Actually, I think coaching clinics involving Houghton (tactics & captaincy), Flower & Law (batting), Croft & Daffy (bowling), with all of the younger guys would be brilliant. There's a lot that Dalrymps, Yardy, Plunko, Ando, Saj, Clarkie, Joycie, Read and even Cook and Bell could learn from guys who have been there and done that.


I wonder if they get that from Fletch & Maynard right now?

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I'll have the Mouseburger please, with a side of Goldfish.

I've thought for a while that being coach for test and odi's is a two man job. Keep Fletcher for test coach, (he won us the ashes back) but time for a new face as ODI coach. Dare I suggest Jonty Rhodes as a coach? he seemed a real class act on the field, (don't even know if he's still involved in cricket!)

If it had to be an Englishman I'd plump for ttfc and his Fairbrother bid.

All the statistics in the world dont change the fact that England's recent One day form has been worse than bad.
Last ODI England won? I really can't remember. Last ODI series England won? again, trhe mind goes blank Last test series we won, well the last one we played (and the one before that, and the one before that one too.)

Fletcher's ODI record? 150 matches at ODI since he took charge, England have won under half. In the last 12 months the results have been dismal, with only six wins in 26 ODIs.

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I have a dream.... (Martin Luther King)

Jenko! My dear old fruit! How absolutely marvellous to have you back! I shall PM you immediatly to avoid an embarrasingly un-manly re-union.

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I'll have the Mouseburger please, with a side of Goldfish.

For an Englishman I'd go for Watkinson. Look what he has done with Lancashire for starters - he knows how to play this form of the game and will pick the specialists and play them in the right order! Otherwise I'd have a shot at getting Rod Marsh involved - he started our revolution in the test game along with Fletcher, and I reckon he has a far better insight into the one day game.

I thought Watkinson was involved in the English setup? I thought he was assistant coach - or has he been ousted by Maynard?

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I'll have the Mouseburger please, with a side of Goldfish.

I agree with you there Colly. Rod would only consider it if Fletcher was long gone though. We'd see Chris Read with a central contract too!!! I really don't think there's too much wrong with the side that another coach/manager couldn't fix. Tactics and messages just seem to be mixed and muddled. Unlike the Test environment where consistency has been the name of the game and success has been built around it we seem to not know where we're going from one moment to the next.

He was involved, but then he went back to focusing on Lancs before the Ashes, I think. I also think that before he left we were showing some improvement in one day cricket, culminating in the performances against Australia last summer. Since then, however, it's been soul-destroying...

Well Boycott for what that's worth thinks Fletcher is past his shelf life, http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cric...nd/6076152.stm maybe he want's his job.

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Ern

As a test coach I have no problems with Fletch – having a lethal pace attack in that form of the game is the main reason England have been successful. ODI’s are a different ball-game, and someone should have told Duncan years ago that extreme pace is not the panacea in the 50 over game he appears to consider it to be. Boycott talks about a “shelf-life” - my question is: Has Duncan ever had a shelf-life in one-dayers?

Rachael posted a comprehensive list of potential team members of which 4 of her main squad are missing due to injury. OK, so injuries have affected England in the past year, but before then??? In ODI's by my reckoning since 2000 under Fletcher against the major players (excluding Bangladesh and Zimbabwe) England have...

Home: Won 18 & Lost 28 (39% win ratio)
Away: Won 13 & Lost 36 (22% win ratio)

The "but we have so many injuries" excuse doesn't wash if you look at England's record prior to this year. I've always thought (and posted prior to the caning at the weekend) that Duncan Fletcher uses ODI's purely as a proving ground for test players whether to blood them or if they are returning from injury as has been the case recently. The selection of Mahmood (or Harmison for that matter) over Lewis on Saturday beggared belief and a classic example of his inability to adjust his tactics from test cricket.

Duncan Fletcher says that it takes 40 ODI's for a player to become experienced enough to hold his own. What he has consistantly failed to realise is that good test players do not automatically make good one-dayers - Michael Vaughan springs to mind as a prime example - 0 tons and 15 50’s at 28.3 in 74 ODI’s doesn't make good reading at the top order, added to which his fielding isn't great and his captaincy (surely you jest Rachael? ) has been less than inspiring.

Where do we go from here? I'm not sure about who should replace Duncan as ODI coach - but if you could add Boycott's grandmother to the poll, Ernest, I'm sure she would be a safer bet than the present incumbant.

On a more positive note, I would concur with Rachael that things are looking up for the WC with respect to the pool of players available (Vaughan aside). My only concern is with the man coaching the team - his tactics, team selections and results to date in ODI's quite frankly vanquish any optimism I may have felt. If England do actually perform in the West Indies it will be more likely in spite of rather than inspired by their coach.

As much as I like a lot of what Geoffrey has to say he wouldn't be a good choice imho for ODI Manager.

I firmly believe we should have One Manager for both forms of the game, just as every other country does. The teams should be similar with alterations where appropriate. Neither side should be seen as a breeding ground for the other. If a player is suitable for both types of the game then they get selected - and rested when they require it. The other Test playing nations seem to manage this, why can't we?

Many on here see ODI cricket as a complete irrelevance, unworthy of being called "cricket" almost. I thoroughly enjoy watching a ODI contest, that usually rules out England matches. It has a place in the scheme of things, an important place as it happens. England needs to take it more seriously. We could become World Champions at ODI cricket, that cannot happen in the Test Arena. Yes, the English crowds like Test cricket but they also like ODI cricket, see the full houses.

I do not understand how or why England have done so badly under Fletcher. His reputation as a player was one gained in ODI cricket with a fledgling Zimbabwe side. It's incredible how little of that success has rubbed off on his England sides. A change is needed and I believe it will come after the World Cup. Then, England can start to work on this ridiculous difference between their Test and ODI forms.