Confident India v conservative England

One of the big differences between the approach of the Indian and English cricketers is easily identified in Rishabh Pantrsquos demeanour in the recent Test series compared with that of Ollie Pope and Dominic BessThe two young Englishmen became more tentative as the series progressed Pope was keen to use his feet but as his back foot continually craved the safety of the crease it was obvious he was worried about being stranded by the spinnersBess appeared to be deflated by his omission from the Test team With his confidence severely diminished he bowled in the final contest hoping that the ball would land on a good length rather than being confident of its destinationBoth England players were in need of a psychological boost rather than in Bessrsquos case a discussion about field placingsMeanwhile Pant was scared ofhellipwell nothing actually The chirpy Indian rsquokeeper armed with a supremely confident disposition played each innings balancing aggression with appropriate caution His approach of ldquosee the ball and hit itrdquo is a simple one but itrsquos fortified by the commonsense approach of always looking for opportunities to scoreEnglandrsquos Ollie Pope is clean bowled by offie R Ashwin during the third Test at Ahmedabad last monthIn most cases this sums up the difference between the Indian batting and that of England The home side were constantly thinking about ways to score while the visitors were preoccupied with survivalMultiple optionsTherersquos a number of reasons for this vast differenceFirstly therersquos their upbringing English players are conditioned to be conservative In 1968 I was asked by a county player why I left my crease to the spinners After hearing my many reasons he disagreed ldquoBut yoursquore giving yourself one more way of getting outrdquoIn modern India players are more confident and aggressive This attitude is boosted even further on reaching the international arena by the positive encouragement of the leadership group of Virat Kohli Ajinkya Rahane and Ravi Shastri Then therersquos the IPL Itrsquos resulted in Indian players being exposed to more international thinking and training which has had a positive effect on both cricketers and coachesAnd finally selection plays a part Contrast Englandrsquos treatment of Bess and Jonny Bairstow with the encouragement Pant receivedAfter acclimatising in Sri Lanka with a reasonably successful series Bairstow was sent home to rest but instead endured the rain and snow for a month He was then expected to reappear in the heat of India and be a saviour at No 3 is it any wonder he finished the series with more ducks than an English aristocrat in hunting seasonIn Bessrsquos case hersquod built up a good head of steam with 17 wickets in three Tests in Sri Lanka and India His Indian victims included Kohli Rahane Cheteshwar Pujara and Pant in the same innings and yet he was banished from a winning teamHe was replaced by Moeen Ali who provided no more control the excuse used to omit Bess The young offspinner was then expected to pick up the pieces in the final Test when Ali left the tour If England think ahead to Ashes selection Bess is a better bet than Ali who has already been overwhelmed by the Australians Contrast that with Pantrsquos treatment He was read the riot act in Australia when he turned up over weight He then ldquoworked his backside offrdquo according to the coach and was reinstated in the team after the Indian debacle at Adelaide OvalPantrsquos heroicsWhat followed has been a revelation Hersquos produced three innings that changed the course of a Test with mature counterattacking when the team was in trouble Most players donrsquot contribute that many in a careerNot content with just batting heroics his rsquokeeping when standing up to the spinners has evolved from fumbling to fabulous in the space of a few weeksPant is a popular player in the Indian side and his spirit epitomises the teamrsquos confident attacking approach to the game England have players who could provide a similar stimulus to their team what they lack is a conducive environment