England's cricketing year was the usual blend of triumph and disaster, but how was it for the players? In the Guardian, Lawrence Booth rates the England players according to their performances this year.
Until Ian Bell consistently produces match-winning innings, England's No3 is a luxury the team can ill afford, writes Vic Marks in the Guardian.
Rather than the end, being dropped could be regarded as the trigger needed for a spurt in Bell's Test career whenever he returns. He has obvious talent so a return would almost be guaranteed. But England need him refreshed and more ruthless and a break might help. Currently Strauss, Michael Clarke and Yuvraj Singh provide good examples of the benefits of being left out. For Bell, playing for England is in danger of becoming a routine occupation and compared to his predecessors, like Derek Randall ("I always played every Test as if it was my last"), he has that wonderful safety net of the central contract.
According to latest rumours, England are thinking about recalling Michael Vaughan for the West Indies tour, but that would be a mistake. Bringing him back at this stage cannot be justified and would create more problems than it solves, writes Nasser Hussain in the Daily Mail.
Where would it leave Owais Shah? He did well in the one-day series so if Michael came into the team ahead of him it would be a real kick in the guts. The alternative would be for Shah to play instead of Bell with Michael in reserve. But having an ex-captain carrying the drinks doesn't sit well with me.
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