FP Trophy Weekly Round-up, Part Two!

We now complete out round-up of FP trophy matches, starting at Old Trafford.

Lancashire fans look away now! The Scots were in town on Monday and they embarrassed the Lightning again, having done so previously in 2007 and 2003. Opting to field, Stuart Law’s side restricted the Saltires to 155-9 from their 50 overs, Andrew Flintoff impressive once again in taking 2-18 from 9 overs. He really seems to be back to somewhere near his best with the ball, if only the same could be said of his batting, but I will return to this momentarily. Steven Croft took 4-24, whilst Kyle Hogg took 2-33. James Anderson meanwhile went wicketless for 33 runs from his 8 overs. Ed Cowan (41) and Colin Smith (35) were the main contributors for the Scots. It looked easy for Lancashire, guess again though. They soon found themselves reduced to 44-7, after terrific bowling from Dewald Nel (3-26), John Blain (2-22) and Craig White (2-34). However, then Kyle Hogg (66) and Luke Sutton (24) offered some gritty resistance. Hogg and Anderson took it to the last over and with Anderson needing four off of the final ball, bowled by Gordon Drummond, they could only scamper a single, which handed Scotland a deserved victory. Returning to Flintoff, who made just 8, and the selectors must really be concerned about whether they can even bat him at seven in International Test Match Cricket. They must already be thinking about using a four man attack, supported by Collingwood and Vaughan. The only question would seem to be over whether Matthew Hoggard or Monty Panesar plays at Lords next week and given their current form it would be hard to pick against Hoggard.

Moving on to Northampton, where Northamptonshire welcomed Ireland. The Irish were put into bat and struggled to 203-9 from 50 overs, youngster Paul Stirling (70) the stand out performer and one saving grace of the day. Monty Panesar did well with the ball here, taking 3-36 from 9 overs, which will help his England cause. Chasing, the Steelbacks got home with plenty to spare and with just 2 wickets down. It was an Irish boy who did for Ireland ironically, Niall O’Brien scoring 75, while Stephen Peters (103) helped himself to a hundred.

Kent elected to bat at The Oval and it looked a pretty bad decision by Rob Key (0) initially, as they slipped to 52-4, Surrey's Pedro Collins showing some lethal swing bowling (4-46). Justin Kemp (63) and Geraint Jones (86) put together a fantastically paced partnership however and allowed Azhar Mahmood (62) and Ryan McLaren (17*) to come in and lauch some fireworks, as the Spitfires totalled 282-7. Surrey never got going in reply as Yasir Arafat (4-35) and an injured Mahmood (1-27) bowled fantastically in tandem up front. Ryan McLaren (5-46) kept up the pressure with career best figures and the Brown Caps were all out for 192, only Jon Batty (63) offering any real resistance. The commentators from Sky seemed particularly impressed with Geraint Jones’ keeping, as well as his batting. Whilst I agree that his keeping is of a far better standard now than it has been, it is still his batting which is of concern. He needs to prove that he is a consistent run scorer once again, as he was dropped in the end ironically for his lack of runs, rather than keeping errors.

Middlesex’s top order put in a better showing on Monday than on Sunday, but to no avail, as Sussex still emerged victorious. The Crusaders totalled 273-5, with Ed Joyce (80) and Owais Shah (68) scoring good runs. Andrew Strauss meanwhile hit 26. There were 2 wickets apiece for Michael Yardy (2-36) and James Kirtley (2-59). Sussex got off to good start, Chris Nash (34) and Matt Prior (79) sharing a rapid 70 for the first wicket. Chris Adams then stole the show with 109 not out and he was well supported by Murray Goodwin (44), as Sussex won with two overs to spare.

There was a shortened 23 over game at Edgbaston where Warwickshire elected to field first against Leicestershire. The Foxes made 148-6 courtesy of cameos from Jacques du Toit (34), James Allenby (32) and Boerta Dippenaar (32). The Bears didn’t get close in reply, subsiding to 103 all out, only Darren Maddy (29) and Tim Ambrose (28) scoring anything of note. Ian Bell made just 3. Ryan Cummins was the pick of the bowlers (3-21) and he was supported ably by Garnett Kruger (2-23), Nadeem Malik (2-20) and Claude Hendersen (2-23).

Glamorgan visited New Road in another shortened game, but they couldn’t defend their total of 184-4 from 28 overs against Worcestershire, who crossed the line with 9 balls to spare. David Hemp (47), young Tom Maynard (48) and Jamie Dalrymple (both pictured below) helped set the target. Simon Jones got through 6 overs which went for 43 runs, as he took a wicket in the process. The Royals reply was led by Vikram Solanki (88* (below)), who carried his bat through the innings. Ben Smith (41) and Stephen Moore (30*) offered the support, while Alex Wharf was the pick of the Glamorgan bowlers (2-37).

Images from Worcester (left to right): The highly promising Tom Maynard strikes out, Vikram Solanki on his way to a match winning 88*, and Worcester Cathedral - an iconic backdrop to domestic cricket. (Pictures c/o RTE)

Our final match took place at The Riverside, where Durham hosted Yorkshire. Durham were all out for just 185, Kyle Coetzer top scoring with 61. Phil Mustard scored 26, failing to go on yet again, while Paul Collingwood managed just 2. Darren Gough (3-31) did the major damage, removing Mustard, Collingwood and Neil McKenzie. Richard Pyrah (3-25) and Adil Rashid (2-21) also got in on the wicket taking act. Yorkshire briefly wobbled in reply at 94-3, after Michael Vaughan (22) had fallen after a start yet again. The ever improving Andrew Gale (68 from just 50 balls) and Anthony McGrath (45*) did the bulk of the scoring and Yorkshire avenged last week’s defeat with plenty of overs to spare. Steve Harmison took 3-58 from his 9.4 overs, threatening, but very expensive given the context of the game.

That completes the round-up of the 17 FP Trophy matches this week and so there is just one final matter to address…

Player of the Week: I am going to pick five this week based on one performance and give a few honourable mentions to overall performers, given the volume of games on offer. First up is Geraint Jones, whose 86 and partnership with Justin Kemp turned the game at The Oval for Kent against Surrey. He was also splendid behind the stumps, taking one superb catch. Second is Darren Gough whose key wickets of Mustard, Collingwood and McKenzie against Durham put Yorkshire in charge. Third is James Benning, whose 106 at the top of the Surrey order defeated Middlesex. Fourth is David Hemp who put in two good performances for Glamorgan, his 95 at Taunton effectively setting up the game for the Dragons. Lastly, Yasir Arafat excelled in both of his matches for Kent, taking key early wickets and destroying the Surrey top order. Meanwhile, how can I not mention Ryan McLaren’s best bowling figures of 5-46 or Dewald Nel and John Blain, whose new ball bowling partnership did for Lancashire. Finally I must also give honourable mentions to Vikram Solanki, Chris Adams and Chris Benham, who all guided their sides to victory, remaining unbeaten with substantial scores at good run rates.

2008 Season Preview: Kent

Continuing our series of county previews, here is an assessment of Kent's chances in 2008.

2007 in a Nutshell:
Limited overs cricket was the obvious success for Kent last season. Winning the Twenty20 Cup was a huge achievement for the players with Rob Key playing a hugely important role as captain and premier batsman. The club performed well in the Friends Provident without being brilliant, and in a very competitive and tight Division 2 in the Pro 40, not gaining promotion was a disappointment, especially after winning the Twenty20. In the County Championship, relegation was just avoided and winning only 3 games showed that the side lacked firepower with the ball. As a whole, apart from winning some silverware, the season was a slight disappointment, with too many players underperforming.

2008 Prospects
With very few players arriving or leaving in preseason, Director of Cricket Graham Ford has shown faith with the majority of the current playing staff. Players such as Darren Stevens and Geraint Jones need to score more runs more consistently this year, but more importantly, a decent, penetrative bowling attack needs to be established. Quite simply, not enough wickets were taken last year - the top two wicket takers (McLaren and Tredwell) only took 80 between them, but that could change this year with the fit again Amjad Khan set to spearhead the attack. Allrounders are in abundance at the St. Lawrence ground in 2008, with the addition of Azhar Mahmood and Justin Kemp, providing the latter's ban (due to participation in the rebel ICL) is lifted, which would perhaps suggest that the squad is geared towards further success in one day cricket. Primarily, Kemp will provide destructive hitting with the bat, as he proved in his first spell with the club and Mahmood will provide needed control with the ball. Overseas pro Yasir Arafat was average last year with the ball and more will be needed from him.

