How will you remember the 2014 Indians? Asked by Nasser Hussain to sum up the tour after their Twenty20 defeat at Edgbaston on Sunday, MS Dhoni settled for: ‘Overall, good.’ And, if you ignore the bad bits, he was spot on. Dhoni’s was the logic of the sportsman, for ever filleting away to pick out the negatives and serve up a dish that won’t stick in the gullet. India, you see, won a Test match at Lord’s and walked the one-day series. Three years ago in England, they failed to win an international game of any description. So, yes, it was a progress of sorts. But ‘overall, good’? In 2011, the margins of India’s four Test losses were 196 runs (Lord’s), 319 runs (Trent Bridge), an innings and 242 (Edgbaston), and an innings and eight (The Oval). This summer: 266 runs (the Ageas Bowl), an innings and 54 (Old Trafford), and an innings and 244 (The Oval). Spot the difference – if you can. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Morgan hails 'outstanding'  England . Still smiling: MS Dhoni (right) reflects on the end of India's tour alongside England T20 captain Eoin Morgan . Swashbuckling: Dhoni's heroics with the bat could not prevent a T20 defeat against England at Edgbaston . Familiar pose: Dhoni presided over another dreadful Test series away from home earlier in the summer . In 2011, the excuse was that India were dragged down by too many ageing stars, though it’s sobering to think how much worse they would have fared without the runs of Rahul Dravid. In 2014, Dhoni ended up pleading inexperience, which suggests something went badly wrong with the succession planning. Which tour was the more gruesome? Statistically, 2011: India lost the Tests 4-0 and the one-dayers 3-0 (plus the solitary Twenty20). But England back then were a better team. The side bounced out by Ishant Sharma at Lord’s in July was the most shambolic I’ve reported on in a decade and a half – even more so than the two sets of Ashes whitewashees. In 2011, England were preparing to become the No 1 Test team in the world. This summer, they were there for the taking. Their captain could not score a run, they had no spinner and no wins in 10 Tests. Bread and butter: India swatted England aside in the ODIs, which is Dhoni's favourite form of the game . Caught out: But Dhoni's lack of fight in Tests outside India was again exposed by England this summer . For more cricket-related snippets, feel free to go to twitter.com/the_topspin. The Top Spin is now taking a few weeks off before returning in time for England’s one-day visit to Sri Lanka in November. It was time for India to go for the jugular. And so, on the first day at Southampton, Dhoni sat back and invited England to nudge their way to 247 for 2. Pulse-racing it was not. But it allowed Alastair Cook and Gary Ballance to progress at a pace designed to ease England back into the series: no frills, no risks, just plenty of defensive fields and easy singles. It was red-ball cricket played with a white flag. As much as Ravindra Jadeja’s drop of Cook at third slip when he was 15 runs into his restorative 95, England were galvanised by the vibes emitted by Dhoni’s caution. There was no stopping them after that. Alternative: Virat Kohli has his critics, but the flamboyant batsman could be a the next Indian Test captain . Once that series was over, I asked Indian fans on Twitter whether victory in the one-day series would make up for defeats in the Tests. The overwhelming majority said it would not, which was one in the eye for those who claim Indian fans are damagingly obsessed with white-ball cricket. Yet it was the logic that appeared to inform Dhoni’s ‘overall, good’. He deserves some latitude: post-match interviews on podiums are not usually the forum for captains to reveal their darkest thoughts. But the whole edifice collapses if we don’t take at least some pronouncements at face value. For Dhoni, then, a 3-1 victory over an English one-day side which will continue to fall short of its potential while Cook is in charge was a face-saving balancing act to India’s 11 days of awfulness in the final three Tests. It is like a failing opera singer attempting to claw back credibility in the karaoke booth. It strikes this outsider that Indian cricket can do better. I don’t buy the argument that India try harder in one-day internationals than they do in Tests. Trying not very hard is the easiest accusation to make in sport – and the hardest to prove. But those grim tactics on the first day at the Ageas Bowl suggest the problem may nevertheless be a question of attitude. At home, Dhoni has won 21 Tests out of 30; away, it is six out of 28 (and three of those wins were in Bangladesh, New Zealand and the West Indies). Not all of this can be ascribed to the seaming ball. If Dhoni loses three of the four Tests in Australia later this year – who would bet against it? – he will become the most defeated captain away from home in the history of the game. With the quality of the batsmen at his disposal, this is a scandal. In truth, this tour hasn’t told us much we didn’t already know: Dhoni is a poor Test captain outside India, where he is too easily resigned to his fate, but a good one-day leader in any part of the world. His apologists say there is no alternative, though no-one seriously imagines Virat Kohli will endure a worse Test series than this one. It would also be a surprise if Kohli’s Test captaincy was as supine as Dhoni’s. Indian cricket won’t cure its away-day blues until Dhoni is asked to concentrate on his batting. It goes without saying he should continue as one-day captain, a format that evidently excites him. But India’s Test