With the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy between India and England ending in a 2-2 draw, it also meant that it was only the fourth time that the England team under head coach Brendon McCullum had drawn a series since he became England’s red-ball coach in 2022. The six-run loss in the final Test at The Oval also meant that England have only now won 23 Tests out of 41 tests under McCullum and it was also the first time that Ben Stokes was part of the drawn series as Test captain for England. Even though Stokes missed the last Test at The Oval due to an injury, England failed to win the fourth Test at Manchester despite Stokes’ heroic efforts with the bat and ball scoring 141 runs and taking six wickets. Former Australian captain Michael Clarke has criticised the England side for not being able to win the series and sharing that he expected England to win the series.
“This England team… I think, 2-2 draw in your own backyard, if I’m captain of that team, I’m disappointed with that result. I want to win, especially in my own conditions. I think they would’ve come into the series expecting to win,” Clarke said on Beyond23 Cricket Podcast.
The Indian team had come in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma announcing their Test retirement months before the series. With 25-year-old Shubmna Gill playing his first Test series as Indian captain, India were able to draw the series despite trailing 1-2. With Jasprit Bunch playing only three Tests in the series, it meant that Mohammed Siraj led the Indian bowling attack in the final Test and would star in India’s win at The Oval with his nine-wicket haul in the match. Three Indian batsmen amassed more than 500 runs in the series with Shubman Gill scoring 754 runs, KL Rahul scoring 532 runs and Ravindra Jadeja scoring 516 runs in the series. Clarke hailed the Indian team as well as Shubman Gill as captain. “I’m not taking India lightly, but I think they’ve overachieved, particularly with the lead-up to the series. If India lost the series, people would’ve respected and understood that. New captain, two of their most senior players not playing Test cricket, the best bowler in the world playing only three of the five matches… I think England would have gone into the series expecting to win. India have overperformed. To level the series 2-2, that’s definitely a win for India in my opinion,” said Clarke.
Earlier former England captain Michael Vaughan too had criticised England for not being able to win the last Test match at The Oval. “This morning, Ben Stokes in that team, England would’ve won this Test match. He plays such a big role in this team, the mentality. You go through this morning and England did panic. They just needed one partnership. They panicked in the way that they can with the way that they play, they play with a huge amount of aggressiveness. Yesterday afternoon, the Harry Brook dismissal did cause that collapse, but it’s the way England play,” Vaughan had told BBC’s Test Match Special.
