Rat-faced NPB wants to nail (the skipper) No.3 Spot!

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England news

Bell determined to nail No. 3 spot

Cricinfo staff

August 12, 2008




The England batsman, Ian Bell, is determined to make the No. 3 position his own once and for all. Bell was elevated to the spot for England's consolation win over South Africa at The Oval, but it is a position he has yet to cement: in 13 matches, he has yet to make a hundred and averages a below-par 33.96.

Yet with Kevin Pietersen leading England into bold new territory, Bell is acutely aware that his promotion in the order demands results sooner rather than later.

"It is now a time in my career where I should not see myself, or allow other people to see me, as a young player any more," he told PA at the launch of an urban cricket event in Birmingham. "A lot of the players when I first walked into the dressing room are no longer around and I have 43 Test caps, so it is time to step up and deliver.

"It looks like I might get an opportunity now at number three and it is up to me to take that opportunity. Certainly I have been up and down the order throughout my Test match career but more recently I have settled at five. That is where I have put in my best performances but as a player you always want to test yourself and be as good as you possibly can be.

"You look at the best players in the world and a lot of them bat at number three or number four," he said. "People might say that batting at number five is easier than three but you want to test yourself as much as you can and batting at number three you do that.

"You could be in after the first ball or three hours later. That challenges your skills as a batsman and that is what I want to face up to."

The coveted No. 3 position is one England have struggled with since Mark Butcher occupied it so successfully. Michael Vaughan and Andrew Strauss were both tried - six of Vaughan's Test hundreds were made there - but no one has been able to match Butcher's consistency (2796 runs at 38.30). It is that lack of consistency which blight's Bell statistics, too: he has nine fifties at the No. 3 spot and looked to be England's best player during the winter series against Sri Lanka, but failed to convert them into dominant hundreds.

"I know I can do it, I have done it a little bit in the Ashes, but I have to start converting those 50s into hundreds like I did at Lord's against South Africa," he said. "If I can do it more consistently I will know I am going in the right direction, and hopefully the best years of my batting are still ahead of me. Being 26 now I have got experience behind me and I know a bit more about Test cricket."

Like Bell, England are desperately seeking consistency. With just nine Tests until the Ashes next year, there is little time for Pietersen to shape his side ahead of the Australians' arrival, but Bell remains confident that the talent England possess will see them through.

"Anyone that looks into the dressing room and sees the talent inside it would believe it is possible we can win the Ashes. There is a lot of ability," he said. "Like KP said, if we play like we did at The Oval, and at times this summer, we can do it. The important thing in the lead-up to 2005 was that we were winning Test matches regularly, it became a habit, and we played consistent cricket.

"We desperately need that consistency back in our game. As we showed against South Africa, we scored 600 in the first Test and then 200 in the next. When you play the best team in the world you cannot afford that kind of inconsistency in your game."

© Cricinfo

"I know I can do it". Yes, yes Ian. Publically, you know you can. Privately, you're a better version of Cwis Wead.

"It is now a time in my career where I should not see myself,...

Well fark off then - so that we don't have to see you either.

When you play the best team in the world you cannot afford that kind of inconsistency in your game."

Sheer farking brilliance from the wonder-kid who averaged under 10 runs over 10 innings in 2005.

Twat.

Fire in his belly.

There's a rat in mi England team, what am I gonna do? There's a rat in mi England team, what am I gonna do?

Mi gonna watch that rat that's what I'm gonna do.

Because he's going nowhere.

Englands number 3. Englands, Englands number 3....

Beer belly?

Thunder qunt!

But you can't say "It's the thunder talking". Can you?

He might be mumbling, though.

WHAT?

Lauda ...

One day when I was loss
They hung him on a crohss

Just a lonely bell was ringing
In the little valley town
Twas farewell that it was singing ....




I shouldn't laugh. Along with Scarlet Ribbons, that song always broke me up. Not laughing.



Besides, Bell can field.

Doesnt seem a good number 3 for me. I just dont see him coming in at 20/1 and gritting it out till lunch before dominating an attack?

KP should be at 3, Colly at 4 and Bell at 5.

Naeem wrote:Doesnt seem a good number 3 for me. I just dont see him coming in at 20/1 and gritting it out till lunch before dominating an attack?

KP should be at 3, Colly at 4 and Bell at 5.

Ummm, Bell should be no where near the side at the moment.

As Docspin would say....

SACK BELL NOW!!!!!

holcs wrote:

Naeem wrote:Doesnt seem a good number 3 for me. I just dont see him coming in at 20/1 and gritting it out till lunch before dominating an attack?

KP should be at 3, Colly at 4 and Bell at 5.

Ummm, Bell should be no where near the side at the moment.

As Docspin would say....

SACK BELL NOW!!!!!

I agree but for different reasons ... 20 for the first wicket is pretty fanciful

Ok, seriously, why is Bell in the England team? I'd rather have Key or Shah in the team over him. He doesn't strike me as a good no. 3 batsman.

Apparently he's in there because he wants to nail the skipper

I could be wrong but my impression is that Bell has been talking (writing columns?) a fair bit of late about what he should do, setting challenging goals, time to take responsibility, lead from the front, etc.

Talking himself into doing?

furriner wrote:I could be wrong but my impression is that Bell has been talking (writing columns?) a fair bit of late about what he should do, setting challenging goals, time to take responsibility, lead from the front, etc.

Talking himself into doing?

He has said the same thing before every series in the last 2 years in one paper or another, or a variant there of.

Added to the fact he's not scored a ton from no.3 yet!

As has been seen from his stats he's a follower not a leader. You need a pacesetter at no.3... someone to pick it up after our openers have got off to their usual crabby start.

holcs wrote:

furriner wrote:I could be wrong but my impression is that Bell has been talking (writing columns?) a fair bit of late about what he should do, setting challenging goals, time to take responsibility, lead from the front, etc.

Talking himself into doing?

He has said the same thing before every series in the last 2 years in one paper or another, or a variant there of.

He may be writing a novel.

furriner wrote:

holcs wrote:

furriner wrote:I could be wrong but my impression is that Bell has been talking (writing columns?) a fair bit of late about what he should do, setting challenging goals, time to take responsibility, lead from the front, etc.

Talking himself into doing?

He has said the same thing before every series in the last 2 years in one paper or another, or a variant there of.

He may be writing a novel.

You'd have a decent first couple of chapters, followed by a train crash rest of the book!

It's time to get over your Bell thing, Charlie.

Ian is here to stay now.