Great opportunity for India to make a name on foreign soil:Boycot

London, July 19 (UNI) Notwithstanding the tag of 'poor travellers', Cricketer-turned-commentator Geoffrey Boycott has handed India a big chance to perform well in the Test series, saying England are 'seriously vulnerable' without the injured players.

''If India had a coach - which they don't - he would be telling the players that this is a great opportunity to make a name for themselves on foreign soil,'' Boycott said of India's chances in the three-match Test series against England starting today at Lords.

''I don't think any England supporter can go into the contest feeling overconfident that this injury-hit team will destroy India,'' Boycott said.

The former England Test opener said in his column in the 'Daily Telegraph' that England's advantage of playing at home soil is neutralised because of injuries to several key players like Andrew Flintoff, Steve Harminson, Simon Jones and Mathew Hoggrad.

''On paper, England should win this series comfortably. They are ranked No 2 in the world, as opposed to India's No 5, and they are playing at home.

''But those advantages are balanced out by the injuries in the English camp: without Andrew Flintoff, Steve Harmison and probably Matthew Hoggard, England are seriously vulnerable,'' he opined.

Boycott felt Harmison's absence might affect the outcome as sub-continental teams were always uncomfortable against quick and bouncy deliveries.

''Without Flintoff, Harmison, Hoggard, Jones and Trescothick, England will not be the force they were at their peak, when they won six Test series in a row,'' he pointed out.

Boycott, who is famous for his witty one-liners such as 'even my Mom can hit that for a six,' said,'' Their (England's) only consolation is that India tend not to travel very well. They play brilliantly at home, on low, flat pitches that spin.

''But when they go abroad they're like a bottle of fine wine: they get shaken up and they're not too clever. They hardly win a series overseas.'' On England's bowling, the Wisden Cricketer of 1965 said ''At his best, England will also miss Hoggard, if his back injury fails to clear up, as he has led the wicket table against India in both the last two series. Add in the absences of Flintoff and Simon Jones - who is still in limbo at Glamorgan - and they could be four major bowlers down.'' He, however, was not too sure how the 'Sardar of Tweak' would perform against the best readers of spin, saying ''Monty Panesar might end up as the only bowler of proven Test quality in a patched-up attack that is hardly going to frighten anyone to death. Even Monty might be less effective than usual against the world's most expert readers of spin.'' He was also secptical about on the batting front, saying ''England's batting has problems of its own. Clearly the biggest worry is Andrew Strauss. He has been a fixture in the side, an experienced and mature player who people look up to. At the moment, though, he's struggling for runs and confidence.

''Next up is Kevin Pietersen, England's best player. He says he is mentally tired because there's too much cricket. I agree with him. All us ex-cricketers keep telling the administrators that, but they don't listen.

''They're too greedy.

''Meanwhile, people such as Marcus Trescothick are suffering burnout and dropping off the international stage.

Talking about how important it was for India's experienced batters to lead the charge, Boycott, who scored 8,114 runs in 108 Tests, said ''India are very good when they've got big totals on the board and their bowlers can put you under pressure. They're not so good when the ball moves around and early wickets fall. A number of their lesser players are not mentally tough.

''So if you can get rid of the big-hundred men - top players such as Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman - you can run through the batting.'' His final verdict was an exciting contest between Dravid and Vaughan's men. ''I think we're in for a hell of a tussle, as long as the rain stays away. With any luck, this will turn out to be a cracking series.'' UNI