Akram blames India bowlers for pathetic performance
August 14th, 2011 - 3:17 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, Aug 14 (IANS) Former Pakistan captain and legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram has blamed the Indian bowlers for failing to capitalise on the seam friendly English conditions and letting down their team.
Akram feels India’s bowling department was simply pedestrian and ineffective.
India allowed England to post 710/7 declared at Edgbaston and then went down by an innings and 242 runs in the third Test on Saturday. The hosts took a 3-0 lead in the four-match series and also became the No.1 Test side.
“The Indian bowling has looked very ordinary in the three Tests so far. Praveen Kumar and Sreesanth may be swinging the ball but the control is missing. Ishant Sharma looked jaded. I have not seen or heard a side scoring more than 700 runs in England recently,” Akram was quoted as saying by Mobile ESPN.
“English conditions are conducive to swing bowling but the Indian bowlers just could not seize the opportunity. They were all over the place. Amit Mishra picked up wickets but was very expensive and that’s why Mahendra Singh Dhoni had to use Suresh Raina. When the English batsmen formed partnerships, the bowlers were all at sea and did not know what to do,” said Akram.
Akram feels it was the worst Indian performance in recent years.
“This is the worst performance by India in Test matches since I retired from cricket. India may have had Test defeats in 2003 but their graph improved after that. India have played very well under Dhoni in the last couple of years but this defeat is really deflating,” he said.
- Dravid's recall exposes India's brittle batting order: Akram - Aug 07, 2011
- Replace Harbhajan with Mishra: Akram - Jul 27, 2011
- England bowling attack best in the world: Ponting - Aug 15, 2011
- Bresnan differs with Fletcher, says it didn't swing much - Aug 11, 2011
- Akram fears another 0-4 drubbing for India - Jan 09, 2012
- Not fair to judge Dhoni after two defeats, says Akram - Aug 03, 2011
- Never seen England pitches seam and swing so much: Fletcher (Lead) - Aug 11, 2011
- England dislodge India from No.1 Test ranking with crushing win (Lead) - Aug 13, 2011
- India humiliated in Edgbaston, England become No.1 in Tests - Aug 13, 2011
- India's cricket reputation lies in tatters - Aug 14, 2011
- India wasted talented Aaron in England, says Akram - Sep 15, 2011
- Jadeja putting pressure on Pathan: Akram - Oct 22, 2011
- Never seen three pitches seam and swing so much: Fletcher - Aug 11, 2011
- England's superior bowling will win them series: Boycott - Jul 27, 2011
- Ready to bowl long spells: Praveen Kumar - Jul 23, 2011
Tags: cricket india, edgbaston, england, espn, graph, hosts, indian bowlers, indian bowling, mahendra singh dhoni, match, New Delhi, pakistan captain, partnerships, pathetic performance, raina, seam, test side, third test, wickets