England's decision to give former all-rounder Paul Collingwood a coaching role for the upcoming limited-overs tour of the West Indies and then the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh seems like a smart move.

England, who are still smarting in the other sense of the word from their defeats in all forms of the game in Australia, must pick themselves up for the trip to the Windies and then attempt to get themselves right for an assault on the World T20 - a competition they memorably won of course back in 2010.

And in bringing in someone like Collingwood they have on board a winner and a great character who can add plenty to the staff as they plot to bounce back effectively from the dismal tour down under.

The Durham skipper has been named as assistant to limited overs coach Ashley Giles and it is hoped he will inject some much-needed postitivity into the England camp after a dire winter. Colly is held in high regard by cricket betting fans and many felt he called it a day too early when retiring from Test cricket in January 2011.

His experience in defying the cricket betting odds and leading England to the World T20 title four years ago means he knows exactly what it takes to win the competition and his role may well prove vital if England do go deep into the competition. At that stage it will be all about holding your nerve while ensuring the best and most explosive T20 players can be at their best.

Collingwood's playing career - especially in limited overs cricket - speaks for itself. The 37-year-old is England's most capped ODI cricketer and leading ODI run scorer so he clearly has something to give in terms of coaching if he can pass on some of his old skills to the squad.

However, maybe more importantly, Collingwood can offer a fresh input and help revitalise some struggling players. Having not been around the camp in Australia, he will enter into his new role without any pre-conceived negativity from the failed Ashes and One-Day tours and can be a breath of fresh air in the upcoming months as England aim to regain their pride and move on into a new post-Andy Flower era.

Thank you for reading.

Shahzad is out with a stomach bug, Strauss and Swann have recovered. All these was already all out on twitter, though there were also rumours of Wright opening, but that isn't happening. West Indies, meanwhile, have Chris Gayle back in place of Shivnarine Chanderpaul and legspinner Devendra Bishoo makes his ODI debut, in place of Nikita Miller. England won the toss and opted to bat first.


England team:
A Strauss
M Prior
J Trott,
I Bell,
E Morgan,
R Bopara,
L Wright,
T Bresnan,
G Swann,
J Tredwell,
C Tremlett

Related post: Road to Quarterfinals: England face Windies hurdle... 

Today is the day when many expect to witness a thrilling battle. Why? Because, England, the most erratic, entertaining and engaging team of this World Cup takes on the degrading West Indies. England have to win today, to avoid the embarrassment of being ousted in the first stage. And, of course, also to give themselves a chance to make history, which comes once every 4 years. If England don't make it through, they will be missed immensely, not just by English fans but even by the fanatics who have some hatred against England. For, they are the team which has produced the most thrilling contests.

England started with a win against Netherlands, followed by a tie against India, a loss to Ireland, thrilling win against South Africa and finally, losing to Bangladesh in a see-saw battle. So their campaign reads like this - win, tie, lose, win, lose, which indicates today's clash is going to be a tie or an England win. At the moment, West Indies and Bangladesh have 6 points each, England 5. Today's win will take England's tally to 7, a tie to 6 points. Bangladesh and West Indies can still send England packing by beating South Africa and India respectively, but as we all know, it is unlikely. Also to be noted, West Indies have a net run rate of +2.206, England +0.013, Bangladesh -0.765. So, in case these teams finish on equal points, Bangladesh will not qualify.

I expect England to triumph comfortably, unless the games comes to a halt due to reasons like rain. England towers over West Indies in each game they play, in all formats. The match will be held at Chennai, where England succeeded in defending 171 against South Africa earlier this month. Ajmal Shahzad is doubtful while Strauss and Swann are recovering well from illness so they are likely to play. News of James Anderson's exclusion have been doing the rounds, but in case Shahzad doesn't play, Jimmy certainly will. He is a key player, not because he is expected to perform but because, though he has bowled well at times, he tends to give shed loads of runs at other times. At Chennai, vs South Africa, he took 2/16 in 6 overs, so there is a good chance he'll have a role to play. I seriously hope Strauss attacks if England manage to trouble Windies.

Andrew Strauss is upbeat despite suffering from a stomach bug:

We have been on the road for a long time, but fatigue is the last thing on our mind. Potentially we have got four more nice games to play before a nice, long break. 

Shoaib Akhtar all set to retire
After a career filled with injuries, drugs, fiery bowling spells, heroic performances, indiscipline, ban and many other controversies, the colourful character has announced retirement from International cricket after the World Cup.

That's all I had to say for now, tune in to England vs West Indies at 02:30 pm IST (09:00 GMT). Cheers.
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