It’s a shame these last two matches have become dead rubbers now but the truth is England just haven’t been at the races for most of this Series.

The various injuries obviously haven’t helped matters but England haven’t really performed at all and have been very guilty of not doing the basics right.

More worrying still, almost no-one is in good form and the ones who aren’t injured look jaded and like they’d rather be elsewhere. And that’s not good for their World Cup chances.

Andrew Strauss was heavily criticised for missing the tour of Bangladesh last year and vowed not to sit out England games in the future but in my opinion he didn’t need to play the whole ODI series. Other than all of the on-field decision-making there’s all the Media stuff and other miscellaneous commitments.

You hardly have a minute to yourself and that wears you down. I know Andrew was on a big high after winning the Test Series and wanted to lead the ODI side as well. He did the right thing by sticking around for it but maybe he could have gone home after the third game when the Series was all but lost.

The same can be said of the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood. I know Colly is desperate to find some form but sometimes a break from cricket with your feet up is the best way of getting yourself out of a slump.

The one guy I’m surprised not to have been given more of a chance is Luke Wright. Unlike Chris Woakes and Steve Finn, Wright is in the World Cup squad. So why is he not playing? I think Luke can consider himself pretty lucky to have selected but if that’s the decision England have made them they need to give him some games so they can work out where he fits into their plans.

His batting is OK but he can’t be in the side just as a batsman and the truth is his bowling hasn’t really improved over the last year or so and remains a little one-paced and predictable. Either way, if England have picked him, they need to play him now rather than throw him in at the deep end at the World Cup after spending the last few weeks carrying the drinks.

As far as this sixth ODI goes, there’s only one way I can see England winning it and that’s by batting first and posting somewhere between 280 and 300. It’s tough batting second at the SCG in a day-nighter because the moisture late on causes the ball to zip through at greater pace.

If you have proper quicks, which Australia do in Brett Lee and Shaun Tait, the short ball can be a lethal weapon and you can find yourself in a position where your top order has been dismissed with not many runs on the board.

If England win the toss and post a big score then they have a chance to pull one back but I can’t see their out-of-form batting line-up chase a big total themselves.

Reproduced with permission from betting.betfair.com. © The Sporting Exchange Limited

Newcastle legend Alan Shearer admits he is “staggered” Andy Carroll was allowed to leave St James’ Park without the club having brought in a suitable replacement.

The former England striker is dismayed the Magpies let the forward leave without recruiting a new front man after 22-year-old Carroll made a record-breaking £35m switch to Liverpool late on transfer deadline day.

Newcastle boss Alan Pardew has admitted he made a number of unsuccessful last-ditch bids for some players on Monday night, including Charles N’Zogbia.

“I’m staggered just like the rest of Newcastle fans,” Shearer told BBC Five Live: “I am surprised at how quickly it came along and it’s an astonishing amount for a young guy with huge potential.

“It’s all right selling your best player, but not getting anyone in to replace him is staggering. People are saying that Liverpool have sold Torres, but they have got two guys in for over £50m to replace him. I just hope Newcastle invest some of the £35m in new players at the end of the season."

He added: “I am disappointed as he is Newcastle’s best player and their best hope of being successful this season and getting a Europe League place. They would have just been happy to avoid relegation at the start of the season but, mainly because of him, they had a chance of a Europa spot."

Shearer believes Carroll with develop into a top player under the stewardship of Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish. The former Blackburn manager brought Shearer to Ewood Park from Southampton for £3.6m in 1992 and the England international went on to score 112 goals in 138 games under the Scottish boss before joining Newcastle for £15m in 1996.

“He is a huge loss, he has carried Newcastle at times this season. There are not many players like him,” said Shearer. “He is big, strong, very good in the air and has a good left foot. You get that ball in the box and there aren’t many that could stop him, but he will be a tremendous asset to Liverpool.

“Having worked with Kenny Dalglish I can tell you he is not only a great man, but a great manager. If anyone can get the best out of him then Kenny will."

He added: “To work with one of the greatest football figures of the last two decades, I know he will learn the tricks of the trade from him and improve.”

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE, 1 FEBRUARY 2011

Sunderland

2

Chelsea

4

Nicolas Anelka sparkled for Chelsea as the Blues kept up pace with league leaders Manchester United in thrilling victory at the Stadium of Light.

Phil Bardsley’s early long-range effort gave the home side the lead before Frank Lampard equalised from the spot 10 minutes later.

Anelka, who was instrumental throughout showing great poise and awareness on the ball, then created Salomon Kalou’s first-half goal with a sublimely weighted pass but Kieron Richardson equalised for Steve Bruce’s side just three minutes later.

Captain John Terry then put the visitors ahead on the hour-mark and Anelka then sealed the match deep into added time with a deft finish past Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon.

The match began at a frenetic pace and just four minutes in former Manchester United right-back Phil Bardsley was afforded time and space on the right wing before he jinxed past the stationary Jon Obi Mikel and rifled a low shot past Petr Čech in the Chelsea goal.

It sparked an immediate reaction from the reigning Premier League champions. John Terry had a penalty claim denied by referee Mark Halsey and Frank Lampard flashed a shot wide of Gordon’s goal moments later.

Terry, who was frustrated by Halsey’s denial of a spot-kick, was appeased when Ahmed Al-Muhammadi’s clumsy challenge on Ashley Cole resulted in a chance for Lampard to equalise from the spot.

