Will Taylor: Silly England ODI errors must stop

England got away with one in the first one-day international against India.

Despite having restricted the visitors to a below par score from their innings, England made an awful start to their run chase before the rain came and saved them.

It was hard on India, because it was really the only game they had looked like winning all summer long, but for England it was a huge relief, and a chance to gather their thoughts.

The way England performed against India in the World Cup is proof that they are a match for them in the limited overs game – and they further emphasised that in the T20 game last week, beating them comfortably.

But if ever Andy Flower’s men do not perform, it is usually down to silly individual errors. I am not discrediting the bowling of Praveen Kumar in that last game at all, he was magnificent, but England should not have found themselves 27-2 when the rain finally arrived.

I tend to have various landmarks in my mind for 50-over cricket, when if a team is to achieve a good score they should be hitting them.

One of them is losing no more than one wicket in the first 10 overs. That is a time when a team needs to build themselves a foundation to build an innings on. The likes are Jonathan Trott are ideal for that – someone who can hang around for most of the innings.

Score-wise, you should be somewhere around 50 once ten-overs have passed, but England were struggling in that respect too.

It is simple stuff, and undoubtedly frustrating for followers of cricket and the England team. You know they have the quality to trouble an India side that is ravaged by injury – but for whatever reason they just didn’t.

The second ODI takes place at the Rose Bowl – a venue England have only ever lost two ODIs at – so they should go into the game with confidence. If they can couple their bowling performance from the other day, with a more sound batting display, then they might just be ok.

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