Sedate start to test series !! Dull day in ciry of Orange.

Nagpur pitch fooled everyone including England and they must be wondering about their decision to go with 2 spinners. Flintoff, who is perhaps captaining a major team for the 1st time, won an important toss and as often in the past, Indian opening pair of SS and IP wasted the new ball but what was impressive was the manner in which the debutant Cook played. Cook, who surprised one and all with some emphatic scores in the tour match, when Aus visited for Ashes, has a compact technique and an unhurried, opener temperament. Cook was just flown barely a few days before but justified every one's faith in him.
Indian bowling worked on steadily and there is nothing special to mention in either the class of bowling nor the slow batting by the Poms. Kumble was fortunate to get that LBW decision against Freddie, But for that decision, India would have been truly on the back foot on day 1 since Freddie had put behind a pair of sluggish scores in the side matches and was beginning to look real dangerous. Hoggard is still there and he can hang around a bit with Colly but hopefully, India will not repeat their old world mistakes of allowing tail and lower order to score against them.
The other surprising factor is the amount of reverse swing, which SS generated and if this is any indication, England need not worry. Indian batsmen are not experts in tackling such swing. Here is where my opening line in this report comes into picture. England could have gone for Pluncket and he is capable of reversing, rather than opt for Monty