July 29th, 2009 by Peter Bevan

Ian Bell will bat at four against Australia in the Ashes 2009 third test, which starts tomorrow.

Ian Bell has come in for Kevin Pietersen in the England team for tomorrow’s third Ashes 2009 test at the Birmingham Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Ian Bell’s home ground.

Ian Bell is ready to play a big part in the Ashes 2009 and improve his record against Australia, which he admits has been playing in the back of his mind. However, he is excited to get the opportunity he did not think would come this summer and is making sure he enjoys the day and not worry about it too much being a big game.

Ian Bell also claimed that there was no better time to be joining the England team as they had been playing really well and their confidence was something to feed off from.

Kevin Pietersen had been ruled out for the rest of the Ashes series with an achilles injury and is backing batsman Ian Bell to improve his Ashes record.

Kevin Pietersen said that being left out of the team would only make Ian Bell stronger and he would make the most out of his opportunity of being back in the team.

Reflecting on his own disappointment of being ruled out for the rest of the Ashes 2009, Kevin Pietersen said he was devasted, heartbroken and gutted but was going to try and stay positive.

Fellow batsman Ravi Bopara says he is not feeling any extra pressure due to Kevin Pietersen’s absence, but is trying to relieve any pressure away from him and is actually feeling comfortable at number three, having played there a few times and has gotten use to it.

It seems the national selector Geoff Miller is confident all-rounder Andrew Flintoff will be fit for tomorrow’s Ashes third test despite his knee injury worries, as no one has been drafted in to cover him in the team.

Andrew Flintoff has been sleeping with a special compression machine on his knee, but Geoff Miller knows the knee has to be monitored on a day-to-day basis.

Freddie Flintoff is confident of playing back-to-back Test matches and intends to do so starting tomorrow.

England captain Andrew Strauss has confirmed Ian Bell will bat at four, saying it would be the least possible disruption to the rest of the team. Ian Bell agrees that a straight swap with Kevin Pietersen makes the most sense.

Andrew Strauss is confident Andrew Flintoff will be fit for Edgbaston, England’s most successful Test match ground, and that England should expect a backlash from Australia who are looking to bring the scores level to 1-1.

Australia captain Ricky Ponting is hoping for a better reception from the crowd at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground as he felt he was subjected to frequent booing during the Ashes second test at London Lord’s Cricket Ground.

Ricky Ponting said he was surprised to hear the heckling especially at London Lord’s Cricket Ground where he expected the crowd to focus more on the game.

Cricket fans can catch the players in action throughout the Ashes 2009 series, with the third test taking place at the Birmingham Edgbaston Cricket Ground (July 30 – August 3).

The fourth test will be at Leeds Headingley Stadium (August 7-11) and the final test will be at the London Oval Cricket Ground (August 20-24).

The Ashes 2009 tickets are available to compare at tixdaq.com