Jubair in Bangladesh preliminary squad for WI tour

Legspinner Jubair Hossain has been included in Bangladesh's preliminary squad for the tour of the West Indies, the biggest surprise among the 25 players named. Jubair, an Under-19 player, will now report to trainer Mario Villavarayen on July 1, with the rest of the preliminary squad, to begin preparing for the mid-August tour.

Although he didn't play a game in the Under-19 World Cup earlier this year, Jubair impressed the Bangladesh management as a nets bowler over the last few months, with several players, coaches and selectors taking an interest in him.

Jubair is of short stature, comes off a few steps and whips up his arms but, deceptively, doesn't bowl quickly. He slows the pace down and lets the ball drift and turn.

He is an interesting choice for two reasons. Firstly, the Bangladesh selectors have been, in recent years, reluctant to pick someone so inexperienced. Secondly, his elevation leaves question marks over what first-class performances mean; someone like specialist legspinner Noor Hossain, who took 21 wickets in this year's first-class cricket, having also taken 20 and 22 in the previous two years, has been leapfrogged. Jubair has not played first-class cricket yet.

Bangladesh have never picked a specialist legspinner in Test matches while only Wahidul Gani, famous for mentoring Mohammad Ashraful and Shahriar Nafees as a youth coach, played a solitary ODI in the 1980s.

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Ishant heckled as Robson, Smith flay rusty Indians

Indians 333 for 4 dec (Dhawan 60 [ret hurt], Pujara 57, Gambhir 54) drew with Leicestershire 349 for 5 (Robson 126, Smith 101, Redfern 58)
Scorecard

Angus Robson, the younger brother of England's new opening batsman Sam, and Greg Smith hit run-a-ball centuries as their 221-run second-wicket stand ensured a chastening time in the field for the Indians' seven-strong fast-bowling attack on the final day of their first warm-up match against Leicestershire.

Both batsmen played with gusto and freedom to allow Leicestershire to dominate the day which saw the morning session curtailed to just 13 overs after rain interrupted play after an hour, but it did not matter to the Robson-Smith combination as they scored at almost six runs an over. The pair added 178 runs in the middle session comprising 30 overs.

It has been a fine week for the Robson family with Sam registering his maiden Test century at Headingley exactly a week ago against Sri Lanka. This was the younger Robson's highest score of the season which had previously included six fifties. He expects a phone call from his brother ahead of the Test series - for the odd bit of information about the Indian bowlers - and his only regret was that this was not a first-class fixture.

"It's been a pretty special day," he said. "Mum and Dad have been here. It's funny how it works out, two Saturdays in a row they've seen us make hundreds."

Ten days ago Smith scored a century at his home ground in the T20 Blast against Nottinghamshire. He also has a Championship hundred this season and reached the landmark today with consecutive sixes against the left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja. Both straight hits went crashing into the sightscreen at the Bennett End with the first one even creating a dent.

But a deeper dent was created in the opposition bowling camp. The Indians might say it was the first day on the job for the bowlers, but at times it became embarrassing. Ishant Sharma, one of the three players from the current squad to have played Test cricket in England, and the bowling captain by default in the absence of Zaheer Khan, failed to make any impact and effectively became a figure of ridicule for a group of Indian fans at the Bennett End, who endlessly heckled him each time he walked back to his bowling mark.

Ishant, who had taken consecutive five-wicket hauls in the two-Test series in New Zealand in February, India's previous series in the longest format, was listless for most of his three spells. He started with a no-ball in the morning session which had to be immediately called off as the rain arrived and upon returning he delivered two further no-balls as his first over went for 11 runs. His first spell of four overs leaked 41 runs and he overstepped six times.

As he retreated to long leg Indian fans were not afraid to offer some advice. "Put some effort. Bend down," one fan shouted. As he lined up to deliver another over, Ishant would not have missed the annoying scream coming from the crowd: "How many fours are you going to give this over?"

It might have been amusing to the ear, but the Indians may have found the impatience of their fans a little bit irritating. Barring Ishant, none of the other quicks had ever bowled with the red ball in England. And it showed straightaway.

It was overcast right through Saturday and the Indians might have fancied taking advantage of what they perceived as helpful conditions. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, whose primary strength is swing, struggled to find the right length throughout his solitary spell of seven overs which went for 46 runs including ten fours, all of which came at the hands of an aggressive Robson.

