Cricket: Collingwood Sent Out on Long Road to Next World Cup

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.

Collingwood will, by the end of the summer, be England's third-most capped one-day player. He gains the job vacated by Michael Vaughan and held at various times over the past year by Andrew Flintoff and Andrew Strauss. "The selectors believe that Collingwood's experience and performances in the one-day game make him the ideal candidate to lead the side," explained the chairman of selectors, David Graveney. "He has been a key member of the one-day team for a while and we believe he is ready to take on the additional responsibility."

The rebuilding process after a disastrous World Cup - and little success since 1992, when they lost the World Cup final to Pakistan - begins forthwith, and Collingwood will head a squad that contains two new caps in Warwickshire's Jonathan Trott and Hampshire's Dimitri Mascarenhas. There is also recalls for Ryan Sidebottom, following his successes in the recent Test series, and Owais Shah, plus a swift return for Liam Plunkett, whose return to county cricket to learn more about himself and his game has consisted of one reduced, albeit successful, limited-overs match.

Although the squad is restricted by the absence through injury or illness of Flintoff, Ravi Bopara, Sajid Mahmood, and Marcus Trescothick, there are casualties from the World Cup campaign, the most high-profile being Vaughan and Strauss, in addition to Ed Joyce, Jamie Dalrymple, Paul Nixon, and Jon Lewis.

Despite considering it for some months, it was only earlier in the week that Vaughan announced his intention to step down from the one-day captaincy, and although still wishing to be retained as a player, his modest batting record, totally at odds with his Test record, made this unlikely. The position of Strauss too has been debated for some time, and 77 runs in the first innings of last week's final Test went only some way to reinstating his qualifications after a torrid nine months, coming as it did against a weak and accommodating attack. Graveney thought the break would prove beneficial. "He will come back a stronger player," he said.

The recent Schofield report into the state of England's cricket was critical of one-day performances and felt that primary concern should be given to working towards success in global competition rather than the short-termism of a series-by-series approach. With this in mind, it will be the task of Moores to identify a strategy and find the players to fit it, rather than other way round. "Overall, we were keen to identify the best way for the team to play in the one-day game," said Graveney, "pick players who can perform certain roles and keep one eye on the need to build towards the World Cup in 2011."

Two such players are the South African-born Trott and Mascarenhas, consistent county performers over the last few seasons. In particular, Trott has been in prolific form in the Friends Provident competition this season, scoring 353 runs in seven matches, including two centuries, as Warwickshire reached the semi-finals. He will, Graveney confirmed, give the side options in the top three of the order where impetus has been lacking.

Mascarenhas, a stalwart for Hampshire, who beat Warwickshire to reach the Friends Provident final, is a utility player who made two half-centuries in the competition and took seven wickets with his medium-pace while conceding his runs at just three an over. "He has shown that he can take wickets on different types of surfaces and is also an effective hitter in the lower order," said Graveney.

There appears to have been little acknowledgment, however, of the specific demands of Twenty20 cricket, which is more than just 50-overs cricket with the boring middle bit removed. As a means of developing innovation with bat and ball, as well as beefing up fielding, it has already paid dividends in the longer form of the limited-overs game. But, paradoxically, those least experienced in its arts are those who play international cricket.

Schofield identifies global competitions and there is one in South Africa in three months' time. More of this cricket is played here than elsewhere and England ought to be confident of winning such a tournament. Only, though, if the best players are selected, Paul Nixon being a case in point. These may not be they.

One-day squad


Age Caps


PD Collingwood capt Durham 31 121

MJ Prior wkt Sussex 25 12

AN Cook Essex 22 2

IR Bell Warwickshire 25 44

KP Pietersen Hampshire 26 49

OA Shah Middlesex 28 18

AD Mascarenhas Hampshire 29 0

IJ Trott Warwickshire 26 0

LE Plunkett Durham 22 25

RJ Sidebottom Notts 29 2

SC Broad Leicestershire 20 6

JM Anderson Lancashire 24 66

MS Panesar Northants 25 17

MH Yardy Sussex 26 5