Top ranking up for grabs as England begin campaign to take over from India

The first of four Tests starts at Lord’s today and England can go top of the rankings if they win by two Tests.

“We have a great opportunity to play some really good cricket and hopefully pull off something special in the next five weeks,” said Strauss.

“India are a very, very good cricket side, they have been for a while now, and if you want to be the best in the world you have to beat sides like India.

“We have home advantage, which I think counts for a lot, and I think we have to use that wisely.

“Being No 1 is a long-term goal for us. It’s not necessarily just what the statistics say, it’s more about being regarded No 1 by the other sides as well. We are going to go out and be determined to win every match in this series and if we get in a winning position it’s important that we’re ruthless and make that count.”

Strauss will need to be similarly ruthless when it comes to team selection, with the off-form Stuart Broad battling for a place in the starting XI against Yorkshire’s Tim Bresnan.

“Someone is going to miss out, but I am very happy with the balance of squad we have,” added Strauss. “All our bowlers offer us something slightly different.

“What we have to decide is what’s the best combination to take 20 wickets on this pitch.

“No-one has a God-given right to play in the XI. We know both Stuart and Tim Bresnan have offered a lot for us over the last 12 months or so.

“It’s not going to be an easy selection to make, but in a way it’s a good thing for us.”

Much of the pre-series hype surrounds India batsman Sachin Tendulkar, who has never scored a Test century at Lord’s and is also bidding to become the first player to score 100 international centuries, having struck 51 in Tests and 48 in one-day internationals.

Strauss added: “We’re not focusing on Sachin any more or less than any other Indian player but clearly we don’t want that fairytale for him to come true.

“We need to deliver our plans and hopefully by doing that we’ll limit his chances of getting that hundred.”

Strauss was quick to play down his expected personal duel with India spearhead Zaheer Khan on the eve of the historic 2,000th Test.

In the first part of the summer, Strauss’s struggles against left-arm seam caused some consternation, with Sri Lanka’s Chanaka Welegedara dismissing him on three occasions in two Tests for a combined total of just seven runs.

Zaheer is a bowler of the highest calibre and is sure to expose any flaw in technique during the four-match series, with today’s opener being the 100th meeting between the sides.

The last time India toured these shores, Zaheer dismissed Strauss on four occasions but the left-hander was able to settle his nerves in comprehensive fashion last week in a one-off outing for Somerset, making 78 and 109 not out against the tourists and nullifying Zaheer.

Buoyed by that performance, Strauss felt able to brush over the importance of India’s top seamer.

“Generally the plan is watch the ball, wait for a bad ball and hit it,” he said. “You can overcomplicate this game. Zaheer is a very good bowler, his record suggests he’s a good bowler, but we are prepared for it.”

Eyebrows have been raised by the lack of meaningful practise India have had ahead of what is such a big series. The three-day outing against Somerset at Taunton was their only match action since arriving from the West Indies, where they edged a three-match series 1-0.

Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir and Zaheer were not even in the Caribbean, meaning India could be caught cold. But Strauss does not expect MS Dhoni’s men to be undercooked and expects a tussle worthy of the occasion.

“We aren’t expecting them to be under par that’s for sure,” he said. “They’ve played enough good cricket over the last couple of years to know they are going to be a pretty difficult challenge for us.

“It’s important that we are ready for that challenge and ready to overcome it. In any Test series every side is hoping to get a fast start, get ahead and then earn the right to win the series.”