England's one-day squad are surprised at the decision to abandon 50-over domestic cricket.
Decison to scrap 50-over competition causes surprise
Several members of England's one-day squad have echoed Paul Collingwood's surprise at the decision to abandon 50-over domestic cricket.
Collingwood, England's T20 captain and an integral part of the 50-over ODI line-up, has admitted to concerns over the decision to retain a 40-over county competition instead of the longer format favoured internationally.
The England and Wales Cricket Board made the announcement after a majority of first-class counties voted in favour of the move.
But Owais Shah, Luke Wright and Joe Denly, who have all forged their limited-overs reputation on a variety of 20, 40 and 50-over cricket, conceded the move took them by surprise.
Strange one
"It's a bit of a strange one really considering we are still going to be playing 50-over cricket internationally," Shah said.
"It's a big decision that's been made and we just have to get on with it, but it does seem a little bizarre that we won't be playing 50-over games domestically.
"Trying to prepare for a 50-over international game, it would be nice to play in a 50-over game for your county but so be it, that's life. As players we just have to move on and get on with it."
Denly, who made his ODI debut against Ireland on Thursday, added: "It did surprise me a little because if we are going to play 50-over international cricket then county cricket should really try and mirror that.
"But we'll wait and see how it goes, it may help sides take a positive approach because they have fewer overs to make runs.
"It may cause a problem but if you're playing well enough to be involved in international cricket then you are good enough to adapt."
Basics
Like his team-mates, Sussex all-rounder Wright did not see the decision coming but emphasised that the fundamentals of the game were unlikely to be affected by the 10-over difference.
"It was a surprise because ideally you want to replicate it (international cricket) but I think one-day games, whether they are 40 or 50 overs, have the same basics," Wright said.
"You've got to bowl your yorkers and smack it out of the park at the top of the innings. That's part remains the same, it's just 10 overs shorter so people should still be able to come through."
