England can replace ageing India as top Test side: Vaughan

LONDON - Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan has tipped England to take over the position of No.1 Test side as India are an ageing side.

Vaughan feels the other top teams India, Sri Lanka and South Africa will lose players in the near future paving the way for England to claim the top Test spot.

“India are an ageing side. V.V.S. Laxman, Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid will go soon. Zaheer Khan will not bowl forever and has suffered injuries. He missed the first Test of their series in South Africa and they lost,” Vaughan wrote in his column for The Telegraph Friday.

“How much have South Africa got in reserve if Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn get injured or what happens when Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis retire?

“Sri Lanka have lost Muttiah Muralitharan, who put them in the top bracket of teams. They will still score a lot of runs but if you cannot take 20 wickets it is difficult over a long period to win series,” he said.

Vaughan gives reasons for the English supremacy in the longer-version of the game.

“If you look at England then you can see Andrew Strauss going on for three or four years. The team can stay together for a long time and there is no great side for them to be fearful of. There is no gulf in class between No.3 in the world and No.1, which was the case when Australia were far better than anyone else.”

“We have seen in this series that when Stuart Broad missed out Chris Tremlett came in and performed. The same for Steven Finn and Tim Bresnan. Ajmal Shahzad is waiting in the wings, Monty Panesar is in reserve and Adil Rashid will probably be ready in a year’s time. Eoin Morgan is waiting patiently, hoping he will get a chance.

“England’s attack would have two spinners (an offie and leggie) and three seamers. Imagine Rashid, Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson and Tremlett. What a unit that could be,” he wrote.

England have retained the Ashes by winning the Melbourne Test and Vaughan rates the victory as predictable because of Australia’s decline in the recent past.

“Remember Australia are only the fifth-ranked team in the world. The Ashes is massive and means a lot to people back home, but in reality England have only beaten a middle-ranked team.

“That is not to knock their achievement. They have out-planned, bowled, and fielded Australia and shown their true potential.

“The best teams beat opposition the standard of this Australian side,” Vaughan criticised the baggy greens.