England desperate to decipher the Kumble code, says Collingwood

New Delhi, Mar 16 (UNI) England was 'devastated' by the defeat in Mohali and according to allrounder Paul Collingwood, the side would continue trying to solve the riddle called Anil Kumble.

''It was easy to work out what went wrong in the second Test - we failed to score a big enough first innings total - and Anil Kumble had a big part to play in that,'' Collingwood wrote in his BBC Sports column.

''The crucial thing with Kumble, even on wickets that don't turn, is his variation in pace, which is very hard to read,'' said Collingwood, all candour.

Explaining further, England's centurion in the Nagpur Test, went on to say, ''He's not like a usual spinner with a delivery just above 50mph. He can get into the 60s and still get enough turn to make it deviate. And his accuracy is unbelievable.'' ''Any bowler, especially a world-class one like Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath of Australia, can get into your head if you let him, so you mustn't let him.'' Opining the pre-determined strategies are bound to come a cropper against the leggie, first Indian to have 500 Test wicket, and it needed improvisation to negotiate Kumble, Collingwood said, ''You have to look at the individual situation to work out your options.

You can't go out with a game plan that's set in stone; you have to use your brain. '' Kumble also got assistance from the Chandigarh pitch, he said.

''A lot comes down to the wicket that you're playing on. The Lord's wicket for the first Ashes Test was perfectly suited to McGrath. The one in Mohali was perfectly suited to Kumble because of the bounce and turn.'' Admitting Kumble dominates the discussions when the England think-tank devises strategies, Collingwood said, ''We communicate all the time as a team, in the dressing-room and out in the middle, on how to play him and where to score from him and we will keep doing that.'' More UNI AY PM PM1436