Captain Andrew Strauss has called on his England side to take their winning form away from home after they became the number one Test team in the world,

This winter England face a trip to Dubai to take on Pakistan before travelling to Sri Lanka for a Test series.

Strauss has revealed that he is aware of the challenge that this opposition presents to his team and believes that they have to improve on previous results in the sub-continent to maintain their number one status.

"We've got some very stern challenges ahead this winter in the sub-continent," said the 34-year-old. "That's an area of the world that we still need to improve in, and it's going to be a big challenge for us there.

"It's very different out there in the heat and humidity, so we need to keep adapting our skills. Winning away from home is always more difficult.

"We should be competitive in our conditions against anyone in the world. Away from home is harder, so we're going to have to challenge ourselves to improve away from home."

Next up for England is a one-day international away in Ireland on Thursday.