Bangladesh bat, Mashrafe injured

Toss Bangladesh chose to bat v West Indies
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim chose to bat first against West Indies in the only T20 at Warner Park. It was the logical thing to do, and will be some respite as they would now look to post a big total.

Shamsur Rahman and Mohammad Mithun have been included in the team at the cost of Imrul Kayes and Mominul Haque who played in the third ODI. Mashrafe Mortaza has been sidelined with a groin injury while Sohag Gazi has been dropped. Abdur Razzak, thought to be out of Bangladesh's T20 plans, remains in the side.

West Indies have four medium-pace bowling allrounders filling up the spots from No. 5 onwards. Andre Russell who was one of the standout players in the recent Caribbean Premier League has been picked, while Sulieman Benn and Andre Fletcher have been benched. They will have two left-arm pace bowlers - Krishmar Santokie and Sheldon Cottrell - in the playing XI while Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo are back in the T20 side.

West Indies: 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Dwayne Smith, 3 Lendl Simmons, 4 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 5 Dwayne Bravo, 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Andre Russell, 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Krishmar Santokie, 11 Sheldon Cottrell

Bangladesh: 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Anamul Haque, 3 Shamsur Rahman, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), 5 Mohammad Mithun, 6 Nasir Hossain, 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Abdur Razzak, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Al-Amin Hossain, 11 Rubel Hossain

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Tait one-day comeback on the cards

Fast bowler Shaun Tait could come out of one-day retirement this summer, having declared himself available for South Australia's 50-over campaign for the first time since 2010-11. Tait retired from one-day cricket after the 2011 World Cup and for the past three seasons has focused exclusively on Twenty20, but he wants to help his state win more silverware before his career ends for good.

The physicality of Tait's bowling action made first-class cricket a challenge to sustain and he retired from the longer format in 2007-08, but continued as a one-day player for another three years. Now aged 31 and having stayed active in T20 with the Adelaide Strikers and other teams around the world, Tait said he would be available for up to four matches of this year's Matador BBQ's One-Day Cup in October.

"I was playing T20 cricket and I thought in a couple of years if I'm retired, would I regret anything?" Tait told the Advertiser. "The only thing I could think of was not having some success with South Australia.

"It's been a while since I've been really determined to do something in cricket and this is one of them. I'm determined to play for South Australia and be successful, because I think the state needs it as well."

Tait was a key part of Australia's successful 2007 World Cup campaign in the West Indies, where he collected 23 wickets and was third on the overall tally, and he also took part in the 2011 World Cup. And while Australia's coach Darren Lehmann wants his fast bowlers to have genuine pace, a call-up for next year's home World Cup is not likely to be on the horizon for Tait.

"I suppose if everything is going well, if my body is going well and I'm bowling 155kph and taking wickets, why not? But it might not go that way," Tait said. "Cricket Australia have got their group of players who are pretty good at the moment, the attack against Zimbabwe on Monday night was very good, Johnson, Starc, Richardson and there's probably five other blokes in the wings.

"So they might go down a completely different path even if I am doing well. But if everything was going well, and they came to me and said 'We've got a couple of injuries, come and play' -- brilliant, I'd love to."

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'I want to play all three formats' - Lyon

Before Monday, offspinner Nathan Lyon had played 33 Tests and two ODIs for Australia. On Monday, 29 months after his previous ODI, he did not have the most effective of comebacks in the Zimbabwe triangular series, conceding 42 runs in seven overs while the hosts bowled out for just 152. His one-day bowling, Lyon explained on the eve of Australia's match against South Africa, was a "work in progress", and he said that he still wants to play all three formats for Australia.

"I was pretty nervous and excited, playing again after two years. The main aim was to try and help Australia to victory, and the challenge now is to back it up against South Africa tomorrow," Lyon said. "I want to play all three formats for Australia. I'm just always looking forward to the next opportunity. The main message I have received from the coaches is to work on my consistency. I have also been working on different variations, so it's currently a work in progress."

