England pressing for Test whitewash

BIRMINGHAM: With the Wisden Trophy retained after comprehensive victories in the first two Tests, England are seeking to complete their first cricket series whitewash of the West Indies for 76 years. In winning the npower Second Test by 256 runs on the fourth evening on Sunday at Edgbaston, the hosts have taken an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the four-match series, extending their winning streak this summer to five matches following a 3-0 sweep of New Zealand earlier in the season.  “We’re all looking for the clean sweep this summer,” said left-arm spinner Ashley Giles after playing another significant role in the home team’s triumph with a second nine-wicket match haul.  “But we’ve got a lot of hard work to do before that.”

Despite being swept by a number of teams in the last six years, the West Indies’ only series whitewash at the hands of England was in the Caribbean side’s first ever Test series in England in 1928 when the hosts won all three Tests by an innings margins. They won the first three Tests in the Caribbean earlier this year but the final match in Antigua was drawn.  England captain Michael Vaughan feels the clean sweep is a distinct possibility. “It is by no means out of our reach to win the next two, but you don’t win a game of cricket without putting in the hard work,” he emphasised in the aftermath of victory. 

“Work hard, prepare and keep having that inner drive on an individual basis. We respect the West Indies. I think that’s probably the key to our performances. Any team with Brian Lara is very, very dangerous, so we have to be wary of that.” Inevitably, the West Indies captain is under fire after the latest loss and Giles, his former team-mate at Warwickshire, sympathises with his plight. “He’s in a position where he’s bound to get that (criticism),” Giles explained.  “He’s West Indies captain and they’ve not won many Tests recently. But he’s a very fine man, Brian. He’s their best player, if not the best player in the world, so he’s got a lot on his plate, but I think he deals with it very, very well. He’s a real gentleman and I’m sure he’ll continue to be.”

Yet despite those kind words, neither Giles nor Vaughan could avoid referring to Lara’s questioning of England’s apparent over-reliance on fast bowler Steve Harmison prior to this series.   “I think Brian mentioned he (Harmison) was Plan ‘A’ and that we only had Plan ‘A’. That was a statement he might regret,” said Giles. Vaughan’s response was to show the depth of his armoury. “There is a Plan ‘B’. (Matthew) Hoggard bowled very well, Jimmy Anderson had a good couple of spells and Ashley Giles, as he’s proven over the last few years when he gets the pitch in his favour, is a crucial factor for us. That’s pleasing as well, and as I keep saying, Harmison will get a bagful, probably in the next two matches.” A fired-up Harmison on a helpful pitch in Manchester in ten days will only add to the West Indies team’s woes. Team management will be hoping that the three-day match against Derbyshire at Derby starting on Thursday will at least bolster the confidence of players who have grown so accustomed to losing over the past six years.