India v Sri Lanka: don't judge Mahendra Singh Dhoni on World Cup final outcome, says Kapil Dev

Trophy holder: Kapil Dev (middle) is the only Indian captain to win the Cricket World Cup Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Dhoni, having steered India past Pakistan in the semi-finals, is expected to complete the job with victory in Mumbai on Saturday to give the home side a second title to add to Kapil's 1983 breakthrough.

"I will never doubt Dhoni's credentials as a captain irrespective of the result of World Cup final," said Kapil.

"Lots of people believe that it's the ultimate result which will count but I believe otherwise.

"Look at Ricky Ponting. He has won two World Cups and after one bad World up he is out. That's not the way to judge a captain. So I would like that Dhoni not be judged by a win or loss. Instead, let's all wish him the very best."

Arjuna Ranatunga, who captained Sri Lanka to their only World Cup title in 1996, feels that both teams are evenly-matched.

"It will be a 50-50 game. I am slightly worried about our middle-order. The batsmen from No 5 to No 7 (Angelo Mathews, Thilan Samaraweera and Chamara Silva) haven't performed up to the mark. Also Mahela's (Jayawardene) form is a bit of worry for us," Ranatunga said.

"Those who believe that there won't be pressure are wrong. I myself have played a final and I know how it feels out there in the middle."

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Flower promises considered approach

Team director Andy Flower has revealed England will take time to examine the reasons behind their World Cup exit

England flew home from the sub-continent today, 24 hours after suffering a painful 10-wicket defeat to co-hosts Sri Lanka in the quarter-finals.

As is usually the case following a major tournament, many observers been quick to offer their opinions on England’s efforts.

Flower, who always says only what he means and wants to say, knows the value of thought before utterance - and he will wait before he specifies why he thinks the team failed to achieve their goal.

“I don’t want to talk too much about those reasons right now,” he said.

“We came here to win a World Cup and we are now not going to do that.

“To lose out in the quarter-finals, even though we’ve been beaten soundly, is very disappointing - and we didn’t want to go home right now.

“I think it’s best that we travel home, clear our heads and then we can look back on the last few months and review it properly - and probably with a cleaner set of eyes and a clearer mind.”

One issue that will certainly need to be addressed is England’s lack of consistency.

Andrew Strauss’ side produced thrilling comebacks to beat South Africa and West Indies - and also excelled with the bat, for the majority of their innings at least, in a dramatic tie with India.

However, their performances were not nearly as impressive in defeats to Ireland and Bangladesh, while the emphatic nature of Sri Lanka’s triumph in Colombo certainly provided cause for concern.

England also struggled in the one-day series in Australia that followed their historic Ashes victory and Flower added: “We’ve been pretty inconsistent in our limited-overs performances in recent months. We haven’t delivered the skills that are necessary in these sort of conditions.”

Flower admits England did not adopt the correct approach en route to defeat in Colombo. "We were very tentative," said the team director

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“We’ve played some decent stuff, but in the main we’ve not done enough to get in the final weeks of the tournament.

“To be honest, we didn’t deserve to get there - because we haven’t played well enough.”

England were lauded just under a year ago for their meticulous planning and execution of the required skills as they at last won a maiden International Cricket Council trophy, at the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean.

Yet Flower is aware there is work to do if they are to settle upon the ideal formula in 50-over cricket and concedes England played with uncertainty as they exited the tournament.

“They’re different forms of the game, obviously, and the 50-over game is more like a game of chess than the Twenty20,” said the Zimbabwean.

“This match (against Sri Lanka) was a very good example of playing with fear.

“We were very tentative; we had a very poor start, and now we have paid the price for that tentativeness.”

Skipper Strauss, meanwhile, has welcomed the future rescheduling which means that never again will England, or fellow quarter-final losers Australia, be asked to play an Ashes and a World Cup in the same winter.

But he will not be suckered into dressing that up as the reason for another early departure by England from a competition they have still yet to win after 10 attempts.

“It’s a huge amount to ask players to tour Australia for three months, the highest-intensity cricket for an English team, and then go straight into a World Cup without spending any time at home,” he said.

“The scheduling is not good and doesn’t give you the best chance. But that’s not an excuse for not doing well here.

“You’ve still got to go out and play, and each team starts at nought for nought at the beginning of the game.

“But clearly lessons have been learnt, and that cycle is changing. It would have been good if it had changed before this one.”

