Bell down with stomach infection

Batsman misses training; Anderson dismisses suggestions of rift.

England batsman Ian Bell was forced to miss training yesterday after becoming the latest victim of a stomach bug that has affected several members of the touring party, according to ESPNcricinfo.

Although Bell is expected to resume training soon, his absence will be a big blow to his preparations for the upcoming Test as he has only scored 36 runs at a dismal average of nine during the series, which Pakistan has already won.

Meanwhile, teammate James Anderson has dismissed any suggestion that there was any split between the team’s bowling unit and batsmen, who have been in poor form during the series. Anderson insisted that the team still had confidence in the batsmen.

“The batsmen have been fantastic for us over the last couple of years,” said Anderson. “A lot has been made of two bad games, but we still have confidence in our batsmen. At the end of the day, we lost the game and it reflects on the whole team. We don’t think of it as batters against bowlers.”

Anderson added that England were still motivated to do well in sub-continental conditions.

“We have two more tours in the subcontinent this year,” said Anderson. “We want to stay number one in the world and losing Tests isn’t going to help us achieve that. We’ve got to try to win every Test we possibly can.”

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2^nd, 2012.