England cricket team

Infobox
abovestyle = background:inherit; border-bottom:groove;
labelstyle = background:inherit;
belowstyle = background:inherit; text-align:right;
above = England


caption =
label1 = Test status granted
data1 = 1877
label2 = First Test match
data2 = v Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, 15–19 March 1877
label3 = Captain of test and ODIs
data3 = Kevin Pietersen
label4 = Coach
data4 = Peter Moores
label5 = Official ICC Test and ODI ranking
data5 = 5th (Test), 3rd (ODI) [http://icc-cricket.yahoo.com/rankings/rankings.html/]
label6 = Test matches
- This year
data6 = 877
10
label7 = Last Test match
data7 = v South Africa at
The Oval, England, 7–11 August 2008
label8 = Wins/losses
- This year
data8 = 305/255
5/3
below = As of 2 September 2008

The England cricket team is the national cricket team which represents England and Wales. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) from 1903 until the end of 1996. [Cite web |url=http://www.ecb.co.uk/ecb/about/ | title=About ECB|publisher=ECB|date=|accessdate=2007-10-07] [Cite web |url=http://www.lords.org/history/mcc-history/ | title=MCC History|publisher=MCC|date=|accessdate=2007-10-07]

England and Australia were the first teams to be granted Test status on 15 March 1877 and they gained full membership to the International Cricket Council (ICC) on 15 June 1909. England and Australia also took part in the first One Day International (ODI) on 5 January 1971. England played their first Twenty20 match on 13 June 2005 and once again their opponents were Australia.

As of 2 September 2008 England have won 305 of the 877 Test matches they have played and are ranked fifth in the ICC Test Championship. [ [http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/content/records/283877.html Summary of all Test match results] , Cricinfo, retrieved 20 January 2008 ] [ [http://icc-cricket.yahoo.com/rankings/rankings.html ICC Test and ODI rankings] , International Cricket Council, retrieved 20 January 2008 ] They have finished runners-up in three Cricket World Cups (1979, 1987 and 1992) and are ranked third in the ICC ODI Championship. [ [http://icc-cricket.yahoo.com/rankings/rankings.html ICC Test and ODI rankings] , International Cricket Council, retrieved 20 January 2008 ]

Peter Moores was appointed head coach on 1 May 2007, following the resignation of Duncan Fletcher. Moores subsequently named Andy Flower as his assistant coach. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/6631651.stm "Flower is named as Moores' deputy"] , BBC, 2007-05-07. Retrieved on 2008-08-09.] Kevin Pietersen was announced as both Test and ODI captain on 4 August 2008. Pietersen replaced Michael Vaughan and Paul Collingwood, who resigned their roles as Test and ODI captains respectively. [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/aug/04/englandcricket.pietersen "Pietersen steps into the fray and becomes England cricket captain"] , "The Guardian", 2008-08-04. Retrieved on 2008-08-09.]

History

The first recorded incidence of a team with a claim to represent England comes from 9 July 1739 when an "All-England" team which consisted of eleven gentlemen from any part of England, exclusive of Kent. This team played against 'the Unconquerable County' of Kent and lost by a 'very few notches'. Such matches were repeated on numerous occasions for the best part of the century.

In 1846 William Clarke formed the All-England Eleven, this team would eventually compete against a United All-England Eleven with annual matches occurring between 1857 to 1866. These matches were arguably the most important contest of the English season, if judged by the quality of the players.

The first overseas tour occurred in September 1859 with England going to North America. This team had six players from the All-England Eleven and six from the United All-England Eleven, and was captained by George Parr. With the outbreak of the American Civil War, attention turned to Australia and New Zealand with the inaugural tour of Australia taking place in 1861-2. England would visit New Zealand in 1863–64 with the tour being the first to be organised by the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC). Most tours prior to 1877 were played "against odds", meaning the opposing team was permitted to have more than 11 players (usually 22) in order to make for a more even contest. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/ausveng/content/story/259952.html | title= England v Australia 1861 - 1888|publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] As a result these matches were not considered first-class matches and were organised purely for commercial reasons. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/ausveng/content/story/259952.html | title= England v Australia 1861 - 1888|publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05]