Watch the latest World Cup video news from the England team on ecb.co.uk

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2011 Cricket World Cup: Ricky Ponting hoping for a 'rebirth' to match Sachin Tendulkar's

 

Demands for Ponting's resignation were louder before his gritty hundred in the quarterfinal loss to Tendulkar's Indian squad, which still ensured Australia's worst World Cup run in two decades but salvaged his own career.

Now the 36-year-old Ponting says he's hopeful of a late-career revival.

"I guess with even making some runs in this last game that I've played and getting that really good feeling back about my batting again, hopefully it might be a bit of a kickstart for a Tendulkar-sort rebirth, if you like," Ponting said.

After admitting his nine year reign as Australian captain could end if the Australian selectors felt it was time to go, Ponting said he had decided the time of his own retirement.

"I'll know the right time that it's time for me to not be playing any more and I haven't found that time just yet," Ponting said.

Ponting strongly hinted on his arrival at Sydney Airport on Sunday that his is considering his future. He appeared to acknowledge that a planned review by Cricket Australia of the Australian team's recent loss of form might take the decision from him and recommend his removal as captain.

"Even though we're out early, it's nice to be home and I'll have the opportunity over the next couple of days to reflect on where things are headed for me and certainly what direction I feel things are heading for the betterment of Australian cricket," Ponting said.

"Every decision I've ever made was always with Cricket Australia's thoughts at the front of my mind. It's always been about putting the team before me.

"The direction of my thoughts will be along those lines the next couple of days."

Ponting has won three World Cups, and was captain in the last two winning campaigns when Australia didn't drop a game. Back-to-back losses to Pakistan and India within six days ended a run of 34-unbeaten World Cup matches for the Aussies.

Ponting has been one of Australia's most successful captains, but recently his record has been slipping — three Ashes series defeats in four series has proved costly to his popularity in Australia. Now Australia will drop off its perch in ODI cricket, too.

Ponting's statistics as a batsman remain impressive — he has 13,288 runs in 359 ODIs dating back to 1995, although his 104 against India at Ahmedabad last week was his first century in 13 months. He also has 12,363 runs in test cricket, with 39 hundreds.

In terms of centuries and runs scored in international cricket he's second only to Indian great Tendulkar, who is aiming for his 100th international century when India play Pakistan in the semifinals on Wednesday.

Tendulkar, who will turn 38 next month, has more than 18,000 runs in ODIs and 14,692 in tests in a career that dates back to 1989.

But what Ponting said about a Tendulkar-like rebirth might indicate a shift in his position as captain. Tendulkar had a wretched run as India captain from 1996-2000, winning only 23 of 73 ODIs in that span and four of 25 test matches. Since relinquishing those duties, Tendulkar's form and confidence have flourished.

That could be playing on Ponting's mind, particularly after acknowledged the increasingly virulent debate in Australia about his future.

"The last couple of weeks there's been a few differing opinions out in the papers and out in the news about me and my future as leading the team," he said. "It's been nice the last week especially to hear some endorsement from Cricket Australia and the selectors about that position.

"But that's where the next few days are crucial to me as well. I have to really decide what I think is right for me and the team going forward.

"I still think I've got a lot to offer the team as a player and a leader."

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Cricket World Cup 2011: India v Pakistan in Mohali can suit Shahid Afridi's side

The explanation comes in two words: Bindra Sahib. The power behind the throne of world cricket and Indian cricket is Inderjit Singh Bindra, who created the Mohali stadium as his personal fiefdom after his family – Sikh – had been forced to flee Lahore at Partition.

But while Bindra Sahib will deftly sort out the enormous quantity of VIPs who will descend on his stadium on the outskirts of Chandigarh, not to mention that subcontinental speciality the VVIPs, the ground will not be so suited to the Indian team – because it is the most northerly in this World Cup, and the least Asian.

Mohali is the only pitch in Asia which regularly has some pace and bounce, although Chennai does occasionally. If Australia had won their quarter-final at the predictable slow turner in Ahmedabad, Mohali would have suited their pace attack. Not India though, as they have three good spinners, but not three good seamers.

Zaheer Khan is head and shoulders above India’s other pace bowlers. Munaf Patel has all the physical equipment to be a second Glenn McGrath but is psychologically fragile, as Brad Haddin was the latest to prove when he went after Patel in the quarter-final. Ashish Nehra is erratic – and cannot bat, like Patel – while Sreesanth skids on to the bat.