Later Robson said that he took advantage of the fuller lengths Bhuvneshwar bowled while attempting to swing the ball. He felt the Indians started with intensity, but grew "tired" as he and Smith stretched the partnership. He also felt that while the bowling attack was inexperienced, it was their lack of knowledge of him that played into his hands.

"The lengths they bowled this morning were fullish and I was looking to drive as I usually do," he said. "After I faced the first couple of overs of Kumar I felt he was a skiddy sort of a bowler and the best way to take him on was to drive him and hit him for a few fours. He swing it around a lot and I felt that If I was stuck around in my crease I was just sitting ducks."

The key to succeed in England has always remained the same: pitch on lengths that make the batsmen play and move the ball enough to bring the slips into play. Today the Indians created just a handful of such opportunities. One of them was plucked spectacularly by Ajinkya Rahane early in the morning session when he intercepted an outside edge from Leicestershire captain Matthew Boyce who was troubled by some away movement from Pankaj Singh.

Pankaj, along with Mohammad Shami and later Varun Aaron, were the pick of the Indian bowlers as the trio bowled at a good pace and created some doubts for the batsmen.

With another three-day match against Derbyshire starting on Tuesday, the Indians will ideally want to get an idea of their lead pack of bowlers for the first Test at Trent Bridge on July 9. They did, however, get a late boost when Ishant took two wickets in three balls in an aggressive over he was allowed to bowl in fading light.

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Solanki helps lay foundations

Surrey 68 for 1 (Solanki 44*) v Hampshire
Scorecard

Whether county cricket affords its paying customers sufficient regard is oft debated. The turgid pitches used in T20 are a particular current concern and The Oval, despite the huge crowds it attracts, is not immune to these charges: the top first innings score in the last nine T20s at the ground is 152.

So it was unfortunate that cricket should show itself in such unflattering light again today. After a scheduled start of 12, owing to the T20 match between the sides the previous night, rain delayed the start further. At 1.20, the covers were removed. Play looked all ready to start. Alas not: the umpires had already announced that lunch would be taken at 1.30. So the best weather of the day was totally bereft of play. With utter inevitability the showers then returned 20 balls later.

Still, that period was enough for Hampshire to showcase the prowess of their pace attack. Kyle Abbott and James Tomlinson have a strong claim to being the best opening pair on the county circuit: prior to this game, they had snared 63 Championship wickets at 20 apiece this season. Tomlinson needed only ten balls to add to that tally, trapping Zafar Ansari lbw for one. Umpire Stephen Gale raised his finger almost before Ansari had missed the ball.

Abbott and Tomlinson continued to bowl admirably when play resumed in melancholy skies almost four hours later. But they encountered sturdy resistance that hinted at further proof of Surrey's renewed steeliness. Rory Burns was typically resolute at the crease, while Vikram Solanki showcased his elegance after surviving Abbott's testing spell.

Given the grim attrition that marked much of Surrey's effort, there was an incongruous quality to Solanki's six off Danny Briggs. It sailed over long-on but it seemed like only a flick. After a delayed start to the season owing to personal problems, Solanki has blossomed this season: his 316 runs to date have come at 63 apiece.

Alec Stewart, Surrey's director of cricket was understandably impressed. "Vikram has been positive since he's come back in. He's a fine player, experienced and very good in the dressing room," he said. "His scoring shots were very very good. They've got through the hard work today and hopefully we can get through the hard work tomorrow and build a big first innings total."

Solanki might have some new company at the crease tomorrow. Tillakaratne Dilshan is the next man in, making his Championship debut at 37. There is also another, and rather more surprising, Surrey first-class debutant in Kevin O'Brien, who was previously assumed to have been a specialist T20 signing.

But O'Brien has been an important part of Surrey's impressive T20 campaign, mixing parsimonious seam-up bowling with the batting belligerence for which he is renowned. He also has a solid record in first-class cricket for Ireland, averaging 34 with the bat and 29 with the ball, and became the 700th player that Surrey have used in first-class cricket.

His selection also shed light on Surrey's strategy for handing Hampshire a first Championship defeat of the season, and adding further purpose to their own promotion berth. Surrey seem to be hoping to repeat the tactics that led to their victory against Leicestershire at The Oval on Wednesday: on a turning pitch, Ansari and Gareth Batty shared seventy overs - and nine wickets.

Hampshire responded with spin twins of their own, as 17-year-old offspinner Brad Taylor came in alongside Briggs for the second Championship match of his career. That Surrey withstood their five overs with ease before the close added to the sense of optimism that now pervades The Oval.