James Lillywhite led the England team which sailed on the P&O steamship Poonah on 21 September 1876. They would play a combined Australian XI, for once on even terms of 11 a side. The match, starting on 15 March 1877 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground came to be regarded as the first Test match. The combined Australian XI won this Test match by 45 runs with Charles Bannerman of Australia scoring the first Test century. At the time this match carried little significance and was classed as another tour match and was labelled as the "James Lillywhite's XI v South Australia and New South Wales". [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/ausveng/content/story/259952.html | title= England v Australia 1861 - 1888|publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] The first Test match on English soil occurred in 1880 with England winning this series 1–0. The series was also the first for England to field a fully representative side with W.G. Grace being present in the team. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/154315.html | title= Australia in England 1880|publisher=Wisden|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] England would lose their first home series 1–0 in 1882 with "The Sporting Times" famously printing an obituary on English cricket:

As a result of this loss the tour of 1882–83 was dubbed by England captain Ivo Bligh as "the quest to regain the ashes". England with a mixture of amateurs and professionals won the series 2–1. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/154318.html | title= England in Australia, 1882-83|publisher=Wisden|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] Bligh was presented with an urn that contained some ashes, which have variously been said to be of a bail, ball or even a woman's veil and so The Ashes was born. A fourth match was then played which Australia won by 4 wickets but the match was not considered part of the Ashes series. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/154318.html | title= England in Australia, 1882-83|publisher=Wisden|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/engine/match/62408.html | title= Australia v England|publisher=Wisden|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] England would dominate many of these early contests with England winning the Ashes series 10 times between 1884–98. [Cite web |url=http://stats.cricinfo.com/statsguru/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;opposition=2;spanmax1=31+Dec+1899;spanmax2=31+Dec+1898;spanmin1=1+Jan+1884;spanmin2=1+Jan+1884;spanval1=span;spanval2=span;team=1;template=results;type=team;view=series | title= Test matches|publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] During this period England also played their first Test match against South Africa in 1889 at Port Elizabeth. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/engine/match/62426.html | title= South Africa v England|publisher=Wisden|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05]

The 1899 Ashes series was the first tour where the MCC and the counties appointed a selection committee. There were three active players: Lord Hawke, W.G. Grace and HW Bainbridge who was the captain of Warwickshire. Prior to this, England teams for home Tests had been chosen by the club on whose ground the match was to be played.

The turn of the century saw mixed results for England as they lost four of the eight Ashes series between 1900 and 1914. [Cite web |url=http://stats.cricinfo.com/statsguru/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;opposition=2;orderby=start;spanmax1=31+Dec+1914;spanmin1=1+Jan+1900;spanval1=span;team=1;template=results;type=team;view=series | title= Test matches |publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] During this period England would lose their first series against South Africa in the 1905/06 season 4–1 as their batting faltered. [Cite web |url=http://stats.cricinfo.com/statsguru/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;opposition=3;orderby=start;spanmax1=24+Jan+1911;spanval1=span;team=1;template=results;type=team;view=series | title= Test matches|publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] The 1912 season saw England take part in a unique experiment. A nine Test triangular tournament involving England, South Africa and Australia was set-up. The series was hampered by a very wet summer and player disputes however and the tournament was considered a failure with The Daily Telegraph stating: [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/ausveng/content/story/260677.html | title= England v Australia 1890 - 1914|publisher=Cricinfo|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05]

England

With Australia sending a weakened team and the South African bowlers being ineffective England dominated the tournament winning four of their six matches. The Australia v South Africa match, at Lord's, was notable for a visit by King George V, the first time a reigning monarch had watched Test cricket. [Cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/237048.html | title= Australia v South Africa|publisher=Wisden|date=|accessdate=2008-02-05] England would go on one more tour against South Africa before the outbreak of World War I.

England's first match after the war was in the 1920–21 season against Australia. Still feeling the effects of the war England went down to a series of crushing defeats, and suffered their first whitewash losing the series 5–0. Six Australians scored hundreds while Mailey spun out 36 English batsmen. Things were no better in the next few Ashes series losing the 1921 Ashes series 3–0 and the 1924–5 Ashes 4–1. England's fortunes were to change in 1926 as they regained the Ashes and were a formidable team during this period dispatching Australia 4–1 in the 1928–29 Ashes tour.

