The England cricket team has made no secret of their desire to be the number one ranked team in Test cricket but does anyone really care about Test cricket other than England? Since the emergence of Twenty20 cricket the popularity of Test cricket has been on the decline. I am not suggesting Twenty20 is a bad thing because for one it has increased the awareness and popularity of the game with young kids who see the players in a Twenty20 match smacking the ball to all parts of the ground and want to try and copy these shots. I’d happily wager that there are not as many kids watching Alistair Cook playing a well judged leave outside his off stump in a Test match thinking “I can’t wait to try that on a Tuesday night in the nets”. The point is that although Twenty20 cricket brings more juniors into the game will they ultimately ever have the desire to play Test cricket? When England becomes the number one team in Test cricket it will be a very hollow victory if they are the only ones striving for this goal. I for one am very competitive in everything I do and I love to win but I have to admit that it certainly takes the edge off a victory when you realise your opponent doesn’t want it quite as badly as you do.

The Test series against Sri Lanka has just finished and anyone watching that series would find it hard to believe they are the officially the 4th best team in the world. Although England only won the series 1-0, of one thing I am convinced - if England played Sri Lanka every week for the rest of the year England might not win every game but I guarantee that Sri Lanka wouldn’t win any. The difference in the England team’s batting ability over the Sri Lankan bowling means that they would never get the twenty wickets they require to win a match. But do they care about the gulf in class? To be honest I suspect not. Before the summer if you offered Sri Lanka a win in the Test series or the one day series I think they would bite your hand off for the one day series whereas England without hesitation would choose a Test series win, an argument backed up with the return of one of the world’s best fast bowlers in Lasith Malinga who has now retired from Test cricket to prolong his one day career. It wasn’t so long ago that a bowler would retire from one day cricket to prolong his Test career. I’d like to think that in a few years time Jimmy Anderson will take this decision. Maybe I am just an old fashioned fool living in the past?

The second half of the summer is when the Test cricket summer really begins with the current number one team in Test cricket, India arriving and hopefully giving England a chance to find out exactly how good they are. My number one wish for the series is that England win. My second wish would be that India want to win. Their recent record suggests not only will they be up for it but also that they will provide us with a good test and that is what Test cricket is all about - it should be a test.

For what it is worth I think we will win the series but I expect it to be close. Indian batsman traditionally struggle against swing bowling and steep bounce - something they will face in abundance from the England attack. The fly in the ointment will be a certain little genius by the name of Sachin Tendulker because the same rules that apply to the rest of us do not seem to apply this lad and I can say without any doubt that at some point in the series he will produce a match winning innings.

So let us not forget about Test cricket as your eyes are drawn towards the bright lights and coloured clothing of one day cricket because it is easy to get distracted by all the razzmatazz. For me though the purest version of the game is Test cricket and will always be the ultimate test for a cricketer and my favourite version of the game I love.