England make their mark in ODIs

Mike Atherton, writing in the Times, says England are finally emerging from their limited-overs shadows with a series win in South Africa. The result, he says, is due to their acceptance of the fact that athleticism is non-negotiable, and their increased emphasis on power-batting.

It is with the management team that we must start, because Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower, captain and team manager respectively, have wrought, arguably, an even bigger improvement in England’s one-day fortunes since the drubbing by Australia than they did with the Test side after the debacle in Jamaica — a performance that led to a great deal of soul-searching and, thereafter, to greater honesty. An Ashes victory was the end game of that change in attitude; a World Cup showing better than any since 1992 now their aim in the limited-overs game.