Former England off-spinner Graeme Swann said they will continue to fail in India if they play spin bowling ‘horrifically’. Speaking to BBC Test Match Special, Swann said India’s spinners could be in for a good haul in the three ODIs and three T20s England are slated to play after their 4-0 Test series defeat last month.
“There’s a couple of wickets there for the spinners,” said Swann. “We play spin horrifically on the whole.” Swann also added that a limited-overs tour of India is one of the hardest assignments in world cricket. “It’s not a very pleasant experience,” said the 37-year-old. “I don’t think I ever won there.”
“The teams I played in were clueless in how to cope with the noise, the intensity, the armed guards. I remember being on the tour that ended because of the attacks in Mumbai. In a weird way, it was a relief that we could go home - we were getting hammered left, right and centre,” said Swann, referring to the seven-match ODI series in 2008 that was cancelled after the Mumbai attacks. England had already lost 0-5 when the tour was cancelled. England had lost the next ODI series too, in 2011, 0-5.
Swann believes the crowd is again going to play a significant part in this series. “The crowds definitely play a part - you can’t hear yourself think for three and a half hours. It envelops you. When you get back into the changing room – it’s like a day spa. There’s total silence,” he said.