Collingwood embarks on a long road

England begin rebuilding their ODI side from scratch. Again. The man responsible for that is Paul Collingwood, busybody middle order bat, dibbly-dobbly seaming option, fielding tryo and one of only a few players guaranteed a spot in the ODI side. Mike Selvey, writing in The Guardian, assesses the appointment, as well as the new blood inducted into the side.

As expected, and generally advocated, Paul Collingwood was confirmed yesterday as England's captain for the forthcoming one-day internationals and Twenty20 matches against West Indies. Collingwood has little experience of captaincy - and none at this level - and the England selectors, including the coach, Peter Moores, are offering him the chance to learn the skills on the hoof so that by the 2011 World Cup, England having played around 80 matches in that time, he will be by a distance their most experienced leader ever in limited-overs cricket

Meanwhile, Michael Atherton, in The Sunday Telegraph and Vic Marks, for The Observer, give their take on Collingwood's appointment.