Thorpe warns of England's need for young one-day players

Graham Thorpe warned that England need to look to the future after his team lost the second One-Day International to Sri Lanka and with it the three-match series.

Thorpe, standing in for the injured Nasser Hussain, saw his side go down to a 66-run defeat under lights at the Premadasa Stadium, after losing the first match in Dambulla by five wickets.

"Everyone has seen how much effort we have put in this winter and it is tough after this long away from home, but in one-day cricket you have to think a bit quicker sometimes and think a bit more on your feet," Thorpe said.

"We came up short and we still have a long way to go with our one-day cricket - we're pretty much at the crossroads with this one-day side at the moment.

"The World Cup is coming up and we have a hell of a lot of work to do to get England's one-day side into a cohesive unit."

Thorpe feels England do not play enough one-day cricket. "We're probably not playing enough which is one thing that shows up in our play that when the wheels come off with the bat we don't have enough experience to dig ourselves out of it.

"You have only to look at the amount of cricket Sri Lanka play and they are a much more mature side than we are. We have to decide how much cricket we are going to play and what our strategy is going to be."

Thorpe believes new players must be found before the next World Cup to replace some of the older players in England's line-up.

"That's one thing the guys who are running the team will have to decide upon and also whether there are any youngsters out there who can come and do it.

"They need to identify those players with the brains and skill to be able to play one-day cricket, sort out a format for the future and decide who they see as their squad in the next couple of years.

"Everyone wants England to put in a performance at the next World Cup and planning for that has to be done in advance."