Ashes 2013-14: Ian Bell perfect fit to bat at No 3 for England

England have had a tough time in the Ashes 2013-14 series so far. They were outplayed in the first Test and then had key batsman Jonathan Trott fly back home due to a stress-related illness. Just days ahead of the second Test, they need someone to fill in for Trott. Gary Ballance seems to be the batsman in place. But the main issue is who will come in at No 3? Shrikant Shankar thinks that Ian Bell is the perfect fit.

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Jonathan Trott was not having the best of times for the past couple of months. He fared poorly with the bat in the 2013 Ashes series in England. He also did not have the best of times in the first Test of the 2013-14 Ashes series in Australia. Now he is back in England due to a stress-related illness. It has also not helped his situation that some Australian players have made personal comments about him and some sections of the Australian media have not handled the nature of his illness with the kind of sensitivity that is required. All this adds to England’s set of issues in the series.

First and foremost, their mind will be focused on Trott and his teammates will be hoping for a quick recovery. Second, they need to fill in his position in the batting order. There are two things in this as well. They not only have to find a batsman to step in, but also need to see who is appropriate to come in at No 3. They seem to have settled in on Gary Ballance to replace Trott. But is he good enough to replace Trott directly in his position? The answer is probably not. There are just two options then — Joe Root and Ian Bell.

While Root would seem as the ideal candidate, Bell maybe the best bet. Root opened with captain Alastair Cook in the 2013 Ashes series and is a regular opener for Yorkshire in County cricket. But apart from one great innings at Lord’s, Root was left wanting in the rest of the series. He is still not experienced enough in Test cricket to combat a resurgent Australian attack led by the intimidating Mitchell Johnson. That leaves Bell to come in.

Bell was the leading run-scorer in the 2013 Ashes series and also by a distance. He had a disappointing first Test at the Gabba, but he will also be the first to admit that. A couple of low-scoring innings is not going to change the fact that he has been in great form over the last few months. He has all the credentials to go higher up the order. England already have a newbie in Michael Carberry opening the innings. So, they will need a solid and experienced batsman in at No 3.

It can so happen that England are two down in the first two deliveries and Bell is back in the dressing room. Then people will say that now is when Bell is needed in the proper middle-order to help England rebuild. But he can get out even then and there will be no one left to rebuild anything. That is the beauty about cricket. Nothing is certain. But going by numbers and experience, Bell should bat at No 3 and if it clicks, then the Australian fielders will be chasing leather for a long time. Root can then slot in at No 5 and maybe Ballance will come in at No 6.

Australia have the momentum going into the second Test n Adelaide, but do not count England out so quickly. If their top four or five get settled at the Adelaide Oval wicket, expect some big runs like in the 2010-11 series at the same venue. Despite not being in great form, Trott will be missed; but with Bell, England have someone to carry them at the top of the order. Plus he has also thrown shown interest in batting higher up in the order. He is willing to bat at No 3, so, that means he is eager and that is a positive sign for England. They should not ponder too much about this. i.e. if they have still not decided yet, which is unlikely. Bell is the perfect fit for England to bat at No 3 position.

(Shrikant Shankar is a writer/reporter at CricketCountry.com. Previously he has done audio commentary for various matches involving India, Indian Premier League and Champions League Twenty20 for ESPNSTAR.com. You can follow him on Twitter @Shrikant_23)