So what can Kent fans hope for in 2008? In the County Championship, the season will perhaps be much of the same as last year, if the bowling attack does not improve. If Kent's bowlers can take wickets regularly this year, a top 4 or 5 finish is a realistic aim. In the limited overs competitions, promotion from Division 2 of the Pro 40 should be approached as a must, while defence of the Twenty20 title will prove to be very tough. A quarter-final appearance in the Friends Provident is also achievable.

Batting:
Scoring runs was not really a problem for Kent last year, with 43 bonus points gained with the bat, only bettered by Yorkshire in the division. All of the top four averaged over 40 in the CC in 2007 and 19 hundreds were scored between the top six, an impressive record. It wasn't only the top six that scored runs however, messrs Arafat, Tredwell and McLaren scored vital runs down the order. James Tredwell also showed how versatile and competent he is with the bat in filling in for Matt Walker at number four, in the process scoring an amazing hundred against Yorkshire, to save the game at Tunbridge Wells. Martin Van Jaarsveld will be as consistent and solid as ever at number three, but Darren Stevens needs to still fulfill his undoubted potential, even at the now latter stage of his career. ECB National Academy opener Joe Denly and England hopeful Rob Key were nothing short of superb at the top of the order last year, with the formers debut full season unfortunately tailing away in the second half of the campaign. Ex-England keeper Geraint Jones didn't perform as was expected last year and if Justin Kemp returns, he will probably find himself batting at number seven this yearThe massively talented 18 year old Sam Northeast will get more opportunities this year to score first class runs, and in Neil Dexter Kent have a highly capable and classy middle order batsman waiting in the wings.

Bowling:
The area that must improve if Kent are to even think about having a better season in the four day game. Kent fans can look forward to witnessing the talented Amjad Khan back in the side and if he can recapture the form that got him England 'A' recognition, the Kent bowling attack will be led impressively. As mentioned before, Yasir Arafat will have to show his worth with the ball as the overseas player and on the basis that Kemp will sign, he will be a very handy change bowler. Ryan McLaren was very impressive last year and he will hope to carry on in that vein. Martin Saggers will use all his knowledge and experience with the new ball when he plays whilst James Tredwell will bowl a lot of overs with his off-spinners. One definite worry however is the lack of spin bowling options in reserve if Tredwell were to get injured. With the legendary Min Patel retiring there is no obvious replacement and whilst Denly's leggy's are improving, they are nowhere near good enough to be used as a genuine, consistent threat.

Robert Joseph and Simon Cook will be used as backups throughout the season, but Cook will play a lot more limited overs games as he is a very canny and useful operator, especially with the keeper up to the stumps. Add to that Azhar Mahmood, who will probably be in and out of the CC side, but a regular fixture in one day competitions and on paper the Kent bowling unit certainly looks effective, without being imperious, but can they perform this season?

Probable sides:
Championship
Denly
Key *
Van Jaarsveld
Walker
Stevens
Kemp (assuming his ban is overturned)
Jones +
Arafat
Tredwell
McLaren
Khan

Saggers and Mahmood will replace anyone in this side with a re-jig of the batting order if needed. Assuming the batsmen will fire once again, the bowlers have to make sure they perform as well to give the team as good a chance as possible to win games - after all, 20 wickets need to be taken to win a CC game.

One-day and Twenty20
Denly
Key *
Van Jaarsveld
Walker
Stevens
Kemp (assuming his ban is overturned)
Jones +
Arafat
McLaren
Tredwell
Khan

Kent often try and make use of the early fielding restrictions so expect to see one of a number of pinch hitters being used at 3 or 4, depending on who's playing of course. Cook, Mahmood and Dexter will play a lot of one day games as this side will constantly be shuffled around. Don't hold your breath with regards to seeing the rather large frame of Matt Walker playing a lot of one day games as it is his benefit year. Also, someone like Dexter is better suited to modern one day cricket as he bats, bowls and fields. Matty Walker probably has just the one discipline to offer.

Key Man:
It's really hard to look beyond the immensely gifted Robert Key. With a Test double hundred to his name, an average of nearly 57 for 2007, and the fact he's the skipper, it's plain to see how vitally important he is to the side. He will have hopes of regaining a place in the England Test Team and will want to put pressure on the likes of Strauss and Bell by scoring a sack full of runs. Amjad Khan will be very important with the new ball as the spearhead of the attack, with his venomous away swingers and as the season progresses and the pitches dry, Tredwell will become more of a threat.

Rising Star:
With no one in the side being an unknown quantity this year, picking a rising star is difficult. Joe Denly is fairly comfortably the youngest member of the side but with his outstanding year last year, and touring with the England Academy, he could hardly be described as 'rising'. Whilst he may not play a huge amount of games, Sam Northeast has bags of potential to be a star. He made his first class debut in the last game of last season at just 17, but only managed a 5 and 0. At 13 years old, he scored 19 hundreds in a season for his school, averaging 291 and in 2006 he played against the then touring Sri Lankans for a Sir JP Getty XI. Graham Ford witnessed his innings of 62 not out with great pleasure and commented, "There were two moments that stood out: firstly when he came down the wicket to on-drive Muralitharan for four, then when he rocked on to the back foot to force a decent length ball from Nuwan Zoysa through extra cover. They were flashes of class." It's clear to see that this mercurial talent has a wonderful future ahead of him, let's hope we can witness it this year!

Captain and Coach:
Graham Ford showed how much potential he thinks the club has when he turned down the chance to be coach of India. Whilst the pressures of the India job would be incredible, the lure of it must have been very hard to resist and Ford should be commended on his loyalty and obvious desire to help Kent CCC progress. He seems to have a good relationship with Key, which is clearly very important and based on the success in the T20, something must be going right. County Championship performances need to improve this season and the club could have perhaps been a little more committed in adding players to the squad, as it does seem a little bare. Kent fans should have faith in the Ford-Key team however and it will be interesting to see how the season pans out for the south-east county.

Will you be staying long Colonel?!

The outright exclusion from England’s Test, One Day and Lions squads of Matt Prior was this weeks’ big news. Whilst Prior has shown an aptitude for scoring runs at the highest level, against the highest calibre of bowler, the bread and butter business of taking catches has let him down. Many people worried when Prior was first given the gloves that England had another Geraint Jones on their hands, neither good enough with the bat or the gloves to hold the position of England’s wicket keeper. I personally never doubted his ability to deliver the runs. His showings for the ODI side in Pakistan and India were never a true reflection of his ability. Unfortunately though, Prior is not the best wicket keeper in the country and further more he is not even currently in the top five when it comes to catching the ball.

To begin with though, it seemed as though exposure to International Cricket would bring the best from Prior and it served as a boost to his glove work. His performances in the crucial ODI series victory over India were faultless and a few mistakes in the preceding Test matches were seemingly forgotten and forgiven. However, then injury struck. Phil Mustard took over, but he simply proved the fact that brilliant county form means nothing at International level. Whilst he got starts with the bat against Sri Lanka he was far from the player he is for Durham and that was to be expected. So Prior soon returned for the Test match series in Sri Lanka and performed admirably, along with Ian Bell, in the first Test match, prompting the likes of Sam Lyon, Alec Stewart and Jack Russell, amongst others, to declare the arrival of England’s wicket keeper for the next decade.

Oh how the mighty fall though. Less than one month later and Prior has been jettisoned. Eight drops off of Ryan Sidebottom and crucial misses off of Mahela Jayawardene proved to be too much for England’s selectors. Yet his demotion need not be for good according to David Graveney, who has stated that if Prior can improve his glove work away from the media spotlight, then he can reclaim his place and fulfil his undoubted potential as England’s future wicket keeper batsman. It is unlikely that Prior’s replacement will average 40.14 from 17 Test Innings against West Indies, India and Sri Lanka away. However, they will hopefully hold on to more catches, which is the primary job of the wicket keeper. If they do not make runs though, you can guarantee that England will struggle because of their brittle tail and the wicket keeping debate will return to the discussions between cricket lovers up and down the Land once again.

