“It was a bit harsh of Boycs [Geoff Boycott],” Nixon said of the former England opener turned commentator’s call for the dismissal of Fletcher. “Duncan will know there’s only so long he can do the job. But it’s imperative Duncan tries to see through his goal to win the World Cup. He knows the England team have underperformed in one-day cricket.”

Brown, the Warwickshire all-rounder who will play for Scotland in the World Cup next year, said that it was “a big call” to suggest Fletcher had reached the end of his tenure. “I don’t think you can question what England have achieved in the last two to three years under Fletcher,” he said.

“Just look at their Test ranking. It appears to me, though, that England have used one-day internationals as a building block for Test cricket. Personally, I don’t think that’s right, but it would have been a management decision taken in concert with the selectors. After building for the future, however, there comes a time when you have to take stock of your current situation.

“Boycott is quite clever and has just asked the question. I’m sure Duncan will be quite keen to answer that criticism, and there’s no better stage than the World Cup. I don’t think it’s a good idea to have one coach for Test matches and another for one-dayers. The coach has to remain constant.”

Stewart pointed to England’s lengthy injury list and lack of depth in the bowling as key factors in England’s present one-day weakness. “However much you prepare as coach, it’s so important that your big players stand up and perform,” he said. “Three didn’t come off on Saturday. Yes, he could have got [Paul] Collingwood in earlier, but was he looking to give [Michael] Yardy as much experience as possible?”

Keith Medlycott, the highly regarded former Surrey coach, declared that he would not be reading too much into Boycott’s comments. “You need to back up your opinions with what’s better,” Medlycott said. “If he’d done that, then I might listen, but even then, now is not the time.”

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