In his 33 Tests, Lyon has 112 wickets at 32.99, and that experience he said is a plus for him as he tries to showcase his ODIs skills to the selectors ahead of the 2015 World Cup. "I've had a few different challenges at Test level. In ODIs, things are a lot more compact and things happen a lot quicker. But I feel I've grown as a player and my experiences in Tests have definitely helped me."

It has also helped him having Muttiah Muralitharan around, he said. Murali, who has been signed on as Australia's coaching consultant for this year's Test series against Pakistan in the UAE, had worked with Lyon in Sri Lanka a couple of months ago, reportedly helping him develop a carrom ball. "Listening to Murali provides you with confidence," Lyon said. "He backed me up by saying that my skill set was heading in the right way. Getting such a compliment from him is very special."

Lyon said he expects South Africa to try and go after him, and he is prepared. "South Africa are a world class side, so it's going to be a great challenge. We need to put our best foot forward," he said. "There's no doubt they're going to target me, but I'm ready for it. It's a good opportunity for me to take some wickets."

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Mathews - 0 hundreds, 22 fifties

0 Number of times that that a 300-plus total has been successfully chased down in an ODI in Sri Lanka. The highest total that has been chased down successfully in Sri Lanka is the 288 that Pakistan had set Sri Lanka at Dambulla in 2009. There have been two instances of teams, India and Sri Lanka, scoring 300-plus runs during an ODI chase in Sri Lanka, but both came in close losses.

6 Number of Pakistan wicketkeepers to have effected 50 ODI dismissals. Umar Akmal became the latest addition on the list when he took a catch to dismiss Upul Tharanga off the bowling of Wahab Riaz. Moin Khan leads the list with 287 ODI dismissals.

22 Number of fifties that Angelo Mathews has now scored in ODI cricket. This is the most fifties scored by a Sri Lankan batsman who does not have an ODI hundred. Chamara Kapugedera with eight fifties is a distant second. Across countries, Misbah-ul-Haq holds the record, with 37 fifties and no hundred. Mathews is also one of only five batsmen to have made 3000-plus ODI runs without scoring a century.

90 Number of 50-plus scores that Mahela Jayawardene has made in ODI cricket. There are only nine players who have made 90 or more such scores, an elite list led by Sachin Tendulkar (145) and Ricky Ponting (112). The only others with 100 or more 50-plus scores are Kumar Sangakkara (105) and Jacques Kallis (103).

2 Number of times that Seekkuge Prasanna has got to double digits in his 11 ODI innings. Prasanna batted at No. 6 today and was dismissed lbw for 1 by Mohammad Hafeez. Apart from his scores of 42 and 22, both versus Pakistan, Prasanna's highest ODI score is 8*.

19 Number of balls that Sri Lanka needed to go from 250 to 300. The breakup of Sri Lanka's 50s throughout the innings was erratic and makes for interesting reading - the first fifty came off 46 balls, the next off 70, the third off 42, the fourth off 75 and the penultimate fifty came off only 40 balls.

30 Number of times that Hafeez has taken two or more wickets in an ODI innings, without ever taking a four-for. He returned figures of 3-39 in this game. The only player to have two or more wickets on more occasions, without ever taking four wickets, is R Ashwin, who has done this 37 times in ODIs.

75 Number of balls (or 12.3 overs) in which Pakistan got their first 100 runs. This is Pakistan's fourth fastest 100 since 2001. Their fastest 100 in this period was in 10.4 overs against India at Kanpur in 2005. Earlier in the innings, Pakistan had got to 50 off 40 balls - their fastest in the last seven years, since another game against India at Kanpur in 2007.

45 Hafeez's ODI average in the 33 innings when he has batted at No. 3 for Pakistan. He batted at No. 3 today and scored a brisk 62 off 49 balls. In the 110 innings that he has opened the innings, his average is only 28.2. Only four of Hafeez's nine ODI hundreds have come when he has opened the innings, with the remaining five coming at No. 3.

