For a long time now England's one day side has been pretty average. While the test team looks reasonably good, one never has much confidence when the one dayers arrive.
So it might seem odd then that I felt pretty optimistic as England headed off to India for the 7 game one day series. OK, we were shocking in the Caribbean during the Stanford series but prior to that, in the summer, we had handed a very good South African side a fairly comprehensive beating.
On paper, I find it difficult to understand how we failed to compete. I look at the side and for the first time in a long, long time I see balance and strength in depth in both the bowling and batting departments.
Let's take the bowling first. We have Anderson, Harmison, Flintoff and Broad as our frontliners and then all we need is 10 overs from a combination of Patel, Collingwood, Bopara, Shah and Pietersen.
As for the batting, theoretically we bat deeper than I can remember. Up front we have Shah, Pietersen, Bell, Flintoff, Bopara and Collingwood followed by guys like Patel, Broad, Wright, Prior and Swann who can all definitely hold in a bat. In fact, they're better than that, Patel, Prior and Wright especially, have the ability to be quite destructive when at the crease. In theory the only genuine tail enders would be Anderson and Harmison which means that we bat to number 9.
And yet, we have been completely outplayed in all departments by India. They have treated our bowlers with disdain and their batsmen have amassed huge totals and they've been quick in doing it too.
The last point is key I believe. For so long now, our batters have failed to score at the kind of rate that is required in 50 over cricket. Too often Alistair Cook or Ian Bell fuss about at the top of the order and try to bed in at the expense of scoring quickly. This is all well and good if they are able to carry their bat but if they get out, then all they've succeeded in doing is getting 30 odd from 60 balls, thus slowing the rate right down.
England need to be more agressive. We've got the potential to score quickly, blokes like Flintoff and Pietersen aren't known for their batting patience but for some reason, the potential doesn't materialise and each score card show lots of 30s and 40s with nobody scoring the big tonnes.
So what can England do?
I believe the time has come for Jimmy Anderson to be dropped. He is a wonderful fielder but his batting offers zilch and his bowling remains far too inconsistent for the international scene. We cannot continue to talk about his potential. The guy's been on the scene now for years and has a lot of caps. He is a senior player but too often the batsmen get tucked into him and he proves far too expensive.
Other than that I wouldn't make any big changes in selection. Ravi Bopara can be a great player, Samit Patel looks like a bloke who has a future and Stuart Broad has both the attitude and ability to make it. I think the real problem lies in some of the more experienced players. Whilst Pietersen and Flintoff will never let you down, it's time for the likes of Bell, Prior, Harmison and Collingwood to really deliver match winning performances. Bell is a classic example. He is wonderfully gifted and I have no doubt that he is a truly class player but why does he not deliver the really big scores?
Do we need a change in management? Peter Moores to me seems like a coach and not a manager. When Duncan Fletcher was in charge, he was definitely the boss but now, under Moores, the boss would appear to be Kevin Pietersen.
Who knows what the problem is. I have to admit to being a bit flummoxed. When I look at England on paper I see a good one day team but yet when I watch England on the field, I see an average one.
Does anyone have the answer?
I think I do have the answer and that is quite simply that it is time for a number of England players to step up and become 'senior' players in the way that Flintoff and Pietersen are.
Specifically it is time for Broad and Monty to make that leap to consistent match winners with the ball - the sort that Aus have enjoyed over the last couple of decades.
And the same for Bell and Cook with the bat.
It's time for them to stop hiding in the shadows and become the core of what COULD be an awesome England team capable of not only winning but retaining the ashes.