Bell tolls for England batsmen

England head into the second day on 307 for eight against Australia after failing to add to their paltry one century in the five-match npower series.

"The stat of one hundred in the series so far, that's not good enough - and we probably were in position to make the most of that first innings - but we have 300 on a pitch which looks very dry," said Bell.

Bell fell for 72 and captain Andrew Strauss 55 as the home team allowed a position of 176 for two to deteriorate rapidly.

But with the surface already displaying signs of assistance to the bowlers, Warwickshire batsman Bell was remaining positive about a match England have to win to regain the famous urn.

"It does feel very unusual here at the Oval to see it spinning like that and so dry," added Bell. "This already feels more like a day-three wicket - much more likely to be a result pitch than most here.

"If, after both first innings, we can somehow have a bit of a lead I don't think it will be particularly easy to bat last on. If we can scrap away for a few runs, get a bit of momentum and start off well with the ball this game is really in the balance."

Bell made a successful switch to number three following the omission of Ravi Bopara. But he has not reached three figures in 13 Tests against Australia and only has eight in his 49 career appearances.

"One innings is not going to change people's opinions, but I've been working really hard to make sure it's not just the easy runs I get," Bell said.

"If you're going to be hyper-critical, I need to go on and score hundreds."