Profile : Ian Bell
Full Name: Ian Ronald Bell
DOB: 11-04-1982, Coventry, Warwickshire
Specialist: Batsman
Bats: Right Hand Bat
Bowls: Right Arm Medium Seam
Major Teams: Warwickshire
DOB: 11-04-1982, Coventry, Warwickshire
Specialist: Batsman
Bats: Right Hand Bat
Bowls: Right Arm Medium Seam
Major Teams: Warwickshire
Groomed as an England batsman since his teenage years, Ian Bell has all the technical attributes to succeed at the highest level. A sound defensive method and a wide range of shots make him an ideal player to fill a top order slot and there are few more fluent players than Bell when he is in top form.
However, the Warwickshire man struggled to assert himself at international level, having perhaps had his confidence shaken by a mauling from Australia's bowlers in the 2005 Ashes. Voted ICC Emerging player of the year in 2006, Bell then failed to continue his rapid development and was close to being dropped from the Test team early in 2008 after a run of only one century in 35 innings.
Bell answered some critics with a stylish 199 against South Africa at Lord's in July 2008, but the suspicion remained that he fails to produce when the chips are down. A prolonged run as One Day opener and Test number three gave Bell another chance to truly fulfill his immense potential, but the jury remained out. He was dropped from all England teams in the Caribbean in early 2009 but, with Kevin Pietersen injured and Ravi Bopara hopelessly out of form, he returned to the Test side during the 2009 Ashes series and top-scored in the first innings of the decisive fifth Test with a gutsy 72.
The success of Jonathan Trott at number three in the Test lineup forced him down the order and he impressed batting five or six against South Africa and then Bangladesh. A broken foot forced him out of the summer internationals but his late-season form for Warwickshire won him a place on the 2010/11 Ashes tour where he excelled in the number six spot. Now approaching thirty, Bell has matured into the quality batsmen many thought he was destined to be as he has coupled relentlessly heavy-runscoring with his aesthetically pleasing style.
However, the Warwickshire man struggled to assert himself at international level, having perhaps had his confidence shaken by a mauling from Australia's bowlers in the 2005 Ashes. Voted ICC Emerging player of the year in 2006, Bell then failed to continue his rapid development and was close to being dropped from the Test team early in 2008 after a run of only one century in 35 innings.
Bell answered some critics with a stylish 199 against South Africa at Lord's in July 2008, but the suspicion remained that he fails to produce when the chips are down. A prolonged run as One Day opener and Test number three gave Bell another chance to truly fulfill his immense potential, but the jury remained out. He was dropped from all England teams in the Caribbean in early 2009 but, with Kevin Pietersen injured and Ravi Bopara hopelessly out of form, he returned to the Test side during the 2009 Ashes series and top-scored in the first innings of the decisive fifth Test with a gutsy 72.
The success of Jonathan Trott at number three in the Test lineup forced him down the order and he impressed batting five or six against South Africa and then Bangladesh. A broken foot forced him out of the summer internationals but his late-season form for Warwickshire won him a place on the 2010/11 Ashes tour where he excelled in the number six spot. Now approaching thirty, Bell has matured into the quality batsmen many thought he was destined to be as he has coupled relentlessly heavy-runscoring with his aesthetically pleasing style.
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