MS Dhoni wants typical England decks for upcoming Tests

Indian captain MS Dhoni wants to see more lively wickets for the remaining Tests

The 1st Test match between England and India, at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, ended in a stalemate, with the tourists battling on the last day of the Test to salvage a draw. Despite some unprecedented records being attained over the course of the Test match, it is the 22-yard strip that has attracted all the spotlight over the last week, with the home team discontent over the nature of the surface produced.

India have historically struggled against swing and seam. With that being the case, the expectation was of a surface that would be favourable to the traditional strengths of the England team. It was extremely surprising, then, that the pitch turned out to be as docile as it was, with virtually no movement in the air or off the deck to speak of. Apart from the bowlers getting very little lateral movement, there was hardly any pace and bounce in the wicket, either, with the ball reaching the wicket-keeper at ankle-height right from day one.

No fun in playing on subcontinental-type pitches:

India really struggled on their last tour to England, losing 4-0 in the Tests on pitches that were lively and assisted the fast bowlers. So, MS Dhoni, the Indian captain, would have heaved a sigh of relief when he saw the Trent Bridge pitch having a straw-coloured look to it on the 1st day of the Test match, making it resemble wickets back home more.

While the hosts were furious with the curator for preparing such an uncharacteristic pitch, you would think that the 33-year old would be extremely happy if pitches for the upcoming Tests were similar to the one at Nottingham. But, after the match, which ultimately ended in a tame draw, he has surprisingly stated his desire to see surfaces for the remaining Tests typifying English conditions.

"I always said that when you come to a country you want to play on a wicket that is the speciality of that country," Dhoni told reporters. "There's no fun in going to India and having a flat wicket where people can score 200 or 250 runs, but it's very good if you score a hundred on a turning track.

"England is not known for fast wickets but here it's more about swing and overcast conditions, and that's the speciality here. It is more about swing. That's what you want to see," he concluded.

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