On the same year the West Indies became the fourth nation to be granted Test status and played their first game against England. England won each of these three Tests by an innings, and a view was expressed in the press that their elevation had proved a mistake although Learie Constantine did the double on the tour. In the 1929–30 season England went on two concurrent tours with one team going to New Zealand (who were granted Test status earlier that year) and the other to the West Indies. Despite sending two separate teams England won both tours beating New Zealand 1–0 and the West Indies 2–1.The 1930 Ashes series saw a young Don Bradman dominate the tour, scoring 974 runs in his seven Test innings. He scored 254 at Lord's, 334 at Headingley and 232 at the Oval. Australia regained the Ashes winning the series 3–1. As a result of Bradman's prolific run-scoring the England captain Douglas Jardine chose to develop the already existing leg theory into fast leg theory, or bodyline, as a tactic to stop Bradman. Fast leg theory involved bowling fast balls directly at the batsman's body. The batsman would need to defend himself, and if he touched the ball with the bat, he risked being caught by one of a large number of fielders placed on the leg side.

Using his fast leg theory England won the next Ashes series 4–1. But complaints about the Bodyline tactic caused crowd disruption on the tour, and threats of diplomatic action from the Australian Cricket Board, which during the tour sent the following cable to the MCC in London:

Later, Jardine was removed from the captaincy and the laws of cricket changed so that no more than one fast ball aimed at the body was permitted per over, and having more than two fielders behind square leg were banned.

England's following tour of India in the 1933–34 season was the first Test match to be staged in the subcontinent. The series was also notable for Morris Nichols and Nobby Clark bowling so many bouncers that the Indian batsman wore solar topees instead of caps to protect themselves.

Australia won the 1934 Ashes series 2–1 and would keep the urn for the following 19 years. Many of the wickets of the time were friendly to batsmen resulting in a large proportion of matches ending in high scoring draws and many batting records being set.

The 1938–39 tour of South Africa saw another experiment with the deciding Test being a timeless Test that was played to a finish. England lead 1–0 going into the final timeless match at Durban. Despite the final Test being ‘timeless’ the game ended in a draw, after 10 days as England had to catch the train to catch the boat home. A record 1981 runs were scored, and the concept of timeless Tests was abandoned. England would go in one final tour of the West Indies in 1939 before the World War II, although a team for an MCC tour of India was selected more in hope than expectation of the matches being played.

After World War II, England fell under difficult times suffering a heavy defeat 3–0 to Australia. This followed by a 4–0 loss to Bradman's 'invincibles' and a stunning 2–0 loss to the West Indies. These loses were tempered by victories against India and South Africa.

Their fortunes would change in the 1953 Ashes tour as they won the series 1–0. England would not lose a series for five years and secured famous victories in the 1954–55 and 1956 Ashes series. The 1956 series was remembered for the bowling of Jim Laker who took 46 wickets at 9.62 which included bowling figures of 19/90 at Old Trafford. After drawing to South Africa, England defeated the West Indies and New Zealand comfortably. The England team would then leave for Australia in the 1958–59 season with a team that had been hailed as the strongest ever to leave on an Ashes tour but lost the series 4–0 as Richie Benaud's revitalised Australians were too strong.

The early and middle 1960s were poor periods for English cricket. Despite England's strength on paper, Australia held the Ashes for the entire decade and the West Indies dominated England in the early part of the decade. England would the end the 60s on a high however, regaining the Wisden Trophy in 1968 and drawing the Ashes series in the same year 1–1.

England carried their good form from the late 60s into the 70s regaining the Ashes in 1970 but then suffered a loss of form losing to India and a rising West Indian side. This culminated in a 4–1 defeat in the 1974 Ashes series. The inaugural 1975 Cricket World Cup saw England reach the semi-finals and was to be the turning point in England's fortunes. The results of the Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket were felt in Test cricket with Australia and Pakistan losing many of its star players. England replaced captain Tony Greig who had joined the league with Mike Brearley while Geoffrey Boycott returned from his England exile. England would defeat a divided Australian side 3–1 in the centenary Ashes series. This was followed by a comfortable 4–0 win against Pakistan and a World Cup final appearance against the West Indies.

