Nobbling the opposition’s best batsmen with cunning plans was one of several qualities England supporters took for granted when Duncan Fletcher was the national coach, writes Scyld Berry in the Sunday Telegraph.
Ramnaresh Sarwan was Man of the Series when England lost 1-0 in the Caribbean earlier this year, scoring more than twice as many runs as the next West Indian, with three centuries and a 90 in his six innings. England will not avenge their defeat if Sarwan is also the man of the two-Test series which starts at Lord’s on Wednesday.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul admits it's always about him against the rest of the world, whether it's battles with personalities, the media or leading the West Indies, writes Anna Kessel in the Observer
At the mention of KP, Chanderpaul's face grows very dark. On the recent West Indies tour Pietersen took a swipe at him, accusing him of "playing for himself". It was a comment that Chanderpaul did not take lightly.
"You can't assume or think someone's just playing for themselves. I don't know where he gets his stories from … I can't be playing for myself when I'm in Trinidad trying to save a match. Scoring 140 and I'm playing for myself?" Chanderpaul's expression is one of utter disgust.
Did Pietersen's comment make him angry? "What he said just motivated me more. It definitely made me better at what I was doing. If people come at me I just want to make sure that I can be out there even longer. You get angry and you just want to grind somebody out there longer, that's how I do my job." Chanderpaul folds his arms, his outburst a rare moment of expression.
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