Traditionally the British aren't good at being the best, we love the decent trier, the one who puts his heart and soul but doesn't quite make it. Andy Murray is the classic example and splits opinion with his confident, aggressive nature, after all Murray Mount has not quite eclipsed Henman Hill yet. Team sports, however, have always gained more popularity in this country. Rugby and cricket, two sports ingrained in our old public schools and village greens have always been held in high esteem whether the teams have been world beaters or not.
The advantage this England cricket team has is the immense amount of team spirit and collective effort, something that has been highlighted against a masquerading Indian team. Past dominating sides like the West Indies of the 1970s or Australians of the 1990s have had this quality but have also possessed great individuals, the Shane Warne's and Michael Holding's of this world. England don't have these 'great' individuals but every player plays for each other, similar to the mentality of a rugby team some could say. Although a couple of players in this present England side, Alastair Cook and James Anderson in particular are producing performances that are looking more and more in that 'great' category.
The string of performances of this England team is magnificent and if they can maintain this level of excellence with the bat, ball and field then they will keep that number 1 spot for a long time as South Africa are now the only team close to the quality of England. But there is no doubt that the present team are popular with the public and the team spirit that we all love to see but is often missing in our other national teams is abundant here.