With Ian Botham and Bob Willis at their peak with the ball, Boycott and Graham Gooch opening the batting, and a young David Gower in the middle order, England were a formidable team. Their results were initially promising, narrowly losing to the West Indies, the unofficial champions at the time. England would then fight back to win the 1981 Ashes series, often referred to as "Botham's Ashes" 2–1. The third Test at Headingley saw a revitalised Botham perform well with bat and ball, taking 6/95 and then scoring a unbeaten 149. England won by 18 runs after following-on, only the second time in the history of England v Australia Tests that this has been achieved. England suffered their second whitewash series against the West Indies in 1984 but continued to produce good results, defeating India 2–1 and regaining the Ashes in the 1985 season with a comfortable 3–1 victory.

Hopes that this victory could see a challenge mounted on the 1985–86 tour of the West Indies were dashed as England were soundly beaten 5–0. A shocked England team never truly recovered from this defeat and although England managed to retain the 1986–87 Ashes, they would only win one further Test series in the 80s against a relatively weak Sri Lanka side and suffered heavy defeats to Australia and the West Indies.

England continued their decline during the 90s. This was not helped by squabbles between key players and the chairman of selectors, Raymond Illingworth. Another reason for their poor performances were the demands of County Cricket teams on their players, meaning that England could rarely field a full strength team on their tours. This would eventually lead to the ECB taking over the MCC as the governing body of England and the implementation of central contracts.

In the early 90s players such as Botham, Gower and Allan Lamb came to the end of their international careers and, specifically in the case of Botham, England had trouble replacing them. This lead to a string of disappointing results as England did not win a Test match for two and half years. However, England's performance in ODI cricket was still good, as they defeated Australia, the West Indies and South Africa to reach the final of the 1992 Cricket World Cup. Shortly after the World Cup Mike Atherton replaced Gooch as England captain but his captaincy was regarded as a failure with England winning only one Test series under his captaincy. A win against South Africa in 1998 was England's first five Test series win since 1986–87, but this would be a false dawn as they were eliminated in the first round of the 1999 Cricket World Cup (which they hosted) and lost a home Test series against New Zealand 2–1, resulting in England being officially ranked as the worst Test nation. [Cite web |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/in_depth/2000/england_on_tour/1226564.stm | title= England now ranked fourth |publisher=BBC Sport |date= March 2001|accessdate=2007-10-07]

With the appointment of Duncan Fletcher as coach and Nasser Hussain as captain, England began to rebuild their team. They won four consecutive Test series which included impressive wins against West Indies (a first in 32 years) and Pakistan. England were still left wanting against Australia and lost the 2001 Ashes 4–1. Promising results against India and Sri Lanka gave England some positive sentiments towards their chances against Australia in 2002-2003, yet a 4–1 defeat showed that they were still falling short. This setback did not stop England's resurgence however as they defeated the West Indies 3–0 and followed this up with whitewashes against New Zealand and the West Indies at home. A victory in the first Test against South Africa at Port Elizabeth meant England had won their eighth successive Test, their best sequence of Test match wins for 75 years.

In 2005, England, under Michael Vaughan's captaincy and aided by Kevin Pietersen's batting in his maiden series (most notably 158 at the Oval), and Andrew Flintoff's superb all-round performances, defeated Australia 2–1 to regain the Ashes for the first time in 18 years.

Recent form

Following the Ashes win, the team suffered from a serious spate of injuries to key players such as Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Simon Jones and Michael Vaughan. Flintoff, Jones and Vaughan all returned to cricket, although Jones has yet to return to the England squad.

