Sometimes, clever players are too clever for their own good. It is all very good to think about and analyze the game but it is, after all, a simple game of bat and ball. Getting too clever is sometimes not clever at all. In fact, it is  foolish. A good captain can sense how his bowlers will do on a given day, the conditions help you decide but instinct tells you more.

Flash back to the historic Pakistan tour of 2004. After beating Pakistan at Multan, India faced a green top at Lahore designed to make seam bowlers salivate. Rahul was captain as Dada was injured. We had just returned from Australia where the batsmen had excelled like never before. In an act of confidence and 'cleverness' Rahul surprised everybody by choosing to bat first. You may remember that the match ended before lunch on day four and we were thrashed by 9 wickets, barely avoiding an innings defeat. What could have been a 3-0 series win became a 2-1 win.

Leading 1-0, we should have batted first for two days and put up 600. That would shut out England with no chance of winning this test. Then, we would unleash our bowlers from day 3 onwards to exploit the wear and tear of the pitch. This is not defensive, it is an aggressive move. Shutting out the opposition is always an aggressive move. Sometimes, it is best to not 'think' and just do the obvious.

Anyway, the bowlers, by and large, let the captain down. Pathan ( 11-1-53-0) was dire. He either pitched it too short or strayed onto the pads. There was some swing for the first few overs but both Irfan and Sreesanth failed to capitalise. Sreesanth bowls with zest but lacks consistency and control ( 17-4-51-2). Invariably, he serves up one or two loose deliveries every over and was poor in his first spell even though he got Bell ( 52/1) - out driving one way outside off without getting to the ball - a gift in every sense. Pietersen threw his wicket away to give Sreesanth his second wicket ( 242/3), driving loosely at one well outside off and nicking to Dhoni for 39. Sree's figures look better than he bowled.

In between, Strauss finally came good and got a well deserved 128, smacking some nice drives and pulls off some friendly long hops from Pathan. He fell to Harbhajan, nicking one to Dhoni that bounced a little. Harbhajan was okay at best ( 20-3-68-1). Kumble toiled manfully but wasn't incisive in the absence of any real help from the pitch.

Munaf was the pick of the bowlers, I thought, even when wicketless ( 18-3-46-0). He bowled a good spell in the afternoon, troubling batsmen with pace and bounce. There was no reverse swing to see and he had to rely on air speed and bounce. He bowled a couple of good yorkers again. 

Owais Shah looked good for his 50 - he retired after cramps and will return. His footwork was very definitive and positive. He took Bhajji on and made him look very ordinary. I think England will easily get over 400 here and put our batsmen under pressure. This is an absolute shame because this could have been India 340/1 instead.

A 2-0 victory is a lot better that 1-0. Hell, 1-0 is a lot better than 1-1. The English have been handed a gift by the Indian captain. If they still cannot win from here they surely deserve to lose this series irrespective of what Flintoff may say. They have effectively won the toss on all three occasions! They have had first use of the wicket in all three tests and, that, is a very big deal in the subcontinent.

Why , O why ?