It is going to be difficult for Cook and the team: Matthew Hoggard

Former England pacer Matthew Hoggard was a part of the England team that toured India all those years ago in 2002. However, since then, overseas tours and bilateral series have evolved to such an extent that the home team usually comes up trumps. As Aakash Chopra once said, this is perhaps the best time of ‘home advantage’.

In that capacity, Matthew Hoggard believes that the upcoming series against the Indians could be a very difficult affair as far as Alastair Cook and his side are concerned. He also made a quick comparison with the recently-concluded Bangladesh tour.

“It’s going to be a very difficult tour for Cookie’s side. We did very well on the subcontinent last time round and India will want payback. Add to that the conditions and our experience in Bangladesh and England are in for a stern test, particularly in terms of facing up to some high-quality spin bowling, so we’ll need to make significant improvements with both bat and ball. India deserves their place at the top of the Test rankings. I fear England’s struggles will continue.”

However, the former pacer said that there was no reason to think about the debacle in Bangladesh. “I don’t think there’s any reason to think a poor result in Bangladesh – that ultimately came down to a disastrous single session – automatically means the players will suffer from a sense of inferiority. As Trevor Bayliss has said, English cricketers don’t experience these type of pitches very often, but most of our batters managed to clock up respectable scores in the two Tests.”

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Hoggard also added that they would miss James Anderson. “England are always going to miss Anderson as he’s been superb for us for a very long time. Whether or not Jimmy’s playing, Saqlain Mushtaq is a fantastic resource for any Test bowler. Our bowling attack should mine his knowledge and take full advantage of his presence on the tour. But in the heat of the battle, the coach can’t bowl any of the balls himself. That responsibility sits on the shoulders of the players.”

Finally, the 39-year old said that Mohammad Shami was one of his favorite Indian players. “I like Mohammed Shami. He moves it both ways, which always makes a bowler a threat, and he does so at decent pace. He’s a very skillful bowler and our batters will have to be wary of him. Beyond Shami, Umesh Yadav has the raw pace that excites me. He has the ability to makes things happen, as he showed at the last World Cup. He shares many of the same qualities as Varun Aaron, going past the 90mph mark with ease and really putting the cat among the pigeons.”

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