Sachin Tendulkar congratulates England on their series victory
What's the story?
India, currently ranked No.1 in Tests, went to England with a lot of promise, but the home team sealed the series even before the last Test. England's win in the fourth Test meant that they have won the series 3-1, and Sachin Tendulkar sent his best wishes to the English team.
Two of the four Tests were closely fought by the top two teams in the world but the English team came on top on both the occasions. The losses at Edgbaston and Southampton will hurt more than the one-sided loss at Lords as India had a chance of winning both the games.
In case you didn't know:
Sachin Tendulkar is the highest run-scorer for India in Tests against England in England. The master blaster has scored 1575 runs in England at an average of 54.31, which is slightly higher than his Test average of 53.78. Sachin is also the overall highest run-getter for India against England in Tests, with 2535 runs.
Even after retiring from cricket, the Bharat Ratna awardee was seen making headlines through his activity on social media. Be it promoting sports in India or wishing fellow cricketers on special occasions or responding to cricket, Sachin has always given his best. The legendary cricketer also has an app called 100MB to stay connected with his fans.
Heart of the matter:
In both the first and the fourth Tests, India were on top at times, but the Kohli-led team could on hold on to the opportunities at hand and have lost the series. The hero who rescued England in both the close-fought matches was 20-year old, Sam Curran.
Indian bowlers exploited the problems in the English top order by taking early wickets but could not wrap up the tail quickly. The Surrey all-rounder played a crucial role in the three matches he played, as he scored half-centuries in the second innings of the first Test and first innings of the fourth Test to take the game away from India.
Final Say:
India were outclassed only once by England in this series, but the inability to seize the opportunities costed India the series. As perfectly put by Sachin Tendulkar, England played better cricket in crucial moments and are now the rightful winners of the series.
If India want to become a great team, even in overseas conditions, the team has to step up when it matters the most. Just having the ability to win is not enough as results do matter at the end of the day.