So Colonel Mustard finds himself able to make the first move on Prior’s old job. He will keep wicket in the ODI’s in New Zealand and should he succeed he should in theory be given a chance in the Test series which follows. If not, then Tim Ambrose, once Prior’s deputy at Sussex, will step into the void and become England’s sixth wicket keeper in the space of a year. Whilst all this is ongoing and the likes of Geraint Jones, Chris Read, Paul Nixon, Prior, Mustard and Ambrose are mulling over their International careers, whether past, present or future, there is one player who goes quietly about his work at Essex, continuing to excel with the gloves and perform well with the bat. He is of course James Foster, once the man in possession, discarded because of injury and now seemingly forgotten about. With every passing wicket keeper, his stock grows. However, until he averages more with the bat on a home ground which is often one of the most conducive to batting in the country, he will it seems remain on the periphery of the England set-ups' radar. One further candidate exists, Steven Davies of Worcestershire. Demotion to Division Two will not help his cause, but the young man will be expected to come of age in the next year or so. Let the merry-go-round continue…

Keeping our Options Open

There is little at the moment that gets a cricket conversation going like the question “who would you have as England’s wicket-keeper?” For the last 2-3 years, the debate over Jones or Read (with Foster, Prior and Davies thrown in) has raged on message boards across the internet. And that’s without mentioning the current ODI keeper. Even after my first County Championship review, I was reminded not to forget about Phil Mustard. Therefore in the spirit of fairness, I will look at the eighteen possibilities, most of whom are supported by someone for the England job.

Derbyshire
29 year old James Pipe the man with the gloves. Formerly at Worcester, where he was the understudy to Steven Rhodes for many years, he was eased out in favour of Steven Davies and moved to Derby last season. Over 500 runs in a struggling Derbyshire team last season.

Durham
The aforementioned Phil Mustard is here. One of the younger wicket-keepers, aged 24, he scored over 800 runs last season with a healthy strike-rate. The Durham pace attack means that he rarely has to keep to spin, which may work against him in the future. However, he is clearly one for the future, particularly in the limited overs game.

Essex
James Foster made his England debut in 2001 and was the man to replace Alec Stewart, until he broke his arms in the nets and was overtaken by Chris Read, Geraint Jones and Matt Prior. Still only 27, he has a first class double-hundred to his name, which makes his continued exile the more puzzling as England looked for a wicket-keeper batsman.

Glamorgan
Mark Wallace made his county debut aged 17 was Glamorgan’s regular keeper at the age of 19 and is still only 25. One of Glamorgan’s few successes with the bat over the past couple of years, he is also highly rated with the gloves and has spent several winters in the England academy.

Gloucester
Steve Adshead was the man who replaced Jack Russell at Gloucester, having moved from Leicester. A first class average of over 30 with the bat and topped the Gloucester averages in the Pro 40 last season.

Hampshire
South African born Nic Pothas arrived as a Kolpak player, but is now England qualified. He played three ODIs for South Africa, but the continuing presence of Mark Boucher prevented him from building an international career. A vital part of the Hampshire team, he has the added difficulty of keeping to Shane Warne. Unlikely to figure in the England thinking because of his age (33) and background rather than his talent.

Kent
Geraint Jones was England’s last regular wicket-keeper, but a huge loss of form with the bat, and the replacement of Duncan Fletcher, makes it very unlikely that he will feature again in the near future. Brought into the team on the back of his batting prowess, he initially scored runs, with a ton against New Zealand. However, his wicket-keeping, although improving, was never test standard and some will claim that it could have cost us the Ashes. He was a part of the 2005 team though, even if he probably lost his place for good during the 2006-2007 return series.

Lancashire
Having started at Somerset, Luke Sutton moved from Derbyshire in 2005 having captained them for two years to replace the retiring Warren Hegg. Still only 30, he is described as a handy lower-middle order batsman. The presence of Murali in the Lancs team this season should give him plenty of opportunity to show what he can do with the gloves.

Leicester
Aged 36, Paul Nixon has been one of the best glovemen in the English game for a number of years. However, being not quite as good with the gloves as Jack Russell or quite as good with the bat as Alec Stewart meant that International honours nearly passed him by. However, his prowess in the 20 over form of the game got him an ODI call up and he was one of England’s few successes in the world cup. He should remain a fixture in the ODI team until at least the 20:20 world cup at the end of the summer. A test place may just be a step too far though.

Middlesex
David Nash was earmarked for greater things and has played 12 U19 tests. However, his batting and keeping never pushed on to the next level and instead he is looking over his shoulder at the challenge of Ben Scott.

Northants
Currently the man in possession here is Riki Wessels, son of former coach and Australian and South African player, Kepler. Wessels has signed on a Kolpak arrangement. However, Northants have also signed Irish wicket-keeper Niall O’Brien, who had a hugely successful World Cup. O’Brien will be England qualified at the end of the summer and the battle between the keepers could be an interesting one to watch.

Notts
Widely thought to be the best keeper in English cricket, Chris Read first played for England in 1999 aged just 21. Famously out while ducking a Chris Cairns slower ball, his batting reputation has never fully recovered from that, despite some high quality innings for Notts. He returned to the test team last summer, averaging a healthy 42, before being controversially dropped for the start of the Ashes series. He finally regained his place, but without being in any sort of form with the bat. He now looks to be behind Prior and Nixon in the battle for the England team. However, his prowess with the gloves means that the arguments will continue if he is not picked.

Somerset
Craig Kieswetter played for South Africa in the 2005-6 U19 World Cup then decided to try to qualify for England, initially as a Kolpak, having been educated at Milfield. Clearly highly thought of by the South Africans, he looks to have an international future for someone.

Surrey
Jon Batty got his chance with Surrey with the close proximity of Alec Stewart’s retirement and the tragic accident that befell Graham Kersey. Now 33, Batty opens the innings for Surrey to great effect, and is one of the better batsman of the wicket-keepers in the English game. It would be a surprise if he was now called up, but not un-merited.

Sussex
Currently the favourite to start the first test, Matt Prior averages nearly 40 in first class cricket, was a major contributor to the Sussex successes last season and with Mustaq in the team, has had to keep to high quality spin as well as seam. He has played ODI games for England and toured as understudy to Geraint Jones in 2005-6. However, he was unconvincing in the England games he has played to date. His first class record means that he deserves a chance at the higher level. However, should he fail, there are a number waiting to step in.

Warwicks
An interesting situation could develop here. Warwick have signed Kumar Sangakkara, who is arguably the best wicket-keeper batsman in the world. However, also on the books is Tim Ambrose, who has moved from Sussex where Matt Prior was limiting his chances. Ambrose has immediately made his mark (and is currently 197 not out against Worcester)

Worcester
According to most experts, it’s not if but when does Steven Davies take the England gloves. Still only 20, the selectors may look at the problems that Read and Foster had being thrust into the test team too early and allow him to settle in the first class game. His time will come, but probably not just yet.

Yorkshire
Gerard Brophy and Simon Guy are battling it out to be Yorkshire’s first choice keeper. Brophy, an ex-Kolpak but now England qualified is a hard hitting lower order batsman who has started this season much better than he played last. Guy is a promising youngster who is now 28. Neither will be holding their breath for England call ups and Yorkshire fans are watching the progress of the current U19 keeper, Greg Wood, with interest.

The verdict
I’d have Chris Read every time, as I believe that the batting should be a bonus. However, with the lack of a genuine all-rounder in the current England team (until Flintoff sorts out his batting), then James Foster or Matt Prior deserve their chance.

Championship Tails – Week 1

While England finally show some decent form in the World Cup, albeit a match too late, the domestic season has got off to a bang. In unusually warm weather for the start of the season, there were runs galore and some highly impressive performances.

Division 1
Parochial, I know, but I’m going to start with Yorkshire’s win over Surrey. Runs galore in the first three innings, with Rudolph, Bresnan, Gillespie, Newman, Ramprakash (of course!) and White all hitting tons. However, Yorkshire’s bowling was the difference, with Rashid, Gough and Hoggard proving too much for Surrey to handle and the Tykes ran out comfortable winners.

Sussex also took maximum points as Mushtaq started where he left off last season with ten wickets against Kent. The Sussex batting relied heavily on Richard Montgomerie’s 175, with Naved and Kirtley also chipping in with useful 50s.

The other winners were Durham, where Steve Harmison took eight wickets as Worcester were put to the sword. Hundreds for Di Venuto in the first innings and Blenkenstein in the second, whereas the Worcester batting was disappointing, with only Jacques showing much resistance.

