|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
Looking ahead Hussain: England's most important five days yet to come
LEEDS, England (AP) -- Nasser Hussain warned against complacency after England had beaten the West Indies astonishingly inside two days by an innings and 39 runs to take an unbeatable 2-1 lead in the quest for the Wisden trophy for the first time in 31 years. Hussain, one of the most astute of recent England captains, warned: "The most important five days of the summer are still to come." He was looking well ahead for the fifth and final test at the Oval, which will give the dramatic 2000 series a grand finale. A draw will be more than sufficient for Hussain and his men to secure England's first series win over the West Indies for the first time since 1969. Yet this comes at a time when Hussain is in the middle of a run of poor scores and, on batting alone, probably wouldn't get a place on the team. No England side has beaten the West Indies since Ray Illingworth, in his first series as captain after taking over from an injured Colin Cowdrey, beat Gary Sobers' West Indies by a 2-0 margin in a three test series in the summer of 1969. West Indies' batting was shredded initially by Darren Gough and then Andrew Caddick as the second innings lasted just 26.2 overs in just seven minutes over two hours. After Gough had made inroads to the batting with 4-8 in a 29-ball spell from the pavilion end, Caddick, switched ends to claim 5-14, including four wickets in a seven-ball 10th over. Ruthless was a word that had been associated with West Indies cricket over the years. But the clinical and professional efficiency in which England had outplayed the West Indies at Lord's and now here, suggests it is pay back time for those years of intimidation by the Caribbean fast bowling giants. "We're not out for revenge," Hussain was quick to dismiss those suggestions. "The selectors will now just focus on the five days at The Oval," Hussain said. "After all the hard work that's gone on this summer, with the two test series and triangular tournament, they are the most important of the summer." "It seems like there's a lot of cricket been played and its only Friday night. We can't do anything about that, just play to the conditions and try win the game. Two-day Test matches are for other people to discuss. It's better to win a two-day test than lose it." The win came at a time when there were calls for Hussain to stand down after his recent bad run off low scores. But on the first day against a charged up Curtly Ambrose, Hussain played one of the bravest innings of the summer and shielded the side against a collapse in the company of Graham Thorpe to lay the initial groundwork for the match-winning total. "It was a very enjoyable performance batting with Graham Thorpe on Thursday," Hussain said. "I enjoy battling and gutsing with Graham in situations like that, have a bit of a laugh together and then get down to serious business. In the context of the team it was a fine partnership without blowing my own trumpet. "There are key moments in the game, one was when Thorpe and I were batting together and the other was the first hour today, and [Graeme] Hick and [Michael] Vaughan saw us through that. Hussain was well aware of the fact the West Indies would come back strongly to restore some pride by trying to level the series in what would be Ambrose's and Courtney Walsh's last appearance together before Ambrose retires. "A lot has happened in this series. It is hard on the mind of the captain because you can never say you've won that game with Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose around. They can come back at you. "We are starting to formulate a team, we are starting to get consistency which comes from winning. It's an improvement but the only thing we are judged by are series victories, which is the next stage on." Hussain is a test away from a crowning moment of his brief tenure as England captain since taking over from Alec Stewart after the home side's disappointing campaign in last year's World Cup. Madras-born and a graduate of Durham University, 32-year-old Hussain has so far led England to a series win against Zimbabwe and in the one-day triangular competition. He didn't think the West Indies could blame the Headingley pitch for the loss. "We bowled them out for 61 but I don't think anything misbehaved, it was high quality swing bowling in the conditions. I switched ends for Andy Caddick and he just swung it beautifully, and swung it at good lengths." It was also a test match that belonged to three local heroes Gough, Craig White and Vaughan. While Gough claimed a match haul of 7-89 and White, a career-best 5-57 in the first innings, man-of-the-match Vaughan hit a magnificent 76 and held the lower order together with Hick, who hit a forceful 59.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
