England see the bigger picture

"England's players, based in opulent bliss at the famous Lighthouse hotel outside the city, are fully aware of their privileges as international cricketers, but also of their responsibilities to the morale of a region still in the throes of rebuilding. Upwards of £2 million has been poured into the stadium's reconstruction and still it is not back up and running. It doesn't bear thinking about how those less fortunate have coped since the tsunami. " Writes Andrew Miller for Cricinfo.

"We're not going to talk badly about the ground, we're not going to talk negatively about anything that's gone on, because of the simple fact of the catastrophe that happened three years back," said Kevin Pietersen, who was watching the news at home in Nottingham on the day the disaster struck. "We know how much this country loves its cricket, and these people here I'm sure cannot wait to watch some cricket being played on that ground that was underwater. It's a huge thing for us, and we can enjoy the experience. We'll do everything we can to get the game underway."