The secret of Strauss as skipper
Brisbane, Queensland
When in the messy aftermath of the Kevin Pietersen and Peter Moores saga, it was almost by default. He was not only a safe pair of hands, he was the only pair.
Less than two years later, Strauss leads his country into an Ashes series not only in possession of the coveted urn but more heavily fancied to beat Australia on their home patch than any England skipper in almost quarter of a century.
If it is a headline-grabber of a transformation, the man himself is almost the polar opposite. From the first moment he arrived at , fresh from Durham University and Radley College, Strauss has been personified by the virtues of hard work, steady self-improvement and composure under fire.
A young Andrew Strauss at Middlesex in 1998 Photo: 91Èȱ¬
"Back in the late 1990s, I played with Andrew in the first team at Middlesex and then spent long hours with him as coach," remembers , the last England captain to secure the Ashes on enemy territory. You could see the sort of character he was even as a teenager. When he first came into the team, we were more comprehensive school boys rather than public school, so we used to chip away at him about that. But he was very good at dealing with it."
While famously had the initials 'FEC' - 'Future England Captain' - scrawled on his locker, Strauss initially struggled to convince at county level. In his first game in Middlesex colours, a Sunday League match in July 1997, he made only three, bowled by Matthew Fleming. He hit 83 on his first-class debut a year later but his maiden county century did not come for a further two years.
"It's always difficult coming in from school cricket as a young up-and-coming hopeful," says Gatting. "It takes a while to settle into the heavier stuff. Andrew worked very hard on technique and playing at that different level. He was prepared to work very hard at it and do what was needed.
"Importantly, he had a very good grounding at Radley. Their coach, Andy Wagner, did a great job and they gave him a sound understanding of the game. He was always a natural sportsman, too. He was a very good rugby player and had a low golf handicap. From my point of view as coach, it was a pleasure working with someone who had such a good work ethic and who clearly had such a love of cricket."
The young Strauss took particular note of two other men in the dressing-room - skipper and Australian opener .
"Justin was the ideal role model, not only as a fellow left-hander who Andrew could work with but as a great example in how to prepare. Langer took his cricket seriously and had a lot of passion for it. There was always that in Andrew. He was always very competitive, never liked coming second. Every time he played, every time he went in, you could see he was striving to become better."
In his early days as full-time England skipper - on the unsuccessful tour of the West Indies, when he appeared loathe to make attacking declarations - Strauss was sometime criticised for being too cautious and unimaginative. At that stage, the aim was to steady the ship, rather than risk steering it back on to the rocks.
While he has grown a little more adventurous with time, he remains a study in careful composure. Both stoical in defeat and calm in victory. Just as there was no panic after the crushing defeat by Australia at Headingley last summer, so there were no wild celebrations after the .
"The one key thing about Andrew is that he's very level-headed," explains Gatting. "He always had it very firmly in his mind what he wanted to do, how he was going to do it and how he was going to be as a person."
That self-confidence feeds into his displays at the crease. While history has lain heavy on the shoulders of many unsuccessful Ashes skippers, Strauss appears capable of carrying its burden.
"It's an integral part of his success," says Gatting. "He knows who he is. He will set his standards and he's not one to then move from that."
During the 2009 Ashes, Strauss scored 474 runs at an average of 52.66, more than any other player in the series. He also hit 161 as . His overall average with the bat as skipper is 47.34, compared to 41.04 as a humble foot-soldier. This compares favourably with the record of the last England captain to win the Ashes, , who averaged a stellar 50.98 as a mere batsman but only 36.02 while in charge of the side.
"We used to have chats about it, about making sure he does enough for himself, being able to relax and focus on his own game as well as the captaincy," says Gatting. "He can be a very selfless player, always thinking about the team, but sometimes you have to focus on yourself.
Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss leave the field after victory over Australia A on Saturday Photo: AP
"You understand your own game as you get older - and Andrew knows his well enough to know what he has to do. A lot of it is about time management. Work out what you have to do as captain and get there early. Get your own work done and dusted so you can then watch your team. If you need a little more practice, then do it at the end. You have to be calculating."
Strauss has not always found Test cricket easy. Dropped in 2007 for the tour of Sri Lanka, having averaged only 27 over the previous 12 months, the then 30-year-old looked technically troubled. This week, , leading wicket-taker in the 2006/7 Ashes, said he believed the Australian bowlers would target a perceived weakness on the hook and a tendency to put the front foot straight down the pitch rather than following the line of the ball.
