'England don't inspire World Cup hopes'

Former opener Geoffrey Boycott has said the one-day series in India has shown that the tourists do not have the resources to win the World Cup in 2007.

Former opener Geoffrey Boycott has said the one-day series in India has shown that the tourists do not have the resources to win the World Cup in 2007.

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"The series in India has become little more than a series of trial matches and it has proved that some of our youngsters are just not good enough," Boycott wrote in The Daily Telegraph on Thursday.

"I am sorry, but Kabir Ali, Liam Plunkett, Owais Shah and Ian Bell are not going to win the World Cup for England."

Boycott said key players constantly missing out on matches due to various reasons was a concern.

"(Coach) Duncan Fletcher reckons he already knows 10 of his likely World Cup side. The problem is that half of them are not in India at the moment," Boycott said.

"For the past two years England have been a poor one-day team and that is because they haven't been able to field a settled side.

"We keep losing players to injury, illness or paternity leave. You don't know from one game to the next who is going to take the field." 

"With its tiny changing rooms and outdated facilities, Jamshedpur is hardly a satisfactory venue for international cricket, even during the cooler months," the report said.

The correspondent argued for a 'heat rule' to be introduced in the game so that the players were spared from playing in extremely hot conditions.

"England finished with their first win in this series ... but, really, the game should never have started at all," the report said.

"Over in Melbourne, players are arguing about a 'heat rule' that kicks in at 35 degrees. The temperature in Jamshedpur was at least 43 in the shade, let alone in the remorseless sun."