Strauss blames schedule for World Cup ouster
Strauss believes his team’s five months on the road eventually undermined their World Cup hopes.
COLOMBO:
England captain Andrew Strauss believes his team’s five months on the road, which witnessed the emotional high of an Ashes triumph, eventually undermined their World Cup hopes.
England’s rollercoaster tournament ended in a 10-wicket rout by Sri Lanka in the quarter-final with Strauss insisting it was unrealistic to expect success when players were not given a rest. After the Ashes victory, England played a seven-match One-Day International (ODI) series. That was followed by a brief break at home before the World Cup campaign started.
“It’s a huge amount to ask players to go to Australia for three months, into the highest intensity atmosphere for an English team, and then go straight into a World Cup,” said Strauss.
Despite his frustration with the schedule, the England captain admitted that his team came up short in the tournament.
“I think you could cite tiredness, but that would be running away from the issue,” he said.”We haven’t played good cricket.”
England reached the quarter-finals after a topsy-turvy campaign which saw wins over South Africa and West Indies, a tie with India and defeats to Bangladesh and Ireland.
They also saw Kevin Pietersen and Stuart Broad return home through injury and Michael Yardy quit with depression. Strauss said winning the Ashes remained the high point of the winter.
“The Ashes was certainly my proudest moment,” said the captain. “Since then things have been tough. We’ve had injuries and people who’ve lost form. I think we scrapped hard, and showed some fight, but didn’t have enough quality to win this tournament.”
Press slam tour schedule
England’s exit from the World Cup highlighted the folly of the team’s touring schedule and raised doubts about the fate of Andrew Strauss as ODI captain, according to the British press.
“This was a big game, but if they were unable to draw on hitherto admirable reserves of never-say-die spirit, it was largely because most of them were on their last legs,” wrote pundit Martin Johnson.
Sunday Telegraph columnist Steve James felt Alastair Cook should take over the ODI captaincy.
“England have lost captains after the last three World Cups and it would make sense now if Andrew Strauss were to step down,” he wrote.
But he also slammed the game’s administrators for the team’s heavy schedule.
“Simply to fill the coffers of Cricket Australia, and then those of the England and Wales Cricket Board in return,” he wrote.
Former England captain Andrew Flintoff believed that the real problem was systemic.
“It’s all very well former players jumping on the bandwagon and having a go at the current crop but the fact is we’ve been a poor one-day side since 1992,” wrote Flintoff, “We reached the World Cup final 19 years ago but have done nothing since.”
England in world cups after 1992
1996 - Eliminated in the quarter-final
1999 - Eliminated at the group stage
2003 - Eliminated at the group stage
2007 - Eliminated in the Super-Eights
2011 - Eliminated in the quarter-final
Published in The Express Tribune, March 28th, 2011.
England captain Andrew Strauss believes his team’s five months on the road, which witnessed the emotional high of an Ashes triumph, eventually undermined their World Cup hopes.
England’s rollercoaster tournament ended in a 10-wicket rout by Sri Lanka in the quarter-final with Strauss insisting it was unrealistic to expect success when players were not given a rest. After the Ashes victory, England played a seven-match One-Day International (ODI) series. That was followed by a brief break at home before the World Cup campaign started.
“It’s a huge amount to ask players to go to Australia for three months, into the highest intensity atmosphere for an English team, and then go straight into a World Cup,” said Strauss.
Despite his frustration with the schedule, the England captain admitted that his team came up short in the tournament.
“I think you could cite tiredness, but that would be running away from the issue,” he said.”We haven’t played good cricket.”
England reached the quarter-finals after a topsy-turvy campaign which saw wins over South Africa and West Indies, a tie with India and defeats to Bangladesh and Ireland.
They also saw Kevin Pietersen and Stuart Broad return home through injury and Michael Yardy quit with depression. Strauss said winning the Ashes remained the high point of the winter.
“The Ashes was certainly my proudest moment,” said the captain. “Since then things have been tough. We’ve had injuries and people who’ve lost form. I think we scrapped hard, and showed some fight, but didn’t have enough quality to win this tournament.”
Press slam tour schedule
England’s exit from the World Cup highlighted the folly of the team’s touring schedule and raised doubts about the fate of Andrew Strauss as ODI captain, according to the British press.
“This was a big game, but if they were unable to draw on hitherto admirable reserves of never-say-die spirit, it was largely because most of them were on their last legs,” wrote pundit Martin Johnson.
Sunday Telegraph columnist Steve James felt Alastair Cook should take over the ODI captaincy.
“England have lost captains after the last three World Cups and it would make sense now if Andrew Strauss were to step down,” he wrote.
But he also slammed the game’s administrators for the team’s heavy schedule.
“Simply to fill the coffers of Cricket Australia, and then those of the England and Wales Cricket Board in return,” he wrote.
Former England captain Andrew Flintoff believed that the real problem was systemic.
“It’s all very well former players jumping on the bandwagon and having a go at the current crop but the fact is we’ve been a poor one-day side since 1992,” wrote Flintoff, “We reached the World Cup final 19 years ago but have done nothing since.”
England in world cups after 1992
1996 - Eliminated in the quarter-final
1999 - Eliminated at the group stage
2003 - Eliminated at the group stage
2007 - Eliminated in the Super-Eights
2011 - Eliminated in the quarter-final
Published in The Express Tribune, March 28th, 2011.