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Fletcher's yorkers dent Yorkshire's hopes

Nottinghamshire 143 for 9 (Taylor 52*, Sidebottom 3-24) beat Yorkshire 121 for 9 (Lees 37) by 22 runs
Scorecard

Roy keeps his supporters thrilled

Yorkshire's decisive week of T20 cricket - five matches in eight days - has not begun well: a washout in the Roses match to do further damage to their precarious finances and defeat at Trent Bridge less than 24 hours later as they came to a sticky end on a glued pitch.

Nottinghamshire's 143 for 9 felt a touch off the pace, but only Alex Lees, with a mature 37 at a run a ball, came close to matching the composure of James Taylor's excellent half-century for the home side. Yorkshire's challenge foundered with 42 needed off four overs when Adil Rashid was bowled for 21 by the broad-framed Luke Fletcher as he drifted in an excellent yorker.

Two long-on catches by James Franklin, the experienced New Zealander, off Harry Gurney, rounded things off for Nottinghamshire, who strengthened their hold on third place and left Yorkshire facing the likelihood of a scrap for the final qualifying spot with Warwickshire.

"I thought they were 20 runs below par, but batting wise we were not good enough," said Yorkshire's captain Andrew Gale. "The pitch was a bit slower than we anticipated, but it was a good wicket and we didn't take it to the opposition enough. Luke Fletcher nailed his yorkers at the end - he must have bowled 12 out of 12 - but we had left ourselves too much to do by then."

Fletcher is old school: reliably hitting the blockhole, and sweating up profusely on a relatively cool afternoon. He completed the job efficiently , building on strong spells by Samit Patel and Steven Mullaney. Mullaney's offcutters were perfectly suited to such a surface and Patel also turned in an inexpensive shift as Yorkshire lost their way in mid-innings. "They have been outstanding for a couple of years now," said Taylor, who also regarded Nottinghamshire's total as 20 runs short.

The NatWest Blast is working well in Nottingham: an attractive team, a well-appointed ground and healthy crowds. With Yorkshire in town, even without the presence of England's withdrawn Test players - under instructions to rest with the first Test a fortnight away - the game had enough quality players to have widespread appeal.

Perhaps a dozen counties at most can hope to match the same standards. If the ECB remains forever resistant to franchises, believing that county cricket should value its traditions, then it needs to debate the advantage of two divisions based on merit so those counties providing the product England's T20 needs can gain maximum benefit.

It was Taylor, shrewd both as captain and batsman, who assembled an innings of note for Nottinghamshire. This was not the usual 180-par surface normally seen at Trent Bridge and Taylor reassessed his team's needs intelligently as wickets fell around him.

His first 16 came in singles, in 20 deliveries,as he adapted wisely from the outset, rarely needing to display any weight of stroke to increase his tempo as his innings progressed. His half-century came up from the final ball of the innings, a full toss bashed down the ground, a landmark hard earned. He keeps delivering in all forms of the game and, if he continues in this vein, there will come a day when England's limited interest begins to look illogical.

Around him there was a whole lot of head shaking going on: Phil Jaques fell for nought, trying to guide Ryan Sidebottom to third man, Riki Wessels, one of the leading runmakers in the tournament, sliced high into the offside and Patel misjudged the length against Azeem Rafiq and was bowled trying to cut. But the most impressive dismissal fell to Tim Bresnan, who showed rifle-crack reactions in his follow through as Alex Hales battered back a return catch.

When Taylor despatched Rashid's last delivery to the cover boundary, Notts had raised 100 with five overs remaining, but visions of a late charge to 150 were unfulfilled. Franklin has strengthened Nottinghamshire's overseas resources in T20 after the impending return to Australia of Peter Siddle, who was on a Championship-only deal, but when Bresnan claimed him for 27 at long off, Taylor had to settle for a total that proved to be more competitive than he dared hope.

Runs came no more easily for Yorkshire at the top of the order. Aaron Finch fell rather weakly at short fine leg, Gale's unimpressive stay ended when he carved to third man, Jonny Bairstow self-destructed at long-on and when Mullaney brilliantly ran out Adam Lyth off his own bowling, demands proved too much for Lees.

Yorkshire are left needing to win at least two of their three matches next week in a run of five games in eight games. You could debate long into the night whether such a rush of fixtures is a good or bad thing, but it is not a level playing field. Even allowing for a congested fixture list (a problem of their own making), surely the ECB, which claims to have brought sanity to the fixture list, can do better than this?

