England vs. India: Player Ratings for MS Dhoni's XI After 5th Test
A listless India crumbled to an innings and 244-run defeat in the fifth Test against England at the Oval inside three days to bring to an end a long and painful tour of England.
India had started the series on an inspiring note, taking a 1-0 lead in the second Test at Lord's, but they inexplicably capitulated thereafter, losing the next three Tests by embarrassingly swelling margins.
India saved the worst for last as they were bowled out for 94 in the second innings at the Oval, thereby recording their fifth consecutive sub-200 total of the series.
Here is how MS Dhoni's men rated in the fifth Test.
Criteria for Ratings
The number of runs scored and wickets and catches taken will obviously play a significant role in determining a player's match rating. However, the following factors also affect it:
1. Runs scored or wickets taken in match-saving or similar under-pressure situations count more than otherwise.
2. The captain will be judged on his performance in the field in addition to his other contributions with bat or ball.
3. Moments of brilliance or game-changing performances get more credit.
4. Performing in conditions that don't suit a player's skill set boosts a player's rating.
5. Irresponsible acts or those of poor judgement significantly affect a player's rating.
MS Dhoni (captain)
With the bat: 82, 0
With the gloves: Three catches
Rating: 7/10
The India captain is one of the very few members of the touring party who can hold their head high, having played two gutsy captain's knocks at Old Trafford and the Oval.
Dhoni's defiant 82 in the first innings at the Oval was the only reason India avoided a sub-100 score—he scored more than the entire team combined.
Unfortunately, he could not come to the team's rescue for the second time in the same match, as he was dismissed for a duck in the second innings.
Murali Vijay
With the bat: 18, 2
Rating: 1/10
After such a promising start to the tour at Trent Bridge and Lord's, Murali Vijay's campaign has withered away.
As the series reached the Oval, gone was his monk-like temperament. He would only join his fellow batsmen in tumbling over like nine pins.
A dropped catch in the slip cordon added insult to injury, and Vijay would consider his overall tour to be a disappointment.
Gautam Gambhir
With the bat: 0, 3
Rating: 0/10
When Gautam Gambhir was picked for this tour after a hiatus of 18 months, it was touted as his second coming in Test cricket.
However, after the way Gambhir found innovative ways to lose his wicket over four innings in the fourth and fifth Tests—with the cherry on top being a run-out in the final innings of the tour—one can safely assume that he has played his last Test for India.
Cheteshwar Pujara
With the bat: 4, 11
Rating: 1/10
Cheteshwar Pujara was supposed to be a reincarnation of Rahul Dravid, but it looks like he had turned a deaf ear to any such suggestion.
The English bowlers found a weakness in his usually rock-solid technique—the inswinging delivery bowled at good length—and exploited it thoroughly.
If anyone, it was Pujara who was expected to stand tall through a collapse and weigh anchor. Sadly for India, it wasn't to be—he could only return 222 runs in 10 innings.
Virat Kohli
With the bat: 6, 20
Rating: 1/10
Virat Kohli will be hoping this tour was a very bad nightmare and that he'll soon wake up with a sigh of relief.
Unfortunately, that isn't the case and he will have to accept that he was India's worst batsman on tour, managing to gather just 134 runs in 10 innings.
A lot was rightly expected from India's new No. 4 ahead of this series after successful outings in South Africa and New Zealand.
But a different Kohli turned up in England, one who could not negotiate the away-moving delivery outside off-stump.
Ajinkya Rahane
With the bat: 0, 4
Rating: 0/10
Ajinkya Rahane, like Vijay, provided a lot of hope for the series after the first couple of games, scoring a sublime and phlegmatic ton at Lord's under pressure.
At Southampton, too, he was one of India's saving graces with two half-centuries in an otherwise sorry batting performance.
Unfortunately, he could not keep up his standards in the two Tests that followed, managing only four runs at the Oval and a forgetful outing in the slip cordon.
Stuart Binny
With the bat: 5, 25*
With the ball: 0-58
Rating: 4/10
Brought back into the side after missing out in Southampton and Manchester, Stuart Binny would have hoped he would get more overs to bowl than he did at Trent Bridge and Lord's.
However, he was only allowed to bowl 12, in which he conceded 58 runs, though he was denied a wicket due to shabby clip catching by his teammates.
Binny did well for his unbeaten 25 in the second innings, India's highest score in the innings, but he hasn't done enough overall to cement a place in the team.
Ravichandran Ashwin
With the ball: 3-72
With the bat: 13, 7
Rating: 6/10
India would be wondering what might have been had they given Ravichandran Ashwin more than the two games he got during the tour.
Ashwin was very impressive with both ball and bat at Old Trafford and the Oval, scoring a couple of 40s in the former and bowling a probing spell in the latter.
The wicket at the Oval wasn't doing much for the spinners, but Ashwin maintained a religious line outside off-stump for the right-handers and was rewarded with three wickets.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
With the ball: 1-86
With the bat: 5, 4
Rating: 4/10
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was India's only bowler who lasted all five Tests and the effects were there to see at the Oval.
Kumar looked understandably tired as he ran in to bowl and lost some of the accuracy for which he is renowned.
Nevertheless, the tour would overall be considered a success for the 24-year-old, who was India's highest wicket-taker (19) and did well with the bat in the first couple of games as well.
Varun Aaron
With the ball: 2-153
With the bat: 1, 1
Rating: 5.5/10
Varun Aaron's figures at the Oval would suggest that he was very expensive, giving away 153 runs in 29 overs—more than five an over.
It is true that he was a bit erratic with his line and length at times, but he threatened the English batsmen throughout his spell.
In Aaron, India have unearthed an out-and-out fast bowler who is unwilling to compromise on his pace, even if he goes for a few.
If India can handle him well, they have a future star on their hands.
Ishant Sharma
With the ball: 4-96
With the bat: 7*, 2
Rating: 6.5/10
Back in the side after recovering from an ankle injury that kept him out of the third and fourth Tests, Ishant Sharma showed what India had been missing in their bowling line-up.
Ishant ran in hard and hit the deck harder, generating enough movement in either direction to keep the Englishmen alert.
He picked up four wickets and could have got a fifth had it not been for the annoying frequency with which he bowled no balls.
Ishant will want to work on that aspect of his bowling and also figure out how to keep himself less prone to injuries. This tour has only highlighted what the lanky pacer is capable of if he applies himself in the right manner.