Bangladesh 301-7 (50 overs) (Jahurul Islam 88 off 93, Imrul Kayes 77 off 92) beat Middlesex 160 (39.3 overs) (Shah 61 off 72) by 141 runs
1st ODI (Trent Bridge) - England 251-4 (45.1 overs) (Bell 84* off 101, Strauss 50 off 37) beat Bangladesh 250-9 (50 overs) (Raqibul Hasan 76 off 95, Junaid Siddique 51 off 70) by 6 wickets with 29 balls remaining.
It was very comfortable for England, but it does not really disguise the fact that they are not bowling well as a unit at the moment and need to knit together if they are going to challenge in the World Cup. They did pull things back towards the end with some very decent death bowling but suffered an onsluaght from Tamim Iqbal (28 off 22) at the start. Bangladesh were sort of the architects of their own downfall as they failed to push the pace of the innings when required, allowing the bowlers, in particular Stuart Broad (10-1-43-2), to get on top. Only Mushfiqur Rahim showed any real intent with two lusty blows off the perpetually expensive James Anderson. However, Rahim will miss the rest of the series after getting smashed in the face while keeping wicket. Junaid Siddique overcame early problems against the short ball - England have struggled to get him out this year, to play a neat innings, although played an irresponsible shot to get out lbw to Mike Yardy. Raqibul is another interesting case - he retired at 22 having been left out of the Test squad in the winter but is now back and does look like a good solid batsman. He is also out after getting his foot broken by an Anderson yorker - the runner situation that ensued was hilarious. England's batting effort was never under threat and we didn't seem to learn anything new. Strauss looks in great touch and his fast scoring rate will ensure that he is the man to lead the side in the World Cup. Collingwood and Morgan will also remian useful contributors, although both played rank shots to be dismissed. Kieswetter is an exciting talent, but must work on his technique. It was Ian Bell who showed us something different today. In for Kevin Pietersen, he used his feet beautifully to Bangladesh's battery of spinners and also hit over cover beautifully, a shot he confessed to having recently introduced. It's good to see substance added to his aesthetically pleasing game. As for Bangladesh, their bowling has a chronic lack of penetration something the captain Mashrafe Mortaza must look to remedy.2nd ODI (Bristol) - Bangladesh 236-7 (50 overs) (Imrul Kayes 76 off 111) beat England 231 (49.3 overs) (Trott 94 off 130) by 5 runs. It had to happen eventually. After 20 failed attempts, Bangladesh have beaten England. After 24 failed attempts, Bangladesh have won a match in 2010. Moreover, they did it with a team performance even when their talisman Tamim failed to go big once again. England, for their part, were distinctly average. It made me realise that they actually haven't fired as a team all summer and have been carried to victory by individual performances, be it Eoin Morgan's hundred at the Rose Bowl, Graeme Swann's bowling at Old Trafford or Bell's runs at Trent Bridge. Here, the individual excellence of Jonathan Trott was not enough to make up for the failings of others. Is there an issue with balance in the
side? The introduction of Ajmal Shahzad was an interesting one, although his fielding cost his side at least 3 possible wickets, which would have seriously minimised the run chase. His bowling, however, was excellent, finding skiddy bounce, as opposed to the lift that someone like Broad would find, making the batsmen feel uncomfortable. He also found useful reverse swing late on as Bangladesh failed to gather momentum once again, as he finished with 10-0-41-3. Kayes played a good innings - he will never score quickly but is a useful foil for Tamim's aggression if he gets in and stays in, as he did here. I was more impressed by Jahurul Islam (40 off 53), who gave the ball a good wallop but still maintained a good technique. England started well but then faded to irresponsibility. Strauss looked great again for 33 off 36, with an amazing dance down the wicket to drive Rubel Hossain through the covers but got out soon after. Kieswetter, Yardy and Shahzad should feel particularly ashamed of the shots they played. It was positive to see Broad sticking around with Trott at the end for 21 off 25 - he has been out of touch with the bat for far too long. Trott's knock was not characterised by power but by manouvering the ball and running hard between the wickets. He deserved better today. Bangladesh's bowling was wonderful. They were persistent with their areas and didn't drop their heads after a boundary. Mortaza won Man of the Match for 10-0-42-2 but for me Abdur Razzak was more impressive with 10-0-43-2. His left-arm spin baffled England, some turning past the outside edge, others going on with the arm, such as that which trapped Morgan lbw. Every time they win a game, they promise they will start winning more regularly and never do. As always, this will probably prove a false dawn, but they know now that they can do it.Ian Bell wins my Victoria Sponge Lad of the Week Award for his runs at Trent Bridge but also for walking out to bat with a broken foot at Bristol having injured himself in the field. This could have been at great personal cost but shows national pride and a real will to win. LAD
Now to have a quick look at the county warm-ups of Australia and Pakistan after their T20 series finished 2-0 Pakistan, suggesting that England may have more on their hands than they bargained for later in the summer:
Australia 436 (Hussey 132, Ponting 116, Paine 52) drew with Derbyshire 235-5 (Rogers 93, Madsen 58)
Leicestershire 296-7d (Smith 87, White 79) drew with Pakistan 280-7 (Yasir Hameed 58, Salman Butt 57, Umar Amin 51)
For the record, two-day games are completely pointless. If there is no competition in a warm-up, how can you genuinely expect a team to be ready for the intensity levels of Test match cricket?
Finally, a quick story from the domestic T20 at Taunton. With the previously mentioned local news having heralded the arrival of Aussie Cameron White as an overseas player, Somerset promptly didn't select him for their game against Hampshire. Which looked very silly when they had to chase 217 to win. However, 78 off 27 from skipper Marcus Trescothick and 72* off 42 from the previously out-of-form Peter Trego saw Somerset canter home with 2 overs to spare, one of the fastest run rates ever seen in a T20 run chase.
LADS
RM
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