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Rain curtails West Indies progress

West Indies 169 for 2 (Brathwaite 68, Edwards 42*) trail New Zealand 293 by 124 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

A resolute half-century from Kraigg Brathwaite was the cornerstone of West Indies progress on the second day. However, the majority of it was lost to rain. Grey clouds had circled Kensington Oval throughout the morning session and limited the day's play to less than six overs after lunch. New Zealand might not have minded the intervention. They had begun well but lost the initiative by flitting between various lines and lengths.

The first half hour lived up to its clichéd billing with the ball buzzing past the batsmen's ears. Chris Gayle was placed under particular discomfort as Trent Boult softened him up and Tim Southee almost had him caught at leg gully. New Zealand might have persisted with the experiment a little more, but Gayle hit himself out of trouble and three fours in three balls earned him some breathing space. He was approaching a third fifty in four innings when the temptation to loft Mark Craig became too strong and he holed out at long-on. The offspinner would have relished the wear and tear on the pitch at Kensington Oval. There was rough to exploit against both right and left-handers but he could not quite assert himself the way Sulieman Benn did on the first day.

Brathwaite was one of the reasons for keeping Craig at bay. His solidity was a known quantity in West Indies. His driving was eye-catching - a healthy forward stride to underpin a strong push. He used his bottom hand to keep the ball down and none of his 10 fours bore the imprint of being hit too hard. It was a mark of his composure at the crease, but he might have been a touch too lax as he drove on the up and was caught at cover.

The scoring rates in this Test have been very brisk. Kirk Edwards contributed to the continuation of that trend. His strokes were more flashy and fueled a second-wicket partnership of 74 with four fours and a six. West Indies' top order is not often the most reliable but having gone in with five bowlers, they had extra responsibility and the response so far must be pleasing to the captain Denesh Ramdin.

New Zealand fussed over the ball for much of the morning session, trying to persuade the umpires to change it. When their efforts did bear fruit, the replacement seemed to offer the seamers a bit more bite but Boult and Southee, on whom the visitors' attack sorely depended, were rather lacklustre and West Indies benefited to the tune of 127 runs for the loss of two wickets.

New Zealand needed to streamline their plans after lunch, especially with Edwards chugging along on 41 off 45 and the new batsman, Darren Bravo, fresh off a century in the previous Test. Brendon McCullum had employed attacking fields - his ploy of using a silly mid-on almost bore fruit, but Brathwaite's lazy drive had fallen short. He worked the same principle against Edwards, whose strokeplay was characterised by hard hands, by having two short covers. He made the right moves and after the break his bowlers responded better. Craig went around the wicket to generate some good bounce, Neil Wagner was persistent. Contest had been imbued back into the game, but it was not allowed to unfurl as what began as a faint drizzle kept gaining strength.

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Persistent showers force abandonment

Indians 333 for 4 (Dhawan 60*, Pujara 57, Gambhir 54) v Leicestershire
Scorecard

Showers that began the previous night and persisted through Friday morning and afternoon ended any chance of play on the second day of the Indians' warm-up match against Leicestershire. The umpires were meant to carry out an inspection at half past two in the afternoon, but their decision was made easier by the rain, which came down strongly, having stopped for an hour-long interval around lunch.

The covers had not been removed from overnight with the incessant drizzle dampening one of the largest outfields in cricket while causing large puddles to form across the covers that the groundstaff worked hard to clear but in vain. Incidentally the BCCI twitter even tweeted a premature message an hour before lunch: "Second day's play of the warm-up between Leicestershire and Indians has been called off due to rain."

Having managed quality batting time the Indians did not seem overly bothered. The visitors came to the ground at noon before heading to the indoor nets where they trained under the watchful eye of their coach Duncan Fletcher.

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WICB discusses Guyana cricket bill with government

The WICB has met with representatives of the Guyana government to discuss its concerns with the Guyana Cricket Administration Bill that was passed by the national assembly in May. Following meetings on June 23 and 24, the WICB issued a statement saying that all parties involved agreed there were issues with the bill that needed to be redressed.

The WICB will now prepare a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) which identifies areas of the bill that need to be revised, what the revisions should be, and a timeline for implementation of the revisions. The MoA will be signed by the WICB, the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) and the government of Guyana.

