Cricket World Cup: Injured Morgan replaced by Bopara

England have called Ravi Bopara into their World Cup squad after Eoin Morgan was ruled out with a broken finger.

Morgan missed the seventh and final one-day international against Australia with the injury he first noticed during the fourth game in Adelaide.

England coach Andy Flower said: "Eoin needs to be operated on. It's a serious loss but Ravi Bopara will join us."

Morgan's injury is the latest in a series of problems that have affected England's limited-overs squad.

The bowling division has been worst hit with Graeme Swann(knee/back), Tim Bresnan (calf), Ajmal Shahzad (hamstring), Chris Tremlett (side strain) and all-rounder Paul Collingwood (back) all having flown home early from the Australia tour.

Paceman Stuart Broad was also been sidelined for the entire series due to the stomach injury he suffered during the Ashes series.

Apart from Bresman, all of those names are, however, expected to be fit for the tournament, which starts on 19 February and will be jointly hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

England will open their World Cup campaign against Holland on 22 February without Morgan, who did not feel that the injury to his middle finger on his left hand was anything to worry about at first.

"He injured it in that Adelaide game and didn't think it was serious but it got worse the more he played and practised," added Flower.

"The pain grew worse and therefore the medical team got onto it."

The left-hander is generally regarded as one England's better limited-overs batsmen, however, he did not have the best one-day series in Australia, scoring only 106 runs in six innings, with a top score of 30 as England slumped to a 6-1 defeat.

The 24-year-old has played 61 ODIs, scoring 1,904 runs at an average of 38.08, and at an impressive strike-rate of 81.19, including four centuries.

But Flower insists England's World Cup chances have not been diminished by his withdrawal.

"No-one is irreplaceable," said the 42-year-old. "Ravi Bopara is a very talented and exciting player.

"He will also bring a bit of medium-pace bowling to help out the captain. We're confident the 15 players we've got out there will gel."

Bopara has been in the West Indies with the England Lions but will fly home to join the squad before they travel to sub-continent on 12 February.

The Essex all-rounder has made 54 ODI appearances for England, scoring 1,140 runs at 28.50 with a strike-rate of 73.45, although his top score is 60. With the ball, he has taken 10 wickets at a little over 33 apiece.

"He is going to be a worthy addition to our squad," said England captain Andrew Strauss.

"He hasn't had a chance to play for us recently and we like what he can bring to the game. His bowling and his batting, his ability to clear the ropes in the middle overs."

Strauss went on to admit that the injuries suffered by England had not helped during the one-day series against Australia.

"Having a settled bowling unit has been the basis of our ODI success over the last 18 months and we certainly missed having that in Australia," he stated.

"We believe that when they are all fit our bowling unit is a match for anyone in the world."

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Cricket World Cup: Kolkata not ready for India-England

The International Cricket Council has ruled that Kolkata's Eden Gardens stadium will not be ready in time to host one of its World Cup games.

A new venue is now being sought for the India v England game on 27 February.

However, Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium and the three Sri Lankan venues have all been approved, subject to minor work.

The World Cup, co-hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, begins on 19 February - with Kolkata originally scheduled to host four group games.

However, the ICC decision will be a huge blow to Kolkata as none of the other three games - Ireland v South Africa (15 March), Ireland v Netherlands (18 March) and Kenya v Zimbabwe (20 March) - are anywhere near as prestigious as an India-England encounter.

With five of the 13 venues requiring a final inspection by World Cup tournament director Professor Ratnakar Shetty and the central organising committee (COC), the ICC's report approved Mumbai and the Sri Lankan venues - Colombo's R Premadasa Stadium, Hambantota and Pallekele - subject to minor finishing work to be completed within 14 days.

ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat had announced on 15 January that the five venues were "slightly" behind schedule - with particular concern over Mumbai, venue for the final on 2 April, which like Eden Gardens has undergone major renovation.

Earlier in the week, Sri Lanka's upcoming one-day internationals against West Indies were moved to another Colombo venue, the Sinhalese Sports Club, on ICC advice, to allow work to be carried out.

Sri Lanka Cricket chairman DS de Silva told the BBC that all three venues would be handed over to the ICC on 28 January.

But despite passing the Sri Lankan venues and Mumbai, the ICC inspectors ruled that Eden Gardens would not be ready "within an acceptable time frame".

"Of particular concern was the fact that host venue obligations in relation to cricket operations, media, broadcast and sponsorship facilities were not finalized and/or confirmed by the venue," an ICC statement read.

Indian sport is still smarting from the debacle of last year's Commonwealth Games in Delhi, when several teams threatened to pull out because of unfinished or substandard facilities.

Lorgat explained: "All venues had ample time in which to prepare for World Cup matches.

"We had been understanding and had provided extensions to the deadline dates but unfortunately we are now at a point where we must carefully manage our risks.

"The COC had provided venues with a deadline of 30 November 2010 to complete all construction work and then to be match-ready by 31 December.

"An extension was granted by the ICC for five venues, which were again inspected over the past week. Sadly, Eden Gardens in Kolkata was unable to meet the final deadline date of 25 January.

"Regrettably, Eden Gardens has not made sufficient progress to justify the level of confidence required to confirm that the venue would be ready in good time. This was no easy decision to take and while it is most unfortunate, it is absolutely necessary."

Professor Shetty added: "We will work with the new venue, the tour operators and the ticket distributors to manage the logistical challenges that will surely arise."

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will now consider an alternate venue for the India-England game, which the ICC must approve.

The match is the second World Cup game each side will play, after India face Bangladesh in the opening game in Mirpur on 19 February, and England take on the Netherlands in Nagpur three days later.

Eden Gardens, which held 90,000 before renovation, has staged 22 one-day internationals, including the 1987 World Cup final when Australia beat England.

However, the 1996 World Cup semi-final between India and Sri Lanka was marred by rioting in the crowd, and Sri Lanka were awarded the game by default.