36) attacked.

Andrew Flintoff momentarily silenced the crowd by bowling Tendulkar in his third over, then picking up Ganguly in the next but India reached the halfway stage at 122-2.

The score more than doubled in the final 25 overs even though England picked up four middle-order wickets for 49, including Dinesh Mongia, who top-scored with 71 off 75 balls.

Quick-scoring VVS Laxman (25) and Virenda Sehwag (29) kept up the momentum, but India's final thrust was propelled by Hemang Badani who struck a fine 35 off 33 balls.

Man-of-the-match Trescothick - dropped by VVS Laxman on just two - bolstered England's reply after Nick Knight (0), Nasser Hussain (25) and Michael Vaughan (14) had all fallen cheaply.

The left-hander took his one-day run tally past 1,000 in his 27th match during a fifty partnership with Paul Collingwood (21).

England - docked six balls for a slow over-rate - appeared to be in an Eden paradise, but their wickets in hand quickly evaporated once Srinath (2-42) returned.

With Trescothick gone, the tourists' hopes rested on Andy Flintoff (23) but the all-rounder sacrificed his wicket in a run out mix-up with Jeremy Snape.

Some meaty blows from Ashley Giles took England to within sight of the victory target, but India's greater batting consistency proved pivotal.

The England tourists are bracing themselves for a noise like none they have experienced before in their careers as they prepare for the first match of their one-day international series against India.

Crowd-figure estimates range from 80,000 to more than 100,000 for Saturday's one-day international at Eden Gardens, and nearly all of them will be passionately hoping for their beloved India side to claim victory in the first fixture of the six-match series.

With only four players in the 15-man squad - skipper Nasser Hussain, Darren Gough, Nick Knight and Graham Thorpe - having played more than 50 one-day internationals, England should also learn a lot about the character of the younger players and their ability to perform in such an intense, frenzied atmosphere.

"We will only learn from the experience," stressed Hussain. "This is why we play the game, big games like this, and we're all looking forward to it immensely.

"I'd rather be playing in front of a big crowd like this than in front of one man and a dog on a Monday in Chelmsford. Those with strong characters can come through and show people that this is what they play the game for.

"You have to use it as a positive and the Indian crowd during the Test series were very appreciative of good cricket. They are a knowledgeable crowd and they enjoy their cricket and we have no problems with it.

"There is also a lot of pressure on the Indian team.

They have a few young players coming in, they are expecting to win this game in front of a big crowd and we've got to make sure we put them under the cosh in front of their home crowd."

But Ganguly, who will be playing in front of his local crowd, believes nothing can prepare someone for a cacophony of noise which will remain constant throughout the day-night encounter.

"It will be an astonishing experience for the England players," said Ganguly, who made a secret visit to the tourists' warm-up match on Thursday alongside coach John Wright.

"You won't be able to hear yourself think because the crowd is so loud. It is something they will never have experienced before.

"It becomes a bit of a problem captaining in one of these games because the other players cannot hear you. You have to rely on hand signals, and it's the same when you're batting."

An attempt to prevent the match taking place tomorrow has failed, with the Kolkata High Court rejecting a injunction application made by a local resident.

Mr Subhas Dutta claimed that playing the match under lights was a "malicious waste of electricity" while West Bengal suffers with an energy crisis, but the court threw out his application.

Teams

England (from): N Hussain (Essex, capt), N Knight (Warwickshire), M Trescothick (Somerset), M Vaughan (Yorkshire), G Thorpe (Surrey), A Flintoff (Lancashire), P Collingwood (Durham), A Giles (Warwickshire), J Foster (Essex, wkt), D Gough (Yorkshire), M Hoggard (Yorkshire), A Caddick (Somerset), O Shah (Middlesex), B Hollioake (Surrey), J Snape (Gloucestershire).

India (from): S Ganguly (capt), S Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, V Sehwag, D Mongia, H Badani, A Ratra (wkt), S Bangar, J Srinath, A Kumble, A Agarkar, Z Khan, H Singh, S Singh.