The bill paves the way for new GCB elections, bringing an end to the longstanding impasse between the board and the government; the issue dates back to the contentious elections in July 2011, when Ramsey Ali was elected president. The elections were boycotted by some of the board's constituent members, one of which, the Berbice Cricket Board, took the GCB to court, claiming the new administration was not properly established. The Chief Justice had recommended then that "there may be immediate need for the minister responsible for sports to impose his executive will in the national interest".

Following that ruling, Guyana's sports minister Dr Frank Anthony appointed an Interim Management Committee (IMC), headed by former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd, to run cricket in Guyana. The WICB, however, refused to acknowledge the IMC, in keeping with the ICC's stance against government intervention in cricket administration, and said the only authority it would recognise was the GCB.

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Two-in-two puts Sussex in the mix

Sussex 110 for 4 (Nash 74*) beat Middlesex 107 (Beer 3-22, Hatchett 3-23) by six wickets
Scorecard

In the ultra-competitive South Group a couple of wins can make a big difference. Before they travelled to Canterbury last week, Sussex, finalists as recently as 2012, had won three of their previous 18 games. They have now won two in a row and have gone from second-bottom in the section and up to fourth place and the last quarter-final spot.

A six-wicket win achieved with 23 balls to spare over a Middlesex side who remain bottom and with little chance of the knockout stages will not necessarily get their supporters rushing to the bookies to back Sussex for glory at Edgbaston in August.

They are likely to be without Matt Prior, Chris Jordan and Mike Yardy for most of the qualifying stage and their best batsman in the format so far, skipper Ed Joyce, rested a hamstring.

But successive wins is a step forward after five successive defeats and there was much to commend in Sussex's performance. They took 10 wickets, just as they had against Kent last week, fielded well and then one of their openers, in this instance Chris Nash, anchored the reply.

Nash, leading the side in Joyce's absence, made 74 off 53 balls with five fours and three sixes, the last of them a straight hit off James Harris to seal victory at the start of the 18th over.

His clean ball-striking and adroit placement against the spinners certainly put Middlesex's dismal batting in perspective. Although Ryan Higgins' promising innings of 31 was ended by a ball from James Anyon which scuttled through, too many of their batsmen played injudicious shots.

Hove groundsman Andy Mackay felt it was a 160-180 pitch and Middlesex would have batted first had they won the toss. There was certainly some pace and carry for the quicker bowlers as Eoin Morgan discovered when he touched a lifter from Anyon which wicketkeeper Ben Brown held above his head.

There was turn too with Will Beer's first ball bowling Dawid Malan out of the rough. The legspinner picked up 3 for 22 and when Hatchett returned at the end to pick up two more scalps the left-arm seamer had competition best figures of 3 for 23.

Sussex lost their talisman Luke Wright early in the reply, lbw on the walk to Harris, and a promising start by Harry Finch was ended by a direct hit from cover by Higgins after a mix-up with Nash. But Rory Hamilton-Brown played sensibly in support of his captain and it was still daylight when Nash struck the winning blow.

Was it a good T20 wicket? That is debatable, but a crowd of more than 5,000 enjoyed themselves, particularly the hundreds of youngsters allowed extra time by the early finish to enjoy their own games when the flooded onto the outfield.

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Poor pitches killing English T20

More than match-fixing, chucking or the absence of cricket from free-to-air television, poor pitches will destroy cricket and turn away spectators from the English game

"Take me to Lord's to see someone I've never heard of, nurdle someone else I've never heard of off their legs for a single," is an expression no child has ever uttered.

The NatWest T20 Blast is not for the purist. It is not about subtlety. It is not, really, even about winning. It is about attracting new spectators to the game. It was re-launched only a few weeks ago to double - yes, double - attendances over the next three or four years.

So it is essential it contains the biggest names, boundary hitting and fast bowling to appeal to those who are left untouched by longer forms of the game. It is essential it provides fast-moving, attractive, entertainment.

So it was a shame that, on the day it became clear that the ECB were not going to honour their commitment to back the re-launched competition by making England players available, that the pitch at Lord's for Middlesex's match against Gloucestershire should provide so little chance of entertainment to a crowd of 14,000.

Dry, cracked and uneven, it provided too much assistance for the bowlers and produced cagey cricket lacking the big hitting or eye-catching bowling that could sell the game to a new audience. It was like going to watch The Rolling Stones play their greatest hits and instead find them experimenting with an evening of Belgian jazz.

Matches like this present a chance to appeal to a new audience; a chance to inspire new supporters and new players. With very little cricket available on free-to-air TV, it is the shop window for our game.