The match between Warwickshire and Lancashire ended in a draw. Warwicks started on top, with Loudon and Troughton scoring hundreds, Sutton doing the same in reply as Lancs were 150 runs behind on first innings. Tight bowing in the Warwicks second inning meant that the didn’t leave enough time to worry Lance, for whom Mal Loye hit a hundred as the match petered out.

Division 2
Notts were the only winners, against Leicestershire, on the back of a great all round bowling performance and centuries for Gallian and Hussey. Only Ackerman offered much resistance as Notts got home by nine wickets.

Runs galore at Taunton, with Middlesex declaring on 600 for 4 (hundreds for Shah, Godleman and Nash). Somerset then made 850 for 7 (another triple hundred for Langer, with tons for Hildeth, White and Trego). Middlesex saw the game out with little fuss (and a hundred for Ed Smith). It could be a hard year for the Somerset bowlers at home, for whom Andy Caddick has signed a contract extension – he may be regretting that if they don’t get a bit more life into the pitch.

A high scoring draw at Chelmsford too, where Derbyshire were on top for most of the game. Hundreds for Harvey, Pipe and Cook, but the declaration didn’t leave enough time for a result and Essex secured a comfortable draw.

England Players
With the World Cup on, there are a few England contenders on show.

On the batting side, Ali Cook hit another century for Essex, while Owais Shah scored had two good innings, 193 and 72 not out on a batsman’s paradise at Taunton. Relatively speaking, Marcus Trescothick should be disappointed in “only” getting 70.


On the wicket-keeping side, Chris Read was run out in the 30s in his only innings, gaining ground on Matt Prior, who scored 14 and Steve Davies who got 14 and 6, but losing out to James Foster who scored 61. Geraint Jones (if he is still a contender) was out in single figures in both innings.

The bowling does look promising, with Hoggard and Harmison both bowling aggressively and getting wickets. Coming on the back off his performance in the Sussex-MCC match, stories about the demise of Steve Harmison may have been premature.

Player of the Week
Sorry, but it’s a Yorkie. Some great batting performances this week, but the award goes to an all-round performance. For scoring 86 (in a stand of 190 with Jacques Rudolph) and taking seven wickets, my first player of the week is Adil Rashid.

The Ones Who Got Away

Consistent and planned are not two words that could ever be used to describe England’s One Day selection, which is strange considering the success that approach has had with the test team. Since England’s last trip to the West Indies just three winters ago, around 40 players have donned the blue pyjamas. This is the squad of fifteen that didn’t make it.

Marcus Trescothick – By far and away the biggest loss to the World Cup squad. A shoe-in for England’s best One Day team of all time. 12 hundreds and an average of nearly 40 at an astonishing strike rate of 85 per hundred balls. Without his stress related illness, the debate over Mal Loye would be superfluous. With his stress related illness, England’s task has become much harder.

Matt Prior – Included as a batsman, because that’s how he’s played most of his International cricket. A destructive batsman for Sussex, he couldn’t bring that form to the International arena failing to pass 50 in 12 attempts. Still in the frame when the wicket-keeping position is discussed and it would be a surprise if he isn’t given another chance.

Vikram Solanki – Here’s an odd one. Over fifty games for England without ever looking like a regular. Even his two centuries (only Pietersen, Flintoff and now Collingwood have more in the current squad) only ever hinted at what might be rather than looking like the catalyst for a real breakthrough. Admittedly he wasn’t helped by the ill-fated substitute rule, or batting at anywhere from 1 to 9 is a terrible batting line up, but a measure of how far his star has fallen is that no-one even considered him in contention for the World Cup.

Anthony McGrath – Also never in contention for the World Cup, and some would wonder why he played for England at all. Fourteen ODIs (and that’s 14 more than Mark Butcher) with an average of 16 and a strike rate of less than 50, his debut performance of 33 runs in 75 balls should have been a giveaway. As an “all-rounder” he bowled less than 3 overs per match.

Owais Shah – Made a promising ODI debut in 2001, and has played just 17 matches since. Badly used by England after his debut, his perceived lack of ability in the field may have counted against him during the Fletcher years. Still scoring healthily for Middlesex.

Michael Yardy – Genuine all-rounder as no-one really knew if he was a batsman or a bowler. The figures would suggest the latter, despite him batting at number 4. English conditions suited his bowling. However, subcontinent and the Champions trophy didn’t and off he went.

Rikki Clarke – A two ball duck in his debut, a golden duck in his last game, England have tried and tried to convince that Rikki Clarke is the answer to our one day problems. A bit like Yardy in that no-one really knows if he’s principally a batsman or a bowler, and with a batting average of 11 (strike rate just 62) and bowling average of 37 (economy over 5) he’s not good enough at either discipline.

Alex Loudon – Selected for the ODI squad in 2006 possibly because he can bowl a doosra, he played one game, was run out without scoring and bowled six overs going for a run a ball (reasonable in the context of the game, but crucially not as good as Jamie Dalrymple). By the end of the 2006 season, he was struggling to stay in the Warwickshire team.

Chris Read – The man who murdered Duncan Fletcher’s favourite dog. Surely that is the only explanation for his treatment at the hands of the England selectors over the past few years. A contender for best wicket-keeper in world cricket and an unorthodox batsman. His best series was in the WI last time England toured with two cameos of 20+ to see England home.

Geraint Jones – It all started so well. Brought in on the back of his superior batting, he started at 3 in the batting line up and was also used as a pinch hitting opener. However, he eventually found his place at 7 and when his Test match form became untenable even for Duncan Fletcher, he disappeared from the One Day scene as well.

Tim Bresnan – Injuries cost him his chance to come back from the debacle of the Sri Lanka series and at still only 21 (despite having been in the Yorkshire team for 5 years) he should get more chances. Currently scoring and conceding runs at over one a ball in International cricket.

Steve Harmison – England’s best ODI bowler for a number of years, he seems to have been more mentally scarred than most following the Sri Lankan demolition of last year. The three-fors in the first two matches were forgotten with the 0-97 in the final game. Confidence gone, Harmison retired from ODI cricket after the Champions trophy a pale shadow of the match winning bowler seen two years previously.

Kabir Ali – A promising start away to South Africa where he played in all seven matches of the 04/05 series taking 13 wickets, he was then dropped for a year. Always expensive, the latest nail in his international coffin came at the hands of the Sri Lankans. Six overs for 72 runs and back to Worcestershire.

Alex Wharf – Another wonderful example of England’s selection policy. A regular for 6 months two years ago, he played 13 matches in five months, taking 18 wickets at an economy of just over four…..and hasn’t been seen again since.

Darren Gough – No shortage of self-belief and England’s leading ODI wicket taker. Despite lobbying and the support of Graham Gooch, Dazzler’s dream of one more World Cup didn’t come true. Last seen playing beach cricket, a career in show business beckons.

England's performance ratings

After losing by an innings at Melbourne here are the marks out of ten for England's players:

Strauss - 6.5 Finally managed to make his first fifty of the series in the first innings, but could not go on and convert it into a more significant score. He tried to play the anchor role in the second innings, showing patience as well as some of his trademark fluency. However, his efforts were in vain as he consistently lost partners at the other end and eventually succumbed himself, caught behind off Brett Lee. Even the phlegmatic Strauss must be feeling the frustration of getting so many starts and looking in good form only to throw it away or have it taken away by poor umpiring. If England are to have any chance in the last Test Strauss will need to find his form and sustain it over a long innings.

Cook - 4 After his heroics in the last innings at Perth he reverted to his previous failings at the MCG, nibbling at a ball outside his off stump in the first innings and getting bowled in the second. It should have been worse for the young left-hander in the second innings as Rudi Koertzen inexplicably turned down a plum lbw decision against him early on off Glenn McGrath. Given this life Cook played a few nice shots before being bowled by Stuart Clark. He will need to remember how he applied himself to make his century at the WACA if he is to have an impact in the fifth and final Test of the series.

Bell - 3 Two failures, both trapped lbw, made him appear more the player of 2005 than the resilient figure seen earlier in this series. It is becoming clear that number three is too high in the batting line-up for Bell, especially with the consistent failure of England's openers. He is exposed to the new ball too early and has been unable to bat through it when the ball has been moving off the seam. The three centuries in a row against Pakistan seem a distant memory. Granted they were against a weaker bowling line-up, but more significantly they were scored when he batted at number six, a position he appeared far more comfortable with.