15 Number of times that a Sri Lankan player has made a 50-plus score and taken three wickets in the same ODI, Thisara Perera becoming the latest. Sanath Jayasurya has done this on six occasions, with no other Sri Lankan having done it more than thrice. In all ODI cricket, this has been done 174 times.

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Taylor's best earns Nottinghamshire semi-final

Nottinghamshire 313 for 5 (Taylor 146*, Patel 55) beat Derbyshire 228 (North 67, Patel 4-49, Shahza 3-33) by 85 runs
Scorecard

Highlights: Nottinghamshire thrash Derbyshire

James Taylor would be quite justified in asking what more he must do to be given the chance to relaunch his England career. As Nottinghamshire advanced to the semi-finals of the Royal London Cup, it was their captain who made it possible, marking his 100th appearance in List A matches with his third century in five outings, his 11th in the format overall, going on to finish with a career-best 146 not out.

The first of the aforementioned three in five was for England Lions, whom he also captained, in the 50-over tri-series against Sri Lanka and New Zealand's A teams earlier this month, which would seem to be as good a place as any for him to advertise his form.

Given that they have lost both Alex Hales and Harry Gurney at a key point in their season, his Nottinghamshire team-mates would have been seriously inconvenienced if England had wanted Taylor for the one-day matches against India as well, yet they must wonder why he was overlooked. Interestingly, his average in one-day cricket is 52.33, compared with 36.55 for Hales.

On a slow pitch, this was a wonderful, beautifully paced innings, sensibly cautious at the start, when the bowlers were getting some movement under heavy cloud cover following Monday's deluge, nicely measured thereafter as Samit Patel, Riki Wessels and James Franklin played the key supporting roles, and with an explosion at the end.

He and Patel added 136 for the third wicket despite the best efforts of the latter to bring about his demise, calling for a single not once but twice and sending his captain back when halfway down the pitch. Thus, on 26 and then 71, Taylor had to propel himself through the dirt and hope his bat was grounded at the critical moment. Patel did at least make some runs of his own, passing fifty for the first time this year in 50-over cricket.

This followed a double calamity in the fourth over after Taylor had won the toss and elected to bat first. Michael Lumb, looking in good touch as he hit the erratic Mark Footitt for four boundaries in the third, was run out at the non-striker's end as Ben Cotton deflected a firm drive by Steven Mullaney into the stumps. Two balls later, Mullaney pushed at one outside off stump and edged to Wayne Madsen at first slip.

Patel fell, hooking Footitt into the hands of Bill Godleman on the square-leg boundary, during a batting Powerplay that added 40 between the 33rd over and the 38th, advancing Nottinghamshire's total to 198 for 3. Wessels hit 28 off 19 balls before he was caught at midwicket off a mistimed sweep, Franklin 27 off 26 before he was run out, and Taylor, once he had completed his hundred off 134 balls, let rip to add 46 more from 20 deliveries, including three sixes off Cotton and another off Tony Palladino.

David Wainwright, the left-arm spinner, bowled nicely, conceding only 35 runs from his 10 overs, but the frontline bowlers leaked runs at more than seven an over, with Footitt a particular disappointment after enjoying a good season in general, his county's leading wicket-taker in this competition and the Championship.

Derbyshire would have needed to make the highest total in their history to win a one-day match batting second and though they kept pace with Nottinghamshire's scoring rate for the first 20 overs or so they fell away steadily thereafter, despite Marcus North's 67. Patel denied North the chance to inflict any further damage and was supported to greatest effect by Ajmal Shahzad, who took 3 for 33.