But, all too often, the English game is self-harming with this sort of surface. A surface lacking the pace and bounce to encourage attractive cricket. A surface encouraging canny medium-pacers and dart-like spinners. A surface that creates boring cricket.

All too often, new spectators will taste the game once and never return.

And it may well get worse. Pitches for the 50-over competition later in the season may well be even more tired and dry. They will offer even more wretched entertainment. They will damage cricket even more.

It is not entirely the groundsmen's fault. They are obliged to prepare so many pitches during the course of a season that they simply run out of space. They have no choice but to re-use wickets, particularly when the requirements of broadcasters insist that games are played towards the centre of the square.

The new drainage installed at grounds around the country might be relevant, too. There is increasing evidence to suggest that groundsmen are simply unable to retain moisture in pitches and, as a consequence, there is a lack of pace and more assistance to spin than might be required. It is a factor that might become increasingly relevant in the Investec Test series against India.

In the longer-term the ECB are likely to consider centrally-contracted groundsmen. Then they can demand pitches for the benefit of the national game as a whole, not just the home county. But the ECB will also have to fund groundsmen adequately to ensure they have the required resources. This is too important an area of the game to skimp.

Pitches like this will kill the game. More than match-fixing, chucking or the absence of cricket from free-to-air television, poor pitches will destroy the product and turn away spectators. The game has to do better and for Lord's, the home of cricket, to provide such a surface for such an encounter, is bitterly disappointing.

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England prescribe rest to jaded squad

England have decided that rest will be the best cure for the team that slipped to their first series defeat on home soil against Sri Lanka. 10 of the 11 that played in the series are to miss the next round of County Championship games starting on Sunday, as well as NatWest T20 Blast games that precede them.

There is an irony in the only exception to the decision. Moeen Ali, who batted throughout the final day to take England within two balls of saving the Test and the series, will play in Worcestershire's Championship match against Glamorgan. While there will be few concerns about his batting, the England selectors will be keen to see him gain some more bowling time with the red ball after Moeen admitted in Leeds that he felt more confident delivering his doosra with the white ball.

Chris Woakes, who was also in the England squad for the Sri Lanka series but did not play, is free to play both in Warwickshire's T20 and Championship side.

All those not involved in matches will attend a two-day training camp in Loughborough, with the England squad for the first Test of the Investec series against India to be named in the middle of the week.

While the decision to rest the seam bowlers, in particular, is not a surprise, the decision to rest wicketkeeper Matt Prior is more perplexing. Prior endured a poor game with the gloves at Headingley and, having struggled with injury in the early stages of the season, had only kept in one first-class game before the Test series. As well as dropping a couple of chances, Prior also conceded 31 byes in the two-Test series.

England's inconsistent performance against Sri Lanka might have convinced the team management that the players required more time in the middle. But, perhaps with one eye to the future schedule - the entire five-Test series against India takes place in a six-week window - it has instead been concluded that rest may be of more benefit.

It was alarming to note how jaded some England players appeared towards the end of the second Test. James Anderson, despite an otherwise exemplary series, experienced one of his worst days in several years on the fourth day at Headingley, while Stuart Broad has a long-standing knee problem that limited him to two first-class games ahead of the series and appeared to be hampering him at times during it. Chris Jordan, so impressive in the limited-overs series and in early-season for Sussex, also appeared to have lost just a bit of nip.

It was also noticeable that those men - Joe Root and Prior, in particular - exposed to the pace and hostility of Mitchell Johnson in Australia seemed least able to cope with the pace of the Sri Lankan seamer Dhammika Prasad. England's problems may well stem more from feeling mentally jaded than physically.

Indeed, in years to come, the burn out of Jonathan Trott, the premature retirement of Graeme Swann, even the struggles of Alastair Cook and Steven Finn, may be seen as a reflection of a schedule that simply asks too much - physically but most of all mentally - of the best players. Nearly 300 days a year in hotels and, just as importantly, in the somewhat intense England environment, does little to retain the joy and freshness that is required to excel at the top level in sport.

Perhaps it is more surprising that the players have been withdrawn from Friday night's T20 programme. Not only might the relative freedom of a white-ball innings have freed up the likes of Cook to recover some form but, only a few weeks ago, the ECB re-launched the competition with assurances that England players would be made available more often. Even with the county game fighting for relevance and financial viability, it seems it will receive little help from the England camp.

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