After India’s rampaging performance in the recent test series, Virender Sehwag tweeted that England had lost it in the mind, with an image of the brain emphasising the point.
After bashing the pitches and the sub standard third umpire decision making process, it is time England acknowledges that it lost to a superior team.
But, could the result have been different? Possibly yes.
All of us have played chess at some point in time. Simple rules - white (equate that to home conditions) has an advantage. But that apart, it is a level playing field.
But, imagine a player who plays a premeditated game. Plays the same moves (pre- announced) with no consideration or acknowledgement of what the opponent does. The chances of winning? At best good when the opponent is weak but impossible when the opponent is a champion.
Simple. Ain’t it?
England committed exactly the same crime. Butler, Woakes, Curran - exciting talent bore the pain of rotation.
Even before the series started India knew the pool from which England would play. Knew Anderson would not play the second test, knew Butter would go home, knew Bairstow would come in only after two tests, knew Moeen Ali (Kohli’s nemesis) would go back after one test, knew Chris Woakes - the champion all rounder would not even play.
You can blame this on pre-programmed artificial intelligence.
When all your cards are on the table, can you hope to win?
Interestingly England started with a bang. They scored a mammoth 500 plus and thumped India (though they should have been alarmed at how poorly they scored in their second innings). But, while India learnt many a lesson, England chose not to.
India castled with a spinning track. It could have been a double edged sword if England had batted first but the toss God sided with India.
A confused England was thrown an intellectual challenge. Instead of altering its game plan, it played into the Indian spin web.
After that the series became predictable. The better prepared, stronger team gobbled the pre-programmed.
Human and native intelligence wreaked havoc over algorithmic artificial intelligence.
History indicates that India (not Australia, nor West Indies) has the longest home win streak in tests (13 with this win). For England to treat this almost invincible status with poor planning is a sad reflection of its adaptability.
They lost the series in the mind before they lost it in the stadiums.