Fortunately for the hosts, Pakistan have exactly the same mixture: three good spinners but not three good seamers. Umar Gul stands out, like Zaheer; otherwise all they have for pace – in the absence of the banned Mohammed

Aamer and Mohammed Asif – is Shoaib Akhtar, who has finally announced his retirement and whose last over went for 28; Wahab Riaz, a pacey but wayward left-armer; and a novice left-armer Junaid Khan who hasn’t played an international.

Assuming this weakness in one team cancels out the weakness in the other, India’s superior batting should prevail. They have some great batsmen, Pakistan good batsmen. But the number of Indian supporters in the ground will be limited, and – being close in every sense to Lahore - it is the nearest Pakistan will come to a home match in a long while.

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Cricket World Cup 2011: Paul Collingwood 'felt a bit guilty' over Michael Yardy's depression

Collingwood and his team-mates will return home tomorrow [Monday] after their World Cup exit to Sri Lanka, five months after they departed for Australia.

A punishing run of fixtures saw England's players lose form and fitness as the winter went on, while Michael Yardy returned home from the World Cup after struggling to battle depression.

Collingword, who did not feature for England after their defeat to Bangladesh on March 11, said: "people see the luxury lifestyle, playing sport for a living, but they don't see the dark hours stewing and thinking of family, being under constant scrutiny.

"Ten years ago, our captain, Nasser Hussain, said we were playing too much. It frustrates me that we seem to be doing even more. It's time to address these issues."

Yardy is the second England player to be forced out of competition after struggling with depression. Marcus Trescothick retired from international cricket in 2008 owing to the illness.

Collingwood told the Mail on Sunday: "The sad news of Mike Yardy's depression came as a complete shock. I didn't have an inkling, nor did I when the same thing happened to Marcus Trescothick, which shows how hard they must have tried to hide their problems.

"As someone who is close to this team, to not realise what he was going through, I feel a bit guilty that I didn't pick it up."

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England player ratings

Andrew Strauss 4 A sad end to a partly glorious winter. He missed a pull at a quicker ball - then the odd trick in the field. But a statesmanlike leader to the last.

Ian Bell 5 If England were to post 250, Bell had to play a big innings, as the best England batsman at using his feet, not get himself out for a pretty 25.

Jonathan Trott 8 As normal, he made the most of himself, not sure enough against spin to hit boundaries but taking the offered singles and keeping England in the game.

Ravi Bopara 5 Ended the last World Cup at number 3, and this one at 4. He has gone up and down the order and, ultimately, slightly backwards.

Eoin Morgan 7 Passed 2000 runs in ODIs, and supplied some acceleration to help Trott, without being his most fluent here - or all winter.

Matt Prior 5 A sprightly flourish at the death was much more his cup of tea than opening and playing a long innings, but out-kept by Sangakkara.

Luke Wright 4 No impact with the bat — when he had little opportunity - or with the ball, when he had plenty. County cricket is a far cry from Asia.

Tim Bresnan 5 The senior seamer yesterday, even though he is relatively inexperienced in one-day internationals. Fielded better than most.

James Tredwell 5 Finer players of spin than the West Indian batsmen went after him, but England wouldn’t have reached the quarters without him.

Graeme Swann 5 No scoreboard pressure — and like almost every spinner that has bowled in Sri Lanka except one (Murali), he found the pitch impossibly slow.

Chris Tremlett 4 Got a game because James Anderson, according to Strauss, is 'pretty burnt out.’ Not much of a reason really.

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Alec Stewart: Too much change at the last minute

England's rollercoaster ride in the World Cup is finally over after being dumped out of the tournament by an excellent Sri Lanka side.

Sri Lanka showed England exactly how to play on the slow, low pitch which favoured the home side as they sprinted to an emphatic 10-wicket win.

The hosts played with a no-fear attitude - happy to open the bowling with a part-time spinner in Dilshan and then take the attack to England's bowlers from the outset with the bat.

Sri Lanka were prepared to take calculated risks whereas I felt England were always trying to just stay in the contest and played in a very conservative manner.

Jonathan Trott's 86 was a well constructed innings but at no stage did he - or any of the other batsmen - try to unsettle the Sri Lankan spinners by using their feet to put them under pressure.

Calculated gambles are not, and never have been, in England's make-up and this is a big reason why we are not one of the very best sides.

England's total of 229 was at least 25 runs light of a par score and once Dilshan and Tharanga had overcome the first 10 overs without any trouble Sri Lanka were always going to maintain their record of never having lost to England in the knockout stage of a competition.