The 32-year-old confidently dispatched the penalty to level matters but the match continued as an end-to-end affair and the fans were afforded little time to gather breath before Kalou’s strike propelled Chelsea into a 2-1 lead after a frenzied 22 minutes.

In seasons past the Blues may have taken control of proceedings and ground out a victory but a clumsy foul by Branislav Ivanović on the edge of Čech’s area just four minutes later resulted in a promising set-piece opportunity for Sunderland.

Richardson then ingeniously whipped a low shot under the feet of the jumping Chelsea players in the wall and past the motionless Čech.

Sunderland managed to contain their opponents for the remainder of a whirlwind first-half largely thanks to the acrobatics of Gordon, who saved efforts from both Michael Essien and Didier Drogba.

Such was the urgency of Chelsea’s play after the interval that it was Terry who often provided support to the visitor’s attacking moves.

Chelsea began to look increasingly threatening from set pieces and a 48th-minute corner almost resulted in a third for the away side with Gordon making a last-ditch save at the feet of Kalou.

And Minutes later Anelka’s darting run and perfectly timed pass to Terry was palmed wide by the Sunderland goalkeeper but from the ensuing corner the Chelsea captain smashed a left-footed drive into the roof of the net.

Ancelotti’s men showed maturity following their third goal with Sunderland allowed possession but ultimately reduced to tame long-range efforts. Anelka looked dangerous on the counter-attack and his timely run almost resulted in fourth. The French international unselfishly slotted Kalou through on goal but the forward was denied by the woodwork as his shot struck both posts.

Deep into injury time Anelka was rewarded for an industrious performance, a display which reminded Ancelotti that new signing Fernando Torres won’t be an automatic choice if the Frenchman remains in such prolific form.

Substitute Florent Malouda broke to the by-line and crossed to Anelka, who produced a delicate finish to seal three points.

Premier League table snapshot

The dust has settled on Andy Murray’s defeat in the Australian Open final but people are still attacking, assessing and doubting.

The manner of Sunday’s defeat was more disappointing than the result itself. If Murray had lost in a closely-fought encounter it is clear he would have received more sympathy.

But the Scot looked lethargic, gloomy and at times adolescent during his 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 thrashing at the hands of third seed Novak Djokovic.

Former world No1 and seven time Grand Slam champion Max Wilander summed up the majority of opinion on his blog: "Andy Murray, grow up. Mom, lay down the rules.

“Stop swearing at yourself and all of us. When will chair umpire wake up and explain to Andy this is not “cool” and you better stop or be punished. We don’t need this…so put a smile on your face and suck it up."

Looking past his lacklustre performance in the final, Murray had a superb tournament when others fell way short of expectations. Fourth seed Robin Soderling lost to teenager Alexandr Dolgopolov, for example, but Murray thrashed him in the quarter-finals.

The next step in the career of 23-year-old Murray is crucial but for those criticising him, reminding everybody that he's yet to win a set in a Grand Slam final, heaping more pressure on those young shoulders and claiming his best chances of winning a Major are over should take a closer look at the facts.

Take two greats of the game Ivan Lendl and Andre Agassi as examples. Lendl lost four Grand Slam finals before winning his first in 1984, three years after his first final. Similarly, Andre Agassi lost three finals before winning Wimbledon in 1992.

Interestingly, rumours are circulating that Ivan Lendl's long-time coach Tony Roche has put himself in the running to take Murray's game to the next level. The Australian coached Federer for a stint at the peak of his dominance in the mid-00s and has reportedly contacted the Murray camp over a possible role.

Murray clearly likes to be in charge and have a big team around him but one can’t help but think he needs a leader – someone on hand to direct his raw talent and restructure his on-court persona.

Murray's part time arrangement with Alex Corretja is a bizarre one. The Spaniard didn't even make the trip to Australia and there is surely something wrong when your coach doesn't attend the big four.

But despite his performance and coaching matters Murray seemed more upbeat about his defeat than after last year's loss to Federer in Melbourne.

The pressure to end the British wait for a Grand Slam singles title, he insists, isn't affecting him. “I said before the final, it’s not something that I lose sleep over at night,” said the Scot.

“I want to try and win one, of course, but if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. I’m just working as hard as I can. I train very hard. You know, I take tennis very seriously.

“But I love my life away from tennis, as well. That’s why maybe this year, compared with last, I’m very, very happy off the court. I’m enjoying myself. There’s other things to look forward to, too.”

He added: “Anyone who played in three finals would have loved to have won one but I haven’t. I just need to keep working hard and try and do it. But, yeah, I would have preferred to have won one than lost three.”

Murray will hopefully avoid a repeat of last year's dramatic slump in form that followed his Melbourne defeat which took him months to recover from.

The hype surrounding Murray's loss once again emphasises the knee-jerk reactions of too many regarding British hopefuls. The most important thing is that he stays positive, adjusts his game to be more aggressive and finds a permanent coach.

Tim Henman carried the burden of British tennis for over a decade and still doesn't receive the respect he deserves for reaching four Wimbledon semi-finals and No4 in the world.

We know that Murray is by far the best British player since Fred Perry. Other British men including Austin, Lloyd and Rusedski only made a single Grand Slam final – Murray has already reached three at 23.

Federer will only be able to stay at the top for another three to four years maximum – just when Murray will peak- and questions still loom large over Rafael Nadal’s ability to remain injury-free.

So for those who question Murray's Grand Slam chances: look at the record of past champions, look at the facts. Murray has time on his side.