England flail away in subcontinent
Since 1933, England have played 90 Test matches in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, collectively known as South Asia. Out of the 90 they have won just 20, a 22% success rate. They have drawn 48 Tests and lost 22, giving them a win/loss ratio of 0.91. In all their Test match cricket, that ratio stands at 1.24.
They have just lost yet another Test match in subcontinental conditions, even if it was held in the UAE (their first in that country). Pakistan troubled them with spin and rolled them over for less than 200 runs in each innings, a disappointing effort from the number one ranked team in Test cricket. Spin, however, was not their only worry, as their top four batsmen were dismissed by the pacy Umar Gul in the second innings.
| England in South Asia | Matches | Won | Lost | Draw | Win % | Win/Loss |
| India (1933-2008) | 51 | 11 | 14 | 26 | 22% | 0.79 |
| Pakistan (1961-2005) | 24 | 2 | 4 | 18 | 8% | 0.50 |
| Sri Lanka (1982-2007) | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 27% | 0.75 |
| Bangladesh (2003-2010) | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100% | N/A |
| All | 90 | 20 | 22 | 48 | 22% | 0.91 |
Winning in Pakistan has never been easy for England. They have been there nine times, played 24 matches and have come away with only two Test victories. But it has not been too easy for the home team to win, either, as the Pakistanis have only won four games. That still leaves England, however, with their worst win/loss ratio in any Test-playing nation, if you ignore Zimbabwe, where they have only played two Tests and drawn both of them.
| Since 2000 | Matches | Won | Lost | Win% | Win/Loss |
| India | 8 | 1 | 3 | 13% | 0.33 |
| Pakistan | 6 | 1 | 2 | 17% | 0.50 |
| Sri Lanka | 9 | 2 | 3 | 22% | 0.67 |
| Bangladesh | 4 | 4 | 0 | 100% | N/A |
| All | 27 | 8 | 8 | 30% | 1.00 |
Looking at England’s more recent form in South Asia, the numbers do not look all that promising. 2012 will be a big year as the Poms will tour Sri Lanka and India, but their record against the latter since 2000 is poor. They have won just one out of eight Tests and they looked particularly weak against India in the five ODIs played against them late last year.
Against Sri Lanka they have fared a little better of late, but the English have not tasted success there since 2001. Rated as a better Test than one-day team, England have been more successful in other countries, as the table below illustrates, but have still not been able to crack the subcontinent.
| Eng in other countries | Matches | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % | Win/Loss |
| Australia | 170 | 57 | 86 | 27 | 34% | 0.66 |
| South Africa | 77 | 29 | 18 | 30 | 38% | 1.61 |
| West Indies | 65 | 13 | 24 | 28 | 20% | 0.54 |
| New Zealand | 44 | 18 | 4 | 22 | 41% | 4.50 |
| Zimbabwe | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% | N/A |
These are important times for English cricket. They did not perform all that well in the 2011 Cricket World Cup, but are defending champions in the ICC World T20, a title that they will have to defend later this year. In amongst all that, their top spot in the Test rankings is also at risk, and being the best in the longest format of the game is a massive priority for them.
