My side for the WAT A Team.

D Sales
P Horton
MA Carberry
APR Gidman
JC Hildreth
P Mustard
D Mascarenhas
G Swann/CP Schofield
C Tremlett
T Bresnan
CE Shreck

I can't find room for Broad in my side, he has been hyped up and despite some good spells, has not bowled IMO as a future international.

Also I can't as yet fing a place for Rashid in my side - there are better options at the moment with both Swann and Schofield IMO.

I find it hard to choose bowlers at the moment - even for the senior side, let alone an A Team.

With this in mind I choose an all rounder in Mascarenhas, as England have always been best served with an all-rounder in the side.

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Ern

For the purpose of this exercise a balanced team should be considered as:

1. Opening bat
2. Opening bat
3. Middle-order bat
4. Middle-order bat
5. Middle-order bat
6. Batting all-rounder (primary skill is batting)
7. Wicket-keeper (must be able to bat as well as the batting all-rounder)
8. Bowling all-rounder (primary skill is bowling)
9. Bowler
10. Bowler
11. Bowler

# One of the bowlers should be a specialist spinner.

Also, for the purpose of the exercise, I think we should choose players in similar positions that they play at first-class level. For example, David Sales is a middle-order bat and should not be chosen as an opening bat for the sake of fitting extra middle-order batsmen into the lineup. Adil Rashid is a batting all-rounder and should be competing solely for the batting all-rounder spot - not the specialist spinner.

To get Adil Rashid into the lineup at #6 Bopara would either be dropped or bat at #5. There is a precedent for this. In 2005, we batted Collingwood at #5 and the keeper (Foster) at #6 to select an extra bowler. However, Collingwood's average was better than most competing middle-order bats that year. Bopara averaged 60 this year so a case could be made to bat Bopara at #5 and Rashid at #6 as Adamberry has suggested. My preference, though, is to strengthen the middle-order batting with the extra batsman since Swann is capable of bowling most of the spin required with a few extra leggies tossed down by Denly.

Your suggestion of Bopara at 5 and Rashid at 6 strikes me as sound...

The balance of the side is going to be interesting this year... as the side is almost certainly going to be over-run with excellent lower-middle order batsmen. The 8-9-10-11 you offer involves Swann, Broad, Bresnan and Tremlett - all four of whom could, without question, bat at 8 in Test cricket...

In addition, whilst my own choice of 'keeper (by a country mile) would be Foster (for his glovework, but he did rack up 827 runs at 37.59 this season), you (and I doubt you will be alone) have plumped for Ambrose: a guy who would presumably contest the no 5 or 6 spot if he were selected.

Quite - there is no need this year to include Rashid as Swann is the man in the driving seat at the moment, and Swann could be an automaic selection.

The England bowling whoever we pick will IMO be light, so rather than batting all-rounders we would be better served with specialist opening, and middle order basmen,with Mascarenhas alone taking the all-rounder spot.

The keeper could be either Foster or Mustard, but it seems to me that Foster is never going to get into the England side, even Prior prefared over him - so IMO Mustard is the better choice, and has played for England at one day level.

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Ern

Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Tim Ambrose (Warwickshire), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Michael Carberry (Hampshire), Steven Davies (Worcestershire), Joe Denly (Kent), James Hildreth (Somerset), Graham Onions (Durham), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Chris Schofield (Surrey), James Tredwell (Kent), Chris Tremlett (Hampshire), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire), Luke Wright (Sussex).

Ravi Bopara, Stuart Broad, and Phil Mustard were initially named in the development squad of 16, but England's selectors have promoted them to the Test squad.

Most of the players we are considering for the A team are in the EPP squad or the Test squad. Notable ommisions are Horton, Mascarenhas, Sales, Joyce, Shreck, Foster and Kabir Ali.

The players in the Test squad who are elligible for the WAT A team are: Ravi Bopara, Stuart Broad, Phil Mustard (wk), Owais Shah, Graeme Swann.
Itinerary:

November

15 Test squad arrives

20-22 Warm-up match, Colombo Cricket Club

25-27 Warm-up match, Colombo Colts Cricket Club

December

1-5 1st Test, Kandy
Hours of play 0500-1200 GMT
Live commentary on BBC 5 Live Sports Extra

9-13 2nd Test, Colombo
Hours of play 0500-1200 GMT
Live commentary on BBC 5 Live Sports Extra

18-22 3rd Test, Galle
Hours of play 0500-1200 GMT
Live commentary on BBC 5 Live Sports Extra

23 Test squad departs

No Rachael - Mike said.
Does not sound like he was endorsing Rashid to me, no more than a possible option.

Also little support for Rashid below.
WAT England 'A' 2007 - Middle Order Batsmen
He only got one vote.

And here.

WAT England 'A' 2007 - Bopara, Rashid or Both

There was only a modicum of support for Rashid but not at the expence of Bopara.

What role would Rashid play with Swann in the side?, you would put him in as a batsman rather than play a specialist batsman - that IMO can't be right, Rashid is not a specialist batsman.

Also is Rashid ready - I doubt that, Yorkshire have protected him from the press so they must doubt his temperment at this stage.

Andy wanted us to e mail the final team for interviews, I have done just that with Rashid - and Yorkshire CC refused on the grounds that they were keeping him away from such interviews at the moment.
Lets pick a side of batsmen and bowlers with a proper keeper.
Again Rashid is not a specialist bat, and as Mike says he is not a specialist spinner.
So if Mike is right like you suggest - then we should pick a specialist bat, I thought we had this sorted before christmas.

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Ern