Bell makes appeal for contract deal

Adding a 12th name to their list of contracted players will not be top of the agenda when England's selectors meet at Lord's today.

Duncan Fletcher, Nasser Hussain, David Graveney and Geoff Miller had earmarked 15 players for special treatment, only to be limited to a dozen by the keepers of the purse at headquarters. In the event, they awarded only 11 contracts soon after the winter tour of New Zealand.

The assumption was the list would be completed this week once coach Fletcher had returned from holiday. But now the selectors may keep their options open a little longer.

"If so, we could always award a contract as the summer progresses," said Graveney.

Ian Bell, the 20-year-old Warwickshire batsman who was added to the squad in New Zealand but didn't play a game, is widely regarded as the sort of young player England should be handling with extra care. Indeed, if 15 contracts had been on the table, Bell would already have one.

Whether he is an automatic choice to face Sri Lanka in the summer's first Test at Lord's, which starts a fortnight tomorrow, may not be quite so clear cut.

England have high hopes for Bell, who has been a big success at every level so far. Therefore, when he makes his Test debut, they will want to be in prime form, rather than scratching around for runs.

The next fortnight should reveal what sort of touch Bell is in but, while steering clear of picking a squad too soon, the selectors will at least sift through their list of candidates-today as well as reviewing the winter. They should also consider whether more thought needs to be given to tailoring the contracts to suit individual needs.