Umpires: SK Sharma & K Hariharan
3rd Umpire: S Bandekar
Match referee: D Lindsay (Rsa).

Marcus Trescothick is a doubt for England's opening one-day international with India in Calcutta on Saturday.

The Somerset opener was sent back to the team hotel with influenza after keeping wicket in the warm-up match with Bengal.

Bowler Paul Collingwood, who took 3-18 in the low-key affair, is also suffering but it is Trescothick who is giving the England selectors the most concern.

Coach Duncan Fletcher told Sky Sports News: "He was pretty bad today after that exercise where he kept wicket and exerted himself. We had to send him back to the hotel, but hopefully he'll be ready for the first one-dayer."

Trescothick claimed a stumping and a catch in his new role behind the stumps, but although he was impressed with his performance, Fletcher admitted he would only be used in competitive cricket in an emergency.

He said: "We're not going to see Marcus Trescothick keep wicket at all. We just know in case of an emergency that he is capable of taking over from Foster if he had to pull out before a game.

"I thought he kept well. We wanted to give him a go and I thought it was nice the way he took the ball - he looked a natural behind the stumps having not kept wicket for some time.

"We wanted to use him in case anything happened to Foster on the morning of a match and we would feel pretty confident now of putting him in for a game."

Sky Sports News EXCLUSIVE, by Alex Sharratt

All-rounder Paul Collingwood has insisted that England will take heart from their performance in Eden Gardens as the tourists prepare for their second one-day international against India on Tuesday. 

Despite a superb Marcus Trescothick century, England were beaten by 22 runs in a controversial opener to their six-match series on the sub-continent in Kolkata.

Skipper Nasser Hussain claimed "cricket was the loser" after umpire SK Sharma adjudged Trescothick lbw to Javagal Srinath even though the ball clearly pitched outside leg-stump.

England were in an excellent position when Trescothick was given out and could even have gone on to win the match in front of 100,000 passionate Indian supporters in one of the world's most hostile cricket environments.

But despite some early butterflies, Collingwood told Sky Sports reporter Tim Abraham that the England tourists would learn from the Eden Gardens experience and will enter the second match in Cuttack "full of confidence".

"It will be great to go in to the second one-dayer off the back of that experience," Collingwood revealed on Monday.

"You always want to play in front of as many people as possible and playing in Eden Gardens was a dream and an occasion I will certainly remember.

"I am sure we're not going to get 100,000 in the stadium for this match, but it is a game we are looking forward to as we are disappointed we lost the other night."

England arrived in Cuttack, 200 miles south-west of Kolkata, on Sunday and will have just one practice session before the second game as their intense winter schedule continues with five ODIs being squeezed in to the next 13 days.

But while Collingwood admits the hectic schedule is far from ideal, the Durham youngster maintains that it is all part of England's build-up towards the 2003 World Cup in South Africa.

"I think preferably we would like a little bit more time to work on things," said Collingwood. "I know personally I would like to work on a couple of things - I wasn't too happy with my performance the other night to be perfectly honest with you.

"I think everybody would like to cool down a bit, get over a few niggly injuries. But it is going to be like this for three or four weeks so we are going to have to get used to it. "This is what it is going to be like in the World Cup for example, so I suppose it is a good experience to get used to and hopefully learn from.

"Everybody went in to the first game very confident after the 5-0 win against Zimbabwe. We all had plenty confidence and we all went in to the match and showed it, wanting to score runs quickly at a run a ball and we were very good in the field as well.

"Hopefully we can take that confidence in to the next game."

India 281-8 beat England 259 by 22 runs
1st ODI, Eden Gardens

Nasser Hussain made a thinly-veiled criticism of the international umpires' system after a controversial decision cost England victory over India.

Hussain was left fuming when official SK Sharma adjudged that Marcus Trescothick was leg before to Javagal Srinath even though the ball pitched outside leg-stump.