While his record against the old enemy at home is good - in 2005, Strauss was the only batsman on either side to score two centuries in the series - it is less impressive down under. In 2006/7, he scored only 247 runs at an average of 24.7 and a highest score of 50. Should he struggle this time, Australia's task in wrestling back the little urn will be made a lot easier.
What will help him, believes Gatting, is the bond formed with coach Andy Flower.
"You've got two people now in charge who are both hard and fair but also passionate about the team doing well," says Gatting. "Andrew is a very good communicator. He's very honest with his players and can be hard on them but he'll be fair. But the coach has to remember that when things are going well the captain needs to be patted on the back, too, and told he does well. The skipper will go round and tell his players they've done well but he needs the same from someone above him."
What then are the particular pressures Strauss can expect as an England skipper in Australia? And what is key to successful captaincy down under?
"The media there will side with the home team and try to make as much of things that happen to the tourists as possible. Andrew will need to keep the side close-knit and then must make sure they don't take too much notice of what is written or said. He will also know that if you do get on top, the Aussie press will get on top of their own team. You can see it in the reaction to Australia's decision to pick a squad of 17 for the first Test. The Aussie media can turn very quickly."
Gatting points out that England have already made a good start down under and thus silenced a lot of the Australian critics. "If England hadn't done so well in the state games, you would have seen a lot more about them in the sports pages," says Gatting. "The charge hasn't begun because the guys have started well. The focus has been on what the Aussie selectors are doing."
And Gatting has these words of wisdom for Strauss and co: "When you get even a small chance of getting on top, hit them hard. Capitalise on your chances and never, ever take your foot off their throats."
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Comment number 1.
At 22nd Nov 2010, No time for questions wrote:A lot of unecessary pressure could be taken off Strauss if Alastair Cook can figure out which end of the bat to hold and Pietersen hits his first 100 in 18 months. I'm not too worried about Strauss scoring runs, more the rest of the top 5. Get that sorted and we'll be competitive. Then it just comes down to nerve.
Can't wait!
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Comment number 2.
At 22nd Nov 2010, jcb211 wrote:Without doubt Strauss will be instrumental in this series. Should he perform with the bat, I expect that one of Trott, Pietersen or Collingwood will tick nicely alongside him. If he loses his wicket early time and again, I don't see Cook having the same calming influence on the middle order (as he never looks totally set -probably due to his questionable foot movements).
I really like his professionalism in the field, on the square and also in his interviews, which are generally candid and straightforward. Flower and Strauss, along with Swann, are the people to thank for making this series competetive - they've set a standard that the other players have been forced to reach themselves, and I can't wait for Wednesday night.
ENGLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Comment number 3.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Vox Populi wrote:Cook, Strauss, Trott, Pietersen, Bell, Collingwood. If we go with 4 bowlers then I think that top six batting should be good enough. With Prior, Broad and Swann these days the tail usually wags as well.
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Comment number 4.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Carior wrote:Great article, so excited for the Ashes.
A lot of the focus is going to be on Strauss and I think its summed up by that final Gatting quote. If the boys get on top of the Aussies they've got to go for the jugular and finish them off because regardless of the perceived weaknesses this of Punters and co this will be a fight to the bitter end.
Huge few months for England and Strauss, I think equally important for AS is his bowling changes, we consistently see Swanny take wickets in his first over, partly in my view because he's brought on at the right time, hopefully Strauss can keep getting those gut calls right, if so we've got one hell of a series coming!
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Comment number 5.
At 22nd Nov 2010, ovalball wrote:Good article Tom.
Incidentally you and Strauss look quite similar. I wonder whether you are related to one another.
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Comment number 6.
At 22nd Nov 2010, AndyPlowright wrote:"During the 2009 Ashes, Strauss scored 474 runs at an average of 52.66, more than any other player in the series. He also hit 161 as England won their first Ashes Test a Lord's in 75 years. His overall average with the bat as skipper is 47.34, compared to 41.04 as a humble foot-soldier. This compares favourably with the record of the last England captain to win the Ashes, Michael Vaughan, who averaged a stellar 50.98 as a mere batsman but only 36.02 while in charge of the side."