In the home Test series victory against Pakistan in July and August 2006, several promising new players emerged. Most notable was the left-arm orthodox spin bowler Monty Panesar, the first Sikh to play Test cricket for England. He impressed with the excellence of his bowling, including match figures of 8/93 in the innings victory over Pakistan at Old Trafford in July 2006 and match figures of 10/187 against the West Indies at Old Trafford in June 2007. He also became a firm crowd favourite and at one point was one of the favourites to win the 2006 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award. Another new player of note was left-handed batsman Alastair Cook, while England's injury problems also allowed previously marginal Test players such as Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell to consolidate their places in the team.

The outstanding performance of the Test team, albeit against a Pakistan side which was also weakened by injuries, meant the 2006/07 Ashes series was one of the most keenly anticipated of recent years and was expected to provide a level of competition comparable to the 2005 series. In the event, England, captained by Flintoff, lost all 5 Tests - the first Ashes whitewash in 86 years.

The team's form in ODIs had been consistently poor. They only narrowly avoided the ignominy of having the play in the qualifying rounds of the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy. Despite this, in the ODI triangular in Australia, England recorded their first ODI tournament win overseas since 1997. England had lost Kevin Pietersen to injury, and had won 1 and lost 5 of their first 6 games. They recovered to win their next 4 games, scraping into the finals before winning both matches.

In the 2007 Cricket World Cup, England lost to most of the Test playing nations they faced, beating only the West Indies and Bangladesh, although they also avoided defeat by any of the non-Test playing nations. However, the unimpressive nature of most of their victories in the tournament, combined with their heavy defeats to New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, left many commentators criticising the manner in which the England team approached the one-day game. Coach Duncan Fletcher resigned after eight years in the job as a result and was succeeded by former Sussex coach Peter Moores.

The following summer, England faced the West Indies at home for 4 Tests, 2 Twenty20s and 3 ODIs. They convincingly won the Test series 3-0. Then, skipper Michael Vaughan announced he would no longer captain the side in one-day cricket. The job went to Paul Collingwood. England drew 1-1 in the Twenty20 series but lost the ODI series 2-1 despite winning the first game.

In the latter part of the summer, India toured the country. England lost the 3 Test series 1-0, the first time they had been defeated at home in the long form of the game for 6 years. In the second Test at Trent Bridge, there was a major incident when, as an act of 'sledging', an England player (never identified) threw jelly beans at the wicket. This infuriated Indian batsman Zaheer Khan, who reported the incident to the umpires. All senior members of the England team denied any wrongdoing. England bounced back from their defeat in the Test series by triumphing 4-3 over India in the ODI series, their first series victory in that form of the game since 2004.

In the winter of 2007, England toured Sri Lanka. They won the ODI series 3-2, recording their second series win in a row, but lost the Test series 1-0, giving them no win in 6. This heaped pressure on fledgling coach Peter Moores to deliver ahead of England's tour to New Zealand. They lost the ODI series but won the Test series, despite losing the first Test in Hamilton, 2-1, easing the pressure on Moores slightly.

England then hosted New Zealand in a 3 Test tour in May 2008. The first match, at Lord's, was a weather affected game and ended in a draw. England won the second test, at Old Trafford, chasing down a large score with Andrew Strauss scoring a century. At Trent Bridge, England wrapped up the series with a convincing win by an innings and nine runs. England's only innings was anchored by Kevin Pietersen, who scored a century, while superior swing bowling from Jimmy Anderson, including a career best 7/43, Ryan Sidebottom (including 6/67) and Stuart Broad ultimately proved too much for New Zealand.

England played a home 4 match Test series against South Africa. After the first Test at Lord's was drawn, South Africa comfortably won the second Test at Headingley by 10 wickets. The visiting side then went on to secure their first Test series win in England for 43 years by recording a 5 wicket win in the third Test at Edgbaston. South African captain Graham Smith scored 154 not out in the run chase. The following day, Michael Vaughan resigned as England captain and was replaced by Pietersen. Pietersen's first Test match as captain of England was a win over South Africa in the 4th and final test, with England winning by 6 wickets but losing the series 2-1.

Upcoming fixtures

England will take part in the Stanford Super Series, a yearly series of Twenty20 matches, sponsored by Sir Allen Stanford, in November 2008. England will play 3 matches.

England will tour India from November to December 2008. There will be 2 Test matches and 7 ODI matches.

