FORMER England captains Nasser Hussain and Alec Stewart might be making bold predictions when they tip Ian Bell to finally come of age in Australia this winter.

The Warwickshire batsman has all the natural ability in the world – but there is something missing that prevents him from realising his potential.

There were glimpses of his star starting to shine when he helped to save a Test match alongside Paul Collingwood in South Africa last winter, but it is those types of performances that we need to see on a more regular basis.

However, a quick look at his stats show how he struggles at the very top level.

He endured a miserable time Down Under in 2006/07 as he crumbled in the face of some fiery sledging from Shane Warne and Co.

In 13 Ashes contests he has averaged 26 while, against another of world cricket’s powerhouses, India, that number drops to 25.

He has failed to score a hundred against those two countries and Sri Lanka, with seven of his 11 Test tons coming against Bangladesh and Pakistan.

At the very top level, talent is not always enough. Mental strength is essential – just ask Graeme Hick and Mark Ramprakash.

They have scored an incredible 76,000 first class runs between them but neither fully got to grips with the demands of international cricket and, in particular, the cauldron of an Ashes series.

Bell is likely to be battling with Eoin Morgan for a place in the top six and it is ironic that the former’s weakness is the latter’s strength.

It is hard to find fault in the technique of Bell whereas Morgan still looks shaky around his offstump in the five-day game. What Bell could do with is the confidence and steely determination of Morgan.

Michael Vaughan emerged as a world-class performer on the 2002- 03 Ashes tour. The only thing stopping Bell from scaling those types of heights is himself.

If those countless fifties can suddenly be turned into big hundreds, Hussain and Stewart could well be proved correct.

Unfortunately, this career take-off might well crash and burn in the Aussie outback.