The England captain appeared to question the wisdom of having two home umpires officiating in one-day internationals - a system which is due to be changed by the International Cricket Council in April.

"We're obviously frustrated by certain things," Hussain admitted. "It wasn't my team that was the loser today, the game did lose certain things out there and that's for the ICC and other people to look at.

"It was a great day's cricket with two sides trying their utmost and things happen, but we're not going to dwell on them.

"Decisions go against you, but it's not the end of the world and we just pick ourselves up and if we don't we will just cause ourselves problems.

"We have to get ready for the next game - the more we dwell on decisions, the worse this tour will spiral downwards. We have to look at the positives and dwell on the fact that we didn't finish off the game."

Hussain also labelled Trescothick's display as "one of the best one-day innings I've seen".

Trescothick said: "I've been on antibiotics over the last three days and I've got better and today there was a big improvement.

"I've been coughing a lot and I've been struggling to catch my breath in the last few days, but I was much better today.

"It didn't alter the way I played, but I was a little concerned about how I'd hold up after a couple of hours. But I was okay when I was out there."

England 250-7 (50 overs) beat India 234 (48.4 overs) by 16 runs
2nd one-day international,
Barabati Stadium, Cuttack
England level series 1-1

Alex Sharratt reports

England turned in a superb performance in the field to successfully defend a total of 250 and level their one-day series with India with a 16-run victory in Cuttack.

Nasser Hussain's inexperienced tourists brilliantly bounced back from their disappointing defeat in the first match on Saturday to shock the home side in a tense finish.

Victory looked unlikely when India reached 110-2 chasing England's modest total of 250-7, inspired by solid knocks from Hussain, Paul Collingwood and Michael Vaughan. 

But three run outs - including the unfortunate dismissal of the ever-dangerous Sachin Tendulkar - helped get England back on track and a disciplined bowling performance closed out the win.

India had begun their reply positively with captain Sourav Ganguly racing to 14 from 15 balls before trying one aggressive shot too many and edging Matthew Hoggard to Nick Knight at second slip.

Tendulkar and Dinesh Mongia then put on 79 for the second wicket to excite the vocal home crowd before Ben Hollioake deflected a drive from Mongia on to the stumps to run out Tendulkar at the non-striker's end.

Matthew Hoggard ended the innings of Mongia with an excellent throw to James Foster, before Paul Collingwood ensured VVS Laxman's innings would last just six balls with another superb piece of ground fielding.

The Indians hit back from their triple blow with wicketkeeper Ajay Rata (30 from 38 balls) and Anil Kumble (16 from 24 balls) to give the Indian dressing room hope of an unlikely victory.

But another promising bowling performance from Andy Flintoff helped keep the tourists on top before Darren Gough finally wrapped up the victory with his 150th one-day international wicket.

Earlier, England suffered another late-order collapse after Hussain, Collingwood and Vaughan had batted the tourists in to an excellent position.

Hussain and Vaughan shared a careful 69-run third wicket stand after England had slipped into trouble with openers Nick Knight and Trescothick both falling inside the first 11 overs after being put into bat by Indian captain Sourav Ganguly.

The captain perished when he lofted Ganguly to Ajit Agarkar running back from mid-on, but Vaughan played his finest one-day international innings to date and quickly teamed up with Collingwood to forge another crucial partnership of 62 from 79 balls.
 
But when Vaughan was eventually dismissed for a superb 63 from only 80 deliveries, comfortably his best score for England in this format, England failed to forge kick on and post the daunting total their solid start deserved.

Andrew Flintoff was bowled just two overs after Vaughan and Ben Hollioake fell in similar fashion to Anil Kumble leaving Collingwood with the responsibility of guiding England towards a bigger total.

He brought up his second international half-century, and third in four matches, in only 55 balls and despite Jeremy Snape also being run out after slipping going for a quick single, Collingwood battled on to finish unbeaten on 71 off 78 deliveries.

