Bell tells England to attack
January 31, 2012 14:05:46 UK
England's Ian Bell has urged his fellow batsmen to retain an aggressive mindset in the third and final Test against Pakistan, which starts on Friday.
Bell has scored 36 runs in four innings so far in the series, with England having lost the first two Test matches by ten wickets and 72 runs respectively - collapsing to 72 all out in their second innings in the second loss.
This is as important a Test match as any.
Ian Bell
Spinners Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman have done most of the damage for Pakistan, but Bell insists that England need to remain positive in their approach to the 'home' attack.
He said: "It's important we don't lose our confidence and that we continue to play in an aggressive, attacking manner in this form of the game.
"You have to score runs consistently and this unit has done that for some time now. We've had two bad Tests and, of course, people are going to be asking questions - that's to be expected."
Ravi Bopara is an option to replace one of Bell, Kevin Pietersen or Eoin Morgan, with England 2.87 to restore some pride by winning the third Test and 3.25 to secure a draw which would at least stave off the threat of a series whitewash.
If Bell is selected, he has dismissed talk that the final Test means little to his side, with the series already lost.
"We've got a really important last game, we're proud to play for our country and this is as important a Test match as any," Bell added.
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