England not that inferior to India in ODIs: Gough

England fast bowler Darren Gough dismissed suggestions his side were way behind India in terms of ability in the one-day series, despite the hosts leading 3-1 with two games to play.

"It's a lot of rubbish," said Gough, England's leading one-day bowler, on Tuesday.

"We could have been winning this series. We are two very close teams," he said ahead of Thursday's fifth and penultimate game in New Delhi.

The Yorkshire bowler said England were still determined to win the next two games to draw the series.

England have largely competed well, winning by 16 runs in the second Cuttack game and losing by 22 runs and by four wickets in Calcutta and Madras, but they suffered an eight-wicket defeat in the rain-hit fourth game in Kanpur on Monday.

Gough was full of admiration for Sachin Tendulkar, who hit 87 not out to guide India to an easy win in Kanpur after Virender Sehwag blasted 82 from 62 balls to dominate England's attack.

But he felt he had Tendulkar out first ball of the innings, after a confident legside caught behind appeal was turned down.

"It could easily have been a different game if two decisions had gone our way," Gough added, referring to new ball partner Matthew Hoggard's confident leg before appeal against Sehwag in the next over before the two batsmen cut loose.

ROTATION

India, chasing 218 for victory in the rain-shortened 39-overs-a-side game, eventually coasted to 219 for two with 9.2 overs to spare.

Gough said England's pace trio had not managed to shine in the series, but felt it was unfair to single out the England bowlers as the Indian new ball bowlers had also suffered on batting pitches.

Gough, set to play his 100th one-day game on Thursday, said he was not worried that he could be left out for the New Delhi game with England trying out a rotation policy as they prepare for next year's World Cup in South Africa.

He said the inclusion of three seamers in India had not worked but it was still worth trying to fine-tune for the bouncier South African pitches.

Gough said he did not support rotation for the sake of it, but felt England were in a position to try it out.

"I don't believe in giving people one-day international caps," he said of a policy that has left experienced paceman Andy Caddick still waiting for his first game in the series.

"But we've got a system now, if we've got players to come in and do as good a job... it's probably a worthwhile thing to do.

NEVER FRUSTRATED

Gough, who teamed up with Tendulkar when he played for Yorkshire as an 18-year-old, predicted that the Indian would dominate if he returned a second time to the English county.

"If he comes back now, I'd expect him to score run after run after run," said Gough.

Tendulkar, who has scored a world record 11,139 runs in 284 one-dayers, is considered the world's leading batsman.

"He is not like other players," said Gough. "After you get 60 or 70, red in the face, swinging his cap, sweat pouring off his face. He doesn't seem bothered. He just keeps going."

But Gough said England would still aim to stop Tendulkar getting his first one-day hundred against England.

Tendulkar has scored a world record 31 one-day centuries and at least one against all other test-playing countries barring newcomers Bangladesh and England, against whom 91 remains his best in 18 matches.

England's tour of India : Complete coverage

Mail Cricket Editor