Sky Sports EXCLUSIVE, with David Lloyd

Former England coach turned Sky Sports pundit David Lloyd believes that India are now a side under intense pressure - and none more so than captain Sourav Ganguly.

After defeat in the first match on Saturday, England levelled the six-match one-day series at 1-1 with a convincing 16-run victory in Cuttack on Monday.

The hosts had looked well on course at the halfway stage as they chased a modest target of 251 before Sachin Tendulkar was run out backing up at the non-striker's end as bowler Ben Hollioake deflected a Dinesh Mongia drive onto the stumps.

Tendulkar's dismissal was one of three run outs in an excellent fielding and bowling performance from Nasser Hussain's men in another hostile and alien environment.

And Lloyd - part of the Sky Sports commentating team on the sub-continent - believes that the Cuttack victory gives England's young squad the advantage going in to the final four games of the series.

"It was very impressive to go one down in Calcutta and then come here and win," said Lloyd.

"You have got to understand how difficult it is to play in front of a partisan crowd in this heat and humidity.

"There is a lot of character, a lot of spunk in this England team and they showed it here.

"Tendulkar's dismissal was the turning point in this England victory. They deserved a bit of luck and they got it. He was playing beautifully, shepherding their innings and holding everything together as only he can.

"Our fielding once again was superb. Ben Hollioake came in to the side at the expense of Ashley Giles - an adequate fielder - but Hollioake was electric.

"We were very good all over the field - a couple of slip catches went down but other than that we were on top of our game. 250 is a par score - a yardstick score - and we defended it wonderfully well."

England's victory, against an Indian side massively more experienced in one-day internationals, has again raised doubts about Ganguly's tenure as captain.

The home side were expected to whitewash England in the three-match Test series before Christmas, but the tourists fought back strongly after defeat in the first match and earned great credit despite a 1-0 series defeat.

Runs have also deserted the 'Prince of Calcutta' over the last 12 months - he averages just 22.20 in his last 13 Tests - and Lloyd believes the tension can only be good for England.

"I have only been here less than a week and I can sense it - it is India who are the team under pressure.

"The captain is under pressure too. Whether we like it or not, we take notice of what is in the press and recently I have read things like 'Is he really the captain? Should he be in the team?'. To me, Tendulkar captains that side and it is plain for everybody to see.

"So it is definately England that are in the ascendency - they have played really well in the first two games. The rest of the series is going to be terrific, it really is."

MONDAY JANUARY 21
No escaping the Indian crowds
Today was the two side's one and only pracide day before the second match. England practiced in the late afternoon, India first thing this morning. Even for a routine practice thousands of people turned up to watch. Every time one of the Indian players hit the stumps in their fielding practice, there was a massive cheer.

England will be much happier with the practice facilities for this second match. They are practicing at the actual ground and not at a club ground - that would have pleased them. The stadium is no Eden Gardens but bound to be another noisy experience.

It is going to be an early start for England. They are staying in a hotel about an hours drive away from the stadium in the town of Bhubaneswar and as the match is a day game, they will have to leave at about six o'clock in the morning.

SUNDAY JANUARY 20
Fun and games at the airport
Sunday was a travel day - a 40 minute Indian Airways flight south west to Cuttack with both teams travelling together. To pass the time as we waited to board, I was having a flick through the media guide. It said that Nasser Hussain was the 542nd player to play Test cricket for England and that James Foster was the latest to make his debut, the 609th.

I started to try and write down the 67 players to have made their debut for England between Nasser and James - and it soon caught on. All the media guys, and even the players, joined in and with everyone chipping in we eventually got there. 

As the players got off the plane there was an almighty cheer from a massive crowd that had gathered. The shouts were mainly for the Indian players of course, but Nasser is still getting quite a lot of attention because of his Indian roots.

SATURDAY JANUARY 19
England angry in defeat
Because of the massive crowd expected at Eden Gardens, I decided to get to the ground two hours early to make sure I got in OK. Fortunately, I all three of my security passes were in order and we got in, but some of the other media guys had a little more trouble. The ground is jointly owned by the Police and the Indian Army, so you can imagine how tight security was.