fortunes can hardly get any worse under a new leader. How will this column remember the 2014 Indians? Overall, predictable. THAT WAS THE WEEK THAT WAS . Boo boys . It’s always especially dim when spectators boo players. It was dim when English fans booed Ricky Ponting in 2009, and when they booed Ravindra Jadeja this summer. The best that could be said about both acts is that they were fuelled by the logic of the masses: Ponting was the captain of the arch-enemy, while Jadeja had been involved in a contretemps with Jimmy Anderson. But what of the recent booing aimed by Indian fans in the direction of Moeen Ali? What act had he committed, real or pantomime, that merited the derision? If there is a better explanation than his ethnicity, we’d be happy to hear it. Leave him alone: Moeen Ali was the subject of mindless booing from some supporters at Edgbaston . A glimpse into a soul . On Sunday, MS Dhoni turned down two singles in Chris Woakes’s final over – and India lost by three runs. If that sounds like a simplistic summation, then it may also provide an insight into Dhoni’s pre-eminence, both in his own dressing-room and, possibly, his own mind. Was a last-ball six off his bat really more likely than a last-ball four off the bat of the talented Ambati Rayudu? And what message did Dhoni’s I’ll-do-this-myself-thanks approach send to his team-mates? Still, as confirmation that cricket reveals the inner man better than any other sport, his decision was invaluable. Captain Morgan . Might Eoin Morgan’s return to pyrotechnical form at Edgbaston help England’s selectors see that their only chance of winning the World Cup will be to have exciting hitters all the way down the order? England made a very late change to the team that ended up winning the 2010 World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, drafting in Michael Lumb and Craig Kieswetter to open the batting in place of Jonathan Trott and Joe Denly. Since the World Cup will be preceded by a seven-match series in Sri Lanka and a triangular tournament in Australia, there is still time to thank Alastair Cook for his time and tell him to go away and rest up for 17 Tests in nine months. It may be England’s only chance. Something to shout about: Morgan's return to form with the bat is a big boost for England . VIDEO Morgan hails 'outstanding'  England .
England easily beat India in Test series 3-1 .
India gained revenge by winning ODI series by same margin .
But one-day success does not mask India's Test underachievement .
MS Dhoni must take responsibility for supine performances away from India .
Virat Kohli is potential replacement as Test captain .
Spectators who booed Moeen Ali at Edgbaston are dim .
Eoin Morgan should replace Alastair Cook as England's ODI captain .
How will you remember the 2014 Indians? Asked by Nasser Hussain to sum up the tour after their Twenty20 defeat at Edgbaston on Sunday, MS Dhoni settled for: ‘Overall, good.’ And, if you ignore the bad bits, he was spot on. Dhoni’s was the logic of the sportsman, for ever filleting away to pick out the negatives and serve up a dish that won’t stick in the gullet. India, you see, won a Test match at Lord’s and walked the one-day series. Three years ago in England, they failed to win an international game of any description. So, yes, it was a progress of sorts. But ‘overall, good’? In 2011, the margins of India’s four Test losses were 196 runs (Lord’s), 319 runs (Trent Bridge), an innings and 242 (Edgbaston), and an innings and eight (The Oval). This summer: 266 runs (the Ageas Bowl), an innings and 54 (Old Trafford), and an innings and 244 (The Oval). Spot the difference – if you can. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Morgan hails 'outstanding'  England . Still smiling: MS Dhoni (right) reflects on the end of India's tour alongside England T20 captain Eoin Morgan . Swashbuckling: Dhoni's heroics with the bat could not prevent a T20 defeat against England at Edgbaston . Familiar pose: Dhoni presided over another dreadful Test series away from home earlier in the summer . In 2011, the excuse was that India were dragged down by too many ageing stars, though it’s sobering to think how much worse they would have fared without the runs of Rahul Dravid. In 2014, Dhoni ended up pleading inexperience, which suggests something went badly wrong with the succession planning. Which tour was the more gruesome? Statistically, 2011: India lost the Tests 4-0 and the one-dayers 3-0 (plus the solitary Twenty20). But England back then were a better team. The side bounced out by Ishant Sharma at Lord’s in July was the most shambolic I’ve reported on in a decade and a half – even more so than the two sets of Ashes whitewashees. In 2011, England were preparing to become the No 1 Test team in the world. This summer, they were there for the taking. Their captain could not score a run, they had no spinner and no wins in 10 Tests. Bread and butter: India swatted England aside in the ODIs, which is Dhoni's favourite form of the game . Caught out: But Dhoni's lack of fight in Tests outside India was again exposed by England this summer . For more cricket-related snippets, feel free to go to twitter.com/the_topspin. The Top Spin is now taking a few weeks off before returning in time for England’s one-day visit to Sri Lanka in November. It was time for India to go for the jugular. And so, on the first day at Southampton, Dhoni sat back and invited England to nudge their way to 247 for 2. Pulse-racing it was not. But it allowed Alastair Cook and Gary Ballance to progress at a pace designed to ease England back into the series: no frills, no