The morning after the night before

Hands up if you don't care about this one day series?

After just three games, it's fairly obvious that this contest embodies the very meaning of the word 'anticlimax'. And there's a plethora of reasons as to why public interest in this arduous series is on the wane.

A lack of big names, some dire cricket, September-like weather, an outrageously long schedule and the fact that it directly followed a gripping Test series; you can take your pick from excuses to avoid the action. Injuries to Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff and the absence of Ricky Ponting have robbed the series of some of it's most reputable players meaning that there isn't as much of a pull to the general public as the Test series had.

If there is blame to be had, then a portion of it belongs to the administrators. Whoever decided it would be a good idea to schedule a seven match series ending on the 20th of September needs a change in profession. Ignoring the fact that audience focus would naturally be on the Test series anyway, seven matches is simply far too much. There's no urgency to it - a team could lose the first two games then still win the series (a team more competent that England, that is). I genuinely feel for the beleaguered bunch of players who will see out the series in the cold and bitter reaches of Durham in late September.

The fare on offer so far has been sub-standard. At The Oval and Lords, England bowled with great skill only to see their batsman let them down when chasing a relatively easy total. At The Rose Bowl last night, the batsmen again let them down, this time setting a mediocre score for the Aussies to chase. The games may have looked quite close on paper but the slow scoring and lacklustre fielding on display are deadly ingredients in the recipe for audience killing cricket.

This is all after England were making reasonable progress in the shorter form of the game. Consecutive series wins over the West Indies had manifested a degree of confidence - a confidence that has been rolled away by the combined efforts of Cameron White and Callum Ferguson and co. The powers that be will certainly panic and make widespread changes. Don't be surprised to see the likes of Eoin Morgan and Adil Rashid rudely dismissed from the squad, despite having genuine promise.

The failure of the series so far also points to the apparent decline of the one day game. With the ECB cancelling the domestic 50 over game from next season onwards, it would appear that public for demand is decreasing. And this series so far will have done nothing to re-awaken that interest.

So, frankly, it's a dire contest and not one that people are too concerned about. A 7-0 defeat is never desirable but there won't be too many tears shed if that's the outcome. It may sound harsh but, with players like Owais Shah, Paul Collingwood and Tim Bresnan, England are never going to be a thrilling side. Collingwood typifies the current malaise of the team; slow, a bit boring and unable to deliver when it really matters.

Is there anything else on?