Sports Updates

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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 17.5pt;">Batsman Ian Bell has been named England
Cricketer of the Year for 2013-14.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">A Young player of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>32-year-old, who has played 98 Tests and 146
one-day internationals, scored three centuries and two fifties in England's<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span style="color: black;"><b><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">2013 3-0 home Ashes</span></b></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>win.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">"It's a true honour to get this,"
said Bell, who
made his Test debut in 2004. "Some enormous players have won it."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">England</span><span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;"> captain Charlotte
Edwards, who led her team in back-to-back Ashes series wins against Australia, won
the England Women's Cricketer award.</span></div>
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<span class="openquote"><span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15.5pt;">“</span></span><span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15.5pt;">Since 2009 my cricket
has got better and better<span class="endquote">”</span></span></div>
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<span class="quote-credit"><span style="color: #4f4d4b; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;">Ian Bell</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">Will Rhodes, who led England Under-19s to
third place at the Under-19 World Cup and also made his Yorkshire
first-team debut last summer, won the England Development Programme award.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">Stephen George, a wicketkeeper-batsman from
Paignton in Devon, was named Disability Cricketer of the Year for his part in
the England Deaf Squad's 6-0 series whitewash of South Africa.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">"It has taken a while for me but since
2009 my cricket has got better and better," said Warwickshire right-hander
Bell. "I
was probably guilty of getting good runs at an easy time, but over the last
five years I have started to get runs when it really mattered for the
team."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">Having beaten Australia at home, England were
then<span style="color: black;"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><b><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">resoundingly beaten 5-0</span></b></span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>when the teams met again down under
and Bell, who made two fifties in that series at an average of 26, admitted the
schedule was punishing.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">"Ten Ashes Test matches on the bounce is
the hardest period of cricket I've ever played," he said. "Test
cricket is hard enough but I think Ashes cricket is that next level up, the
intensity, everything on and off the field is that much more than a normal Test
match.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">"No environment is going to be good when
you're losing. You try and do what you do best, whether that's take wickets or
score runs, you don't quite know what goes on behind closed doors in meetings.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">"Having been involved in county cricket
over the last two months I think it's as tough as I can remember. So, even how
bad the winter was there is a great opportunity to take this forward and as a
senior player it's an exciting opportunity."</span></div>
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101 Sports: Ian Bell & Charlotte Edwards at last win England Cricketer of the Year

Batsman Ian Bell has been named England Cricketer of the Year for 2013-14. A Young player of 32-year-old, who has played 98 Tests ...