Atherton: changes will be made | Debate: who's to blame for England debacle? | Bell and Panesar should be dropped | David Gower: Gayle leads from the front | 51? Fifty-blooming-one? | England all out for 51 | England sink to their knees | What the papers say

Ian Bell and Monty Panesar should be dropped from the England squad following the embarrassing defeat to the West Indies yesterday, says Robert Croft.

The former Test spinner also claims that there is too much "matiness" between the two sides, which led to England's downfall.

"I think Bell needs to go," Croft said. "With the greatest respect to him, the form has gone and you cannot just keep playing someone like that. Owais Shah should come in.

"The other one that needs to be looked at is Monty Panesar. I think Graeme Swann should play [instead] because he is bowling better than Monty Panesar - and there are a lot of left-handers in that top order."

England collapsed to 51 all out, the third-lowest total in their history, on the way to an innings-and-23-run defeat at Sabina Park. After Windies pace bowler Jerome Taylor had taken five for 11, Strauss described his team's performance as "unacceptable" in the first Test since his appointment as captain.

Croft was similarly unimpressed. "They looked like a team that lacked a lot of character, the way they just folded," he said. "There is a lot of reverse-swing going on, smart bowling, but I think England have very much under-estimated the West Indies."

As for England's hosts, Croft senses signs of a lasting revival under Chris Gayle after years of failure in Caribbean cricket. "There are a lot of guys out there who seem to have got their strut back," he said. "But it was concerning how England fell apart. I was also concerned to see how "matey" it looked. A lot of matiness going on is not what gets the best out of teams."

In the longer term, the Glamorgan bowler says it is time to bring in a new coach to help bring a tougher edge to the England side. "I think it needs someone from outside to come in with a fresh broom," he said.

Graham Gooch, the former England captain, fears the current team lack direction and believes the Indian Premier League auction was a distraction during the defeats.

"You've got to give massive credit to the West Indies for turning in a fantastic performance on the back of losing 19 of their previous 30 matches," he said. "Having said that, there are a lot of things to concern about English cricket, not least the fact that England haven't got a steady hand on the tiller.

"I don't know how permanent the captaincy appointment is, and they haven't got a permanent coach. It does worry you about the direction they're going in and whether the team are just standing still and not going forward. One of Andrew Strauss' biggest tasks, along with stand-in coach Andy Flowers, is to unify the dressing room."

Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff both landed contracts worth $1.55 million with the IPL last week, and Gooch thinks the auction may have affected their team-mates. "The England team say there has been no distraction with the IPL. But when all these background influences are going on, it's not the best environment to give your best performances," he said. "For Andrew Strauss to say it's hardly been mentioned doesn't seem believable to me. I'm sure the IPL has come into the background in discussions."

Gooch also believes England suffered from a lack of adequate preparation for the Test series in the Caribbean. "It's an issue that comes up every tour," he said. "I always think England teams are undercooked when they go into Test series. They play a couple of matches, but I don't think that's adequate practice for a full-blown Test series. Batsmen need to get runs under their belt, and bowlers need to get their run-ups sorted out and get that rhythm as well."

Clive Lloyd, the former West Indies captain, believes Strauss needs to perform with the bat in order to become an effective leader. "His problem will come if he doesn't make runs, because he will be worrying about that and then worrying about the team," Lloyd said. "When I was captain we used to target the captain. If you can get the captain to fail often you put pressure on him. He's all over the field with his field placing. "How can you marshall your men when you yourself are not doing well? He must go out there and do well with the bat."