England will tour the West Indies from February to March 2009. There will be 4 Test matches and 5 ODI matches.

England will no longer host Zimbabwe from May to June 2009. 2 Test matches and 3 ODI matches had been scheduled, but the tour was cancelled for political reasons.

England will host Sri Lanka from April until May 2009, as a replacement for Zimbabwe. There will be 2 Test matches and 3 ODI matches.

England will host the ICC World Twenty20 tournament in June 2009.

England will host Australia from June to September 2009. The teams will contest the 5 match Ashes Test series and also play 7 ODI matches.

England will host India in 2011. The teams will contest 4 Test matches, 5 ODI matches and a Twenty20 match.

Performances

England has traditionally been one of the stronger teams in international cricket, fielding a competitive side for most of cricket's history. Up to the end of 2007 England had played 867 test matches, winning 301 (34.72%), losing 252 (29.06%), and drawing 314 (36.22%) 639 players had been capped for their country. Up to the Super 8 World Cup match against Australia on April 8, 2007, England had played 464 ODIs, winning 224 (48.28%), losing 221 (47.63%), tying 4 (0.86%) and having 15 (3.23%) with no result. 203 players had played for England in ODIs up to that date.

After Australia won The Ashes for the first time in 1881–82 England had to fight with them for primacy and one of the fiercest rivalries in sport dominated the cricket world for seventy years. In 1963 this duopoly of cricket dominance began to fall away with the emergence of a strong West Indies team.

England failed to win a series against the West Indies between 1969 and 2000. England similarly failed to compete with Australia for a long period and the The Ashes stayed in Australian hands between 1989 and 2005. England struggled against other nations over this period as well and after a series loss to New Zealand in 1999 they were ranked at the bottom of the ICC Test cricket ratings. From 2000, English cricket had a resurgence and England reached the final of the ICC Champions Trophy in 2004 and regained The Ashes in 2005. The team was recently ranked second behind Australia in the Test rankings, but ODI performances have been very poor with England falling to 7th place in the ICC rankings.

In the 2006/07 tour of Australia The Ashes were lost in a 0–5 "whitewash" (see 2006-07 Ashes series) but England did succeed in clinching victory in the Commonwealth bank ODI Tri-series against Australia and New Zealand. The loss of The Ashes prompted the announcement by the England and Wales Cricket Board of an official review of English cricket amid much criticism from the media, former players and fans. England failed to reach the semi finals of the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies after defeats against New Zealand, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

Governing body

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is the governing body of English cricket and the England cricket team. The Board has been operating since 1 January 1997 and represents England on the International Cricket Council. The ECB is also responsible for the generation of income from the sale of tickets, sponsorship and broadcasting rights, primarily in relation to the England team. The ECB's income in the 2006 calendar year was £77.0 million. [Cite web |url= http://static.ecb.co.uk/files/ecb-annual-report-accounts-2006-group-financial-statements-1846.pdf | title= ECB Annual Report and Accounts 2006 |publisher=ECB |date=|accessdate=2007-10-07]

Prior to 1997 the Test and County Cricket Board (TCCB) was the governing body for the English team. Apart from in Test matches, when touring abroad the England team officially played as MCC up to and including the 1976-77 tour of Australia, reflecting the time when MCC had been responsible for selecting the touring party. The last time the England touring team wore the bacon-and-egg colours of the MCC was on the 1996-97 tour of New Zealand.

Team colours

England's kit is manufactured by Adidas, who replaced previous manufacturer Admiral on 1 April 2008. [ [http://www.ecb.co.uk/ecb/about-ecb/media-releases/adidas-provide-england-kit,12435,EN.html "adidas provide England kit"] , ECB, 2007-04-18. Retrieved on 2008-08-12.]

When playing Test cricket, England's cricket whites feature red piping across the chest and trouser legs. The three lions badge is on the left of the shirt and the name and logo of the sponsor Vodafone is on the right. The Adidas logo features on the right sleeve. English fielders may wear a navy blue cap or sun hat with the ECB logo in the middle. Helmets are coloured similarly.

