Flower stays calm Down Under

Coach Andy Flower does not believe that England need to change their mindset despite the crushing defeat to Australia in the third Ashes Test (England 7/4 to win 4th Test).

England's preparation for the arduous tour Down Under and the way they have carried out their plans have been roundly praised and they reaped the rewards with an easy victory over Ricky Ponting's men in Adelaide in the second Test.

But it all fell apart in Perth, with two woeful batting displays in the face of a much-improved Aussie bowling performance and they now find themselves 1-1 in the series with two Tests to play and the momentum is now firmly with the hosts.

However, Flower refuses to be too downbeat about the situation and will not be pressing the panic button any time soon.

The Zimbabwean tactician still believes that England have put in some excellent work on tour to date and he sees no reason why that should not continue over the remaining two matches.

"The cricket we've played on this tour so far should stand us in good stead," he said. "The one defeat we've had on tour was here in Perth, and it was a bad defeat for us.

"But we are quite comfortable sticking to the principles we've used for the six weeks on this tour so far. They've served us well, and will continue to do so."

One issue for Flower to deal with before the next Test is where to bat Ian Bell, with calls for the in-form Warwickshire man to be sent up the order, at least above Paul Collingwood into fifth spot (Bell 5/1 to be top England run-scorer 4th Test).