Time for England to come good

While the Ashes triumph continues to hog the headlines, England’s inconsistent ODI performances are not taken seriously by fans and cricketers alike. Simon Barnes would like to see the side adopt of a fresh guard when they take on South Africa in the second ODI. England are more likely to succeed if they take the battle to the South Africans who are “determined to inject a bit of nastiness” into the proceedings, he writes in Times.

Test match victories come along often enough to keep us interested. One-day success, in any sustained sense — or any significant trophy sense — eludes Our Boys. Perhaps it’s a bit like the Eurovision Song Contest: we’d be more likely to win if we all took it seriously.