Collingwood - 5 Showed all his usual grit and fight, but never looked like making the big score England needed. Like his fellow batsmen he failed in the crucial first innings, unable to convert a start into an innings of substance. Again questions must be asked of his ability against better bowling and on pitches with bounce or movement. His technique, so good against slower bowlers or on slow wickets, has been exposed since that magnificent double century at Adelaide. Determination and fielding prowess are admirable attributes, but they are no substitute for consistent run scoring.

Pietersen - 4 His first failure of the series and, more worryingly, signs that his head had gone down. The usual ebullience and energy were lacking in the field and the swagger had gone from his batting. Having thrown his wicket away in the first innings slogging with the tail, he played a poor shot to an excellent delivery from Clark in the second. It was a shame as Pietersen had finally agreed to bat at number four, the position he batted against Pakistan last summer, but which he had been reluctant to take in this series. That he should play loosely in his first outing at four was a bad sign. Hopefully, for England's sake, he rises to the challenge in his usual manner at the SCG.

Flintoff - 6 After another failure with the bat the captain made amends with a fine bowling performance. Taking the first two wickets in a fiery spell at the end of the second day he continued in the same mode removing the ever dangerous Ponting early on the third. As England rallied, reducing the Australians to 84 for 5, Flintoff looked like his old self, chest pumped out and vocal in the field. Unfortunately, after lunch when England desperately needed some inspiration from their captain he was unable to supply it and Australia romped away again. He has also been criticised for batting first having won the toss. This is unfair, as he would have been villified if he had put Australia in and they had scored heavily as they have done for most of the series. It was a tough call and Flintoff backed his batsmen, who failed once again. In his second innings he tried to launch a counter attack, but was trapped lbw after hitting a few lusty blows. It is better that he goes down playing shots than vainly trying to defend, but in his best form Flintoff can play proper innings.

Read - 8 The match started poorly for him as he was caught driving loosely in the first inings. However, after that he barely put a foot wrong, taking 6 catches in Australia's innings in an exemplary display of keeping. He also stood up well to Matthew Hoggard, preventing Matthew Hayden from batting out of his crease. In his second innings he showed the kind of resolve and shot selection that ought to have been true of all of England's batsmen, ending his vigil unbeaten. However, he will need to build on this display and score runs in the first innings at Sydney when England really need them.

Mahmood - 7 Given the opportunity to show what he could do this time Mahmood responded well. His bowling display was typical - wickets, but at a high economy rate. Given plenty of short spells with both the new and the old ball he extracted some bounce and seam movement, as well as a bit of reverse swing. It was a shame he could not sustain his best line and length and cut out the poor deliveries, which were ruthlessly put away. His batting, which has great potential, was abject as he bagged a pair, picked up by McGrath in the first innings and Shane Warne in the second. However, an encouraging match for a very promising player and something which he can build on in the last Test at Sydney.

Harmison - 7 His best bowling performance of the series, which deserved more of a return than just two wickets. Finally showing the control and pace that make him such a dangerous bowler, Harmison was also miserly, allowing only 2.46 runs per over. None of the Australian batsmen were able to settle against him and were forced to keep him out rather than score off him. It was evidence, if any were needed, that Harmison is a rhythm bowler, who needs overs under his belt to perform at his best. He bowled 28 overs in the innings, by far the most of any of England's attack, a testament to his stamina when he's in the groove. A tragedy that it has taken until the fourth Test for him to look like England's spearhead.

Panesar - 4 A difficult match for the young spinner, who was only given 12 overs on a seamer friendly pitch. He should probably have been bowled more against Hayden and Andrew Symonds, whose massive partnership took the match away from England. When he did bowl they attacked him, but Panesar should have claimed Symonds when he was on 52, having a very good lbw shout turned down. Like most quality spinners he likes to bowl long spells and Flintoff should have given him more overs. Promoted to ten in the batting order he unleashed some fine shots in the second innings, showing off the hard work he has put in at the nets. Once again his spirit was evident and he could be a key figure in the last Test as England try to stave off the dreaded 5-0.

Hoggard - 5.5 Bowled without luck in Australia's innings, having two excellent lbw shouts against Hayden turned down early on. He finally showed that Mike Hussey can be got out, bowling him with an excellent inswinger. As the ball got older and Hayden and Symonds started to dominate he was an increasingly peripheral figure, unable to break the big stand. Though he continued to run in and give his usual effort he could not recapture the accuracy and penetration of his first spell. The changes of pace and variety of deliveries Hoggard has acquired since his last tour of Australia ensured that he was not hit to all parts of the MCG, but he could not conjure up the wicket England so desperately needed.

Normal service has been resumed!

Well ladies and gentleman, that as they say was that! Having held the Ashes for the shortest time in the history of the series England should rightly be dejected and disappointed with the manner of their defeat. On the other hand however, everybody must take their hats off to Australia after one of the most ruthless and focused performances in the history of cricket.

The debate about selection will no doubt rage on for a good while yet, but now is the time to be honest. Even with our best side it is doubtful if England had the ability to beat Australia on their own soil. Ricky Ponting, Michael Hussey, Stuart Clark and of course Shane Warne have been absolutely marvellous. Whilst there have been weaknesses in this Australian team the performances of these men have made it very questionable as to whether or not England ever had a chance, even with their best eleven on the field.

Ponting has captained superbly, nobody knows how to get Hussey out, whilst Warne and Clark have known precisely how to get England’s batsman out. When the promising performances of Michael Clarke are thrown into the ring, along with the contributions of the untameable Adam Gilchrist, resilient Glenn McGrath, attritional Justin Langer and dominating Matthew Hayden, you really can see why this team are ranked as the number one side in the world and by some margin.

The sad truth of the matter is that of six Australian innings, during which some sixty wickets were up for grabs, England have only taken thirty-nine. When batting they have failed to pass two hundred and fifty on three occasions, twice in the first innings. That simply is not good enough to win Test matches and even with Monty Panesar in the side the consistent bowling threat has just not been available from both ends, as on the Australian side.

Of all the England players the only one who has performed on a consistently comparable scale is Kevin Pietersen. Still though the talismanic player has received criticism for getting out for seventy when batting with number ten at the crease. This attitude must stop now. This man has been playing test match cricket for just eighteen months. He is still a relative baby compared to the likes of Ponting, Warne and McGrath, yet he has done his best to carry England.

Pietersen is currently rated as the seventh highest England Test batsman of all time. He is still only 26 and averages 52.50 from forty Test innings, during which he has scored six hundreds and nine fifties. He has played with common sense and grace in Australia and has not tried to hit every ball out of the ground as many wrongly feared. This man is no “Boom Boom” Afiridi, he is pure and consistent class.

Injuries did indeed hamper England of course. Michael Vaughan’s captaincy, Simon Jones’ reverse swing and Andrew Flintoff’s all round displays were the key reasons behind England’s success just sixteen months ago. In the current series we have lost all three of those trump cards, with the former two out of the side through injury and Flintoff overburdened, possibly unfit and perhaps overrated. The current England Captain has suffered a collapse of batting form and even his bowling has appeared laboured, with little consistent pressure available at the opposite end.

As a selector, Flintoff appears to have had the overriding vote to start with and I remain certain that Fletcher selected him, rather than Strauss as Captain, as much for his appreciation of Geraint Jones than anything else. The England management will tell you that hindsight is a wonderful thing, yet for the majority of us the team selection was wrong from day one.

Ashley Giles, who, as one of the nicest guys in cricket, does not deserve the current illness which faces his wife at this supposedly joyous time of year, should never have been selected above Monty Panesar, who had performed so admirably to become the world’s “leading finger spinner.”

Geraint Jones’ selection was more expected and indeed slightly more justifiable given the assumed advantages of his batting on pitches upon which he grew up on. His glove work has been reasonable, not exceptional, but his batting has been atrocious. His England career is surely now all but over.

Chris Read can consider himself slightly unfortunate to be dropped, especially in favour of Jones, but it still remains doubtful as to whether the man who averaged just 27.41 in the LVCC1 could have scored the mega runs which England required, what with the horrendous form of their number six.