It's interesting to compare Vaughan and Strauss as captain. Why the difference in their performance with the bat as captain? There are a number of possible reasons I'd put forward. One would be that Vaughan's injuries meant he was often coming back to Test cricket without a prolonged level of performance. In the same way Flintoff's record was affected by having to play a number of 'rehab Tests', Vaughan suffered in the same way. When Strauss lost form, he had to make his way back into the side focusing purely on batting. Vaughan came back with both captaincy and batting disciplines in his focus. Strauss has been fortunate in that the vast majority of his captaincy has occurred at times when he has been in form and hasn't had the press decrying his lack of form and captaincy at the same time.
For me, Vaughan had the tougher opponents. His debut series as captain was against a good South African side: Strauss got an average Pakistan side to debut against as skipper. Comparing the two players as captain:
For my money, Vaughan took on a stronger Australia side as captain than Strauss did, stronger West Indies sides (Strauss never took on Lara as captain), and marginally stronger South African sides.
One aspect I've often mentioned about Vaughan's captaincy was his superb handling of bowlers. Strauss doesn't seem to have that same level of interaction with his bowlers and this has been shown a few times in his captaincy where England will have a session where they look devoid of ideas in the field. Strauss strikes me as being more conservative than Vaughan. I have no problem with this as each captain must lead in his own way. What it does mean is that the role of the bowling coach has become more important in my opinion than even the Troy Cooley days. David Saker hasn't gotten much mention but I feel he's done a very good job in terms of bringing greater discipline to the seam attack if they aren't getting wickets in unhelpful conditions.
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Comment number 7.
At 22nd Nov 2010, SKG wrote:While Mike Atherton famously had the initials 'FEC' - 'Future England Captain' - scrawled on his locker"
yet another example of poor journalism - i think you will find if you either did any research or read his book that this is not what FEC stood for...
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Comment number 8.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Miles Chapman wrote:I think, under Pietersen, England had the ability to be the greatest test side in the world. I think for any great test side to become "one of the greatest" it needs to be managed by a great (Re: Ponting).
Strauss is a fantastic role model, a high quality player and a very good captain - a great, though? Perhaps not quite...but time will tell. He presented England with a much lower risk option. It's always going to be a case of what might have been...in regards to Pietersen.
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Comment number 9.
At 22nd Nov 2010, 0darroch wrote:SKG is right, if memory serves the E was for "Educated", and the F and the C were....not publishable....
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Comment number 10.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Kapnag wrote:Australians will be fighting for their careers, these are their conditions, their supporters cheering them on and getting stuck into England. A drawn series for England would be a great result I think.
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Comment number 11.
At 22nd Nov 2010, U14663127 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 12.
At 22nd Nov 2010, I like a good hard fact wrote:My goodness, is it still kick a hack week? This is hardly 'yet another example of poor journalism'.
In this context the FEC story as used illustrates the difference between Atherton's early telegraphing for the captaincy and Strauss's process of relatively gradual ascendancy.
It is arguable that NOT mentioning other, materially inconsequential details for the sake of a factoidal anecdote would be 'poorer' journalism. The 'other' reading of FEC has nothing do with this piece does it? Or does it?
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Comment number 13.
At 22nd Nov 2010, jcb211 wrote:papa shango, there is always scope for people to have opinions on players which are at odds with other peoples. that is, of course, the essence of these blogs. However, you can't make the sweeping comment that Swann is just a good county pro when he stands at number 2 in the world. He's better than that, and you make not like him, or Notts, or off-spin bowling, or England or whatever, but do give credit where it is due. Say you think that X or Y might look to get on top of him, but don't do him such a disservice when his stats have been nothing short of phenomenal.
I like a good hard fact wrote:
My goodness, is it still kick a hack week?
haha, very good. "FEC" actualyl was initially reported as Future England Captain, but then Athers conceded it may well have stood for something less encouraging! Either way, I've got to aGREE WITH I like a good hard fact that it served a purpose here. So please carefully climb down here and mingle with the rest of us. Many thanks...
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Comment number 14.
At 22nd Nov 2010, U14663127 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 15.
At 22nd Nov 2010, jcb211 wrote:Aha! Very good. In my opinion they may look to get on top of him, but as other notable players have said, this Australian team don't play off-spin all that well. Combine that with the fact that his off-spin has led him to his current position, I wouldn't say it was average. Indeed, if it is then surely the likes of Harbajhan should be cruising to the Number one bowler in the world spot.