The press centre at Eden Gardens is enormous, and they have a real character as their official scorer. At the end of every ten overs or so, he stands on his chair and shouts out the score, run-rate, over-rate, everything. He is a bit of an anorak but gives a fantastic performance - and has the loudest voice I have ever heard!

Obviously, the England management were disappointed with the result and the umpiring. Nasser told me that he had written a letter to the match referee.

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 16
Thorpe fronts up
England managed to wangle another practice session at Eden Gardens. It so important for them psychologically to imagine what it will be like to play in front of 100,000 Indian fans.

Graham Thorpe faced the media for the first time since leaving the Test tour early in December. He has been one of the first players to go down with a stomach problem, but he is ready to do his best for England.

The game is expected to be a sell-out, but only 4,000 tickets are available to the punters in the city. As a mark of protest, the Indian fans have gone berserk and are burning effigies on BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya.

TUESDAY JANUARY 15
From orphanage to High Commission
Nasser Hussain, Michael Vaughan, Ashley Giles, Owais Shah and Matthew Hoggard all visited a local orphanage this morning with the players have decided to support with their own money. Although the local media brought the whole thing to a complete stand still, it was a worthwhile - and rare - trip.

After making official complaints to the Indian Cricket Board, England got their way and managed to practice under lights at Eden Gardens for the first time. They made the most of their session and trained from 2pm-6pm.

The players went to the British High Commission for a reception after practice. Unusually the press weren't invited - though to be fair we did accompany the team before Christmas to be fair.

MONDAY JANUARY 14
Media frenzy
Time for the England players to meet India press. It is obvious there is much more of a media frenzy ahead of the one-day internationals than there was for the Tests. There are between 10-15 television cameras at every England press conference, which makes it pretty hectic for everyone.

The players were bombarded with all-sorts of questions at an hour-long session arranged by the ECB. A lot of the attention was focused on Andy Caddick because of his decision not to tour to the Test series.

SUNDAY JANUARY 13
Terrible traffic
England had to return to CCFC this morning after failing in their attempt to practice at Eden Gardens, where first one-day international will be. After the usual pre-tour team photo, I headed off to Eden Gardens and found there was no reason why England couldn't practice there.

Sent my first report back to Sky Sports News on the practice row that is developing. I'm using a telecommunications firm called VFNL but the trouble is it takes about an hour to get there and another to get back to the hotel.

Traffic in Kolkata is absolutely awful. Everything grinds to a stand-still here. It's so bad that when people get to traffic lights they just turn their engines off and wait for ten minutes before they move on.

SATURDAY JANUARY 12
England's early problems
Arrived in Calcutta at lunchtime after an early morning four-hour stop-over in Mumbai.  Calcutta is the first place I ever came to in India, back in 1993 on England's tour led by Graham Gooch. I noticed that the smog is still bad, but a lot better than it used to be.

Dumped my bags and headed out for England's first training session at the Calcutta Cricket and Football club, which remarkably enough is quite a historical place for English sport - it is where the idea of rugby union's Calcutta Cup was first envisaged. The ground itself is picturesque but clearly not what coach Duncan Fletcher was hoping for.

The nets aren't considered suitable for a full-out practice. Andy Caddick and Darren Gough were both looking to make an early impression but could do no more than run in and turn their arms over. Interviewed Gough after practice and he told me how determined he is to get back into the team.

India skipper Saurav Ganguly has pulled a hamstring in training and is rated highly doubtful for Friday's third one day international against England in Madras.

There are even fears that Ganguly could miss the rest of the six-match series, which finishes in Mumbai on February 3.

"Saurav pulled a hamstring when he bent to pick up a ball during a routine fielding drill this evening," India coach John Wright said.

"He's unlikely to play tomorrow and we won't know quite how serious it is until we get the results of the ultrasound in the morning."

