The sight of players from the England squad training even as the closing ceremony took place in Kolkata spoke volumes. While one side looked tired and dispirited, the other looked hungry and motivated. It is often unwise to read too much into one moment, but this was not an atypical episode. England, stung into action by some humbling defeats this year, know their work is only just beginning. India are only just waking to the task ahead.
Quite where this victory leaves England is a moot point. It is impressive that England have surpassed 400 runs in three consecutive completed innings. It is impressive that they have completed the first back-to-back defeats on India in India since South Africa in 2000 or, as an England side, since 1976-77. It is impressive that they have regrouped since the fallout of the summer and that, after the disappointment of Ahmedabad, they have out-batted, out-fielded and out-bowled their opponents both with seam and swing.
But it is worth remembering how thin the margins between success and failure can be. The overwhelming contribution of Alastair Cook might have been prevented had Cheteshwar Pujara caught him on 17 and, wonderfully well though James Anderson bowled – he has rarely bowled better – to claim three wickets in the first innings, India might reflect that all seven of their remaining first innings wickets fell to largely self-inflicted errors. It is rare, too, that England will come up against a team that fields so poorly as India did on the second day.
And, excellent though England have been in the last two Tests, the fact remains that this series is not yet decided and they have lost seven Tests this year. The manner in which they stumbled on their short road to victory on the final day also hinted that their issues against spin bowling are not completely resolved. They remain a work in progress. The encouraging thing from an England perspective is that they know it. If they have learned one thing in the last year, it is that they are not as good as they thought they were. They now know they cannot afford to take their eye off the road. All the talk of legacy, talk that seemed sensible enough at the time following the Ashes success and the defeat of India, has been replaced. Instead of a long term vision, we hear talk of relentless hard work. It is not quite as appealing a slogan, but it is probably a more sensible recipe for success.
