England tries out unusual experiment with captains
Source: Agencies |
May 6, 2011, Friday
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ENGLAND has three cricket captains after Alastair Cook was placed in charge of its one-day team yesterday.
The England and Wales Cricket Board already had a separate captain for the Twenty20 side, but said that 26-year-old opener Cook will take over the 50-over team after test captain Andrew Strauss relinquished control.
Strauss, who quit limited-overs cricket to focus on the test side, retains the test leadership. The ECB dropped veteran allrounder Paul Collingwood as Twenty20 captain in favor of pace bowler Stuart Broad.
"It's never been tried before so we're quite excited about the opportunity this provides us," team director Andy Flower said.
"I don't think any side has had three separate captains so it's covering new ground. We do not know 100 percent if it will work or if it will be the most effective system but we will give it a try.
"This could be the most effective use of our resources."
Strauss said that the amount of cricket now played - with lengthy one-day series now customary alongside test matches and Twenty20 increasingly popular - was one of the reasons for the decision to pick multiple captains.
"The thing I'm most excited about with the structure is that it gives each captain the opportunity to come in and add their drive and verve," Strauss said.
Flower said there had been a formal interview process for players interested in the captain roles, with star batsman Kevin Pietersen among those passed over. Pietersen was stripped of the test captaincy in 2009 over a fallout with then coach Peter Moores.
"There was a rigorous interview process and we're very comfortable with the decision we made," Flower said.
Strauss averaged 47.71 at a strike rate of 93.55 in England's seven matches at this year's World Cup, where England reached the quarterfinals despite embarrassing defeats to Ireland and Bangladesh. But Cook has long been discussed as a future test captain and now has the chance to gain experience before taking over the test side from the 34-year-old Strauss.
England's key batsman in the recent Ashes win in Australia with 766 runs in seven innings, Cook led England on tour in Bangladesh last year. But he was omitted from the one-day World Cup squad largely because his one-day scoring rate of 71.38 and average of 33 were not perceived as being strong enough.
England hosts three tests against Sri Lanka before Cook takes charge for the first of five one-day internationals.
The England and Wales Cricket Board already had a separate captain for the Twenty20 side, but said that 26-year-old opener Cook will take over the 50-over team after test captain Andrew Strauss relinquished control.
Strauss, who quit limited-overs cricket to focus on the test side, retains the test leadership. The ECB dropped veteran allrounder Paul Collingwood as Twenty20 captain in favor of pace bowler Stuart Broad.
"It's never been tried before so we're quite excited about the opportunity this provides us," team director Andy Flower said.
"I don't think any side has had three separate captains so it's covering new ground. We do not know 100 percent if it will work or if it will be the most effective system but we will give it a try.
"This could be the most effective use of our resources."
Strauss said that the amount of cricket now played - with lengthy one-day series now customary alongside test matches and Twenty20 increasingly popular - was one of the reasons for the decision to pick multiple captains.
"The thing I'm most excited about with the structure is that it gives each captain the opportunity to come in and add their drive and verve," Strauss said.
Flower said there had been a formal interview process for players interested in the captain roles, with star batsman Kevin Pietersen among those passed over. Pietersen was stripped of the test captaincy in 2009 over a fallout with then coach Peter Moores.
"There was a rigorous interview process and we're very comfortable with the decision we made," Flower said.
Strauss averaged 47.71 at a strike rate of 93.55 in England's seven matches at this year's World Cup, where England reached the quarterfinals despite embarrassing defeats to Ireland and Bangladesh. But Cook has long been discussed as a future test captain and now has the chance to gain experience before taking over the test side from the 34-year-old Strauss.
England's key batsman in the recent Ashes win in Australia with 766 runs in seven innings, Cook led England on tour in Bangladesh last year. But he was omitted from the one-day World Cup squad largely because his one-day scoring rate of 71.38 and average of 33 were not perceived as being strong enough.
England hosts three tests against Sri Lanka before Cook takes charge for the first of five one-day internationals.
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