Ravi Bopara: 'I'm batting as well as I ever have – those changes have worked'

Bopara stakes his claim for South Africa series as Swann shows passion for the one-day game

Ravi Bopara refused to discuss his chances of being included in England's Test side against South Africa later this month, but he sent a clear message to the selectors by claiming to be in the form of his life.

Bopara's 82 underpinned England's batting effort against Australia at The Oval and allowed them to take a 2-0 lead. Victory at Edgbaston on Wednesday will clinch the five-match series with two games to spare. A whitewash would lift England to top spot in the ICC rankings in all three forms of cricket.

Bopara is fighting with Jonny Bairstow and, possibly, a rejuvenated Eoin Morgan for the final batting spot, and his effort here did him no harm at all. "I'm batting as well as I ever have," he said. "The few changes I have made over the last six months have really worked for me.

"This is probably the best side we've had in my time playing one-day internationals. The bowlers are performing well and someone in the top six always gets a big score. We have had an incredible amount of hundreds in recent games and the fielding has been excellent throughout."