Sri Lanka will be starting to believe that winning the Cup is a distinct possibility so long as they can overcome New Zealand in the semi-final on Tuesday.

England will be returning home after a marathon winter knowing that they still have a long way to go in this form of the game.

Inconsistent individual performances, along with injuries and illness to key players, certainly didn't help the cause.

Losing two of England's potential match winners in Kevin Pietersen and Stuart Broad was a hammer blow but when the dust settles Andrew Strauss and coach Andy Flower will know that they did not deserve any better than a quarter-final spot.

After the brilliant Test performances in Australia in regaining the Ashes false expectations were placed on the team in the 50-over format. The attention to detail and execution of every plan meant the Ashes winning side out-played Australia but unfortunately in the shorter version of the game it is still too hit and miss.

Selections and roles of individual players leading into and during the World Cup smacked of confusion and this policy was taken on to the field.

For example, Steve Davies was seen as the man to keep wicket and open the batting yet a couple of weeks before the squad headed off to the sub-continent he was jettisoned for Matt Prior.

Then, by the opening game, we see Pietersen going in first with Prior dropping down the order as he was deemed not good enough for the role.

Yet as soon as KP goes home Prior returns to the top before being replaced yesterday by Ian Bell - confused!!!

I accept players have to be flexible and react to every situation but why all these last-minute changes?

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The ridiculous winter schedule meant that Strauss and his squad were not given the best chance of becoming the first England side to win the 50-over World Cup.

Both the ECB and ICC need to take a good hard look at the itineraries that they are forcing on today's cricketers.

The World Cup is meant to be the pinnacle of the one-day game, yet too many of the players arrived on the sub-continent physically and mentally xhausted.

Until common sense prevails and less greedy administrators run the game more players will find it difficult to perform at their highest levels while runnin the risk of suffering along similar lines to Mike Yardy who returned home with depression.

This is in no way an excuse on behalf of the England cricket team - it is a fact that needs to be addressed immediately.

WORLD CUP WOES

1975: Semi-finals, lost by four wkts to Australia

1979: Final, lost by 92 runs to West Indies

1983: Semi-finals, lost by six wkts to India

1987: Final, lost by seven runs to Australia

1992: Final, lost by 22 runs to Pakistan

1996: Quarter-final, lost by five wkts to Sri Lanka

1999: Group stages, failed to progress

2003: Group stages, failed to progress

2007: Super Eight, failed to progress

2011: Quarter-finals, lost to Sri Lanka by 10 wkts

Follow Daily Mirror cricket correspondent Dean Wilson on Twitter at CricketMirror

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Cricket World Cup 2011: Andrew Strauss must relinquish England one-day captaincy after Sri Lanka calamity