It will be a big blow for the Indians who are under pressure after England fought back to claim the second one-dayer on Tuesday to level the six-match series 1-1. All six games are televised live on Sky Sports.
 
Wright revealed that veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble is emerging as favourite to act as stand-in captain if Ganguly misses the game, while Virender Sehwag would fill the opener's role

England legends and Sky Sports commentators David Gower and Ian Botham could only marvel at an "amazing" batting display from Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar as India took a 3-1 lead in the one-day international series.

The Indian pair shared an opening wicket stand of 134 as the home side romped to an eight-wicket victory against Nasser Hussain's men in Kanpur.

And the former Test stars told Sky Sports viewers after the match that England will have to lift their performance if they are to avoid a repeat performance in the rest of the series.

David Gower: Now that is what I call a drubbing. To win with 10 overs to spare in a 39 over match tells you exactly how dominant India have been today. In Chennai, England were able to fight back after defeat in the previous match, but here in Kanpur, it wasn't a problem for India. They were completely dominant, it was just one-way traffic.

Ian Botham: It was amazing to watch, you have to say that. Everyone talks about Sachin Tendulkar, but Sehwag came out and led from the front and you didn't even notice Sachin.

It isn't too often you can say that. The england bowlers were completely demoralised.

Gower: I believe that when the ball starts to disappear like that at the start of the innings, we should start bowling in the same way as at the end of an innings. The yorker is deemed a good delivery at the death but at the start of the innings, bowlers are still trying to hit a length and see if anything will happen. When the ball is disappearing to the boundary, the ball to turn to is the yorker again, surely.

Botham: I agree. We have to be a little more flexible with the bowling, but the strokes were magnificent. There was no margin for error. It was a slow pitch but all the Indian strokemakers played well when they got to the crease.

Gower: England will be looking for positives to take out this defeat. The only one I can think of is that Graham Thorpe was back in the side and looked a in good form. Of course, the thing about him today was that he didn't have enough time at the crease because of the shortened innings.

Botham: The other person of course who played well today is Nick Knight. He got a very good 70 and played very well. But I have to agree with what Nasser Hussain said at the presentation. I thought that 220 was a winning score, but India reaching it with ten overs to spare is a hammering, I'm afraid.

Gower: So two matche left and England have a lot of work to do. Winning those two games will take a far superior performance than the one they have offered in these last two games. At this rate, India look your best bet.

Botham: England are going to have a big job to pick themsevles up after that. India will be full of confidence and quite rightly after the way they played. The only people who wouldn't have enjoyed their batting performance would have been England.

Monday January 27
It is much cooler here in the north of India, especially in the morning. I arrive at the picturesque Green Park ground two hours before play is due to begin, but it is clear that play will not start on time because of overnight rain.

England go 3-1 down in the six match series.

I interview David Lloyd afterwards for his thoughts - right in the middle of the interview an Indian youngster walks right in front of the camera, but unflustered the Sky Sports commentator does well to keep going. As soon as we were finished, he was mobbed for his autograph. "I'm not David Gower," was what he told most of them.

Pack for an early departure to Delhi the next day.

Sunday January 27
Took an early car on to Kanpur and interviewed Duncan Fletcher on arrival for my preview story.
England had quite a scare on the way to practice, as a mouse made its way on to the team coach. By all accounts, the loudest screams came from the England fast bowlers!

Saturday January 26
A long day of travel with mixed fortunes for me, as I don't make it to Kanpur. A very lucky flight to Lucknow, with both teams on the plane. Played Bingo on the flight with was something new as far as in-flight entertainment. I won a gold coin for getting all the lucky numbers, but it all went horribly wrong for me after that. half my luggage was stuck in the hold of the plane.

The 737 took off and landed again, but still the doors wouldn't open, so I had to stay overnight in Lucknow while the rest of my colleagues went on to Kanpur. I got my luggage back at 11pm.