Shahzad, having bowled Godleman off an inside edge for 25, struck an important blow when Madsen drove a slower ball in the air to Sam Wood at cover. Patel bowled Alex Hughes and had Scott Elstone caught behind thanks to the still extraordinary reflexes of wicketkeeper Chris Read before Derbyshire's chance diminished to the point of mere academic possibility during the batting Powerplay, when North went down the pitch to be stumped off Patel and Gareth Cross, who had threatened briefly by smiting 23 off 14 balls before a miscue that Taylor took very well over his shoulder at cover gave the left-arm spinner his fourth success in the space of 22 deliveries.

Wainwright gamely gathered 41 off 30 balls coming in at nine as Nottinghamshire allowed the last two wickets to add 65 but it was labour in vain.

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Decision on Rajasthan's domestic participation likely within a week

The decision over whether Rajasthan teams will feature in the upcoming domestic season is likely to be made within a week. ESPNcricinfo understands the BCCI omitted Rajasthan teams from the fixtures of all domestic tournaments across age groups, including the Ranji Trophy, since the deadlock between the Rajsathan state government, the Rajasthan Cricket Association and the Indian board continues and time was running out for distributing the season's schedule.

The BCCI top brass is likely to take a call based on a report by the ad-hoc committee, which was appointed by the Indian board to oversee the running of the game in disputed members' territories. The committee had recently got the cold shoulder by Rajasthan government officials, but the Brijesh Patel-led committee is likely to make another attempt to sort out the impending issues and have the RCA's cricketing affairs managed by itself in conjunction with the state government.

Since the BCCI has to allow for enough time for the selection process and logistical arrangements to be put in place, the ad-hoc committee has been advised to submit its report by the end of the week. On Saturday, BCCI interim president Shivlal Yadav told ESPNcricinfo the decision will have to be taken before the inter-state junior cricket tournaments start in early October.

Meanwhile, the RCA executive board will meet on Tuesday to decide its future course of action.

While a theory had been floated that Rajasthan players may be allowed to field a team under a different title, it has been clarified that that is impractical, as the BCCI rules allow only full member teams to participate in inter-state tournaments.

Rajasthan's omission from the domestic programme has expectedly raised concerns among the players. Some senior Rajasthan players confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that they hadn't heard from the RCA or the BCCI, and were hoping that both sides will not let the players suffer.

The RCA conducted a pre-season fitness camp in July. During the camp, it was hinted that Rajasthan, which had heavily relied on signing professionals in the last five years, would not hire any professional players this season. Since then, the players have been waiting to hear details on the team's training camp ahead of the domestic season.

The RCA is headed by former IPL chairman Lalit Modi, who was announced as elected president in May. However, since Modi has been expelled from the BCCI, the BCCI suspended RCA on May 6. Modi could enter the RCA polls through the door that was made open to him by the Rajasthan Sports Act, which governs the RCA's constitution.

When suspending the RCA, the BCCI had said it would not let the Rajasthan players suffer.

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Ramdin, Bravo centuries flay Bangladesh

West Indies 338 for 7 (Ramdin 169, Bravo 124) beat Banglandesh 247 for 8 (Mushfiqur 72, Tamim 55) by 91 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Denesh Ramdin wouldn't have had as much fun on a cricket field as on Monday afternoon at Warner Park. His malevolent 169 was part of the highest third wicket partnership in ODIs with Darren Bravo, who also accumulated a century, and ensured West Indies completed a 3-0 whitewash by 91 runs.

The hosts were catapulted to 338 for 7 in 50 overs, a score that was well out of Bangladesh's reach especially at a time when their batsmen are scraping the bottom of the confidence barrel. But they are due some for bouncing back after such a hiding, making 247 for 8, having lasted their full quota.

Bangladesh were 2 for 2 in the second over and were threatening to sink further, but Tamim Iqbal struck his first international fifty in more than nine months and 18 innings. Mushfiqur Rahim top scored with 72, but since he holed out in the deep the last hopes his team had faded away.