England can at last return home with no complaints. They lost to Ireland and Bangladesh after all. They were extremely fortunate not to have been reacquainting themselves with their much-missed home comforts some time ago.
The drawing board will doubtless be revisited yet again. England have lost captains after the last three World Cups (Alec Stewart in 1999, Nasser Hussain in 2003 and Michael Vaughan in 2007) and it would make sense now if Andrew Strauss were to step down as one-day skipper. It is a natural staging post.
To call for Strauss’s resignation should in no way be seen as a slight upon the job he has done. Considering the mess he inherited after the Kevin Pietersen/Peter Moores imbroglio in early 2009, Strauss has performed admirably. He has worked hard in stretching his own batting to its outer limits of positivity in attempting to lead a braver approach that began at the Champions Trophy in South Africa later that year. As justification he played the innings of his one-day life (158) in the tie with India in this tournament.
So it was disappointing, as well as a little unfitting, that his innings of just five from 19 balls on Saturday was so slow and stuttering, stifled by the clever Sri Lankan ploy of using the off-spin of Tillakaratne Dilshan to open, Strauss’s mind filled by thoughts of falling in the deep in the first over of the match to South Africa’s left-arm spinner Robin Peterson earlier in the tournament. The skipper had been straitjacketed, and it was a restraint from which England’s innings never wriggled.
There were rumours a fortnight ago that Strauss was considering stepping down. Quite naturally they were strongly rebuffed, but it is my understanding that they were not without credence. It is time to move on.
Strauss must, and of course will, continue as Test captain. And he will find the extra rest periods invaluable, just as he did when missing a tour of Bangladesh last March. Alastair Cook deputised then, in both ODIs and Tests, and he should take over now as ODI opener and captain, starting with the match against Sri Lanka at the Oval on June 28. Although the T20 at Bristol three days before could be interesting. Surely Paul Collingwood cannot continue as T20 captain, and Cook would seem a little miscast there. Kevin Pietersen anyone? But England would then have three captains.
England might have been mercilessly thumped on Saturday, but their winter had unravelled long ago, around the time when they should have been basking in Ashes glory and instead were traipsing around Australia playing two T20 internationals and seven one-day internationals. Simply for money. Simply to fill the coffers of Cricket Australia, and then those of the England and Wales Cricket Board in return.
It was around this time that team director Andy Flower decided that his players were running on empty and so needed some respite from the intense, but always carefully planned, training routines that have been the bedrock of some astounding success under his watch. As one significant result England’s fielding fell apart. And never really recovered.
Subsequently Flower has admitted this was a mistake. But it was not his mistake. It was the mistake of the administrators. International cricket should never be like county cricket where the speed on the treadmill has to be constantly altered (never on full blast) to allow for the chaotic schedule. International cricket must be full on, with eyeballs out. Anything less is short-changing the public.
But English cricket has long considered one-day cricket a second-class citizen, the poor relation to Test cricket. Mostly ODI series are, like this winter, tagged onto the fag end of long tours.
There was much joy recently when it was announced that the County Championship is to remain at 16 matches. But tragically missing from that press release was any mention of 50-over cricket. How on earth can we expect to win a 50-over World Cup when we do not play that length of game domestically? When last asked about this, ECB chairman Giles Clarke replied that South Africa, then No 1 in the world, do not play 50 overs domestically. But neither do they win anything. It is time for change.
With six rounds of the CB40 to be played by the end of May this year on pitches that are likely to seam, it is little surprise that England still cannot find an aggressive one-day opener to partner either Strauss or Cook.
The domestic standard is not as high as some think. Last year Matt Prior looked very useful when opening for Sussex (especially in Twenty20). But this winter he has let the England management down.
They made a courageous call to include him ahead of Steven Davies as opener/wicketkeeper, especially as ludicrous International Cricket Council regulations stipulated World Cup squads be confirmed after one match of England’s seven-match ODI series in Australia, but by the end of that series it was already obvious that it was a blunder.
Injuries to Pietersen and Stuart Broad have not helped, nor Samit Patel’s sloth (he has lost weight but Adil Rashid was preferred as replacement for Michael Yardy last week because Rashid has been playing this winter and Patel has not), but England came to rely too much on Jonathan Trott’s batting and, in an increasingly insipid attack, Graeme Swann’s bowling.
Trott still had his critics on Saturday after making 86 from 115 balls, but he is not the problem. He is the tournament’s leading run scorer! His role is clear; to bat through the innings. Others around him have faltered, transfixed by spin and with little idea how to assess a pitch and set a target.
Yet another World Cup calamity. There will be more unless attitudes alter.
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England players fury at Geoff Boycott

Geoff Boycott's insensitive remarks about Mike Yardy have angered the England players.

On hearing of Yardy's battle with depression forcing him home, the 70-year-old Test legend claimed: "He must have been upset with the things I've been saying about him."

The suggestion that Yardy's illness had anything to do with Boycott (inset) or even his poor form was rubbished by Three Lions skipper Andrew Strauss. "We were disappointed with those comments," said Strauss.

"It just shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the issue. To link it in any way to how he has performed in the World Cup is a long way wide of the mark.

"It's a lack of information and a lack of being informed about the situation. I really don't think your cricketing ability or what you have achieved has anything to do with it, ever."

Strauss spoke on behalf of a squad privately seething at Boycott's comments.

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The England captain's sympathy for Yardy was obvious, but he is determined to keep his side focused on the World Cup.

He added: "It is a horrible thing to go through and we are 100 per cent behind him. We know there are ways of managing it, but for the time being it's desperately disappointing for him and for us as a squad.

"It is not difficult for us to focus on this game. It's a one-off event - if we lose, we are on the plane home, if we win, we are in a World Cup semi-final.

"As players, you get used to switching on and off.

"There is a limit to how much you can do as a colleague. I certainly don't think players should be blamed for it. It's just one of those things."

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McKay replaces injured Mills

Left-arm seamer Andy McKay has been called into New Zealand’s World Cup squad as a replacement for the injured Kyle Mills.

