England and India delight watching millions

Natwest Series Final: England 325-5 India 326-8 India win by two wickets: A run-fest, two centuries and a last-over victory for the tourists ease growing concerns for the game's future appeal

There are times when we sit down and worry about this great old game, its future and how it expects to survive competing against bigger, richer and sexier sports. Saturday was no such occasion. The NatWest Series final between England and India at Lord's stood for everything that is good in the game, and should be celebrated.

To feel down about the fact that England lost a one-day final – having watched the small matter of 651 glorious runs scored in a day – to an inspired Indian side by two wickets would be wrong. This was a day for cricket lovers, no matter their allegiance, to sit back and glow at the rich entertainment this game can provide.

Not only did it bless the fortunate 30,000 at the ground with a day to remember, it provided the millions watching on television, or listening to the radio, with a contest that surpassed anything the recent football World Cup served up. It was a suitable ending to an enjoyable series.

The magnificent, spontaneous scenes of the Indian squad racing through the Lord's Long Room and out on to the pitch to congratulate their team-mates, captured the moment superbly and their lap of honour was cheered by a delirious crowd who created a level of noise this ground will seldom if ever have experienced before.

How different it was two hours earlier, when the England supporters were the ones cheering as Sachin Tendulkar made his way back to the pavilion after being bowled by Ashley Giles for 14. India were 146-5 and apparently beaten.

England's mammoth total of 325-5, the fourth highest in the home side's one-day history, was based around two contrasting but equally valuable centuries from Marcus Trescothick and Nasser Hussain. Together the pair put on 185 runs at more than a run a ball, and broke the previous record second wicket partnership against India of 176 set by Dennis Amiss and Keith Fletcher in 1975.

Trescothick has been in wonderful form all summer and Saturday's innings saw the Somerset left hander take another step towards being regarded as one of the exceptional batting talents in world cricket. It is amazing how the best players in the world make the game look so easy. There seems a minimum of fuss when Trescothick bats, as though slog-sweeping Anil Kumble into the Mound Stand at Lord's for six is the easiest job in the world.

Like Sri Lanka's Sanath Jayasuriya in an earlier game of the tournament, England's vice-captain did not deserve to be on the losing side, and his player of the series award will have been of little consolation to him and his mortified team.

Hussain will also have mixed memories of this match. Scoring an international one-day hundred, batting at No 3, obviously meant a great deal to the England captain, after all the speculation that has surrounded whether or not this is the position he should bat in for his side. His innings was nowhere near as fluent as Trescothick's but was testament to Hussain's fighting qualities. He battled his way through a scratchy start before taking control of proceedings and guiding England through to the huge score they posted.

The one thing that soured this milestone was his angry, aggressive reaction to the media centre after scoring his hundredth run. Unlike Tres-cothick, who greeted the moment with joy, Hussain pointed to his back, which has the No 3 on it, and made gestures to the doubters in the building. Having fire in your belly is a good thing, but the century was more about winning a final for your country than proving a point to people, who like Hussain, want the side to be successful. It was a reaction he need not have resorted to.

While England had two players with a combined age of 60 to be grateful to for their total, India had a 20 and a 21- year-old to thank for winning them this match.

The visitors, needing more than six and a half runs an over from the start of their innings, were given the most thunderous of starts by their captain Sourav Ganguly and his scintillating opening partner Virender Sehwag. These two put on a hundred before the 15-over fielding restrictions were lifted. One felt, even though India were rattling along at more than seven runs an over, this could not last. And it didn't as Ganguly, who was first out when he was bowled for a 43-ball 60 by Alex Tudor, then watched his side lose five wickets for 40 runs in nine overs.

It was at this stage, after the little genius Tendulkar had just had his castle knocked over, that everyone in the ground would have thought it just a matter of time before England wrapped this game up.

However, two awesomely talented youngsters thought differently, and in a partnership of 121 Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif turned this game on its head. It was not just the fact that Kaif and Singh all but won this match that was impressive, it was the calm unflustered way in which they did it.

Coming together with 180 runs still required in 26 overs, in front of a full house crowd at the home of cricket, would be a lot for a seasoned campaigner to cope with let alone two kids. And this was the moment when Hussain and England let it slip. No doubt feeling the game was won, it appeared they sat back and waited for things to happen, instead of ruthlessly maintaining their aggressive approach.

It was Kaif and Singh, however, who were the aggressors, after playing themselves in. Oblivious to the pressure of the situation they then took control, and in an almost identical fashion to two weeks earlier at the same venue, then proceeded to show why England are still some way short of being serious World Cup contenders.

After such a thrilling finale Ravi Shastri, the former Indian all-rounder and now respected commentator, suggested that the viewing figures for this game in Asia, would have been around the 3-400 million mark. With interest and cricket like this, cricket has little to worry about.