After a victorious start to the series, the English team found itself on the losing side at the end of the Dharamsala Test. This has been a crushing defeat for the visitors who have been left rattled by an impenetrable Indian team. Let us look at 3 reasons why England failed miserably on this tour.
Caught up in their style
The most prominent thing that has come to the fore after this series is that there cannot be one way to play the game. Teams can have their philosophies but if they are not mixed with a certain amount of adaptability and game awareness then that concoction is harmful. Before the series, there was a lot of talk about ‘Bazball’ and how this English team is a fearless side. But lack of skill cannot be hidden under the garb of aggressive approach. There should be an urgent reconsideration about what exactly should be the playing style going ahead.
Pathetic middle-order
The biggest drawback for England in this series has been the miserable performance of their middle order. Experienced players like Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Johnny Bairstow, and Ben Foakes looked clueless except on one or two occasions. Throughout the series, these names have given disappointing returns which proved suicidal for England. The middle order consistently failed and let the opposition dominate the proceedings. This lack of form is a serious concern for the English team and it became one of the major factors behind a brutal drubbing in this Test series.
Failure to seize the moments
England had several chances throughout the series when they looked in control but rather than capitalizing on that advantage, they gave it away to the hosts. There are multiple reasons as to why that happened, one of them being the inability to adapt. This failure to put the final nail in the coffin held back England from mounting pressure on the Indians. In Test cricket sometimes a team needs to consolidate rather than embark on an adventure but this game awareness was nowhere to be seen from the English team.