Mills strained his left quadricep during the group stage victory over Canada two weeks ago and, after missing yesterday’s quarter-final victory over South Africa, has now been ruled out of the remainder of the tournament.

The decision to call up McKay has been approved by the International Cricket Council’s event technical committee and the 30-year-old is expected to join up with the rest of the squad tomorrow.

McKay has played in 13 one-day internationals and featured regularly on the Black Caps’ recent tour of India.

Mills, meanwhile, is one of three players to have been fined after breaching the ICC’s code of conduct during yesterday’s game in Mirpur.

Although he did not play in the match, Mills was involved in an altercation after entering the field as a drinks carrier following the dismissal of AB de Villiers.

He and New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori engaged in a heated debate with South Africa batsman Francois du Plessis, and the trio have now been punished.

Mills has been fined 120% of his match fee for breaching Article 2.2.4 of the code over “inappropriate and deliberate physical contact between players”, and Article 2.2.11 relating to conduct that is “contrary to the spirit of the game” or “brings the game into disrepute”.

Vettori and Du Plessis will both lose 50% of their match fees for also breaching Article 2.2.4, while the New Zealand skipper will be fined a further 40% of his fee for a Level 1 offence which was “contrary to the spirit of the game” or “brings the game into disrepute”.

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Jamaica top four frustrate Lions

25 March 2011  | By Rob Barnett

England Lions met top-order resistance from Jamaica on day two of their final WICB regional four-day championship match.

Responding to a competitive 358 at Sabina Park, the hosts’ first four all registered half-centuries to usher their side to 259 for four at stumps. Lions left-arm spinner Danny Briggs claimed two wickets to take his competition tally to 26.

The tourists began the day by extending their last-wicket partnership from 37 to 55 with Chris Woakes, who was on 104 overnight, last out for 115 - leaving Nathan Buck unbeaten on eight.

Jamaica openers Simon Jackson and Danza Hyatt made significant inroads into the Lions’ total with a 126-run partnership, ended by Woakes who bowled Hyatt for 59.

Jackson followed to Briggs in the next over for 60 but former and current West Indies batsmen Marlon Samuels and Brendan Nash shared an alliance worth 93.

Briggs snared Samuels for 58 and the Lions again broke through in consecutive overs when Buck dismissed Jamaica captain Tamar Lambert.

However, they could not dislodge Nash, who was unbeaten on 56, with another Windies batsman - Wavell Hinds - for company.

Victory for the Lions will ensure they finish top of the table although they cannot advance to the knockout stages, which are only open to the Caribbean sides.

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No excuses from Strauss

England captain Andrew Strauss offered a frank assessment of his side’s shortcomings after their rollercoaster World Cup campaign ended with a 10-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka in the quarter-finals.

Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga both registered unbeaten centuries as the co-hosts cruised to their target of 230 with more than 10 overs to spare at the R Premadasa Stadium.

England have been involved in a series of thrilling encounters during the competition and produced sensational comebacks to beat South Africa and West Indies during the group stage.

On this occasion, however, they were unable to mount any sort of fightback once Sri Lanka's openers settled into their stride and Strauss was not prepared to make excuses in the post-match presentation.

“Over the course of the tournament our cricket hasn’t been good enough. I think we have got to be honest with ourselves. We haven’t played well enough and that’s why we are going home,” he admitted.

“We just haven’t played with enough quality with either bat or ball. We can’t hide away from that.

“We’ve shown a lot of resolve and spirit and we’ve won some tight games and come through but this was a step too far. Sri Lanka are a very good side, played very well on the day and we weren’t good enough.

“We thought if we took early wickets we would be in with a chance but fair play to Sri Lanka, they played beautifully.

“Both Tharanga and Dilshan were outstanding and we have been thoroughly beaten by a much better side today.”

Jonathan Trott and Eoin Morgan had contributed 86 and 50 respectively to help England recover from 31 for two, but it soon became apparent that a total of 229 for six was some way short of what was required.

Strauss, left, was quick to pay tribute to Upul Tharanga, right, and Tillakaratne Dilshan. "They played beautifully," said the England captain

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“We probably thought it was 30 light and in the end it was probably 50 light if I’m honest,” Strauss added.

“We didn’t get off to a good start with the bat, we did reasonably in the middle but then we weren’t able to accelerate at the end.

“They were able to bowl a lot of dot balls at us. We lost a couple of wickets early and then it was always that consolidation phase where batsmen have to build a platform. We weren’t able to take advantage of that platform in the end.”

