As England proudly sit at the top of the cricketing ladder after a one sided summer, Pakistani leg spinner Danish Kaneria spoke to PakPassion.net about the key role his former Essex team mate Andy Flower has played in England's continuing success...

By Saj Sadiq (September 13, 2011)

What was expected to be a closely fought series in England between the hosts and India has petered out into a one sided and at times uneven contest as the tourists have struggled with conditions and injuries. A lack of preparation ahead of what was always going to be a tough series has also been specified as one of the causes of India's woes in England.

England’s clinical approach, with a strong starting eleven combined with superb tactics, strength in depth and meticulous planning have meant that India have never really been in the contest and the tour has turned out to be a disaster for the Indians.

As England proudly sit at the top of the cricketing ladder after a one sided summer, Pakistani leg spinner Danish Kaneria spoke to PakPassion.net about the key role his former Essex team mate Andy Flower has played in England's continuing success and paid tribute to Flower's leadership and man management skills.

"Andy was a great man to have in the dressing room. He was the sort of guy that gave everyone confidence and a massive boost in the changing room. When things weren't going well, Andy would rally the troops. He wasn't one to rant and rave in the dressing room, rather he would be constructive and offer his opinions in a thoughtful and intellectual manner. When Andy spoke, everyone listened and his thoughts and ideas were always valued. It seems that he has continued that method as coach of England and it is paying dividends."

30 year old Kaneria who has represented Pakistan on 79 occasions and spent several successful seasons at Essex is not at all surprised that England are top of the test rankings with Flower at the helm and paid tribute to his former team mate.

"Andy is a very intelligent man. When I played alongside him at Essex it was clear to me that he had a great cricketing brain and I knew he would make a very good coach. As a player he would spot things that would make you sit up and take note and realise just what excellent knowledge of the game he had. I knew that he would make a great coach and he's doing a fantastic job with England. The best thing about Andy and why I realised he would make a good coach was that he listened, listened very carefully to every word that was spoken. He took on board everything that was discussed and would give everyone the opportunity to make their point."

As Kaneria continues his struggle with the Pakistan Cricket Board to obtain clearance to resume his international career he sent out a warning to the rest of the cricketing nations that England under Flower would be difficult to remove from the top of the test rankings, now that they are the number one ranked team.

"Flower will ensure that everyone around him retains their focus and keeps their mind very much on the cricket. He won't let the guys around him relax and take it easy, Andy will ensure that the England players don't get complacent and it's going to be very difficult for any of the other teams to remove England from the number one spot in the test rankings."