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[Watsontotty]

Ok England named the squad for the forthcoming tour of Bangladesh and have decided to allow Andrew Strauss to rest ? this has left me confused and some what perplexed, Strauss has said stuff like the England team is not where he thought it would be right now and some players have also not progressed in the way he had hoped. Taking this into consideration how then van he decide not to tour Bangladesh as he is England captain who should be there to oversea the tour and the new squad members.

This makes me believe that we are not being told the whole truth and i believe England are hiding something and problems are being brushed under the carpet and not for the first time either. Obviously the decision to rest Anderson is justified as Jimmy has been struggling with injury for several months so needs to recover before the season starts. A number of new players are being blooded on the forthcoming tour so Strauss simply should be there if he is to continue to captain the team.

Quick point regarding the Batting coach ? why did he leave South Africa after the first test ? surely he should remain on tour with the team to work with players on a daily basis. Would the England football team allow the coach to leave after the first game of a world cup ? so why does this happen with the England cricket team makes no sense to me at all. With regards to the squad I'm a little disappointed however I've not seen a lot of Shahzad to comment on him but not heard many people stating his case for inclusion.

Alastair Cook (captain, Essex)
Ian Bell (Warwickshire)
Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire)
Michael Carberry (Hampshire)
Paul Collingwood (Durham)
Steven Davies (wkt, Surrey)
Graham Onions (Durham)
Kevin Pietersen (Hampshire)
Liam Plunkett (Durham)
Matt Prior (wkt, Sussex)
Ajmal Shahzad (Yorkshire)
Ryan Sidebottom (Nottinghamshire)
Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire)
James Tredwell (Kent)
Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire)
Luke Wright (Sussex)

[niceonechoppy]

If Strauss deserves a rest then surely Collingwood does! He plays every form of cricket too! Why should strauss go? Very strange.

[Alvaro]

What gets me is the numbers in the squad? Why the hell do they need all those medium pacers? It's Bangladesh, so spinners needed (one would think, Shakib has just bowled half of the overs in India's first innings); they then ditch Rashid, perhaps justifiably, but replace him with nice but non-turning off-spinner Tredwell. Maybe Wainwright as a left-arm spinner should have been blooded if Panesar is still persona non grata.

It just perplexes me where this team is headed, it just reeks of fuzzy thinking and whims (oh and the Birmingham/East Midlands mafia) - it has been lucky for eight/nine months and needs a firm hand on the tiller. Strauss should have gone. Not looking forward to Cap'n Cook.

[peplow]

Yeah squad looks a bit thin on what we'd consider international standard players, looking down the list there's a few new names and a few that haven't even been chucked in the melting pot before and seem pretty average, but there must obviosuly be a reason behind it and they must be thought to be good enough so who knows. Seems odd, but then do we ever agree with the selectors....4th test and onions for example...

[Watsontotty]

I didn't mention a lot about Cook as i feel he has enough on his plate with his technique so could do without the captaincy if I'm honest. The captaincy is the making of some players so we will have to wait and see on that one however i don't personally think it will be but i hope im wrong.

[jamespaxton]

agree with alvaro, surely someone like wainright would be more useful than luke wright, especially as they already know wrights capabiltiys and the fact that its in bangladesh.
reckon trego for ODI side too

[Colesy]

I can understand why Strauss did this, this doesn't mean I agree with it though. Thinking back to the Eng Vs Aus ODI's last year Ricky Ponting went home for a few weeks for a break, but he came back to finish the series......

[Apple]

this squad in two words- Piss take.

[Apple]

oh and who will open

[harrystokoe]

I'm guessing Cook and Carberry?

[jamespaxton]

this squad in two words- Piss take.

wouldnt say it was that bad,

[niceonechoppy]

Yehh that sounds like the best option.

[GJ]

looks like a good squad. Would love to see Carberry open alongside Cook. And would also like to see Shahzad given a test in bangladesh.
Two spinners will most likely be played in each match and rightly so! As a spinner, i wouldnt mind a few overs on that Chittagong pitch, is turning square!!

[raymond]

I know that rashid hasnt done great, but this would of been perfect for him, seems odd to suddenly cast him aside.

Shazhad looks good, bowls high 80's, can reverse it and is also a useful batter.

[pumakid]

I disagree with Shazad. When iv'e seen him he seems to be a bit wayward and inconsistent.