West Indies' bowlers could bide their time thanks to Ramdin and Bravo. The duo clattered 19 sixes, the most by West Indies in an ODI en route to amassing 258 runs for the third wicket, beating the previous record held by Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers by 20 runs. For most of their union, it was hard to see past their bats as they dined on a bowling attack that was at times perfect for big hitting.

Mashrafe Mortaza and Al-Amin Hossain, despite the early promise, barely clocked above 130 kmph while Abdur Razzak, Sohag Gazi and Mahmudullah persisted with shortish darts. With a moderate-sized ground, a flat surface and with a bit of wind behind them, West Indies simply took off.

The early losses of Lendl Simmons and Chris Gayle were forgotten with Ramdin and Bravo using singles to ease the pressure. But there was a change is tactics in the 19th over - 10 runs were taken off it, 19 was smacked in the 22nd over, with Ramdin peppering the crowd behind midwicket and Bravo opting to go straight.

Ramdin razed three sixes off Mortaza in the 38th over and hurtled to his second century in four ODIs. Bravo reached his hundred soon after, a knock that was a long time coming as he has struggled to convert fifties into three-figure marks in ODIs.

Ramdin struck 11 sixes while Bravo contributed eight and while they made merry, although none of it would have happened if Bangladesh had held onto their chances

Mushfiqur missed a stumping off Bravo, batting on 10, when Abdur Razzak beat him in length. The ball was so poorly fumbled that the wicketkeeper flailed at air when he tried for a second time. Razzak had his own gaffe when he didn't get under a looping ball in mid-on after Ramdin skied Mashrafe on 35.

Razzak lost his form, bowling much too short and far too quickly. Gazi's struggles might be understandable, considering the scrutiny surrounding his bowling actions. He hardly found a rhythm, and was perhaps wrongly entrusted with the first over of the match with all the focus on him. Al-Amin was the only saving grace, ending up with his second four-wicket haul in ODIs, both coming in this series. But he could rein in the West Indies batsmen.

West Indies also faced difficulty with Bangladesh's third-wicket stand. Mushfiqur and Tamim added 99 runs with a bit of style, but the bluster was obviously missing. Anamul Haque and Imrul Kayes were gone by the first eleven balls, the latter to Kemar Roach's stunning one-handed catch at mid-on. Mahmudullah offered some more resistance through a 55-run fifth wicket stand with his captain. The contest faded away in the 22nd over when Tamim got out, and the rest of the game couldn't have ended sooner.

The abiding memory from the first-ever day-night match at Warner Park, though, would be what happened during day time. Ramdin and Bravo slamming one six after another made to keep the fans singing and dancing.

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Marsh looks to build on 'special' knock

A lot has been said in local circles about the length of time between Australia's visits to Zimbabwe, with the last full side having toured just over a decade ago. Darren Lehmann was the grizzled, nuggety centre of Australia's middle order on their last trip here. Michael Clarke was young and nubile enough to justify the nickname 'Pup', and cracked his first international hundred in the third ODI of that series. Now they are coach and captain - but they are not the only Australians with significant experience of Zimbabwean conditions.

Geoff Marsh was Zimbabwe's coach back in 2004, and his son Mitchell spent a couple of his formative years in this country as a child. "Yeah, I've got a few good memories!" he said after Australia's 198-run win against Zimbabwe. "I've also been here the last couple of years with the Australia A team, so it's almost my second home now. I've almost played more cricket here than the WACA so it's great to be back here. It's a beautiful country and we've all said that if we can get a couple of days off and get out and see it, it would be great for the guys who haven't been here before."

Nostalgia aside, Marsh was even more ebullient over his experience of batting at No. 3 for Australia and racing to his first international fifty, particularly given the growing pains he has experienced as a cricketer and a young man over the last five years. At 17, Marsh was the youngest man ever to play in Australia's domestic one-day competition, and was Western Australia's youngest debutant for more than 70 years, having made a name for himself breaking batting records for Fremantle. But questions remained over his ability to make good on that potential, and a taste for the wild side of life - forgivable for most youngsters but seemingly not so for a professional sportsman - did not help.

