Graveney denies England prioritise Tests

David Graveney, England's chairman of selectors, has denied claims that the side are prioritising Test-match cricket over the one-day game.

His comments come on the back of another poor performance in a one-day tournament by England, whose defeat of West Indies at the weekend was scant consolation for being eliminated at the group stage.

"We treat one-day cricket with the same intensity and attention to detail as we do Test cricket," Graveney insisted. "It's true that some people who support English cricket are only interested in Test matches, but we know we have to earn the support we get for one-day games ... you do not have that by right ... and you do that by putting up good performances and winning matches. We have not done that and we know we have work to do.

"Nobody is sitting on their hands and not rating one-day cricket as important as Test match cricket," he continued. "For me, it is equally important. Despite what a lot of people said, we went to India to win the tournament, so if you do not win it and you are out before the first stage is over, then it is obviously disappointing."

Asked about the forthcoming Ashes, Graveney admitted that the scheduling of major events was against England. "We always have an Ashes series before a World Cup, which obviously slightly affects our preparation going into the tournament," he said. "But [the World Cup] will be great viewing time for the UK this time, and we will be doing everything we can to realise our potential."

England have won only seven of their last 24 ODIs.