A dismal Champions Trophy performance, during which he was dismissed by an out of sorts McGrath, was poor with the gloves and racked up scores of 2, 0 and 4, helped to explain his axing. Whilst he scored runs against Pakistan it must be taken into account that that was against a Pakistani attack missing their three premier strike bowlers, Shoaib Aktar, Mohammed Asif and Shabbir Ahmed.

His performances in the ODI series against Pakistan also did little to help his cause as he ended with scores of 0, 30, 21no and 4. What I am saying here is not that Jones should have played, but that maybe it was not Read who should have taken his place and should do so now. For the last year I have wanted to see somebody else given a chance. There is no shortage of talent with Matthew Prior and Steven Davies currently working with the academy squad.

Prior averaged 46.70 in first class cricket last season as Sussex lifted the championship. Surely he is deserving of a chance. The young prodigy Davies, who has already been hyped up unfairly as the next Adam Gilchrist is a splendid glove man. Beyond these two James Foster and Phil Mustard continue to go dutifully about their business in county cricket. One can only imagine how depressing it must be to be continually discounted because of this nonsensical tug of war between Jones and Read, which has only served to detract attention from the splendid performances of some of England’s future wicket keeping talent. If none of the aforementioned are considered along with Read it will be a sad loss for English cricket.

Of England’s batsman Alastair Cook has proved himself, but Ian Bell is still working his way there and as such looks unsuited to such a crucial position as number three in the batting line up. When Vaughan returns I hope he comes back as an opener where he has played his best cricket for England. Cook dropping down to three provides England with such a calming and stabilising presence, whilst Bell could move down in to the middle order, where he played so brilliantly against Pakistan, racking up three consecutive hundreds.

The aggression of Vaughan and Trescothick has been missing from England’s opening three and with it back England will look a more dominating side. Pietersen has played fantastic cricket at five, but maybe if he came in at four once more we would see some bigger scores from the man who is equally adept at playing pace and spin bowling, with aggression. Bell has a fantastic temperament ala Graham Thorpe and looks very good against spin. I believe that he could anchor the side at five and dropping him down the order removes some of the pressure on the man and importantly gets him away from the new ball, against which he can look suspect.

If Flintoff is to continue to play as a number six, there must be a rapid improvement. His streaky innings on the final day at Perth seemed merely to confirm that he can no longer be considered worthy of a place on batting alone. With that being the case he should not be batting in the top six. His career Test average is equal to that of Shaun Pollock, standing at 32.00. Pollock is a fantastic bowling all rounder who bats at number eight, as is Flintoff. Flintoff is no Jaques Kallis with the bat and similarly Kallis is no Flintoff with the ball. England must recognise this fallibility at number six and rectify it.

Pushed down to seven Flintoff could afford to play his aggressive innings ala Gilchrist, without the pressure of knowing that big runs are expected of him every time he goes out to bat. The question of who bats at six now becomes tricky though. If England want to maintain a five man attack without Flintoff in the top six, then they must select Prior, who is capable of scoring major runs at six. He is the best batsman of all the wicket keeping options.

This may be something that England have to spend a lot of time thinking about given their inability to take twenty wickets in a match at present. This would still give England a very long tail though, with Hoggard, Harmison, Jones and Panesar to follow, but hopefully the top seven batsman would be up to scoring the required runs. Stephen Harmison’s position can not be safe though. Of his five wickets at Perth two were McGrath and Clark, numbers ten and eleven. He is still not the bowler he was in early 2004 and has no consistency whatsoever.

Stuart Broad must now come into serious consideration as a replacement. Hyped up yet again, as the next McGrath, the Leicestershire pace man has the potential to be a great bowler and what’s more he is a consistent line and length bowler, with bounce, a bowler England currently lack. The son of former England opener Chris Broad, he can also bat and would solve the current number eight problem, with his inclusion going some way to shortening England's tail. With Simon Jones an almost certain returnee because of his ability to swing the ball both ways, that may jeopardise Matthew Hoggard’s position in a four man attack, although it would be harsh to drop England’s best bowler on tour so far, currently ranked sixth by the ICC. If that were to happen though it would open the door for the best wicket keeper, perhaps Chris Read or Steven Davies to bat at eight, with another batsman coming in at six.

That man would surely have to be Paul Collingwood. His two hundred shows that he has class and concentration. His ninety-two showed us he has guts. Unfortunately these two innings also demonstrated that whilst he can score on a flat deck, he is troubled by seam bowling outside his off stump on result pitches and this has proved to be his undoing so far in his international career. For this reason I do not believe that he should bat at four and at best should come in at five. He is though a talented player and worthy of a slot if England want to bat down to six, although he must watch out for the flamboyant Irishman, Ed Joyce, coming over the horizon, along with Marcus Trescothick. The experiences of fellow double centurions Brad Hodge, Jason Gillespie and Rob Key demonstrate that a cricketer is never safe and rightly so.

England must consider the above issues carefully and adapt the make up of their side for the future. Ultimately, England must focus on ending the batting collapses and consistently taking twenty wickets, if they want to become the best side in the world. At present they can’t do either against the undisputed leader of world cricket. It has been a lesson in ruthlessness and class that the Australian’s have dealt out and unfortunately it looks set to continue for the next two months. In time for the next domestic season, England must make some changes to their strategy and start building for the future. They must select a side for the summer which can bring England success in the next Ashes series in just two and a half years time.

Andrew Strauss (vc)
Michael Vaughan (c)
Alastair Cook
Kevin Pietersen
Ian Bell
Matthew Prior (wk) (Paul Collingwood)
Andrew Flintoff
Stuart Broad
Matthew Hoggard (Steven Davies/ Chris Read)
Monty Panesar
Simon Jones


Chris Pallett

England's performance ratings

Having handed over the Ashes at Perth here are the marks out of ten for England's players:

Strauss - 5.5 Hard to be too critical of a batsman who received two poor decisions in the match. In the first innings he looked in good form, not for the first time in the series, only to be given out caught when he clearly didn't touch the ball - a decision which deprived him of turning his 42 into something far more substantial. In the second he was adjudged lbw to a ball that would have gone over. True he didn't play a shot, which is always risky, but the umpire failed to take into account the exaggerated bounce at the WACA when raising his finger.

Cook - 8 A wonderful century in the second innings more than made up for his low score in the first. Showing immense patience and determination, Cook fought through the difficult times, especially the torment of Warne's wily leg-spin, to register his maiden Ashes ton and his fourth overall. Once again his maturity at just 21 was staggering and his capacity to learn and improve plain for all to see. It is a shame that he has had to learn his trade in the spotlight of an Ashes series, but it will serve him well in the rest of the series and in the bright future he clearly has.

Bell - 7 Out to an absolute peach of a delivery in the first innings, he responded with an exhibition of timing and sumptuous strokeplay in the second. Taking on Warne as soon as he come on Bell unleashed some mighty blows, including two sixes. The only shame of it was that he drove loosely 13 short of a deserved hundred. Overconfidence had got the better of him, something which would have been unthinkable just a year and a half ago. He also continued to show his prowess at silly mid-on, taking a great catch off Panesar.

Collingwood - 3 Sadly, the suspicion that he would struggle on bouncier pitches was confirmed as he followed his fantastic double century at Adelaide with two low scores here. Both times he failed to come to terms with the surface and his technique was exposed. No-one could doubt his fighting spirit, but when his team needed runs and momentum he stagnated and simply had no answers. His catching and fielding were as sharp as ever, but could not atone for his lack of runs.

Pietersen - 8 Left to play for a long time with the tail in the first innings and stranded on 60 in the second, Pietersen showed the strength of his temperament as well as his class. At times he looked like he simply could not be got out, an idea confirmed by Ricky Ponting's ultra defensive field placings. For a while in the first innings he seemed unsure how he should play with the tail, especially when Hoggard was with him, but his decision to play positively was the right one, though it ultimately led to his demise, as he played a poor shot. In the second he tried to bat time, while keeping the score ticking over, which worked for a while. Unfortunately, he was unable to protect the tail, who fell cheaply.

Flintoff - 4 A shadow with the ball throughout the match and with the bat in the first innings, he finally showed what he is capable of with an attacking cameo in the second innings. It was too little far too late and did nothing more than postpone the inevitable loss for his team. Bowling at reduced pace, presumably because of his injured ankle, Flintoff went wicketless in the match. His captaincy was okay, but he lacked inspiration in Australia's second innings which was the decisive one of the match. It may be that little could have been done to stem the flow, but it is at times like those that the best captains find a wicket from somewhere.