"I don't think 'turned a corner' is the right way of putting it, but we all know that I've had a few ups and downs," he admitted. "My biggest focus over the last 12 months has been progressing both as a person and staying on the park. It's been a great few months.

"So it was special [bringing up my first international fifty]. I just had the role to get us as deep as I could, and obviously if we had wickets in hand at the end, with the batting we have we could apply some pressure to their bowlers. I thought Maxi [Glenn Maxwell] and all the other guys at the end batted really well to get us to a great total. It was certainly good fun to watch. I was very happy being at the other end. He's a special player and that was a great innings from him."

Marsh and Maxwell added 109 for the fourth wicket at more than 12-an-over, with Marsh also having contributed to partnerships of 47 and 33 with Aaron Finch and George Bailey, respectively. He departed to a mis-hit to long-on in sight of his hundred, for 89, but still had enough energy to bowl five nippy overs and pick up the wicket of Sean Williams. There was no hint that Marsh's batting effort sapped his will to bowl - that he'd 'lost a yard'.

"I don't really have too many yards to work with to be honest, but I don't see that. I've got my body at the stage now where it's hopefully going to be able to handle the rigours of international cricket and if I stay on the park hopefully I can continue progressing."

It remains to be seen whether Marsh's top-order promotion will continue in the long term and he can emulate his cricketing hero, Jacques Kallis. But his productive start in the position will not have hurt his efforts. "In the practice game in Brisbane when I batted at three, Pup sort of said 'you've got an opportunity there now', so fingers crossed I can stick around. They've certainly shown a lot of faith in me, and hopefully I can repay that. I certainly feel like I'm ready to take up that challenge."

His job will become rather more daunting when Australia take on South Africa on Wednesday, with Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel returning to the fray. "It'll be a tough contest," Marsh said. "I'm certainly not scared or anything, I'm looking forward to the opportunity to face those guys. Hopefully I can play a role for the team."

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Namibia to host ICC WCL Division Two

The ICC has announced that Namibia has been selected to host ICC World Cricket League Division Two from January 17-24. The host side will be joined by Canada, Kenya, Netherlands and the top two teams promoted from Division Three in the six-team round-robin event. The ICC also reconfirmed that Uganda will remain host of Division Three, which is scheduled to be held from October 26-November 2, despite security concerns raised by the USA Cricket Association.

Division Two represents a major opportunity for Associates to improve their status as the first and second place teams at the event will qualify to take part in the next edition of the World Cricket League Championship 50-over competition for Associates as well as the four-day ICC Intercontinental Cup. Both competitions will begin later in 2015 and continue through 2017.

In addition to the top two teams from Division Two, the other teams that will feature in the next edition of the WCL Championship and Intercontinental Cup are Ireland, Afghanistan, Scotland, UAE, Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea. Ireland and Afghanistan secured qualification to the 2015 World Cup by virtue of finishing first and second in the last edition of the WCL Championship.

Namibia and Kenya were the only two countries to submit bids to host Division Two with Canada and Netherlands unable to host during the northern hemisphere winter. Namibia previously hosted the inaugural WCL Division Two tournament in December 2007, which was won by Oman.

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Hales in as England attempt subtle evolution

England's selectors have given Alastair Cook their backing and he will have a new opening partner as the focus turns to a marathon of one-day cricket culminating in the World Cup

Hales celebrates England selection call with ton for Nottinghamshire

How many times in one summer should a captain be expected to save his job? In the eyes of England's selectors, probably only once. Alastair Cook re-established his authority as England's Test captain during their 3-1 defeat of India in the Investec Test series. His resilience could not have been clearer. It would be immensely wearying for him to imagine that he might have to do it all again.

