England step up Ashes preparation

Andy Flower and his coaching staff are gearing up for the Ashes after England's ICC World Twenty20 exit yesterday

England are aiming to take advantage of their early exit from the ICC World Twenty20 tournament by naming an extended squad to take part in a lengthy build-up programme for the Ashes.

As England's players departed their Kensington hotel this morning following the disappointing defeat to West Indies - ironically to be replaced by Australia's Test squad - the planning ahead for this summer's crunch series had already begun.

Coach Andy Flower remains upbeat about England's future following their rollercoaster World Twenty20 campaign and believes they are a "dangerous side" in all formats of the game.

But before the dust had even settled on their disappointing Duckworth/Lewis exit, Flower began preparations for their assault on the Ashes and faces meetings with his fellow selectors to decide on a training squad to prepare for the challenge of facing Australia.

That squad is expected to meet for a couple of get-togethers at the National Performance Centre in Loughborough before moving onto a training camp in Birmingham prior to their three-day match against Warwickshire starting on July 1.

"We're picking a squad and we'll be getting together for a couple of team-building sessions prior to the Warwickshire game," explained Flower. "The squad we'll initially announce will be larger than the 12 or 13 for the first Test."

That initial squad is expected to include all-rounder Andrew Flintoff will join up with England again for the first time since having knee surgery at the start of the summer.

"It was very good news to see him back for Lancashire and bowling well," said Flower.

"I think he has another game now, so getting some first-class cricket under his belt is very important for his own readiness for the Ashes - if he's fit he's a shoo-in."

Leg-spinning all-rounder Adil Rashid's World Twenty20 performances have been a great encouragement to Flower

The selectors will trim down that squad to around 13 names, who will travel to Cardiff ready for the opening Ashes Test starting on July 8, by which time England hope to reap the rewards for their thorough preparation programme.

Flower is already confident the benefits of spending time together during the World Twenty20 can be taken into the Ashes series having shown the good and bad side of their potential.

"I think our Twenty20 cricket has got better in this tournament," said Flower. "To beat Pakistan under pressure when we had to and India when we had to were very good performances, so yes we have learnt a lot and it is a pity we have not made it through to the semis.

"I think we're ranked fifth in Tests because that is where we deserve to be at the moment. The results are there in black and white, but it doesn't mean we can't beat any side at any time.

"We're a very dangerous side and I think we've seen evidence of that in this Twenty20 tournament and I think in Test cricket the same is the case - just because you're ranked somewhere doesn't mean you can't win games."

England were not able to lift a major one-day trophy this week but Flower remains upbeat as the Ashes approaches.

He is particularly positive about the bright future which lies ahead for 20-year-old leg-spinning all-rounder Adil Rashid.

“I think Adil was one of the very positive things to come out of this tournament," said Flower. "The exposure that we've given to Adil will be invaluable to him personally and I think he's grown in confidence.

"We've also learnt a lot about him and we've seen the value of having a leg spinner around. Whether we'll pick three spinners (for the Ashes) I don't know, but we'll be discussing that this week.

"He hasn't played a Test yet so it would be a big ask, but I like him and like his bowling. He's shown great skill and poise and he's learnt a lot in the few games he's played in the Twenty20

"We wanted to expose him in the West Indies (during the winter), but that never materialised, so getting the chance to do so here will have been very good for him."