By IANS,
London : Cricket commentators in England praised the historic Chennai Test match that ended Monday as one of the finest hours in English cricket.
In turn, Indian fans praised English cricketers for having the courage to return after the Mumbai terror attacks.
“Shall we rant and rave at the inadequacies of an England side that allowed India to post the highest winning total in the subcontinent? Shall we grill the captain and call for a few heads to roll? Of course, we won’t,” wrote Vic Marks in The Guardian.
“Before any analysis of a match that, in some small way, must have enabled a nation to recover from the shocks and horrors of Mumbai, we should acknowledge the extraordinary context in which this game was played,” Marks wrote.
“It very nearly did not take place,” he added.
Marks, a former Test player, said Sachin Tendulkar was on a mission Monday.
“He seemed to be playing his innings specifically for the inhabitants of his home city of Mumbai, such was his iron discipline. This was not a day for any extravagant Tendulkar strokeplay; it was a day to win the game for his country.”
Former England captain Nasser Hussein, writing in the Daily Mail, said the Test match has “proved beyond doubt that England were right to go back to India and resume this tour after the horrors of Mumbai.”
Writing before India’s epic win, Hussein said: “Even if India were to chase down 387 runs…England would know that they had taken part in one of the great Tests; had brought joy to the Indian people in their hour of need by being there and played some outstanding cricket.”
Fans posting messages on the website of the Independent were full of praise for England’s decision to resume the cricket series against India in spite of worries about security.
“Hats off to the England team for coming to India after the Mumbai attack. They have not just played cricket but they have shown the terrorists that you can not win,” said a message in the name of Tushar.