In these days of split captaincy, securing a position as Test captain, however redoubtable the effort, is not automatically useful now England face seven months of unbroken ODI cricket, climaxed by the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

Cook's Test career has always been his strongest suit. His place in the one-day side has been debated regularly. The debate will continue, even if only at a low level, but all the signs are that it is an irrelevant one.

He might have built a castle in the mountains only to find the next campaign is on the coast. But he has benefited from the examination of his captaincy credentials. His leadership is no longer an inheritance, it is now a thing of substance.

That England's selectors are intent on Cook leading England in the World Cup is apparent. Barring disasters, any debate is superfluous. The chance to make a change was now, ahead of a Royal London ODI series against India - the first of them in Bristol on Monday - more 50-over cricket in Sri Lanka before Christmas and a triangular series in Australia, with India the third participants, in the New Year.

But they had little heart for it, especially when one of the strongest candidates, Eoin Morgan, was having such a dismal time in charge of Middlesex. Instead they are calculating that signs of a new England Test side coming together will feed positively into the 50-over side.

The decision taken, the time has come for consistent planning. England can now commit time to addressing their long-perceived cricketing weaknesses in the 50-over format. No longer will they have to do this as an afterthought. It is what this run of one-day series was designed for.

"We haven't had this period ever - certainly not since I started - where you have had just one-day cricket for seven months," Cook said. "There's time to dedicate to practicing those skills that are needed for one-day cricket, especially the extra skills you need like in the Powerplay overs, both with bat and ball, and death bowling. And that is what we will need to do if we are to have a chance of winning the World Cup in what will be good conditions for us."

Changes are subtle ones. Cook will have a new opening partner in Alex Hales, who he suggested would be given the entire series to prove himself. Ian Bell is also scheduled to bat at No. 3. Hales gives England more energy at the top of the order, but it is his ability to make hundreds - four of them in 50-over cricket in the wink of an eye - which has finally persuaded England's selectors to turn to him.

	"He is a different batter to the other guys - he hits the ball incredibly hard, in different areas, with an unorthodox technique" Alastair Cook on Alex Hales

Cook will benefit from the change, but he knows he cannot regard Hales' presence as permission to potter on at whatever rate he chooses. A captain with a career strike rate in ODIs of 78 runs per 100 balls has been paired with a young buck with a List A strike rate of 100. But Cook is keen to point out that since his return to England's ODI side, his strike rate is above 80 runs per 100 balls. He knows that cannot be allowed to diminish.

"I don't think it changes my role," he said, of Hales' inclusion. "The job of the top four or five is to try and score a hundred and win the game, by setting up the game. You have to try and do it in your way. What's pleasing about Alex over the last month or so is that he has scored four centuries for Nottinghamshire and at a good rate too.

"He is a different batter to the other guys - he hits the ball incredibly hard, in different areas, with an unorthodox technique. He's done really well in T20 cricket and he's got the opportunity over these five games to show us what he can do in 50-over cricket."

Suggestions of a major overhaul of the ODI squad were wide of the mark. The only obvious victim is Ravi Bopara and because of his all-round ability with bat and ball, his absence causes England immediate selection problems.

The exclusion of Bopara essentially commits England to a five-bowler strategy for the World Cup, believing that a phalanx of high-quality seamers is their strongest chance of belying their outsiders status in Australia and New Zealand with a strong challenge.

Hales' inclusion must therefore impact on a batsman. As unlikely as it seems, with Bell earmarked for No. 3, Gary Ballance or Joe Root could be in contention for the No. 4 spot, followed by Eoin Morgan, either Moeen Ali or Ben Stokes as an allrounder, and the wicketkeeper Jos Buttler.

Bristol has had a welcome makeover, so becoming the latest England ground to make definite advances in the past decade or so, but for all that it remains England's most rudimentary international venue. It does not immediately strike you as a place where successful World Cup campaigns are first bedded in, and England do not strike many as potential World Cup winners. It is time for them to try to change that perception.

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