Jones - 2 The abject nature of his batting display in this match defied belief. After throwing his wicket away for nought in the first innings, chasing a wide delivery, Jones managed to be run out in the second because he left his foot on the line playing forward to Shane Warne. It was a sharp piece of fielding from Ponting, but a batsman in any kind of form would have managed to get his foot back in time. Add to that the desperate dropped catch and missed stumping and you have a truly awful allround performance. It is a shame for any player to finish in a such a way, but surely this is the end of the Test road for Jones?

Mahmood - 2 Underbowled in the first innings when Steve Harmison and Monty Panesar did most of the damage, Mahmood was given only a few more overs in the second to show what he could do. The lack of faith shown in him by his captain must have dented his confidence and could not have helped when he was finally thrown the ball. In the 17 overs he did bowl in the match he failed to show control of length or line and was dispatched to all parts of the field. His batting was little better, though he was under immense pressure both times he strode to the crease. It was sad to see such a talented young player on the periphery of the match, given little chance to show his ability.

Hoggard - 5 Bowled well with the new ball in both innings, but was unable to find the edge of the bat. His delivery to get rid of Langer in the second innings was superb, but it was his only wicket in the innings. As usual he gave everything, despite the scorching heat, and another day he might have had more reward for his efforts. He stayed with Pietersen for a long time in the first innings, fending off everything the Australian attack threw at him. Sadly, he was exposed in the second, bowled by a wonderful yorker from Glenn McGrath.

Harmison - 7 He finally came to the party in the first innings, bowling with fire and extracting steepling bounce at times from the WACA pitch. Yet, it was his control of length which got him his wickets as he pitched the ball up. None was more important at the time than Ponting, who he trapped lbw in the first innings for just 2. Unfortunately, he was unable to repeat his performance in the second innings, when, like Hoggard, he failed to get the edge with the new ball and was put to the sword later in the searing heat. A wonderfully fiesty 23 in the first innings showed Harmison had come to fight, but there was little he could do against Warne in the second when he was out first ball.

Panesar - 9 A stunning return to the side, claiming 8 wickets in the match, including a five wicket haul in the first innings, when he ripped through the Australian line-up. Strange to say he can bowl much better, but there was an infectious enthusiasm in his performance which carried him through that incredible bowling spell. The Australians seemed to be in his thrall as he extracted bounce and turn from the first day pitch. Even when Symonds went after him there was an inevitability that he would eventually get him out. In the second innings Panesar continued to bowl well, though the Australian batsmen were under less pressure and able to attack him. He was caught in the whirlwind that was Adam Gilchrist's quickfire hundred, which ruined his economy rate, but came out of the match as England's best bowler, justifying the cries for his selection. He even managed to show he could bat with a well crafted 12 not out in the first innings.

Lack of batting experience telling

Post-mortem (1): England's batsmen

In 2005, Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss consistently got the innings of to a fine start, invariably attacking from the off. A top three consisting of Strauss, Cook and Bell were always going to seek to give England the advantage by batting time; but they have palpably failed to do that. Until their sixth innings of the series, England were always 50-2, or worse. As a result, the attacking axis at five, six and seven regularly came in with England struggling. Kevin Pietersen has majestically risen to the task, but Andrew Flintoff has seemed overburdened and Geraint Jones feeble.

Alistair Cook is a player of palpable quality, but he inevitably found an Ashes tour at 21 highly-challenging; however, his 116 at the WACA proves his worth and he will only improve. Andrew Strauss, thanks to some injudicious strokeplay and a trio of poor umpiring decisions, has failed to pass 50, although he has always appeared in fine form. Ian Bell has hit three fifties, displaying an increasing maturity and confidence, especially against Shane Warne, though his wait for an Ashes hundred continues.

Of 18 completed innings, England’s top three have only twice passed 60. Experience of Australian conditions, be it in the shape of the stylish batsmanship of Michael Vaughan, the technical class of Mark Ramprakash or the resilient qualities of Mark Butcher, has been badly missing; however, I do not think Trescothick's withdrawal was hugely significant. Given the ineffectualness of England’s fifth bowler, hindsight tells us that one of Butcher or Ramprakash should have played at three, Bell should have been moved to six, where he was so excellent against Pakistan, and Flintoff should have played at seven.

Paul Collingwood has displayed fighting qualities reminiscent of Butcher, and exceeded all expectations in making 200 at Adelaide. Nonetheless, the suspicion remains that the finest player, Pietersen, should be allowed to bat at four. Many were worried Pietersen would be unable to control his impetuosity, and would regularly be caught trying to hit sixes on the huge Australian outfields; instead, he has batted with wonderfully maturity and got the better of Warne and especially McGrath.

At six, Flintoff’s batting has been characterised by a lack of coherent thinking; until his second innings at the WACA, he was too tentative but was still dismissed to rash shots; it seems the captaincy has overwhelmed him. There was a time when he and Pietersen were considered roughly equal as batsmen; while Pietersen is fulfilling his talent, it touches the confines of lunacy to suggest Flintoff would even be considered as a batsman only – which proves he should not bat in the top six. His friend Jones has been reasonable with the gloves, but calamitous with the bat. He seems incapable of playing long, disciplined innings, and he should not be selected for England again.

There are a number of positives to take from England’s batting endeavours – Pietersen’s brilliance, Collingwood’s feistiness and genuine fight and application from Cook and Bell on occasions. Yet, they suffered one cataclysmic collapse in each Test and, from six onwards, the resistance was negligible. Duncan Fletcher, then, was right to be concerned about England’s tail. So why did he select non-bowling number eights Giles and Mahmood ahead of a sixth specialist batsman?

Who will be England’s keeper come Brisbane?

Chris Read’s three impressive innings for England at the back end of last summer appeared to settle matters once and for all; he, rather than 2005 Ashes winner Geraint Jones, would take to the field for the First Test. But then along came the ICC Champions Trophy.

Three disastrous innings later, including a second-ball duck against Australia and humiliation at the hands of Dwayne Bravo’s slower ball, and Read may just have played himself out of the Test team. Equally significantly, Read’s keeping evoked memories of Jones circa 2004. Jones, himself a pundit for Sky TV, was perhaps England’s chief beneficiary from the tournament.

Jones, lest we forget, performed simply atrociously in his final nine games, scoring just one half century. Though his glovework was improving steadily, he was palpably not scoring an acceptable number of runs; and, as such, he deserved to be dropped.

It looks increasingly likely England will employ four specialist bowlers in addition to Andrew Flintoff. One of the two, therefore must bat at number seven. Read at number seven remains decidedly unconvincing; though he scored a vital 55 against Pakistan in the Third Test, he enjoyed considerable luck; in the Champions Trophy, he looked largely out of his depth. Can he handle Shane Warne? Is he good enough to handle either the metronome-like accuracy of Glenn McGrath or Brett Lee’s fusion of short-pitched bowling and yorkers?

Of course, we don’t know the answer to either question, even if his performances in India suggested the negative. Jones, however, has played two fantastic innings against Australia in the past, scoring 85 at Trent Bridge in the Fourth Test and 71 in the Natwest Final last summer; the latter constituted over a third of England’s runs. Clearly, his best is better than Read’s best.

Call me fickle, but the affection I developed for Read while watching him score a peerless 150* for England A against Pakistan has slowly dwindled. Jones’ recent batting performances for England have been diabolical; but he could benefit from a few months out of the international scene and the chance to escape the relentless grind of international cricket. Geraint Jones has been relatively successful against Australia; whether it is rational or otherwise, I would prefer to see him walking out down under. I suspect the inherent Jonesite Duncan Fletcher will think the same.

Tagged with: Geriant Jones, Chris Read, Ashes 2006/07

England Ratings

England's marks out of ten for the ODI series in India do not make pleasant reading - unless you happen to be born in South Africa

Pietersen 8.5/10 Top scorer four times out of five, Pietersen is leagues ahead of any other England one-day batsman, combining mass run-scoring with a superlative strike rate. And, though his tendency to get himself out before 100 has attracted criticism, that says far more about the inadequacies of his team-mates than himself.

Collingwood 7 Contributed two 50s, although the 93 did come in a largely dead situation. Well-established as an automatic selection at number six and a more-than-useful change bowler.

Bell 7 Two useful innings that contributed to good opening stands will keep him in the frame. But is he ultimately too orthodox to excel in one-day cricket?