Also, the form of Australia's top 7 is nothing short of woeful as a collective. Although i'm horribly aware that as Australians they are unlikely to capitulate like England teams of late!
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Comment number 16.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Quick_Single wrote:Average off spin - 113 wickets in 24 games at an average of 26.5 and economy under 3 and a strike rate of 54.
Just for context:
S K Warne. 708 wickets at 25.4, economy of 2.65 and strike rate of 57.
M Muralitharan. 800 wickets at 22.7, economy of 2.5 and strike rate of 55.
D Vettori. 339 wickets at 34, economy of 2.63 and strike rate of 77.
H Singh. 376 wickets at 32, economy of 2.8 and strike rate of 68.
Doesn't seem too average to me.
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Comment number 17.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Can71 wrote:Strauss' personality is perfect for England captain. The calmness he shows both on and off the field must surely must be helpful for the more emotional players, such as Pietersen, Broad and Swann. Allowing them the freedom to express themselves without fear of public ridicule.
I get the impression that Ricky Ponting, superb batsman though he is, can be got at, which could possibly undermine the Australian teams spirit.
I think both Strauss and Collingwood (England's Steve Waugh) will have a big series with the bat, and Anderson and Swann could prove vital in the bowling department.
Tight series, England must carry on the momentum they have built so far and go 1 up early. If so then its a 3-1 win. If they dont, its another 4 year wait for a series win down under.
Cant wait for the sleepless nights!! Come on England!
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Comment number 18.
At 22nd Nov 2010, james wrote:Stauss is our key player, along with Swanny. The aussies fear what he can do and he wll relish attacking them. I do agree with an earlier poster that it won't necessarily be our top 5 batsmen who win it.
Cook and Colly are in OK form at best and KP is well out of sorts (if he messes up at Brisbane, Flower wil go with Trott at 3, Colly 4 and Morgan at 5). Prior, Broad and Swann always get us out of trouble or add 100 runs which kills off the game or gets us over the finishing line. The bowlers all bat and the Aussies scored far more 100's than England...yet England won the last Ashes.
I really can't wait....I went to 3 Tests in the 06/07 Ashes....went to the wrong series!
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Comment number 19.
At 22nd Nov 2010, rod_barajas wrote:I can honestly only see one team winning...ENGLAND!
We have the more established, longer and confident batting line up. Our bowlers (with the exception of Finn) are more experienced and we now only need to draw the series to retain the Ashes.
People may point out - frailties in our batting line up (Cook, Colly, KP) but I believe they have the "big match temperament" and all three of those batsmen listed above have scored a hundred down under.
It will be interesting to see how this team will react to being favourites to win a series as we are usually underdogs. I hope we don't see a repeat of the Headingley test where we had the chance to win but choked during the match.
I predict 2-1 England, with Strauss, Bell and Swann as the outstanding performers with Finn having a crucial role (similar to Jones in 2005). I can't wait for Thursday, COME ON ENGLAND!
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Comment number 20.
At 22nd Nov 2010, hudjer wrote:Strauss was immense in 09, especially in that partnership with Trott in the decider.
The 51 all out debacle in the West Indies has almost been forgotten after progress in the last 2 years.
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Comment number 21.
At 22nd Nov 2010, U14663127 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 22.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Steak and Ale Pie wrote:papa shango
As opposed to the battery of world class spinners as Australia's disposal.
Doherty ? A poor man's Ashley Giles.
Smith ? Why o why does he bother with trying to bowl different variations? Essentially he bowls a leg spinner, a flipper and a wrong 'un that are all identical ! A number of year's ago when Robert Croft toured Australia people used to watch his bowling and admire how a man managed to play international cricket bowling straight slow balls. Smith is even worse.
Is Swann as good as Shane Warne ? No. Is Swann as good as Murali ? No. He is however comfortably the best spinner in the world at the moment and arguably the only world class player playing the series (name 1 other player who would get into a World XI on current form ?)
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Comment number 23.
At 22nd Nov 2010, U14663127 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 24.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Steak and Ale Pie wrote:"Thanks for naming 4 spinners who are miles better than Swann. Swann will be dropped by the SCG test as he will crumble."