Friday January 25
A day-nighter, so a chance to get a few chores done in the morning, like getting my hair cut. Quite an experience in India, it's all part of the service to have a head massage at the end. I also managed half-an-hour in the hotel gym, alongside Owais Shah and team manager Phil Neale.

More security headaches surrounding a match. This time it was Andrew Walpole, the ECB media relations officer, who has a bit of trouble. Someone always seems to suffer wherever we go.

Defeat for England as they go 2-1 down in the series. I interview Nasser and Jeremy Snape in chaotic circumstances on the edge of the pitch, with fans running around and crowding the camera.

Thursday January 24
Filmed around the city and the impressive ground during the morning and filmed my preview back to Sky. England practiced under the brilliant lights at the impressive Chepauk Stadium, another reminder of how far ahead grounds are here in that respect, compared to those back home who have to erect temporary lights which are not nearly so bright.

Nasser Hussain attending a social function at the ground afterwards, receiving an honorary life membership from the Madras Cricket Club where he watched his dad play as a youngster and where he played in 1986 after leaving university.

This was clearly an emotional moment for the England captain, who paid tribute to his father Joe, watching in the audience. Ever since landing in India back in November for the Test series, Nasser has been the centre of so much media attention and it seemed for the first time he was genuinely overwhelmed.

Wednesday January 23
Interviewed Nasser Hussain in the morning about his return to Chennai, the city where he was born and lived for the first five years of his life.

The flight was delayed by four hours, but at least we all found out early enough so didn't bother leaving the hotel until the flight time was confirmed.

Tuesday January 22
Victory for England in the second one-day international in Cuttack. I interview Nasser Hussain and man of the match Paul Collingwood afterwards.

By the time I had sent all my interviews back to Sky, and a story for the next day, most of the other journalists had gone back to the hotel leaving just me and Myles Hodgson of the Press Association at the ground. Sat with Myles in the darkness of the press box waiting for him to finish his copy before the hour-long trip back to the hotel in Bubaneshwar.

By the time I got back, the team were already toasting victory in the bar. The re-run of the game was being shown on a big-screen television, but no-one was taking any notice. Must be because they see so much of themselves playing cricket these days.

Chatted with Jeremy Snape who is making a video diary of this tour with his new digital camcorder. He is trying to organise, security permitting, a trip out and about in Chennai, now called Madras.

India v England
Sixth one-day international, Mumbai

England kept faith with their winning line-up today as they attempted to claim the victory which would earn them a creditable draw in their one-day series with India.

The tourists decided to name an unchanged team after reducing the deficit in the series to 3-2 with their dramatic two-run victory in Delhi earlier this week.

It means they decided to stick with the tried-and-trusted fast bowling partnership between Darren Gough and Andrew Caddick, who needed just four more wickets to claim 50 one-day international victims, rather than recall Matthew Hoggard, who missed the victory on Thursday.

Ashley Giles also retained his place after claiming a career-best five for 57 in the previous match after England decided not to risk Jeremy Snape, who split the web on his hand two games ago.

Michael Vaughan also kept his place despite recording single-figure scores in the last two matches, successfully fighting off competition from all-rounder BenHollioake as he is suffering from a sore left knee.

India made only one change to their line-up, Sarandeep Singh being replaced by fellow off-spinner Harbhajan Singh to provide extra strength to their lower order following their collapse in Delhi.

Anil Kumble passed a late fitness test on a knee injury to make himself available, but the biggest interest was reserved for Sachin Tendulkar on his return to his hometown.

India: V Sehwag, S R Tendulkar, S C Ganguly (Capt), D Mongia M Kaif, H K Badani, A Ratra (Wkt), Harbhajan Singh, A Kumble A B Agarkar, J Srinath.

England: M E Trescothick, N V Knight, N Hussain (Capt), G P Thorpe M P Vaughan, A Flintoff, P D Collingwood, J S Foster (Wkt) A F Giles, D Gough, M J Hoggard.

Umpires: S C Gupta and M S Mahal