Strauss believes England’s tough winter schedule may have played its part in their off-colour showing here, but is wary of that excuse.

“I think you can cite tiredness, but that would be running away from the issue,” he explained.

“We haven’t played good enough cricket at this World Cup, and generally English teams haven’t played well in the sub-continent to compete day in and day out. We’re the latest in a long line of sides - and we need to be better than that.”

England’s skipper will nonetheless look back on 2010/11 with much reason for satisfaction.

“The Ashes was certainly my proudest moment in cricket and probably one of English cricket’s proudest moments for a long time - and no one will ever take that away from us,” he said.

“But since then things have got tough - we’ve had injuries and losses of form to deal with, but we haven’t been good enough in either Australia or this World Cup.”

Strauss remains committed to leading England in one-day internationals and has backed his team-mates to bounce back following a period of rest and recovery.

When asked if he believes he can take the team further in the one-day format, Strauss replied: “Absolutely. I still think I’ve got a lot of cricket left in me, full stop.

“As is always the case at the end of a World Cup you’ve got to sit down and think what the best way forward is.

“Right now we are obviously very disappointed, but we’ll get home, regroup and we’ll come back.”

Watch the latest World Cup video news from the England team on ecb.co.uk

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Shane Warne: let Ricky Ponting be the judge of when he should retire from international cricket with Australia

There are only three options: for him to remain as captain, to resign and continue only as a player, or no more Ricky Ponting.

One thing is certain, Ricky deserves to go out in the manner of his own choosing and I would wait a while for the dust to settle before anyone makes a big decision.

He will want to discuss with the players and the people he respects before coming up with the right answer. Only Ricky Ponting knows what that answer will be.

When you are in the middle of a series or tournament, surrounded by players and in the team environment you never look at it with an outsider’s view. You don’t listen to the media and you don’t think 'this could be my last game’.

The only factors to concentrate on are your own form and game. That is not to say retirement is not at the back of your mind. There are moments when you think about what is the right thing to do and you want to go out on your own terms and on a high. That will be uppermost in Ricky’s thoughts.

He has been around long enough and will have an instinct about what to do. But there are two factors – the heart and mind. If both are saying the same thing then it is easy to make the right decision. If he has conflict, that is when he will need to sit back and take stock to work out what is the best way forward.

As a player your main concern is that you must be good enough to be picked in the team on performance. Then it is about whether you have the energy, drive and patience to put in the work and amount of time required to stay at the top.

One question you need to ask yourself whatever you are doing in life is 'am I enjoying myself?’ If you are not enjoying what you are doing it is time to do something else. If the answer is 'yes’ and it still feels like you can perform and have something to offer then there is no reason to go anywhere.

When you retire as a player who has achieved and been one of the greats like Ricky, it is not easy to let go of something that has been a big part of your life for 15 years. The reason I retired is because the enjoyment stopped. It was not just about playing cricket. It was about time away from family, friends and living a certain lifestyle after 20 years of first-class cricket.

I was not prepared to put in the hours of sponsors’ appearances, scrutiny and judgment or getting up to play day in day out when your body is hurting and sore. I never saw cricket as a job. It was a hobby to me. My most important job was to be the best father I could possibly be to my children. Anyone who plays cricket at any level probably thinks “how can you not enjoy it?”

Playing cricket for Australia should be fun but if it becomes a grind and you don’t want to go to work, because that is the way you suddenly see it, then it is time to do something different.

A lot of great players do not go out on their own terms. That leads to a bit of regret and frustration. But when people go out on top there is satisfaction and the best piece of advice I received when thinking about retirement came from Ian Chappell. His words were “The only hint I will give you is to make sure they say to you 'why are you retiring?’ rather than 'why don’t you retire?’.” Once he said that I thought 'yes I am doing the right thing’.

Ricky’s future is part of a wider debate for Australian cricket. There is a bit of soul searching and honesty to be addressed by every player, selector, coach and Cricket Australia.

There is no disgrace losing to India in India. Their only two defeats in the World Cup were against a Pakistan team on fire and India so there is no shame in the way they played in the sub-continent and we do not need to make rash decisions right now. We can wait until after the short tour of Bangladesh in early April.

But if you put this World Cup performance in context of the Australian summer of losing the Ashes then soon we will have to sit down and have a good chat about the future to work out the best way to regain the number one spot in the world.