Strauss 7 Rather anonymous series, in that Strauss was neither particularly good nor bad. Still, he is a fine man to play the anchor role and may also benefit when he can once more play alongside a more attacking opener in Trescothick.

Jones 7 At one point seemed to be slipping away from the one-day reckoning rather feebly, but contributed a 49 and a 53 in his last two innings, while his glove work continued its upward curve. There’s only room for one keeper-batsman, and this series showed Jones is the better option.

Prior 3 A specialist batsman with an average of 18 and a strike rate of 65 playing throughout the whole series? It could only happen in England’s one-day team. Now Duncan Fletcher knows for certain who the better ODI keeper-batsman is, Prior’s rash, if clearly promising, stroke play will be confined to county cricket.

Flintoff 6 Terrible batting; reasonable bowling. Needs a break, and it showed. When he returns, he will aim to renew a run-scoring rivalry with Pietersen that, in the one-day game at least, has become totally one-sided.

Anderson 6.5 A touch expensive, perhaps, but usually performed admirably in a makeshift attack and now an automatic selection in one-day cricket once more.

Blackwell 6.5 For the second consecutive series, Blackwell’s left-arm spin surpassed all expectation – indeed, only Harbhajan had a superior economy rate (though Blackwell’s average was 46.) But his batting could hardly have been worse. He appears too hit-and-miss and lacks any confidence, though he must surely eventually contribute.

Solanki 2 For once, Solanki did not do just about enough to remain in the frame. His rash strokes and lapses in concentration will surely finally end his international career.

Mahmood 5 Not exactly earth-shattering, but hints of promise will keep him in the selectors’ thoughts. However, an economy rate of 6.30 suggests he should be made to wait until after the World Cup.

Plunkett 6.5 Confirmed the potential he showed in Pakistan, cutting down on the loose balls while maintaining his wicket-taking threat. The downer was that his batting appeared to regress.

Hoggard 3 Maybe if England played one-day cricket in white Hoggard would be the same as his superb test self. Clearly has a mental block when it comes to one-day cricket, and unlikely to play again.

Shah 1 11 runs in three innings – you do the maths. A huge disappointment given the excellence of his test debut, but Shah still has a chance of appearing at the World Cup.

Batty 3 He’s not Ashley Giles. He isn’t even Ian Blackwell. Out of his depth, and England are surely only too aware of the fact by now.

Ali 5.5 A strange one. One moment he was producing figures of 4-45; the next he was being smashed. That rather epitomises Ali at international level – he has proved he can take wickets, but is probably ultimately too wayward.

Same old England

For England, the ODI series in India was yet another disaster in the side’s increasingly laughable attempt to become recognised challengers for next year’s World Cup. And, though injuries provided one much-needed excuse for the shambles, the most worrying aspect of the defeat is that, unlike India’s reserves, the majority of England’s stand-ins looked out of their depth.

Had the side been totally outclassed, we could all have shrugged our shoulders and come out with the usual excuses for the general ineptitude of the one-day team: lack of games and priorities laying so much with the test side. Yet defeats in the first two games were the result not so much of India’s quality, but the brainless batting of the England side. Despite dominating for the majority of both games, England were undone by their lack of nous and a coherent game plan towards the end of each innings.

The rash of slog-sweeps that saw the most facile of run chases turn into a defeat that was ultimately pretty comprehensive, in the first game, epitomised the slapdash showings on display all series. To further compound England’s misery, the chief practitioners of that particular collapse – Pietersen, Flintoff, Collingwood and Jones – are the quartet who will almost certainly be given the job of turning good starts into victories come the World Cup.

If there is anything England can gain from six largely unproductive matches, it is a burgeoning rubbish bag overflowing with players not good enough. This is particularly true of the batting – the facet of the game that truly let England down. An inexperienced brand of seam bowlers generally performed respectably enough.

It was a relief for England that Vikram Solanki finally had a truly abysmal series, rather than his usual showing of rash shots and a useful innings to grant a temporary reprieve. Despite claiming to have matured, Solanki continues to go around in circles and, at 30 and with 49 caps under his belt, Duncan Fletcher surely has the confirmation that the Worcestershire player is an infuriating underachiever.

Owais Shah, the man who performed so well on his test debut, mustered only 11 runs in three innings, yet may still be deserving of another chance, given the consistency of his county efforts and the inventiveness he revealed in the final test. Meanwhile Matt Prior, for reasons no one is quite able to fathom, appeared in all 11 of England’s winter ODIs – and as a specialist batsman in 10 of those. The lack of a half century is a damning indictment of Prior’s lack of quality, while Geraint Jones’ 100 runs in his final two games mean that his wicket-keeping role is secure. Indeed, Chris Read is now a more plausible rival to Jones than Prior.

However, Ian Bell’s performances in the last two games of the season were encouraging and suggest he may be worth another look at in the future. Which leaves Michael Vaughan, who did not participate in his second consecutive ODI tournament. Vaughan’s limited overs record is very poor; his injury record is even worse. It is surely time to ask the skipper to concentrate on test cricket – and, were he not the captain, he would probably have been ditched from the ODI set-up a long time ago.

England’s bowling may have been a mixed bag, but given the fact that Jones, Harmison, Giles and Flintoff (for two games) were all missing, it at least matched expectations.

Ian Blackwell’s tidy left-arm spin went for well under four an over, which would surely have cemented his place, had his batting not appeared so clueless. But Giles’ injury will give him an extended run in the side and, by the law of averages, he must eventually contribute with the bat.

The largely stand-in seam attack each hinted at a bright future, with the bizarre exception of Matthew Hoggard, who seems to lack the mental capacity to play one-day cricket. Yet it must not help being told virtually at the departure lounge that you are in fact wanted for the one-day series. However, ultimately it may come down to a lack of cool when getting smashed.

James Anderson, save for the odd expensive spell, is well on the way to restoring his old reputation, and should play in the World Cup. For all Duncan Fletcher’s obsession with a number nine who can score runs, logic dictates that the berths must be filled be the three best seamers (especially as Jones and Harmison could both score quick runs late on.)

Liam Plunkett showcased his bowling potential – though his 56 against Pakistan looks increasingly like a freak innings, given his woeful showing with a bat in his hand in this series. Still, Plunkett is firmly odds-on for a place in the World Cup squad. Kabir Ali was expensive but did pick up four wickets in one match. The Worcestershire player’s tendency to fall over in his delivery stride compromises his accuracy, and future chances may now only arrive after an injury crisis (so he will certainly play again!) And highly-rated Sajid Mahmood was much the same as Ali but may just have over-taken him in the pecking order.

Assuming Marcus Trescothick returns to the one-day team with better form than when he left it, England’s top seven includes six near-certainties – Trescothick, Strauss, Pietersen, Collingwood, Flintoff and Jones – and one definite question mark. Vaughan, Bell and Shah all have claims to the number three berth, as does Ed Joyce, while it is also possible that Alistair Cook will continue his sterling form and demand selection. England should discard Vaughan now, giving them a year to narrow down the four possibles and find two batsmen who can rely on.

Surrey’s Rikki Clarke, newly appointed vice-captain, has long been thought highly of, and could easily find himself in the final 15, albeit only as back-up to Collingwood and Flintoff. He is unlucky that the problem berth – number three – is a position he is alien to.

And the bowling options also look settled. Blackwell will probably pip Giles to the number eight berth, leaving Jones, Harmison and Anderson to complete a line-up of enormous potential. But who to play if a seamer is fit? Plunkett is favourite, though Chris Tremlett – absent through injury – has made an encouraging start, while Sajid Mahmood, if he finally becomes a regular for Lancashire in all forms of the game, could make a late charge for selection.

It is clear success in the one-day series was hardly Duncan Fletcher’s priority; how else to explain the continued selection of two keepers who were not worthy of selection as specialist batsmen?

Despite the disastrous result, England are closer to learning their squad for the World Cup, though it is true those not playing advanced their standing more than those who did. It may also be worth England’s while continuing to rest players in ODIs, at least until the end of the summer; it is the back-ups, rather than the probable starters, who must do most to convince.

Potential Squad for 2007? (starters in bold)
Trescothick
Strauss
Shah
Joyce
Pietersen
Collingwood
Clarke
Flintoff
Jones
Blackwell
Giles
Harmison
Jones
Anderson
Plunkett