England Cricket / Ralph Ellis / 21 April 2010 /

England's ODI and Twenty20 dressing has had a revolving door in recent seasons and, as they head to the West Indies for the World Cup, Ralph Ellis despairs at the squad's lack of direction.

When I was little there were a couple of things about England that were easy to understand. Bobby Moore was always captain of the football team. Geoff Boycott always opened the batting for the cricketers.

When it comes to Test matches, the start of our innings probably hasn't been as settled since. These days Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook are normally first through the gates to face the fast bowlers. But as for any other form of the game - well, it's probably never been so chaotic.

While the success of the five-day side in the last couple of years has been built around consistency of selection, the one-day squad is far more open. And when you get down to the Twenty20 team then the dressing room should be built with a revolving door.

We've been left behind by the rest of the cricketing world in finding a format to give an innings a lightening start. On the other hand the constant changing might be the reason why successive England teams have enjoyed so little success in a form of the game that was invented over here.

Whatever the cause, it means we are heading to the West Indies for the World T20 Cup without a clue who will be opening the batting. Joe Denly and Jonathan Trott, the last pair to have the job against Pakistan in February, aren't even in the 15-man squad. They were the 15th different combination in 25 matches.

The obvious answer is the South African born duo of Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb, both rushed into the squad as soon as they qualified. Then again there could be a role for Sussex captain Michael Yardy, included in the party because his unorthodox left-handed batting style might make him suited to be a "pinch hitter" at the start of the innings.

And this morning skipper Paul Collingwood has put forward another option - spinner and man of the moment Graeme Swann. The Nottinghamshire star, one of Wisden's five cricketers of the year - does the job for his county in the short form of the game. And Collingwood reckons he could do it for country too.

"Sometimes an X-factor is a very good thing to have up your sleeve. We bat very deep and I think Swanny is a better player than just a punt, so it is certainly an option," he said in a magazine interview given before leaving the IPL to head for the Caribbean.

What sort of way is that to head to a World Cup? At a time when you want a settled side and a sense of direction, the truth is that whoever opens the innings we will be "taking a punt". Sadly, it means that the [12.5] for England to win the trophy can be described in exactly the same way.

Five things you might not know about Michael Yardy

1. Born November 1980 in Pembury, Kent, with the full name Michael Howard, he went to William Parker School in Hastings where he played in the same team as England footballer Gareth Barry

2. He made his Sussex debut as a 19-year-old - but was out for a duck and bowled two wicketless overs in a NatWest Trophy game against Minor County Hertfordshire

3. His career best 257, scored against Bangladesh in 2005, is the third highest post-war individual score by a Sussex player. (Murray Goodwin made 344 not out in 2009 to beat his own 335 not out)

4. He admits to a weakness for eating chicken korma with vegetable curry

5. He uses the same sports psychologist as Grand National winning jockey Tony McCoy

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