Who are the players, leaders, coaching staff to steer the team in the future? There are two ways to go. Don’t change a thing or, after a break, regroup and strive to improve.

Let’s have a chat with the right people and work out not what is best for players, selectors or coaching staff but the right thing for Australian cricket.

Australia have led the world in preparation, processes and domestic cricket. Those things have held Australian cricket in good stead for a long time but nobody stays number one forever. Other teams have just caught up.

Now we have to decide if it is time to inject different people or different tactics. Those are questions that need to be answered but not in a blind panic. Australian cricket must weigh it all up after some time out.

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Winning margin surprises Sangakkara

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara thought England would have provided a sterner test following an astonishing 10-wicket victory in the World Cup quarter-finals in Colombo.

Openers Upul Tharanga and Tillakaratne Dilshan put on a masterclass as they both registered unbeaten centuries to easily overhaul England’s total of 229 for six and set up a last-four clash with New Zealand.

That was despite the co-hosts' profligacy in the field, where Eoin Morgan was reprieved four times - including three drops - en route to a half-century from 55 balls before he was finally caught by Angelo Mathews, coming off the cover rope, off Lasith Malinga.

It mattered little in the grand scheme of things as Sri Lanka bowled a tight line and length to restrict their opponents' scoring opportunities.

Indeed, only Jonathan Trott, who became the tournament’s leading runscorer with 422 following a knock of 86 from 115 balls, could get to grips with an attack boasting three spinners.

Sangakkara thought his side’s victory echoed their triumph against England at Headingley five years ago when Tharanga and Sanath Jayasuriya both hit hundreds in an eight-wicket victory which sealed a 5-0 series success.

Asked if he believed Sri Lanka’s victory would be so comfortable, Sangakkara replied: “Not really. Losing the toss, it was really important that we got off to a great start with the ball and Dilshan did that for us with the new ball. Then he and Upul really got together and reminded us of Headingley a few years back.

"We’ve got to brush up on our fielding and a few other areas but I think the guys really fought hard and they had a lot of pride in the way they played, especially in the sun fielding first.

"All the bowlers hit the marks early on and they just kept up the pressure and made sure that whatever total we chased was a manageable one.

"It’s a fantastic crowd. They have been coming to all of our games and they have supported us right throughout, which is wonderful. All we are trying to do is make them proud and play the best cricket that we can.”

Upul Tharanga soaks up the acclaim of the crowd after hitting a boundary to bring up his century and win the match for Sri Lanka

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Despite the comfortable nature of their victory, Sangakkara still believes England are capable opponents for anyone on their day.

He said: “I think England are still a great side, actually one of the best balanced sides in the tournament. I don’t think it helped them that they have had a few injuries - James Anderson sitting on the bench, Michael Yardy going back - so it’s been a tough tournament for them.

“But they’re filled with top-quality players. They’ve done exceptionally well, and we were very wary of England and what they could do.”

Muttiah Muralitharan was a doubt before the game with a hamstring injury and he appeared in discomfort when bowling his final over, but Sangakkara is confident the veteran off-spinner, who will retire from all forms of international cricket at the end of the tournament, will feature against New Zealand.

Sangakkara said: “He’s pulled up a bit stiff. We’ve got a couple of days for him to recover so I’m sure he will be fit for the next game. If not we’ve got enough cover, the guys are pretty confident and I think everyone is looking to do well.”

The wicketkeeper-batsman is not placing too much stock on Sri Lanka’s 112-run victory over the Black Caps in the group stage, knowing that any complacency will be punished by a resurgent New Zealand team.

He added: "We can’t get too far ahead of ourselves, we’ve got to keep our feet on the ground, put our heads down and concentrate on really brushing up on our basics.

"I think it’s important to be confident, but also realistic. It’s a semi-final, it’s a one-off. Everyone has got the opportunity to do well. They will be very hungry to get into the finals, so are we.

“I thought with the opening partnership we had today, that really inspired the rest of the side. Everyone can’t shine every day - we’ve just got to make sure it’s a good team effort when the semi-finals come along."

Tharanga expressed his delight after the victory at the R Premadasa Stadium.

“I think it was a really good performance from me and Dilshan, so we are very happy,” he said.

“Definitely in games like this, the opening partnership is very important. We’ve got two double-hundred partnerships, which is very good, so we can hopefully continue in the semi-finals.”

Watch the latest World Cup video news from the England team on ecb.co.uk

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