In limited overs cricket, England's ODI and Twenty20 shirts feature the Vodafone name and logo across the centre, with the three lions badge on the left of the shirt and the Adidas logo on the right. In one-day cricket, England wear a navy shirt and navy trousers. In Twenty20 cricket, England wear navy trousers and a red shirt.

International grounds

Test and ODI

"Listed in order of date first used for Test match"

*The Oval, London
*Old Trafford, Manchester
*Lord's, London
*Trent Bridge, Nottingham
*Headingley, Leeds
*Edgbaston, Birmingham
*Riverside, Durham

ODI only

*Bristol
*Rose Bowl, Southampton
*Sophia Gardens, Cardiff. Test and ODI status from summer 2009.

tatistics and records

Tournament History

World Cup

*1975: Semi-Finals
*1979: Runners up
*1983: Semi-Finals
*1987: Runners up
*1992: Runners up
*1996: Quarter-Finals
*1999: First round
*2003: First round
*2007: Super-8 stage (5th Place)

ICC Champions Trophy

(known as the "ICC Knockout" in 1998 and 2000)

*1998: Quarter-Finals
*2000: Quarter-Finals
*2002: Pool Stage
*2004: Runners up
*2006: Pool Stage

ICC World Twenty20

*2007: Super-8 stage (7th place)

England record in Test Matches

Table correct March 9, 2008.

Coaching Staff

*Managing Director England Cricket: Hugh Morris
*Managing Director Cricket Partnerships: Mike Gatting
*Team Manager: Phil Neale
*England Teams Director: Peter Moores
*Batting/Assistant Coach: Andy Flower
*Fast Bowling Coaches: Kevin Shine (senior coach), Ottis Gibson & Stuart Barnes
*Spin Bowling Coaches: David Parsons (senior coach)
*Fielding Coach: (to be appointed as per Schofield Report recommendation)
*Computer Analyst: Mark Garaway
*Chief Medical Officer: Dr. Mark Peirce
*Team Physiotherapist: Kirk Russell
*Team Physiologist: Nigel Stockill
*Team Psychologists: Dr. Steve Bull
*Masseur: Mark Saxby

Eligibility of players

The England cricket team represents England and Wales. However, under ICC regulations ^{[http://www.icc-cricket.com/rules/player_eligibility.pdf]} , players can qualify to play for a country by nationality, place of birth or residence, so (as with any national sports team) some people are eligible to play for more than one team.

ECB regulations ^{[http://static.ecb.co.uk/files/2005-first-class-regulations-and-playing-conditions-regulations-governing-the-qualification-and-registration-of-cricketers-593.pdf]} state that to play for England, a player must be a British or Irish citizen, and have either been born in England or Wales, or have lived in England or Wales for the last four years. This has led to players of many other nationalities becoming eligible to play for England. England have been captained by a Scot, Mike Denness, and four South Africans, Tony Greig, Allan Lamb, Andrew Strauss and Kevin Pietersen. The South African cape coloured Basil D'Oliveira, famously played for England during the apartheid era. In recent times Graeme Hick (Zimbabwe); Andrew Caddick (New Zealand); Geraint Jones (Australia via Papua New Guinea); and Kevin Pietersen (South Africa) have all played for England. Some players have played for another (non Test-playing) country as well as England, such as Gavin Hamilton, who played for Scotland in the 1999 World Cup and later played one Test match for England, while Ed Joyce played for Ireland in the ICC Trophy before making his England ODI debut in June 2006 against his former team.

ee also

* ECB National Academy
* English women's cricket team
* English national cricket captains
* England Cap Numbers

References

External links

* [http://www.ecbtv.co.uk Official ECB Broadband Console]
* [http://www.ecb.co.uk England and Wales Cricket Board]
* [http://www.cricketratings.com/ LG ICC Test and ODI player ratings]
* [http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Records/England/Tests/Test_List.html All Test Matches played by England]
* [http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Records/England/Tests/Career_Batting_by_Player.html Career Batting and Fielding statistics for all England Test Players]
* [http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Records/England/Tests/Career_Bowling_by_Player.html Career Bowling statistics for all England Test Players]