Team has the cutting edge

Well done England. We love it when you do well. You've finally got your act together and beaten Australia.

Unfortunately I'm in hospital at the moment recovering from a back operation, nothing to do with my cancer, hence I've not been able to actually watch the two finals while I've been here in South Africa.

This obviously makes it hard for me to say what has changed over the past week or so in winning four matches on the trot. But I'd suggest that new blood and fresh faces have made the difference.

In the past, I've made the point that players got into a comfort zone and some of them needed shaking up. Monty Panesar is good one-day cricketer and has made Ashley Giles seem outdated. The wicketkeeper Paul Nixon has lifted everyone with his spirit and passion, while Ed Joyce has shown his talent with a century and a couple of other decent knocks.

Mal Loye has also brought a different dimension to England's batting with his unusual array of strokes. The two young bowlers, Saj Mahmoud and Liam Plunkett, have done well now they have finally played some cricket. England only won one out of the first seven matches of the tournament, which makes it clear to me that certain players didn't get enough cricket under their belts before the start of the competition.

I've said before that the planning for this tour was pathetic. Plunkett, who bowled well in this one-day tournament, played only one two-day game in seven weeks. It took him several matches to get going.

As for Andrew Flintoff, he has been rejuvenated as a player. Maybe it's because Michael Vaughan has returned and taken a bit of pressure off him. Paul Collingwood has played exceptional cricket and finally the England batsmen have started to score hundreds in one-day cricket.