Michael Vaughan's Blog, page 5

Gary Ballance is in a psychological battle to keep his England place

I f you stood square on to the wicket and watched Alastair Cook ���s movements and then did the same to Gary Ballance, you would notice they are very similar. Cook goes right back on to his stumps and does not have a massive press forward, just like Gary. But...

Joe Root shows signs of greatness on first days in England job

T he one thing I don���t want Joe to do is to bat as a captain first. He has to forget he is the captain. He has to be the England No 4 batsman. The hardest thing to do as captain is concentrate on your batting but he managed it...

How England must tackle South Africa's key weapons to win Test series

Count on the old boys

My advice for Joe Root ahead of his first match as England Test captain

J oe Root will be nervous this week and will quickly realise that now he is captain team-mates that have been friends for years will treat him slightly differently.

ECB has pulled off a great broadcast deal but I worry for the future of Test cricket

T his is a great deal for English cricket and cricket fans in this country but the rise in revenue will also lead to a demand from players for a greater slice of the pie .

Will the Champions Trophy final throw up one more upset? I don't think so - the cards are stacked in India's favour

T wo cricketing powerhouses meet at the Oval tomorrow and there will have been many television executives around the world reaching for a glass of bubbly when an India-Pakistan Champions Trophy final was confirmed.

England were not brave enough against Pakistan - they reverted to stereotype at the worst possible time

T his was the worst possible time for England to revert to their bad old ways. I expected them to fly out of the traps and really send a message to Pakistan with the bat after being so brave and fearless against Australia at the weekend.

Where the England vs Pakistan Champions Trophy semi-final will be won and lost

1. Applying the squeeze

Captain's innings from Eoin Morgan builds England's momentum

T he captain controls the culture of a team and Eoin Morgan set the tone superbly for England against Australia.

We have been waiting for a performance like this from England - now send the Aussies home

T his is the kind of day we have been waiting for from this England team. It was a must- win game against a quality team but England produced a high-class performance and have now put down two big markers for this tournament by battering Bangladesh and beating New Zealand...