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Important summer for English cricket in more ways than one

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Pablo Luna - Moonlighting for Betfair. Pablo discusses the impact of the IPL on English cricket and calls for a change of personnel as far as the Test team goes that includes making Kevin Pietersen captain

South Africa visit England in a three-match Test Series starting at Lords on 10 July 2008 with IPL mania hovering over the team like clouds of gold dust! It threatens to distract at best, cripple at worst, the preparation and the performances! The player's heads are full of rupees and you only have to listen to the daily quotes to understand where their loyalty lies.

The ECB should have acted proactively but now retrospective action is required, hence a need to fully embrace the IPL. Fighting it with a rival league is like playing poker against someone with a bank of a million pounds while you have a fiver. We must accommodate the IPL into our Test and County structure because although Test cricket is safe our County game is sliding into a giant abyss. Limiting potential damage with vague fads Stanford style or beseeching American curiosity is not an option. Anything West Indian/American/Cricket is destined for the cutting room floor!

The ECB will not stop England's top players playing in the IPL so the choice is simple, either pay them more to dissuade them or interrelate within the contract. Yes, it is appeasement but any attempt at a third way will end in confusion, separation and break down. This is the largest issue cricket has ever faced and needs essential and immediate attention by cricketing bodies!

If we can win the player's concentration and it is a big if, we can turn matters to cricket on the pitch and areas where we must improve. But where do we start? Do we continue lurching visionless from one match to another? Should we have a medium to long-term plan? In cricket we do not have Euro 2008 so we should be building towards the visit of the Australians next year. This planning will tie in nicely with the ODI World Cup 2011. Scratching 1-1 draws with New Zealand or South Africa with the current crop of players whilst maintaining the status quo is debilitating for English cricket.

Three things must happen this summer! English cricket must transform its mentality and work ethic! I would also like some changes of personnel. I would like Peter Moores and Michael Vaughan separated from their jobs. Although a quick, fluent talker Moores has shown nothing post-Fletcher and was an awful appointment. He promised innovation and inspiration - he has delivered disastrous performances. He has no playing experience of international cricket and it shows. As a former wicketkeeper he cannot even sort out the chaos behind the stumps! I would prefer a Nasser Hussain or a Bob Willis in charge with a remit to the future. A middle choice could be Tom Moody?

For skipper I would love Kevin Pietersen to be given the South Africa series. He would certainly inject some much-needed energy and hopefully understand personal responsibility. Can you imagine him going head to head with Graeme Smith - what a clash of personalities? The third umpire would certainly be kept busy! To see more of what is wrong with English cricket go to:

http://betting.betfair.com/cricket/county-cricket/county-cricket-is-a-joke-and-nasser-hussain-should-190308.html

Players must be responsible for their individual performances. The whole world is bewildered with the inability of our batsmen to get to seventy but not hundred, that the bowlers cannot bowl one side of the wicket or execute a plan and that a fielder cannot stop or catch the ball travelling towards him! We must not make excuses a la Michael Vaughan anymore!

We must not accommodate past players (Andrew Strauss and Harmison) if they are not delivering the goods! We must not hold back good young players - blood them! Is Panesar the panacea that we thought he was, if not blood another young spinner this summer? We need to decide on a wicketkeeper that is potentially capable of averaging 35 runs plus per innings and give him a series guaranteed. Our fielding must improve, if there is no one in the England set up that can do it then sub contract the job out! In ODI matches replace Bell and Cook, they are not suited to that format (would be surprised if they got a call from India)!

South Africa are only an average side but more aggressive and better than England and with a lead up series against a poor New Zealand coming first we should have our eye in and be semi-prepared. Neither of the touring sides have great bowling so our batting can be scrutinised fairly. By the end of August we will be able to measure our progress (or decline) against the Proteas who would be an ideal yardstick.

The Test Series Winner against the Kiwis shows England at [1.32] with New Zealand [10.5] and a drawn series [5.8]. With these Betfair prices I would be happy to lay England. It is too short even allowing for home advantage.

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