risks, just plenty of defensive fields and easy singles. It was red-ball cricket played with a white flag. As much as Ravindra Jadeja’s drop of Cook at third slip when he was 15 runs into his restorative 95, England were galvanised by the vibes emitted by Dhoni’s caution. There was no stopping them after that. Alternative: Virat Kohli has his critics, but the flamboyant batsman could be a the next Indian Test captain . Once that series was over, I asked Indian fans on Twitter whether victory in the one-day series would make up for defeats in the Tests. The overwhelming majority said it would not, which was one in the eye for those who claim Indian fans are damagingly obsessed with white-ball cricket. Yet it was the logic that appeared to inform Dhoni’s ‘overall, good’. He deserves some latitude: post-match interviews on podiums are not usually the forum for captains to reveal their darkest thoughts. But the whole edifice collapses if we don’t take at least some pronouncements at face value. For Dhoni, then, a 3-1 victory over an English one-day side which will continue to fall short of its potential while Cook is in charge was a face-saving balancing act to India’s 11 days of awfulness in the final three Tests. It is like a failing opera singer attempting to claw back credibility in the karaoke booth. It strikes this outsider that Indian cricket can do better. I don’t buy the argument that India try harder in one-day internationals than they do in Tests. Trying not very hard is the easiest accusation to make in sport – and the hardest to prove. But those grim tactics on the first day at the Ageas Bowl suggest the problem may nevertheless be a question of attitude. At home, Dhoni has won 21 Tests out of 30; away, it is six out of 28 (and three of those wins were in Bangladesh, New Zealand and the West Indies). Not all of this can be ascribed to the seaming ball. If Dhoni loses three of the four Tests in Australia later this year – who would bet against it? – he will become the most defeated captain away from home in the history of the game. With the quality of the batsmen at his disposal, this is a scandal. In truth, this tour hasn’t told us much we didn’t already know: Dhoni is a poor Test captain outside India, where he is too easily resigned to his fate, but a good one-day leader in any part of the world. His apologists say there is no alternative, though no-one seriously imagines Virat Kohli will endure a worse Test series than this one. It would also be a surprise if Kohli’s Test captaincy was as supine as Dhoni’s. Indian cricket won’t cure its away-day blues until Dhoni is asked to concentrate on his batting. It goes without saying he should continue as one-day captain, a format that evidently excites him. But India’s Test fortunes can hardly get any worse under a new leader. How will this column remember the 2014 Indians? Overall, predictable. THAT WAS THE WEEK THAT WAS . Boo boys . It’s always especially dim when spectators boo players. It was dim when English fans booed Ricky Ponting in 2009, and when they booed Ravindra Jadeja this summer. The best that could be said about both acts is that they were fuelled by the logic of the masses: Ponting was the captain of the arch-enemy, while Jadeja had been involved in a contretemps with Jimmy Anderson. But what of the recent booing aimed by Indian fans in the direction of Moeen Ali? What act had he committed, real or pantomime, that merited the derision? If there is a better explanation than his ethnicity, we’d be happy to hear it. Leave him alone: Moeen Ali was the subject of mindless booing from some supporters at Edgbaston . A glimpse into a soul . On Sunday, MS Dhoni turned down two singles in Chris Woakes’s final over – and India lost by three runs. If that sounds like a simplistic summation, then it may also provide an insight into Dhoni’s pre-eminence, both in his own dressing-room and, possibly, his own mind. Was a last-ball six off his bat really more likely than a last-ball four off the bat of the talented Ambati Rayudu? And what message did Dhoni’s I’ll-do-this-myself-thanks approach send to his team-mates? Still, as confirmation that cricket reveals the inner man better than any other sport, his decision was invaluable. Captain Morgan . Might Eoin Morgan’s return to pyrotechnical form at Edgbaston help England’s selectors see that their only chance of winning the World Cup will be to have exciting hitters all the way down the order? England made a very late change to the team that ended up winning the 2010 World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, drafting in Michael Lumb and Craig Kieswetter to open the batting in place of Jonathan Trott and Joe Denly. Since the World Cup will be preceded by a seven-match series in Sri Lanka and a triangular tournament in Australia, there is still time to thank Alastair Cook for his time and tell him to go away and rest up for 17 Tests in nine months. It may be England’s only chance. Something to shout about: Morgan's return to form with the bat is a big boost for England . VIDEO Morgan hails 'outstanding'  England .
Twenty20 defeat at Edgbaston on Sunday, MS Dhoni Eoin Morgan . Swashbuckling: Dhoni's heroics with outside India was again exposed by England this returning in time for England’s one-day visit to was not. But it allowed Alastair Cook and Gary the most defeated captain away from home in the already know: Dhoni is a poor Test captain Virat Kohli will endure a worse Test series than Test captaincy was as supine as Dhoni’s. Indian India’s Test fortunes can hardly get any worse him alone: Moeen Ali was the subject of mindless