Your reasonable concerns regarding our seam attack are undermined by slating Swann.
113 wickets in 24 matches isn't a flash in the pan.
I would be surprised if he could maintain such a record in Australia, but in assessing the relative merits of the 2 teams you have tolook at the component parts of the team. 25% of the Australian attack is bobbins. Hilfenhaus, Siddle & Bollinger are decent seamers and as for Johnson, as I have said on a previous message board he swings from Alan Davidson to Jim Davidson at times.
I also have concerns over Jimmy A away from England. I do believe however he is an improved bowler. His control is much improved with far less propensity to serve up the "hit me please" 4 ball every over. I am pretty sure his economy rate is much improved over the last few years. His 5 for in Cape Town (and 8 or 9 in the match I believe) points to his ability to bowl decent spells away from home.
It is too early to comment on Finn. The signs are pretty good. Decent action and gets good bounce. Time will tell but I think he shows much greater potential than the average English trundler.
Can England get 20 wickets in a match this series ? Probably not 5 times but maybe often enough to sneak the series, or at least for 2-2 which I am guessing by your pessimistic comments would constitute a good result.
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Comment number 25.
At 22nd Nov 2010, U14663127 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 26.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Steak and Ale Pie wrote:I'll think you find the match was drawn. South Africa with Steyn (who I hope you can agree is a quality bowler) et al couldn't bowl us out in nigh on 150 overs.
You don't take 114 cheap wickets. Cheap wickets are got against Bangladesh & Zimbabwe neither of whom figure particularly highly on Swann's record.
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Comment number 27.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Steak and Ale Pie wrote:London County comment may be about 10 years out of date. Middx & Surrey have provided very very few England cricketers over last few years.
Cue South Africa 2nd X1 comments as we speak.
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Comment number 28.
At 22nd Nov 2010, U14663127 wrote:All this user's posts have been removed.Why?
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Comment number 29.
At 22nd Nov 2010, smellslikesalmon wrote:Time for KP to sort his form out or he'll be carrying the Guinness and biltong as 12th man.
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Comment number 30.
At 22nd Nov 2010, Tom Fordyce wrote:AndyPlowright - interesting theory re Vaughan's average as skipper. He's in the TMS box for the series - I'll ask him when he arrives...
ovalball - I'll be honest - his forearms are twice the size of mine.
SKG - re the FEC, I agree - the blog was written with the phrase 'at least in one version' in it to reflect the ruder interpretation, but it seems it was cut by the subs before it went up. Well aware of what else we've been told it stood for.
james - agree on Strauss. The Aussies will definitely look to target him from the 'g' of go.
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Comment number 31.
At 23rd Nov 2010, Dan wrote:The secret of Strauss as skipper is his calm demeanour and the respect he demands from his players. In that aspect he reminds me of Michael Vaughan, who I'll always remember as the first England cpatin of my generation to lift the Ashes urn.
For more of my favourite Ashes memories - and to list yours - go to:
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Comment number 32.
At 23rd Nov 2010, rah140 wrote:Good article, Strauss has to score well, that in turn will feed off on the other players who maybe need a big score, i.e. Pietersen. But I think this series will hinge more on our bowling attack. We have shown that on our day we can skittle teams out for ridiculously low numbers when our strike bowlers are firing, just look at the Pakistan team earlier in the year, and the Aussies last year.
I'm looking to Anderson to keep his consistency, Broad to continue to grow and evolve into a figurehead and Swanny to scare them witless!
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Comment number 33.
At 24th Nov 2010, Hitcho wrote:Forders - I'm in Canada (east coast) and will be with you for some late night Ashes sit-ins if you're doing some text commentary stints. The only thing I am really sure about in regards to this series is that there are going to be plenty of twists and turns and "oh christ we've totally blown it" moments swinging back to "hold on, I think we're going to retain the Ashes here!" in true Test cricket style. Looking forward to it - see you online mate!
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Comment number 34.
At 26th Nov 2010, alex wrote:I have read the comments on Andrew Strauss by the 91Èȱ¬ journalists, No one mentioned he was born in South Africa or the time he spent in Australia. what would the England team do without the South African born players? It feels as if the England team playing cricket in recent years is really an international team. What about promoting some of the many 'English born' playing county cricket. Where is the satisfaction in using players from other coutries?
Alex
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