Trent Bridge has been one of the very best grounds for fast bowlers over the last decade, with James Anderson taking 49 wickets at 17.34. It is also a venue where England have won each of their last five Tests
S Rajesh07-Jul-2014In the 52 Tests that India have played in England, they have won five and lost 27. That is a win-loss ratio of 0.18, which is their worst in any country – worse than in Australia (5-26), and in South Africa (2-8). Most of that is admittedly because of their early results in England – before 1970, India were 0-15 in 19 Tests – but it’s also true that their most recent result there was a throwback to those early days: a 4-0 whitewash in 2011.India have plenty to prove after their recent overseas debacles – 10 defeats in the last 12 Tests – and it’s likely that their first test will also be the toughest, for Trent Bridge, the venue of the first match, is one of the best grounds for seam and swing bowling over the last decade. In 10 Tests played here since 2003, seamers have taken 292 wickets at an average of 27.11 and a strike rate of 53. Among venues which have hosted at least six Tests during this period – there are 37 that make this cut-off – only Sabina Park in Jamaica, has a better average for quick bowlers (24.31).
VenueTestsWicketsAverageStrike rate5WI/ 10WMKingston, Jamaica1023724.3149.012/ 1Trent Bridge, Nottingham1029227.1153.016/ 2Harare Sports Club1023727.7655.010/ 1Wanderers, Johannesburg1133828.0952.414/ 4Melbourne Cricket Ground1125729.1257.27/ 1Bridgetown, Barbados1124429.3157.86/ 2SuperSport Park, Centurion1230429.8353.117/ 4England’s leading fast bowler has enjoyed bowling here more than at any other Test venue in the world. James Anderson has 49 wickets from seven Tests at Trent Bridge, which is his second-highest at any venue: he has 68 at Lord’s but from 15 Tests, and at an average of 25.14; at Trent Bridge he averages an exceptional 17.34, which is his best at any ground. Six out of his 15 five-fors and both his ten-wicket hauls have come here, which indicates just how dangerous he can be at the venue.In fact, Anderson has as many five-fors in seven Tests at Trent Bridge as he has in 46 matches in all other grounds in England put together. The last time he played here, in the 2013 Ashes, Anderson took five-wicket hauls in both innings, and finished with match figures of 10 for 158. However, his worst figures here were against India, in 2007, when he had match figures of 1 for 157 in England’s seven-wicket defeat. Anderson needs only five more wickets to become the leading wicket-taker in England – he has 225 currently, four behind Fred Trueman’s 229. Given how he generally bowls here, the record should be his before the Test is over.Stuart Broad has been impressive here too, with 21 wickets from five Tests at 22.76. The only time he took more than two wickets in an innings here was in 2011 against India, when he claimed 6 for 46 in the first innings.
TestsWicketsAverageStrike rate5WI/ 10WMAt Trent Bridge74917.3437.26/ 2Other grounds in Eng4617629.7258.26/ 0With Anderson and Broad very effective at Trent Bridge, it isn’t surprising that the stats for England’s quick bowlers are impressive here: 166 wickets in ten Tests at an average of 23.43; overseas fast bowlers average almost 32, which suggests that England’s seamers and swing bowlers have been instrumental in winning them Tests here. Overseas spinners have done slightly better than England’s, but the home team have not relied much on spin here.
PaceSpinWicketsAverageStrike rateWicketsAverageStrike rateEngland’s bowlers16623.4347.22534.1270.4Overseas bowlers12631.9660.64231.7359.8Trent Bridge has been a venue that England’s fast bowlers have enjoyed over the last decade, but their batsmen haven’t enjoyed similar success. Alastair Cook has already been undergoing a miserable run as captain and batsman in Tests, and he won’t be enthused by his Trent Bridge stats: in 13 innings he has scored only one half-century, and averages 21.50. That half-century came in his most recent Test innings here, against Australia last year, when he scored exactly 50 in the second innings. In four tries against India here, he has managed only 73 runs, with a highest score of 43.In fact, all the specialist batsmen for England have struggled here over the last decade: Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell and Andrew Strauss all average in the late 30s, while Jonathan Trott’s is less than 25. Stuart Broad has averaged more than all of these batsmen with three 50-plus scores in eight innings here.
BatsmanTestsRunsAverageStrike rate100s/ 50sStuart Broad531339.1264.400/ 3Kevin Pietersen854338.7852.611/ 3Ian Bell638338.3052.252/ 0Andrew Strauss850133.4045.501/ 2Matt Prior524831.5559.531/ 2Jonathan Trott417024.2855.010/ 0Alastair Cook725821.5038.450/ 1Trent Bridge has been a happy venue for quick bowlers, but teams batting first have still done well: in the last ten Tests, seven have been won by the side batting first, with England achieving it six times. One of the exceptions was India in 2007, when they bowled England out for 198 in the first innings after choosing to field, and then scored 481 to set up the win.Generally, though, Trent Bridge has been a difficult venue for teams batting last: Pakistan were bowled out for 80 in 2010, India for 158 in 2011, England for 190 against Sri Lanka in 2006, and South Africa for 131 in 2003. Even in the 2005 Ashes Test which England won, they managed to chase down 129 with only three wickets in hand.In the fourth innings too, fast bowlers have played key roles at this ground, taking 49 wickets at 20.79, compared to 17 wickets for spinners at 20.23. The fast bowler stats here in the fourth innings are better than in the first three innings: they’ve averaged 29.72 in the first innings, 27.09 in the second, and 28.34 in the third.With Zaheer Khan at the top of his game in 2007 – taking 9 for 134 – India exploited those conditions better than the home team to win by seven wickets; in 2011 too, the Indian seamers were superb in the first innings, bowling England out for 221, before being taken apart in the second. They’ll need a couple of their bowlers to step up again to prevent England from winning their sixth consecutive Test here.
1st inngs2nd inngs3rd inngs4th inngs32.5929.1030.0821.67
